Page 14 of Snow Much Plowing

"No.” He takes another bite.

“You know what—” I start to stand, but his hand comes down on my thigh, stopping me from moving. Jesus, his massive hand engulfs my thigh like a bear paw.

“Calm down, love.”

“You don’t tell a woman to calm down.”

“I’ll tell my woman anything I want.” I’m his? Does he truly believe that? “Your ridiculous comment didn't need a response, but if you insist, I'll take you to bed and show you how you're my woman. My only woman.” The intensity of his stare has me almost believing him.

"I can't be your woman. You barely know me."

Hollis barks a laugh. "Trust me, love. I know every fucking thing about you." He leans closer, and the hand on my thigh tightens. His other hand grips my chin so I have to stare into his eyes. "My good little girl."

Oh crap, maybe he does know me.

Chapter Three

HOLLIS

Lucy’s eyes widen, and I wonder if she’s putting things together. I’ve been watching her for a while, but it all started innocently enough. Our first meeting was by chance. She had no clue who I was, and that was part of the appeal.

I created Anomio but don’t use it. Not in years. The site is a mashup of Reddit and Discord all in one. It started as a pet project, but I was unaware of the extent to which it would explode. Now it has a life all of its own, and I’m over dealing with it. I don’t want to manage things. I find enjoyment in creating, but once I finish, I’m ready to move on to something else.

After making plans to sell it, I let the bidding begin. For old times' sake, I jumped back on, and there were all kinds of groups. The ones that caused us the most trouble and initially motivated my decision to sell were, naturally, those related to sex. Let’s just say they were quite interesting. So much so that I’d gone down a rabbit hole that day, and the path led me directly to her.

“Are you...ah...” She licks her lips. I suppress a groan at the sight. How can she be so innocent and such a temptation? “On…” She pauses again.

“Anomio,” I fill in for her. I'm not on it. I am it.

“Oh my god.” She tries to jerk back, but I hold her chin in place.

“You are a dirty little girl, aren’t you?”

“No, I was just looking.”

“Don’t lie to me,” I warn.

“Okay,” she admits. “I commented. Maybe asked some questions.”

Oh, I know. Her username caught my attention. LittleCuriousV. I’m not sure why. Maybe because I’d been down this rabbit hole out of curiosity myself. I read everything she’d written. With each word, I started to grow jealous of the people responding to her. That’s when I went off the deep end. I haven’t had any sane thoughts since. Not when it comes to my Lucy.

I started by tracking her IP. It was my system, after all. From there, it wasn’t hard to find out who she was. I proceeded to make a dummy site where I managed to pull her over. It looked like a clone of Anomio, except I had bots making posts and filling in comments. The only real person she talked to from there on out was me. That took the edge off slightly, knowing no other men were going to take advantage of her innocence.

I was able to lure her out, but she was a good girl. She never gave me the pictures I requested or her number on the site. It was both irritating and reassuring. But I wanted more. So, I made other plans to get them.

Because I too am a lot like Lucy when it comes to sex. It never appealed to me. I was introverted as a teen, and when I graduated early, I stuck to my computer. I built my career and came to terms with the fact that I was most likely asexual. Until her. Then a whole fucking Pandora’s box opened, and now there’s no closing it.

"From now on, I’ll be the only one you come to with questions." I release my hold on her chin.

"Why should I?"

"I already told you. You're mine. Now finish eating." Lucy purses her lips but does as she’s told.

I can tell she's turned on from the flush of her cheeks and how she can't sit still. I could drag her to bed now, but I want her as desperate for me as I am for her. I'm on a timetable, and I need her begging for me.

Not that she would ever really need to. I’m not going anywhere, but I’m also not playing a dating game. I want her in my bed every night. Where I go, she goes. That won't be easy if she’s fighting me the whole way.

Then there’s the little issue of having to deal with that overprotective brother of hers. It would be easier if she accepts her fate. Our fate really.