Page 31 of Whispers in the Dark

“As proud of himself as you are of yourself?” Knowing exactly what he meant, I gazed upward, lifting a hand to graze his cheek.

“You didn’t have to do any of this,” I replied softly. “But I appreciate that you did. I think it’s a very nice tree and you are a very nice man.”

Adrian shook his head. “I’m not a nice man, Brynn. Don’t ever fool yourself into thinking that about me.”

I shrugged. “Too late. I already do.”

21.Adrian

Brynn had no idea the truth in my words, and if I could help it, she never would. It wasn’t as if she actually believed me right now, and I guess with the way I’d been acting around her lately, it made sense for her to think I was simply teasing. Another truth was that I never kidded about anything, even before I had become the monster I now knew myself to be. Before Aria had lost her life at my hands. Before Blair. Before what could be several others I didn’t want to think about at this time.

I needed a distraction more for her than for me. The last thing I needed was for her to pry which was a natural thing to do. After all, I had taken her to dinner then back to my place to decorate a godforsaken Christmas tree. The very sight of it made me want to hurl it off the balcony of my penthouse, but as I’d done with the miniature sized monstrosity in my office, I’d keep it long enough to humor her. As soon as I woke up on Christmas, it would be sent away to become mulch.

“You’ve gotten quiet. Is everything okay?” She asked.

I looked over at her, then gave a slight nod before answering her. “I was thinking about something.”

“You were thinking about how great this tree looks in this space, and how you might want to reconsider your stance on a year-round tree?”

This time, I could tell she was teasing me, but I narrowed my eyes at her. “Absolutely not. If you want to know what I was thinking about, I will tell you.”

I shut up at that moment, and she arched one brow at me. “And that would be?”

I closed the distance between us, and when just a hairsbreadth apart, I grinned down at her upturned face. “On second thought, it might be better to show you.” Before she could say anything in response, I grabbed her throat but didn’t squeeze.

At least not at first. I heard the sharp hitch in her breath the second my long fingers wrapped around her neck. Brynn was very responsive which was something I’d always liked in a masochist. Their pain and pleasure would usually drown out the sound of my own miserable thoughts. Granted, they’d become fewer and farther between in recent weeks, and the only change in my life had been...

“You,” I rasped as I stared down into her eyes.

“What about me?” She asked, her voice somewhat strained as she tried to speak despite my hand cutting off part of her air supply.

“I have no idea what it is that you’ve been doing to me, but it’s time to either reward or punish you for it, Karma.”

Something flared in her eyes at the mention of her username. A soft moan also escaped and I closed my eyes. I was instantly reminded of the different nights we’d spent at Lotus together and even some of the things we’d done in my office.

My cock hardened more than it already was, and I knew I had to have her. Tonight. Now. A feral need to possess her overcame me, and I tightened my grip on her neck at the exact moment mymouth came down on hers. Ever the obedient submissive, her lips parted to allow me entry, and I took it.

My tongue swirled against hers as I drew it into my mouth, nipped down on it, before releasing it. She brought her dainty hands to my arms, gripping them before letting me go, and I knew she was waiting for some instruction. I never had sex without it, except with her. The worst part was that I likely needed it more with her than with anyone else in my entire fucking life. Recognizing that, I tore my mouth from hers, then released my hold on her neck allowing her to suck in large mouthfuls of oxygen.

“Get on your goddamned knees,” I instructed, then watched as she quickly dropped down onto them.

Brynn’s submission was beautiful, and no matter how many times and ways I’d taken her, she was still so damned innocent. Large doe eyes looked up at me for a brief second or two before she dropped her head.

I reached down to tousle some of the dark silk, and found myself wanting nothing more than to wrap it around my wrist as I fucked her. She’d also look damn good on her knees with my cock in her mouth, but I didn’t want that right now. I wanted to be inside of her, but even that would have to wait.

After removing my T-shirt, I spied the desk chair off to the side. I moved over and sat down, steadily watching her as I did so. To Brynn’s credit, she remained in place like a good...

“Good girl, Brynn.”

The voice was my own, but the woman was very different from the one on her knees. Or were they? Blair Carter had tried to change me... To make me something I wasn’t... And as I continued to stare at Brynn, I realized I was changing into someone I didn’t even recognize anymore, and all on my own. Sure, this submissive provided the inspiration, but was that all it was?

Unwilling to even entertain the idea of this being anything more than a genuine sense of caring for a woman who’d been through a lot in recent months, I shut off all thoughts except the ones I needed to focus on. As those took precedence, the need to taste her became overwhelming.

“Come here, Karma,” I instructed, and the moment she went to get onto her feet, I growled. “No, crawl to me.”

Brynn looked over at me, then fell forward onto her hands. I watched as she crawled as instructed, and I smirked when she reached me. From there, I extended one hand out to her which she took, then tugged her onto her feet.

“Take your clothes off for me.”

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