Page 27 of His Property

“Did you have a chance to think about what we discussed?”

She moves her big, bunny-like brown eyes to me, and she touches the ball in her mouth. I force myself not to anxiously look up at the ceiling like I did this morning and debate on taking off the gag. Truth is, I hate that fucking thing. I’d like to hear her voice. Her begging, crying. But Gabi sure as shit wouldn’t.

As long as Mae doesn’t start screaming, it should be fine.

“You want me to take that off?”

She nods.

“I’d love to.” I sit down on the bed beside her and put my hand on her back, just above the sheet. I trail a path to her shoulder with my fingertips, and she shudders. “But I have a splitting headache, so I need you to first promise me you won’t scream. If you do, I’ll get angry. You don’t want me to get angry, do you sweetheart?”

She leans away from me, but I grip her shoulder to keep her close. She closes her eyes and shakes her head.

“Do you promise you’ll be quiet?”

She nods.

I pet her hair, breathing in her natural scent, and now it’s my turn to shiver. Clearing my throat, I take the key out of my pocket and remove the gag.

Mae rubs her sore jaw and clenches her eyes shut like she’s in pain.

“Better?”

She doesn’t respond, and I roam my eyes over the bed. “Now where’s that signed contract at?”

Mae sits up straighter and rests her hands in her lap. She doesn’t turn to look at me, but there’s a clear shift in her composure. She’s trying to be brave.

I don’t like that.

She leans over the bed and pulls the sheet of paper from beneath the pillow. She hands it to me, and I take it slowly from her hands, preparing myself for the frustration I can already feel coming. I shove it down as much as I can so it doesn’t turn to pure anger.

I study the piece of paper, specifically the handwritten lines along the bottom of it.

“I made a few amendments,” she says, her voice annoyingly even. She’s quaking inside, I’m sure, but just the fact that she can muster this courage pisses me off. She has noideawho I am. She’s as naive as my fucking sister.

“I see,” I say, low and slow. My fist clenches around the contract, wadding up a corner, and I turn to face her. She stares into my eyes, but her breathing picks up like she’s scared. She can’t hide the fear in her eyes either, no matter how badly she tries to play the part of tough girl.

“They’re all reasonable.” Her voice breaks, and she swallows, taking a moment before continuing. “It’s mostly so I can ensure I’ll leave here with my life intact. I’m only demanding a few necessary boundaries so—”

“Demanding?” I snap, then take a deep breath and a moment to calm down.

“Asking,” she corrects, although we both know she isn’t asking. She knows I need her to sign this, and she knows what could be at stake for me if she chooses to decide she’s a victim instead of a willing participant. The initial agreement she made with me was all bullshit.

She fucking manipulated me.

“I don’t want to upset you.” She takes a shaky breath. “I just want to make sure things don’t go too far.”

“Uh huh.” I swat the paper. “That’s what the safe word is for. And what I distinctly remember telling you was exactly what Ididn’twant.”

“I’m not going to use it.”

I squint at her and curl my lip. “What?”

Mae pulls her legs onto the bed, turning to face me fully. Her hands thread together and fidget in her lap. “I want a safe word because it’ll make me feel more comfortable just having it, and it’ll help me trust you. But I won’t use it.”

I laugh dryly and shake my head in disbelief. “Of course you will.”

You have no fucking idea what I have planned for you.

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