Page 12 of Sweet Nightmares
Jane wrung her hands in her lap, her eyes stinging at the corners, yet still she said nothing. It was easier to avoid wicked men’s wrath if she didn’t provoke them in any way.
“Do you understand me?”
Jane inhaled sharply. “Yes, my lord.”
He nodded, flashing her a look that said,This is too easy, before continuing. “You may have free rein of my realm when you are here, except you may not enter the Shadow Wing.”
“Shadow Wing?”
His glower spoke volumes. “The wing coated in shadows.”
“Right.”
He moved on as if she’d said nothing. “There will be times when I command you with the magic, and you will be incapable of resisting me, and there will be times I simply tell you to do something without the compulsion. I expect you to obey me either way.”
Jane’s eyebrows crinkled together. “So you’ll be testing me?”
“Yes.” His voice was liquid darkness. “I expect that you will never lie to me.” Jane waited to feel the pull of the compulsion—the unbeatable urge to comply, but nothing happened. She felt nothing. “That was a command without the force of magic, yet I expect you to comply regardless.”
He lifted an eyebrow as if challenging her.
“Why not force me always to tell you the truth?” she asked. Trusting her not to lie to him was rather foolish. Of course, shewouldlie to him. Cruel men often didn’t like the truth.
“Because I want you to choose to obey me. Always. Do you understand?”
“Yes. My Lord.” And Jane wasn’t sure if it was a lie or not. She’d rather not lie to him, but if necessary, she absolutely would.
Chapter Five
Age 21.
When Jane made her deal, this was not at all what she expected. She expected pain, torture, and trauma. Not silence, awkward tension, and lingering confusion. After dinner, he escorted her to his bedroom with a massive four-poster bed in it. He left the room to change and then slid under his sheets. No words. No commands, just silence.
Jane stood, her lips slightly parted, staring at him, her heart roaring in her ears. What was she supposed to do? Get in bed, and if she did, would he… How cruel was he going to be? Was he going to be at the level of her husband, or would he be like the debtors—bad but not horrible? Or would he be a new level of brokenness?
She swallowed. There was no way to know which was worse. But she could survive anything.
She already had.
“There are nightgowns in the wardrobe.” Nightmare pointed to the side of the room.
Jane’s fingernails bit at the palm of her hand, and she sucked in a tight breath as she slowly, as if not wanting to wake a sleeping tiger, walked to the wardrobe. She felt his eyes following her every movement.
She selected a nightgown, and then, button by button, she undid first her jacket, then her ruffled undershirt, then her top skirt. It wasn’t until the petticoats and corset that Jane paused. Anxiety stroked the lining of her stomach. His gaze was on her the whole time, as if he were assessing his prize.
What would he do when she got down to her chemise? Would he ask her to take it off?
But he didn’t say a word. Jane untied her petticoats and stepped out of them, then pulled the strings of her corset, loosened and removed it. She had gotten down to her last items of clothing and nothing.
It was infuriatingly silent, so much so that it took on its own life. He was as quiet as a shattered porcelain doll. It was creepy and haunting.
But Jane wouldn’t bend or break. He had made the deal. He had bought her soul and body. Why not show it all to him? Show him what he bought. So, glaring directly into his eyes, Jane slowly, torturously removed one button of her combination chemise. Taunting him.
Her breast fell free, and she slid her drawers down her legs and stepped out of them. Naked, save for her socks and shoes.
He didn’t move, but his intense, midnight gaze took in first her breasts and then her pussy, and finally the curves of her hips and legs. His only reaction was a bob of his Adam’s apple.
Jane couldn’t even tell if he liked what he saw. The man—the god—was unreadable.
