The question wasn’t playful.
It wasn’t a tease.
It was a final choice.
One last chance to step away.
But Isabella didn’t step away.
She took a slow, steady breath.
Then, she sank to her knees.
And let Lillian fasten the collar around her throat.
________________________________________
Elias’s Final Command
The sound of footsteps made Isabella look up, her pulse pounding.
Elias stood in the doorway, his gaze dropping immediately to the collar around her neck.
A dark, satisfied smirk touched his lips.
Lillian leaned down, pressing a soft kiss to Isabella’s forehead before murmuring:
“She’s ready for you, my love.”
Elias stepped forward, his presence suffocating, intoxicating, inescapable.
He reached down, gripping Isabella’s chin between his fingers, tilting her face up.
His thumb brushed slowly over her lower lip, teasing, testing.
She didn’t pull away.
She didn’t want to.
His voice was low, dark, absolute.
“Good girl.”
And Isabella?
She had never felt so free.