Page 35 of Lord of Ruin
He was taunting me on purpose. I sucked in my breath, closed my eyes and removed the bottoms to my scrubs. After that, I folded my arms across my naked breasts, loathing myself and the body part as well. My nipples were hard as diamonds and it had nothing to do with the light breeze.
“Thong as well.”
His voice was slightly gruffer. I couldn’t believe this was happening. I wasn’t an exhibitionist and the shame of what was happening sent several flashes of red-hot heat down to my toes. By the time I’d removed the passion pink panties, I was fully flushed, my cheeks burning. Why was I thinking I was so happy I’d matched my underwear to my outfit? God, I was losing it.
When he sucked in his breath, I dropped my head, becoming mortified.
“Apólyta ómorfo,” he whispered.
“What did you say to me?”
“I said you were utterly beautiful, and I always speak the truth. Perhaps you’re the most stunning woman I’ve ever laid eyes on.” There was no sense of teasing in his tone, the darkness almost sounding as if he’d experienced sadness with someone else before.
It was strange how his actions and the changes in the man could catch me so off guard at times. “That changes nothing.”
“Now, against the tree. Wrap your arms around it.”
There was no choice but to obey him. The moment I did as he commanded, he moved closer. When he whipped out a rope from somewhere hidden, I tried to push away from the tree, but he stopped me by pressing his palm against the small of my back. Everything about the man was passionate, including the way his strong fingers kneaded my flesh.
“Stay in position. While I need to discipline you, I really don’t want to make it as harsh as maybe you deserve.”
I kept my hands fisted, hating the fact I was close to hyperventilating. He was suddenly right there in my line of sight, deft at quickly wrapping the thick rope around my wrists. His skills were incredible and within seconds I was secured to the tree. It was obvious he’d done this before.
The moment I shifted, the bark from the tree scratching my skin, I felt another strange and powerful sense of desire. I closed my eyes when he trailed the rough pads of his fingers down my arm. As he moved hair from my face, I was angry with myself for removing the ponytail holder.
“I’m going to search for the perfect switch to punish you with, my enchanted one,” he said before pressing his lips against my carotid artery. “Then do you know what I’m going to do after providing you with twenty lashes?”
Just the thought of him using a switch sickened me, the number of strikes intolerable but it was his heated breath skipping across my skin that was the most soul stealing.
“What?” I found myself asking, as if I wanted to know the answer.
He rolled his fingers down my spine so slowly I wasn’t certain they were moving. But as he slipped them along the crack of my ass, I clamped my legs together.
His chuckle was even darker than before, his accent suddenly heavier. “After that I’m going to enjoy feasting on your pretty pink pussy before driving every inch of my thick. Hard. Aching. Cock deep inside your tight little channel. And only when you scream out my name from extreme pleasure will I let you go. Isn’t that what you want, sweetheart? Isn’t that what you’ve longed for since seeing me that very first moment?”
“No!”
“You’re lying, and I’m going to prove it. Just wait, babydoll. Soon you’ll be putty in my hands.”
CHAPTER 11
Stavros
The fact that Jenna had managed to escape out a third-floor window was amusing to a part of me, which is why I was being unusually flippant while dealing with her. However, it was only a matter of time before my unknown enemy discovered I had a guest. I’d heard of estates bombed from low flying planes and helicopters when a weakness was found. I’d need to find a better method of getting through that lovely head of hers.
Before it was too late for both of us.
As I moved toward a couple of trees that might be excellent candidates to find the right switch to use, I continued grousing under my breath. She’d caught me off guard, something almost no one ever did. Even the cleverest of men always gave their plans away whether by bragging or showing off.
She’d gotten me. And I was certain that fact had already shot through the ranks of my soldiers like wildfire since two of them had tried to chase her down. It didn’t matter I’d caught her in the end. The fact she’d been able to escape my secure home was ammunition for gossip and fodder.
Which could cause serious issues with my men. While some saw me as good natured, a result of the closeness of our huge family, I also had a reputation of ruling with an iron fist. I planned on keeping that in the forefront of everyone’s minds. If I didn’t, there could be someone on my staff that considered going to the dark side of betrayal. Poaching members of another crime syndicate was old school, something my grandfathers would have done countless times, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t used by other organizations today.
I found exactly what I was looking for, one of few birch trees on my property having shed a few limbs. As I selected the perfect one, not too thin and not too thick, pulling out my pocketknife to scrape away some of the bark, I had a feeling disciplining her consistently wasn’t going to have the effect I hoped. She’d need to see for herself the level of danger surrounding us.
However, this would need to do for now.
Plus, I was overtly turned on, my cock pressing against the zipper of my trousers until the skin was almost pinched. It continued to floor me how much I craved the woman. Was it wrong of me to take her this way? Perhaps, but my ancestry had proven that arranged marriages and required submission had been extremely effective in creating strong, healthy, and very large families.