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“Answer me.”

“Wh...what was the question?” Her heavy whisper circles us both, until we’re wrapped in a gauzy cloud, everything else blurred and fuzzy.

“What else am I to you?” I lean in again. Her chest moves more rapidly, her perfect breasts squeezing out of the pink crop top she’s chosen for the day. How desperate I am to rip it clean off. For two long years, I’ve been waiting for her to give me unfiltered access to her perfect, soft breasts with puckered nipples. I salivate at the thought.

“I . . . I don’t know.”

I drop my hand so my fingers trail along her throat. I want it to haunt her thoughts the way it has mine. How good it felt to have my hand wrapped around her neck. How close she was to me. The risk she put herself in must have been exhilarating, I have no doubt. But if it was with another man, I’d have to punish her. I’d never hurt her, but she doesn’t know that. Olivia is taking more and more risks. It’s up to me to manage that. Let her explore her thrill-seeking in a safe way.

Trailing my fingers down, stroking along her collarbone, but heading down to the valley between her breasts. I trace the perfect handful along the bulge from the constricted sports bra, feeling her skin tingle beneath mine. Everywhere I touch lights up, aching for more. My own body is fully invested. My skin hums, my mouth waters. I lean and press the gentlest of kisses to the corner of her jaw, right below her ear. It’s all I would allow myself, for now. The tiniest gasp escapes Olivia’s mouth. And another thread of my carefully tied restraint snaps.

Fuck it.

I squeeze her breast, rubbing my thumb where I can feel her hardened nipple beneath the fabric. Fuck, I’d give my left arm to be able to run my teeth over it now. Kissing down herneck, I feel her swallow. A small moan escapes her parted lips, and I can’t help but smile against her neck. Her body sings for me, and I can play it like I was born to do it. Maybe after all these years of watching her, I’ve memorized all her micro-pleasures. The way she trails her fingers over her neck when she reads, tracing her collarbone. She likes it rough, biting her own lip hard, so only to imagine it done by someone else.

With all the willpower in the world, I press one final kiss to her neck, drawing my fingertips back up to her cheek.

“When you figure out what you want me to be, I’ll be waiting, Olivia. I can be patient.”

Lies.I’m not fucking patient. Every limb is protesting. My chest aches, my lungs are scorched like I’ve been trying to keep up with Usain fucking Bolt. My dick throbs against my leg, pressing against my sweatpants like it’s trying to take them off.

Despite my body’s silent screams, I draw away, leaving the ball in her court.

Chapter Nine

Olivia

What. The. Actual. Fuck.

Chapter Ten

Olivia

“Listen, if you focused a little more on listening to your body, you’d understand that it’s not all about lifting. You’ve got to be more in tune with yourself. Yoga or pilates is a great way to do that. It’s the focused breathing.”

I watch his eyes roll under his eyelids, and despite my attempt to stifle a laugh, a small giggle escapes me when he mutters, “Focused fucking breathing,” under his breath.

After last night, I’ve decided a little bit of exercise would be a good idea to defuse some of the growing tension between us. I anticipated this situation would be difficult, but I hadn’t predicted how my body would respond to his presence. I can tell he is starting to feel cooped up and uncomfortable, regardless of what he says about the eight-hour sleep and good food.

We haven’t spoken about last night, but it has been playing on a loop in my brain since then. I can’t believe that in a few short days, I’ve gone from grabbing his dick to encouraging him to squeeze my throat and letting him trail kisses down my neck. I allow my eyes to close as I remember the way he felt in my palm, hard and ready. Knowing I have such an effect on him makes my lower belly throb—another pair of panties soaked. I just know he could make my body submit to him if he chooses to. But after last night and the neck kisses, which were honestly heavenly, he said the ball was inmy court. So far, he’s stayed true to his word. Despite lingering looks, deep sighs, and the occasional arm flex, which I’m sure he is doing on purpose, everything has been very PG-13 this morning.

“Close your eyes,” I encourage.

“This would help if I didn’t have chains under my back.”

“Oh...sorry, I forgot about that. There’s not really much I can do apart from what I’ve already done.”

He now has just one long chain around his waist which pretty much gives him more range. He still can’t reach anything to use as a weapon, though. He can’t reach the window or the stairs. But there is more give, and it means we can do these classes together.

“It’s fine, Killer. Show me your moves.”

We finish up our class, and I give him space to wash himself and change into fresh clothes.

After lunch we sit in amiable silence, both of us reading our respective novels.

I know in my heart that he isn’t the man I thought he was at Squeeze the Day. And even though he won’t release Danny from his contract or whatever it is that keeps him there, I can’t keep him here forever.

I worry about what might happen if I let him go, but ultimately, I don’t think he will hurt me. Maybe that’s dumb and naive, but I think...I think he actually likes me. No one could fake this well. He’s calm, assuring, caring...flirtatious, but not too much. It’s clear there’s a dark side to him, but he hasn’t given me reason to fear it.