The pain in her voice told him that her terrible guilt only fed her inadequacies. She would dart, even naked, into the cold. Yes, to save herself. But everything about her expression said she actually believed she’d be saving him, too.
Liam acted quickly. Chasing her put the control in her hands. Time to wrench it away.
“Stop! Present yourself, sub.”
Her body froze. Liam could almost hear her determination to flee fighting with her need to submit to his Dominance. He waited a moment, letting his command sink in. Then, with a sob, she fell to her knees on the tile and assumed the pose. Her shoulders still shook, and her breath still shuddered. He waited as she composed herself, soaping his body and rinsing. He saw the moment she chose to heed the submissive within. Her breath evened out. Her body relaxed. Her mind seemed to quiet. And Liam just watched.
Raine giving him her power was intoxicating.
He stepped from the tub and squatted beside her as steam rose upward from their heated flesh. “As I said, you will learn to give me everything inside you, Raine. Easy or hard, that’s up to you. But you will learn.” Rising, he extended a hand and helped her up. “Come, before you get a chill. Let’s dry you off. Then I intend to feed you.”
Raine trembled, her knees aching from the cold tile. But it was the power of his whip-like commands still lashing through her brain that made her shake. Oh god, oh god, oh god. He’d found one of her weaknesses and he was too smart not to know it. With that voice, somehow sharp and velvety at once, he’d revealed himself a Dom in gentleman’s clothing.
Biting her lip, Raine risked a peek up at him. One look at his face told her that he’d brought her here not just to rescue her and let her heal, but to unravel her utterly. Here on his turf, in his bed, under his control, she’d have no place to hide. And no Hammer to interfere.
Anxiety bloomed in her stomach.
Liam reached back for a towel, but did he give it to her or cover her with it? Of course not. He gently dried her, then wrapped it around his waist before leading her, stark naked, to the bed. There was a message in that, and she couldn’t fail to understand.
She eyed the food spread out on the nearby dresser. Not that she was hungry, but eating would buy her time. Because not for one second did she imagine that what came after the meal would be easy.
“Kneel on the floor facing the bed, Raine. Get comfortable. You might be there a while,” Liam said with an arch in his brow.
She watched as he moved to the thermostat in the room. He stared at it, nodded, then turned back toward her, clearly ready to unleash whatever he had planned. So maybe he wasn’t waiting until after the meal to make her life difficult.
Prowling to the dresser, Liam removed something from one of the drawers and set it aside, out her line of vision, before selecting food for them both. Then he returned to the bed and sat in front of her. “Hands behind your back.”
Why? She wanted to ask the question, but knew how BDSM worked. He commanded; she obeyed without question. That didn’t mean she always liked it…but she wanted it. Reminding herself that Liam wouldn’t really, truly hurt her, even though he must still be angry, Raine slowly wound her hands behind her.
“That’s not bad. A little faster would be nice. Try hard not to think so much. Trust, not logic. Do you understand?”
She watched him, her stomach dancing with nerves, then she nodded.
“Answer me with words. I’ll not be relying on a bob of your head.”
Raine had a hard time getting the word out, as if it implied more trust than she was ready to grant, but she knew that he’d likely make her spend all day on her knees until she complied. “Yes.”
“Yes, what? What do you call me?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Better. Now open your mouth. Let’s feed you a bit.”
“I’m not actually hungry.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “I didn’t ask if you were hungry. You skipped breakfast, and you won’t be skipping lunch. I told you to open your mouth.”
Raine eyed the little platter in his hands, then watched as he picked up a piece of buttered bread and brought it toward her mouth. She leaned away and turned her head. “I can feed myself.”
“I assume you’ve been doing that for years. But I’ll be feeding you today. No arguments.”
She should probably let it go, but…damn, she found that hard. When she opened her mouth to argue, he merely shoved the bread inside.
“Chew now. Swallow.”
Reflexively, she did, then he followed with a sip of red wine. A chunk of pineapple after that, then a bite of succulent roast beef. Wordlessly, she allowed him to place the food in her mouth, squirming as he watched, the flavors mingling on her tongue while she consumed every bite. It was intimate and weirdly arousing, taking food from his hand. She didn’t hate it.
Until he came toward her with a dill pickle spear. Then she backed up quickly, almost springing to her feet to avoid him. “No.”
Liam paused. “Are you allergic to them?”
She scrunched up her face. “No, but they’re disgusting. They reek like fermented gym socks.”
He smiled. “That’s quite an analogy.”
She gave him a hesitant grin back. “Well, they do.”
“So it’s safe to say you’d like to be avoiding them, then?”
“Absolutely!”
“Keep that in mind as we go on. And last…” He popped a piece of chocolate into her mouth.
What wasn’t to like about chocolate? But this chocolate? Positively divine. Something baked by the angels and sent down from heaven. The best she’d ever had in her life. As it melted on her tongue, she moaned.
“Like that, do you?”
“This qualifies as love. Oh my god…”
He grinned at her again, and was probably laughing a bit at her expense, but she didn’t care. That chocolate was worth whatever bit of fun he poked at her. She’d almost crawl across glass for more.
“Well, then, you should also keep that in mind as we move on.”
Raine wasn’t quite sure what he meant by that statement, but if there was more chocolate involved, she could deal. “Yes, Sir.”
“Excellent. Now close your eyes.”
The command made her frown. He wanted to feed her when she couldn’t see? “Wait. Is this one of those ‘trust’ exercises? Wouldn’t it be better if I let you stand behind me while I tipped back and waited to see if you’ll catch me?”
“Another day, maybe. Not now. Yes, this is about trust. Everything is. Close your eyes.”
His voice had dropped another octave. A fresh swarm of butterflies emerged in her stomach. She didn’t like it. Not being able to see made her feel wretchedly exposed.
“If you don’t hurry, I’ll be taking everything back to the kitchen except the pickles.”
Raine slammed her eyes shut.