Page 157 of Ignite

It doesn’t vibrate.

It just exists—and it’s all I can feel.

I glance at the timer. One minute left.

I pick up the butt plug next and lube it thoroughly. My throat tightens.

It’s been a while. Not since I saw Conan’s dick and wondered if he’d ever want to do ass play, and if so, how badly that would hurt.

A tear slips free.

I wish I could tell him. I wish he knew what was happening to me. That he could come crashing in, wrapping his arms around me and promising it’s all going to be okay.

Just once more. That’s all I need.

But this pain reminds me what I’m fighting for.

Conan. Bertie. Lily.

So I bend. One hand pulls myself open. The other positions. I exhale slowly and let the plug slip inside, picturing Conan—his Irish lilt coaxing me through it, his voice steady and low, calling me his good girl.

His green eyes, fierce and gentle.

I stand and shift, making sure everything’s in place. Then I re-adjust the bodysuit.

Ten seconds left.

I bolt to the door and yank it open.

“Done,” I whisper.

He enters, silent.

Not a single word.

His footsteps are heavy but unhurried, boots sinking into the wooden floor as he returns to his post in the corner of the room. Watching.

Always watching.

I force my eyes away from him and turn to the bath.

The ice gleams under the overhead light, glittering and sharp. Almost mocking me.

I move toward it, every step slower than the last, as if my body is already grieving what it’s about to endure. The water is full to the brim, surface still, waiting like a predator with teeth made of frost.

The timer on the wall flashes again.

ICE BATH INITIATED: 2:00

It starts the moment I lower my foot over the edge. The sting is instant, like knives slicing open my skin. My gasp echoes too loud into the silence.

I hesitate. Just for a heartbeat.

Then I grip the edges and plunge.

The cold is violent.

It punches the air from my lungs and rips a scream from my throat, muffled behind clenched teeth. My body tries to escape. To thrash, to run, to crawl out of the frost—but I stay.

---