Page 182 of Intense
He shakes his head.
“No. I don’t. I let them think their life is at risk so they fully immerse themselves in the trial. You see, the assholes that send them here, they’re the ones who actually lose their lives. The women, they all get their freedom. A new life. We like to balance the good and the evil in Decadence.”
I close my eyes, trying to compute what he’s telling me. How everything he’s saying is striking me as a reflection of myself. Of how my brain works.
How I try to balance the good and the bad.
“No. I’m not scared of you,” I tell him.
“You should be.”
I sit up straight in my chair. His words slice through me.
“Are there any dark secrets you’d like to tell your husband?” he asks, running a finger along my lips.
I answer in a way to play the game. The lines are blurring, and I’m not sure what is real between us anymore.
And he seems to thrive with the illusion, with bringing out fear.
I have to keep myself safe.
“No. You know me,” I say.
He nods, slowly.
“On to the second trial then, wife.”
A mix of dread and hurt swirls in my stomach.
Perhaps I’ve got this all wrong. Him all wrong.
Chapter 61
FINN
Her first fuck up. Lying to my damn face.
That was a perfect setup for her to come clean, at least to some of her wrongdoings. I admitted who I am.
But, if I’m going to suck the truth out of her and she wants pleasure… Maybe I can start to coax it out of her.
I have to think fast and calculate my next move.
Because the next trial I would have done is pointless.
She’s already branded for me, on her ass. But I have four other rooms to play with. And a new toy I’ve never gotten to use.
“Stand,” I command.
And she does, her eyes never leaving mine. Her blind trust in me is a problem here.
Her failure to see how serious this is.
I unstrap her collar, and the moment I take her hand in mine, electricity shoots up my arm, making me tense.
“Are we done already?” she asks.
“No, love. This is just the beginning.”
