Total pages in book: 144
Estimated words: 135382 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 677(@200wpm)___ 542(@250wpm)___ 451(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 135382 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 677(@200wpm)___ 542(@250wpm)___ 451(@300wpm)
“That’s ridiculous.”
It occurred to him that he had an enormous amount of power here. In this room. At this time. He should use it because she had the power everywhere else. “Hush, luv. We’re in the training room and we’re in a training session. That means you only talk when I give you permission.”
Her head came up. “Seriously?”
He selected a nice flexible crop and let it slap against his hand with purpose. The sound cracked through the air and her eyes widened. “Seriously. Look, Big Tag even left this in case it becomes difficult for the sub to remember.”
He held up the small, clear plastic bag that contained several different size fresh and ready-to-use ball gags. Silence Is Golden the bag was titled. With the subtitle, Or your butt is red…
She started to open her mouth and then it closed, though there was pure fire coming from her eyes.
He was all right with that. She was lovely when she was angry. He put that one back on the shelf, but kept the crop. “Excellent choice. See, I would have named that bag To Drool or Not to Drool. Because that really is the question. Those damn ball gags make a man drool like a bloody idiot.”
He should know since the first time he ever met Big Tag, the arsehole had been shoving an incredibly large one into Brody’s mouth. They’d quickly overcome that mistake, though Brody would never forget the copious amounts of drool associated with one of those things.
He set the crop down for a moment because he’d promised her something, too. He shrugged out of his tuxedo jacket and went to work on the tie and shirt as he talked. “I thought you deserved better than an Army grunt from nowhere Australia who barely had an education. The funny thing is, I’ve realized how little you need a man with a highbrow university degree who would likely do nothing but make everything more complex. You can do that all on your own. You need someone with street smarts. Someone who understands that when the bullets start flying, it’s smarter to not run right toward the man with the gun because you think he might be hurt.”
That mouth firmed again and he was sure she had a few choice words for him.
They could wait until later. He slid out of the shirt and her eyes heated. “See, there it is. That’s what I need. You need someone who looks out for you because you don’t ever look out for yourself, and I need that look in your eyes. I need to know I’m not some ugly beast who’s good for nothing but throwing his body in front of bullets for his betters.”
“That is so untrue, Brody. And you can spank me for that. It’s worth it to say it.”
There was his Steph. There was the woman he’d fallen completely in love with. Champion of the underdog, willing to take all the punishment of the world if she thought the cause was worthy.
He needed to take that impulse and excise the guilt from it. He didn’t want a Steph who didn’t fight for the world around her. He merely wanted her to know that she was worth fighting for, too.
And that he was her champion.
“I can be reasonable. Since what you said was sweet and not bratty, only one swat.”
She started to lean forward.
He brought the crop out, stopping her forward progress. “No need. I didn’t say I was going to swat that pretty bottom. Get back into position and spread your knees wide.”
He loved how her eyes flared and she bit her bottom lip. Her mind was working but there wasn’t worry for her life or brooding over the past in there now. Nope. Now she was worried about what lovely piece of her flesh he was about to torture.
When she was in the proper position, he stepped in close and brought the crop up to her chin, gently bringing her head up. “Do you have any idea how good you make me feel? When you look at me like you could eat me alive, I’m suddenly the luckiest man in the world.” He traced a line down the center of her body, a light touch that made her shiver. “When you look at me, I’m suddenly not a mass of scars. I’m…handsome.”
“Pretty. You’re pretty, Brody.”
“That’s two. Again, because what you said was sweet just an extra one, but soon we’re going to have to talk about that ball gag.”
She pressed her lips together as though promising she wouldn’t do it again.
He let the crop slide lower, skimming over her belly and the faint silvery lines that hadn’t been there before. Stretch marks. Signs that his baby had grown inside her body. They only made her more beautiful because they were signs of her strength and her resolve. “You are even more gorgeous than before. You’re stunning to me and I realize that all those months I spent wanking my own dick to the picture of you in my head were wasted because nothing compares to how lovely you are in real life.”