Page 168 of The Vigilante's Lover

“Destroyed once the deals are finalized,” he said crisply.

I nodded. “All right.”

“Just let us know when you are ready for us, Mr. Phillips.” And with a shallow bow, he left the room.

Jovana had not moved from her position.

“You can stand up,” I said.

She did as I asked, eyes on me as she waited for my next command.

We were being watched, so I had to act the part. I walked over to the wall and let my fingers trail across the floggers.

“Do you have a favorite implement?” I asked her.

“Whatever Master deems most pleasurable,” she said. Her voice was flat, but her eyes danced.

I pulled a black leather paddle from a hook and slapped it on my palm. It felt good and solid. Her eyes followed me as I approached her with it.

“I would love a demonstration of your domination,” Jovana saidand stepped off the padded platform. She strode purposefully over to a high bench and bent over it.

I hesitated. I would have expected her to wait on my command.

“How long have you been in training?” I asked her.

She continued to face away as she said, “As long as I can remember.”

Not a real answer. I came up behind her. I couldn’t warn her in any way what was to come, when I started to take down the men running this trade. I could only hope to keep her out of harm’s way.

As I approached, she reached behind and lifted the back of the white dress, revealing a long expanse of smooth unbroken skin. They took care of their slaves during training, as her thighs and backside showed no sign of scarring.

“Shall I take the dress off?” she asked.

I looked away. “No.”

“Please spank me, Master,” she said, but her request didn’t quite match her tone of voice, which bore a hint of amusement.

I hesitated. I did not want to lay a hand on these damaged girls, although I was quite sure we were being monitored for any behavior out of the norm. I was supposed to be in the market for a slave.

I slid the paddle along her skin, smacking her lightly.

“Harder, please,” she said.

I almost did it, as now her voice did sound convincingly like she wanted it, and I could see a glistening of her arousal. Unnerved by this, by how deep the training could go, I spanked her with one solid strike that made her body shift against the bench.

She sucked in a breath.

I stepped back. “Cover yourself,” I said. “Go kneel on your platform.”

I had witnessed a lot of things in my Vigilante years, prostitutes, drug dealers, mutilated skin, unmentionable horrors. But seeing this girl, enjoying something not for herself, but because she had been trained to,struck a chord in me.

I wanted her to understand that she had been manipulated. I needed her to want her freedom.

But she had been turned on by this.

Maybe it was her true nature.

Jovana moved across the room and knelt on the platform as I asked. I set the paddle on the bench.