Total pages in book: 153
Estimated words: 144571 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 723(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 482(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 144571 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 723(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 482(@300wpm)
“We’re going to see how you like this later, Cooper,” she said with fire in her eyes.
“You have a safe word, Kala. It’s okay to use it. I want to get you where you need to go, but I don’t want to break you.”
“Then play with me. Be my badass boyfriend right now. If it’s too much, you’ll know.”
“You’ll tell me,” he corrected, cupping her cheek.
“I’ll tell you,” she whispered and then went right back to her ferociousness. “But I’ll also wake you up one day with clamps on your nipples.”
She probably would. He could handle it. “Tell me why you would think I could misinterpret that scene with Parker. Don’t lie to me. I saw your face when you walked in. You thought I meant what I said.”
“Well, you said I strung you along, and I probably did.”
His head shook. “No, you did not. You never played me. I broke your heart and it took a while, but you were my friend again before we hit our senior year. You were the faithful one. You would have stood by me no matter what. I was a weak boy. But I need you to understand I’m a man now, and I could have found you fucking Parker and I would have asked why. Because I believe in you. I know your heart.”
“I didn’t think I had one.”
“Oh, you do, and it’s so big, and I mean to protect it for the rest of my life,” he vowed. “So tell me why you thought I wouldn’t know. You have to say it. We can’t fix a problem if we don’t acknowledge it exists. Say it.”
A stubborn expression settled on her face. “Because we had a fight.”
Not the answer he was looking for, and in this room, that meant punishment. He wouldn’t always be her Dom. But there would be times when she needed it, and if he needed it, she would do the same for him. There would be no one else he would ever allow to top him. They could be fluid in their roles with each other. He moved around her gorgeous body and picked up a wooden paddle. “Is that your answer?”
“It’s what I said, Coop. We had a fight. You thought I betrayed you.”
He brought his hand back and smacked that stunning ass. One and two and three and four, until she gasped and wriggled. There was a perfectly placed mirror across the dungeon, and he could see the way her tits bounced, making the jeweled clamps jiggle. He paddled her until he counted to ten in his head and then backed off, staring at the glorious pink her backside was becoming. “I told you I acted like an idiot. You’re the one who left. You’re right. Your father would have told mine if he’d known. I’m not used to Ian Taggart without almost god-like powers. I was kicked in the gut, and I acted like an idiot. Also, you’re right about me as an operative. I’m only going to work as support from now on unless you need me and then I’ll follow your lead in the field.”
Her head came up. “I didn’t mean you should quit.”
“I’m not quitting,” he promised. “I told you. I’m your backup. I’ll hang with Lou and Tash and let you and Kenz and Tris handle the forward-facing jobs. Now tell me what was underneath it all. You know. I need to know what sent you running that night. I unearthed it and let it loose on you.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
So stubborn. Another ten had her eyes misting over. His baby was a hard bottom when she wanted to be. It was probably because she’d survived spy training, which included a shocking amount of torture. This felt like a regular Saturday for the woman who’d survived what Huisman had put her through. “All right. Let’s try this another way. Tell me why you stopped writing poetry.”
Now her head turned, eyes flaring. “What?”
“Eyes front,” he bit out and gave her another five.
She did as he asked, but proved she could stare a hole through a mirror. “How do you know I used to write? I never showed you.”
She still hadn’t answered. Another five had her going up on her toes. “It doesn’t matter how I know. I want to know why you stopped.”
“Because it was stupid. I wasn’t good at it.”
Oh, they might have more sessions like this if she kept talking that way. He got in close, letting his hand slide along her hip until he could touch her pussy. He leaned in close, looking at the picture they made in the mirror. “I know someone who disagrees.”
“I’m going to kill my brother,” she vowed, but her breath hitched and her pelvis tilted slightly so the tip of his middle finger slid over her clitoris.