Total pages in book: 153
Estimated words: 155903 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 780(@200wpm)___ 624(@250wpm)___ 520(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 155903 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 780(@200wpm)___ 624(@250wpm)___ 520(@300wpm)
“Thank you.”
It wasn’t really a compliment. But she wasn’t going to tell him that.
“So, you trust me. That pleases me.”
She wasn’t sure she’d go that far. She trusted him enough to know that he wouldn’t harm her.
“Did I not tell you to sleep in today, Faith?”
“Um, yes, but—”
“And did I not tell you that a car would collect you at midday? After you slept in.”
“Well, yes, but—”
“So, you know that I told you these things, and yet you’re here at eight in the morning. Did you sleep at all?”
Fudge knuckles.
He wasn’t going to let her talk at all, was he?
“I might have gotten an hour or two. But you can’t have had slept much either.”
“I don’t need more than a few hours a night.”
She didn’t know why, but she lapped up that bit of information from him. It was so rare for him to give her pieces of himself.
“But you need sleep. Which is why I told you to sleep in. Are you pushing me because you want to see whether I’ll punish you or not?”
This time, she took several steps away. “I don’t need to be punished.”
“Naughty girls get punished. Good girls get rewarded. It’s too bad you won’t get rewarded today. I think you would have enjoyed it.”
Drat.
Now she really wanted to know what the reward would have been. That wasn’t fair.
Maybe you should be more focused on the punishment.
“But I am owed a reward. Maybe they could cancel each other out.”
“Hmm, you are. Unfortunately, you’ll have to wait for it. And no, they don’t cancel each other out.”
Drat.
“Look, I’m not sure exactly what I agreed to last night, but I don’t think it was me obeying you and being punished if I don’t.”
“Baby, that’s exactly what you agreed to.” There was a softness to his voice that she didn’t expect. He seemed almost tender?
“And you shouldn’t call me baby at work.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Why? I’m the boss. I make the rules.”
“You can’t just make any rules you feel like. Or punish people when they don’t follow them.”
“Of course I can. Why would I bother with rules if I didn’t enforce them? If you break the law and get caught, you get punished. This is no different.”
“Except I have the feeling that the punishment will be vastly different.”
“I knew you were a clever girl,” he replied.
She swallowed heavily. “What I agreed to last night . . . you taking charge. That was only for last night.”
He eyed her for a long moment. “You don’t want this, baby? You don’t want me?”
Oh Lord.
If he’d gotten all bossy and demanding, maybe she could have told him no. But he was pushing her to admit the truth. To him and to herself . . . and yeah, that was harder to fight against.
“I think you want to submit. You want someone to take care of you. To make the decisions when you can’t. To do what is necessary to keep you safe, even when you don’t agree. And you need someone to enforce the rules, because that’s what makes you feel secure. Knowing that person will always be there to catch you.”
It was like he’d leapt inside her head and ripped through all the barriers she’d put between herself and her deepest desires.
How did he do that?
How did he know?
Those weren’t things she even admitted to herself. How . . . how disappointed she’d been when Matt didn’t want to take things that far. Even when she was in Little headspace, he hadn’t ever really had rules for her.
Or punished her.
Sure, he’d taken her over his knee a few times, but she could sense it made him uncomfortable. The few spanks he’d given her were lackluster at best.
Faith had finally stopped asking him. Stopped hinting at more punishment and rules because she didn’t want to make him uncomfortable.
Once again, she’d been the problem.
“What are you thinking?”
She was jolted back into the present. “I, um, I . . . ”
“I find I don’t like your attention on anything but me.”
Dear Lord.
She knew he was arrogant. But sometimes, he took it to the next level.
“Reuben, that’s not possible—”
“It is.” He looked thoughtful. “If you didn’t have a job, you would have time to devote to me.”
Panic flooded her. “I need this job.” He couldn’t fire her.
Could he?
Of course he can.
“Why?” he asked.
Why? Was he for real right now?
“To live. For food and rent and everything else.”
He waved a hand in the air. “I would take care of those things.”
She couldn’t breathe. Why couldn’t she breathe?
She needed this job more than he knew. Sure, he could take care of the day-to-day stuff.
But he couldn’t get rid of all her debts.
What are you thinking? You’re not about to let him take care of anything.
Right. Nope. Uh-huh.
“I . . . can’t . . . breathe.”
Suddenly, he was in front of her. He took her hands in his. God, he was so warm. Leading her to a chair, he helped her sit before crouching in front of her. “Yes, you can. Breathe in. Hold. Now out. And again. In. Hold. Now out. That’s a good girl.”