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Her fingers drew seamless shapes over his chest, spending more time on his scars than smooth skin. They slowly travelled south and the further they got, the more his cock became interested. She traced his hipbone and ran her fingers over his thigh, down to where the cuts still stung his skin.

“Why did you do it?” She sighed, turning to kiss his chest. “Was it punishment or frustration because I rejected you?”

Ezra grimaced. He didn’t want her to think he was doing this because of her.

The last thing he wanted was for her to think that she was the reason he cut himself.

Scarlett played part in his thoughts and the turmoil in his head, but she was not the reason he needed the pain.

His biggest fear was that she’d change herself to keep him from self-harming.

“The pain helps drown my thoughts,” Ezra finally answered.

“So, it silences your mind and overshadows it so you can catch a break.”

“That’s right.”

“Have you ever hurt yourself to punish yourself for something you have done.”

“I have in the past, and I likely will again.”

“When I do something that I think was wrong, I isolate myself, because I think I’m not worthy of others’ presence.”

“Is that what you were taught?”

Scarlett thought over her response, her fingers tenderly moving up his thigh and to his stomach again. “Father’s silence was punishment. When I upset him, he wouldn’t talk to me. At times he wouldn’t even look at me.”

“Did it happen often?”

“Thankfully no. I knew better.”

“You’re a good girl after all.”

“Why do I both hate and love that at the same time?” she softly laughed.

“Because you enjoy praise, but the term ‘good girl’ doesn’t suit you. You’re not a little girl after all.”

“Did you use a spell to read my mind?”

“Don’t need one,” Ezra said with a smile. “I believe the bond will do that for me.”

Scarlett kissed his chest again, setting off firecrackers beneath the surface.

Her fingertips soothed a path up his sternum and to his throat where she gently squeezed down on his pulse points.

Her grip was loose, as if she wasn’t sure.

Ezra, however, completely relaxed in her hold, his mind easing and the thoughts calming.

Hope spread through his body like a cool breeze over the possibility she would make him submit completely.

Maybe not today but whenever she was ready, he would teach her.

Her thumb rubbed over the side of his throat, as she shifted and leaned over him.

A shiver shot down his spine as Scarlett’s shift unconsciously added weight to her hand.

She ran her nose over his jaw, her breath hot against his skin.

The cacophony of thoughts that usually swirled through Ezra’s mind ceased to exist. The only sound was his heartbeat in his ears, his sole focus on her .

This was surreal and so fucking perfect.

She would do so well and deep down, she would grow to love it.

“Scarlett,” he groaned as her lips brushed against his ear.

“Ezra?”

“Tie me up.” Shit, he hadn’t meant to let that slip. Why was he ruining this by forcing more?

“And what then? What do you need from me once you’re tied up?”

“You.”

“I don’t want to disappoint you, Ezra.”

“You won’t. You’re doing so well right now.”

“What if I can’t please you like you need?” Her hand shifted from his neck up to his jaw and tilted his head towards her, where he gratefully accepted the soft kiss that awaited. “What if I make a fool out of myself?”

“Sweet princess, you are perfect in every sense.”

A dark, rumbling laugh vibrated against his lips. “So perfect that you hate me.”

“I’ve always enjoyed submitting to a woman, but with you it’s different. It’s constant and it feels good . So fucking good, princess.”

“But you hate it because you can’t turn it off.”

“Exactly.”

“I did not mean to boss you around.”

“It feels good, calming even, but I’ve always done as I please. With you, I can’t. Not because you force me, but because I care enough about you to consider your needs.”

Scarlett laughed again, lighter this time. “Don’t let the others hear that. It might hurt their feelings that you care more about me.”

“Fuck their feelings.”

“Deep down you like them, and I don’t need the bond to know that.”

Her lips trailed over his cheek, and her fingers slipped down to find his wrist. She held a tight grip as she shifted her body on top of his and kissed his ear. Her thighs straddled him, her lips finally met his, and her hand lifted his arm over his head.

Fuck.

He groaned into the kiss, his heart melting as she pinned his wrist into the mattress. Maybe she wasn’t ready to tie him down yet, but she was on the right path. He was hers for the rest of their lives. He could be patient.

No, he thought to himself. He would be patient.

“How does it feel, princess?”

With her hand pinning his down, she peered down at him. “Good.”

He couldn’t help the smirk forming on his lips. “It feels good for me too.”

Scarlett inhaled, her chest visibly filling with air as her eyes closed.

Then she stretched and reached over him, leaving her tits just a few tempting inches away from his face.

His wrist carried her weight and the pain of the pressure was pure pleasure to him.

Then he heard the chain of the cuff as she shifted back to sit up.

“Both hands?”

Fuck, it was really happening. He had trouble concealing how excited he truly was. “As you please, princess.” To prove his point, he brought his right wrist up to join his left.

Biting her lip, she let go of him. He tilted his head up, watching as she unclasped the cuff and laid it around his right wrist. It was rather loose, so Ezra chuckled and pulled out of it, earning himself a displeased grunt from her.

“Don’t be shy, princess.”

She redid it, but it still wasn’t enough.

“Tighter.”

“I don’t want to hurt you,” she argued.

“Oh, princess, I sliced my thigh with a vampire bone dagger today. You can’t hurt me that easily.”

“What if I think you’re ugly?” she countered and even though he didn’t want them to, the words stung.

“My princess has proven a point,” he admitted. “Now tighten the cuff, sweetness.”

She did, though rather hesitantly, then stretched to fetch the other, her chest hovering tantalisingly out of reach. His body tingled and his stomach suddenly felt as if a thousand butterflies had awoken within it. With both his wrists secured, she sat back, looking at her work rather sceptically.

“Tell me about the other women.”

“You want me to talk about all the nasty things other women have done to me?”

“That’s what I said, isn’t it?”

“For what purpose?”

“Inspiration.”

“Princess,” he softly purred suddenly wishing he wasn’t tied up and he could reach for her face. “I don’t want you to copy them. I want you to do this your way.”

“Well then you’ll just have me sit on top of you like a clueless idiot.” Her brows narrowed and her tone grew frustrated.

“Perfect.”

She continued drawing circles on his chest, her expression softening with each one.

The act soothed him as much as it did her.

It had been a while since he’d been with anyone and he loved where this was going with her.

Not only with the cuffs, but he’d enjoyed simply spoiling her on the couch with Vince and Mateo.

She deserved the best and apparently some goddess had decided that their princess needed three men to satisfy her.

Her fingers moved south, trailing over his sternum and she scooted back to give herself more room to play.

Ezra’s heart soared when Scarlett slid right over his rail-hard cock.

The friction eased some of the painful pressure.

She bit her lip again, searching his face for something.

Instruction maybe? But he didn’t want to influence her.

This was something she should figure out on her own.

She would want to please him, so anything he’d say could manipulate her decisions.

He could see the wheels turn in her head as she tried to make up her mind. When Scarlett scooted back even more, he couldn’t help twist his face up in pain. The friction may have done wonders for his cock, but it only ripped open the cuts on his still-healing thigh.

Scarlett hastened to tug his sweats down when she felt the blood seep through the fabric.

She was also quick to realise that he wasn’t wearing anything underneath, her lips forming a perfect “o”.

She paused briefly, but decided the pants needed to go.

Ezra barely swallowed the moan at the loss of his restraints.

His cock jumped out the second he was freed and the blush on her cheeks wonderfully complimented her lust-blown eyes.

But Scarlett continued to remove his pants until the cuts on his thigh were revealed, visibly struggling to conceal her emotions. He’d never felt ashamed of his self-inflicted wounds, yet here he was feeling as if he had done something wrong. Maybe he had, but that was a new sensation for him.

His sweats cleared his feet, and Scarlett discarded the fabric, distracted with the spiderweb tattoo covering his right knee.

Her fingers tickled as she traced the lines before her eyes fell back on the cuts above it.

She stared at them for a moment and then slid off the bed and silently left the room.

He could only stare after her, his brain trying to catch up.

She’d left him.

She had seen his wounds and chosen to walk out on him.

Fuck!

“Scarlett,” he growled, tugging on his restraints, but she’d listened so well that they didn’t budge. “Scarlett!”

Fucking shit!

Panic started to settle in like he’d never felt before.

She’d left him. She’d promised to accept him and now she was gone.

“Scarlett!” This time his voice grew raw, the sound more like a plea than a summons. “Please,” he whispered. “Come back.”

Tears streaked his cheeks as he pulled himself up to sit, the strain on his arms burning his muscles. It was hard to breathe, his chest refusing to expand.

“Scarlett, please,” he gasped, fighting for air.

After what felt like hours, the door opened again. His lungs burned just as fiercely as his eyes. The restraints stung where they’d cut into his skin. Her face paled and she rushed to his side, dropping the item in her hand to the mattress so she could cup his cheeks in her palms.

“Shh,” she soothed, wiping his tears away with her thumbs. “Breathe, Ezra. Follow my lead.” She took a deep breath. “Inhale.” She held her breath until he’d done the same. “And out. Good, just like that.”

Her touch, her praise, the serenity she radiated—everything made breathing easier and finally, the tears ceased. “Scarlett,” he whimpered.

“I’m here.” She kissed his forehead and then sat back on her heels, still holding his face. “What happened?”

“You left,” he accused, but still out of breath. “You left me.”

“You thought I left you?”

“You were gone.”

With the panic spiking again, Scarlett rested her forehead against his and breathed with him again until everything passed. Her thumbs brushed over his damp cheeks, and she climbed onto his lap and straddled his legs. Her weight was exactly what he needed, making her presence as solid as ever.

“I’m here, Ezra.”

“You left.”

“I wanted to fetch something, and I was only gone a couple of minutes. I’m sorry, I should have told you where I was going.”

Minutes? She must have been gone for hours . He inhaled her vibrant, orange scent and let it dissipate the fog in his mind. Okay, maybe it wasn’t hours, but it felt like it.

“I’m sorry.”

“I thought…” Ezra fumbled, trying to find words that didn’t make him sound like a total idiot. “I thought you left because I was too much for you. As if you couldn’t bear to be with me.”

Scarlett kissed his forehead, then picked up what she’d dropped on the mattress and scooted off his lap. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I just thought, when we’re close like this, I don’t want you in pain.”

He looked down at her hand and saw the vile of blood. One of the others must have given it to her. Fuck. Ezra felt ridiculous, but the hole was dug too deep now. A weak, “Don’t leave me,” was all he could manage.

“I won’t. I’m sorry I gave the impression I had.”

Ezra fell silent, watching as Scarlett popped the vial open and poured it onto the deep cuts. The skin tingled and itched as the cuts stitched themselves shut right before his eyes. “I want to hold you now.”

“Of course.”

Ezra held it together until Scarlett released him from the cuffs, then he collapsed onto her chest, releasing the emotion from his body with a heavy sigh.