Page 27 of A Kiss at Midnight

I want you to take a long soak in the tub in my room. I’ve had special bath salts delivered that will help ease your soreness. Spend at least an hour in the hot water.

I left a bag for you. Enjoy.

I’ll be home around four. Stay at my place. I want to see you as soon as I walk in the door.

Before I can decide which message to respond to first, another one pops up on my screen. This one makes me smile and then frown.

Good morning, Jewel. You did well last night. I’m quite pleased with our arrangement.

Blake seems to have awakened something inside me, and I don’t know if I’ll be able to turn it off, a terrifying thought, because this isabsolutelytemporary. I can’t get attached to this man. I can’t forget why I’m here.

And still, even though Blake isn’t Mr. Perfect and he’s demanding, he also doesn’t seem to be the type to do sick things to me. Does it really matter, though? Haven’t I vowed to do anything and everything for my brother?

I pray I won’t be forced into choosing between my brother and my self-worth. Because if I’m ever treated in a demeaning way, it might not matter whether I save my brother or not, because I’ll be lost forever.

You have to be awake by now...

I smile at this newest message. Even though a part of me fears what this arrangement will do to me, I’m also excited to tease Blake, seeing how far I can push him. I text him back.

You’re impatient, Mr. Astor. I was simply trying to decide what to answer first.

I don’t like waiting.

Then you’ll surely be disappointed often.

Not knowing why I’m doing it, I add a bit of salt to my comment by adding an emoji of a face with its tongue sticking out. I’m a whole lot braver when I’m communicating with Blake by text. He isn’t quite so intimidating.

You need a good spanking. You’re not jumping when I say jump.

This makes me smile. We never had any agreement that I had to doexactlywhat he says. This arrangement is mutually beneficial.

You didn’t tell me how high.

Instead of striking fear into me, his threat gives me a shiver of excitement. I don’t really know him, and have no idea what he’s capable of, but if he really wanted to hurt me, wouldn’t he have shown that by now? I haven’t seen anything in his place that looks menacing, and I’ve spent some time here wandering, so I surely would’ve turned something up by now.

You’re pushing me, Jewel...

Maybe you need to be pushed. Maybe too many people kiss your ass and that makes you a grumpy man.

When there’s no response, I wonder if I’ve taken things too far. Although texting a message makes me feel brave, I don’t want him to cut our arrangement, don’t want to lose him at my side as I show the courts I’m fit to take care of my brother. I can walk away once Justin is securely in my home.

Go take your bath, Jewel. I’ll show you later what happens when someone displeases me.

This time I don’t reply. Pacing worriedly from the living room to the kitchen and back again, I chew on my thumbnail. Is he serious?

I see there’s no response, Jewel. Maybe you’re figuring out that if you challenge me... you will lose.

Relief floods through me at this message. He isn’t telling me to leave. He isn’t screaming at me with exclamation marks. Why I feel the need to challenge him I don’t know, but as much as I’m trying to suppress my personality to get through our time together, I can’t kill my defiance. That’s a part of who I am.

I was raised by a strong, beautiful, brilliant mother, and I respect myself. I don’t always make the best choices, but can’t that be said about everyone? I’m a good person and deserve to be treated with respect, even if I offered my body to a stranger.

With an extra sway in my hips, I turn and move toward the stairs. I’m doing it becauseIwant to use his bathtub, not becausehewants me to. Let him think he’s won some imaginary skirmish in our battle of wills. I take the bag and my phone but don’t look inside the bag until I’m in the bathroom.

Of course the bag contains more lingerie, in a style that will showeverythingto him... and makes me feel like the prostitute I’m acting as. Angry tears spring to my eyes, but I refuse to acknowledge them. I put the bag down and move to the tub and start the water.

I let the robe fall to the floor, then pull my hair into a bun. At least he thinks of everything, having far more vanity products here than I own. My phone buzzes, but I ignore it. Instead I move to the tub and pour bath salts into the hot water... just as he commanded earlier.

My phone buzzes again. I don’t acknowledge it. He told me to take a bath and that’s exactly what I’m doing. The phone goes off a couple of more times, and with a frustrated breath, I finally go to it with the intention of turning it off. However, I quickly check the messages first. This man is going to drive me insane.

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