Owned by the Dom: Part Two (The Owners) (19 page)

“Can I help you?” the barman asked.

“What’s your name, sweetness?” Becky asked, taking a liking to the barman.

“Gabe,
sugar. What can I get you?” The charm dripping out of his mouth should be illegal. Prue ignored him and kept an eye out for the man she was really here to see.

“You were
rude,” Anya said, pulling out a tip.

“You should leave a tip after he’s served you,” Prue said.

“I did. You’re too much in your own little world to care.”

Her friends sat down beside her
, looking out onto the dance floor. All Prue saw was the way James took over when men tried to dance with her. She wondered if his possessive instincts had faded toward her. He no longer seemed to care about her.

Stop this, Prue. You’re starting to sound like a broken record.

She stared down at her hands then reached behind her.

“I’m really happy you agreed to go with me,” she said, staring between her two friends.

Becky and Anya looked at one another before turning to her.

“I was shocked you called at all. I’ve not heard from you in so long I thought something had happened to you. You’re working in a supermarket, Prue. You hate those places.”

She shrugged, sipping her drink. There was only a small amount of alcohol in her drink. Prue needed to keep her wits about her. She sipped her drink while gazing out at the floor. The couples looked so relaxed and happy.

I miss this.

“I’m sorry I haven’t called or gone out. Life has been pretty hectic,” Prue said, stirring her drink with the straw.

“Did James break up with you?” Becky asked, brushing aside her hair. “I can’t believe you got the blue colour.”

Prue smiled. “Yeah, I needed a change, and I don’t know what’s happening between James and me. It’s complicated.”

“Sorry to interrupt you ladies
, but these drinks are for you,” Gabe said, placing three filled glasses in front of them.

Prue handed Gabe her empty glass. “Who are they from?” she asked.

“The boss, there.” Gabe pointed at the alcove where she and James had once danced. There he stood, dressed in leather looking as commanding as he usually did.

Her heart rate picked up. He looked so good with his arms folded over his chest. The muscles bulged. She remembered what it felt like to be pushed against the tree with his body crowding her.

“Speak of the handsome devil,” Anya said.

“Excuse me.”
Prue took her drink and moved toward the alcove where he stood. His gaze followed her. Prue loved his attention, and the knowledge he still watched her sent a thrill up her spine. “Hi,” she said. Words failed her. Being close to him reminded her how tall and imposing he was.

“You came.”

“Yes, this place is great.”

“And you’re out with your friends.”

“Yes.”

Where was the easy banter between them? Even when he dated her sister they’d gotten on better than this. The lack of conversation made her uneasy. His gaze remained on hers. She didn’t know what to say. Staring at the floor she waited for the right words to spring to mind.

“You look good,” he said, cutting through the silence.

“Thank you.”

“I hope you have fun. The drinks are on the house.” James turned to leave. Seeing his back spiked her anger.

“That’s it? That’s all you’re going to say to me?”

“What more is there to say?” he asked, turning to face her.

“You use to be different. Why don’t you care?” She hated the way she sounded so needy. This wasn’t her. She didn’t like feeling this way.

“Enjoy yourself, Prue.”

The use of her nickname annoyed her. James refused to call her by anything other than Prudence
, and yet there he’d just called her Prue.

Turning away from him, she went back to her friends. She downed her drink then ordered another. “I suggest you drink t
o your hearts’ content, ladies. James says the drink is on the house.”

Gabe handed her another drink, which she downed in one.

She lifted her hands above her head letting out a whoop. Her friends did the same.

“Come on, let’s dance.”

Prue tugged them onto the dance floor. The number was fast, and she rocked her body with the beat of the music. Throwing her arms above her head, Prue worked her hips. She matched her friends step for step not wanting the glorious buzz to stop.

When one song ended, she ran to the bar and downed a shot. She began to feel the buzz of the alcohol along with the heavy thump of the music. Even though she laughed with her friends and then danced suggestively with the men who came near her, Prue knew something was missing.

James didn’t come out of his office. Men wrapped their arms around her waist then humped her backside, and he didn’t come out to stop them. She didn’t know what annoyed her more, the lack of response or the fact she missed the response he used to give. James had once told her she was all his. He was an owner, and she was his property. At that moment, she felt like he’d put her up for sale.

She went to the bar and ordered a glass of water. One of the guys followed her. Prue ignored him. She didn’t want his attention
, and he’d been dancing with one of her friends.

Gabe handed her a glass.

“Fuck off,” he said to the man beside her. The look Gabe gave the man would kill people on the spot. The guy beside her left in the next instant.

“Thanks.” She sipped the water looking toward the office.

“He’s in his office if you wish to go and see him.”

Draining the water she left her seat heading toward his office.

****

James turned the computer screen off. After watching several men dancing with his woman he was struggling with the urge to go out and murder them. He sat in his office chair clawing at the handles to stay in place.
Never in all of his life had he needed to fight his natural instincts.

Gabe came through to his office to let him know he was keeping an eye on her. The new Dom at Ravage was a blessing. James had told Gabe about Prudence and
had also shown him a photo of her hoping she’d come back to his club.

He wished he hadn’t invited her back.

The way she moved tantalised him. Her hips swung from side to side, and her tits moved with each beat. Shit, his cock thickened in his pants. Two months without her and he threatened to rip apart his trousers in order to get to her.

His office door opened and slammed against the wall. Prudence stood glaring at him. She stepped into his office looking threatening. He found her cute with her arms folded. She wasn’t tall
, and her presence was more adorable than scary.

She closed the door advancing closer to his desk.

“Why are you here, Prudence?” James asked. Her scent was driving him crazy. In the short space everything about her filled every part of his office. Her scent, the way she looked, everything captivated him. She always wore the most subtle perfume, which always drove him crazy with wanting her.

“
You ask me to come to Ravage; you buy me a drink, and then nothing?”

He heard the hurt in her voice. Calling her Prue had been a mistake. He’d hated the word on his tongue. To him, her name would always be Prudence.

“I asked you to come. I never said I’d use the moment to take advantage of you or anything else.”

I want to bend you over this desk and fuck you so hard it hurts.

He couldn’t stand up, as otherwise she’d see the evidence of his raging arousal. His desire for her never ceased, and it was starting to really irritate him. He was tired of looking. Watching and not being able to touch was driving him crazy. At the park he’d wanted to tear her jeans off and fuck her. Every chance he got he thought about taking her, loving her, and making her his once again.

Prudence was his
, and he didn’t understand why there was this void between them. He couldn’t stop it. Each time he tried to give in to his possessive nature, he stopped, remembering what she’d been through.

“How can I not think you’ve got someone else when you treat me like this? I thought you love
d me and you wanted me?”

“I do. I want your safety above all things.”

Tears filled her eyes. He held onto the edge of the desk to keep him in place. If he touched her then they’d both be lost. He couldn’t give her what she needed.

“I needed to see you,
” she said.

Her voice went straight t
o his cock. He wasn’t some teenage boy, and yet his body betrayed him as if it was. Growling in frustration, James pushed away from the desk. He stood and opened his arms. His anger at what was happening between them made him lose control.

“There, now you’ve seen me. I’m alive and living to see another fucking day. Are you happy?” he asked.

“What is going on?” She took a step closer.

“Beats me, baby. I seem to get one step closer to you
, and you take one step back.”

She stopped when there was only an arm
’s length between them. The distance wasn’t far, but to James it felt like they were worlds apart. He stared at Prudence and saw the woman he loved. She was the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. The barrier, invisible, separated them from each other and from their happiness.

“I can’t stop this,” he said. “Only you can stop this.”

“I don’t know what to do.”

He ran his fingers through his hair. Even if they called it a day, James knew there would never be another woman for him. There would be women he used to fuck to rid himself from the pain
, but none of them would mean anything. The thought of touching another woman made him sick to his stomach.

Cupping her cheek, James rested his head against hers.
There was only one thing he could think of that they hadn’t tried.

“
I need you to speak with that woman, the psychologist. I gave you her card. I want you to make an appointment to see her.”

She tensed in his arms. He stroked her face and shushed her. “Don’t speak, Prudence. Not now, I need you to listen to me.”

James sensed she wanted to argue with him. She calmed down in a matter of moments, and he kissed her head.

“Make an appointment and talk with this woman. I’m not giving up
on us, Prudence.”

“I don’t need to speak with someone.”

“If you don’t speak with this woman then we’re through,” James said. He hated the words but knew they were necessary in order for his woman to find peace.

“You can’t mean that,” she said. Her lips quivered. More than anything, James wanted to give in. He wanted to hold her in his arms and promise that everything would be okay. Instead, he shook his head taking a step back.

“I mean it. Do this for us, Prudence.”

He turned away from her and took his seat back behind the desk. Opening the file in front of him he started marking up the accounts. Ravage was slowly easing back into profit.

Prudence stared at him. He felt her eyes on him while he worked.

“I don’t have her number anymore,” Prudence said.

“Then I’ll book the appointment, and I’ll tell you the time and the date.”

She looked like she wanted to say something else. Within moments he heard the door close behind her, leaving only her scent behind.

Leaning back in his chair, he grabbed the phone while also logging into the security cameras on his computer. Her image came on screen. He zoomed in to watch her finish some water before leaving without her friends.

“Josiah? James Castleden here. Could you give me the name and number of that
psychologist woman?”

He jotted down the name and number then hung up. Right at that moment James would do anything to keep their relationship together.

Seeing the therapist

Prue sat in the waiting room and felt like everyone was staring at her. She’d never been to a therapist for anything in her life. The only time she’d spoken to someone like this was with her tutor with regards to discussing her future. She flicked through the magazine wishing the time would pass.

When James called her to confirm the appointment she’d tried to talk him out of it. He’d become firm
, and there was no breaking his resolve. Going to therapy to sort out her troubles was foreign to her. She’d never come from money, and her family solved problems by addressing them in a stern but calm manner or by forgetting about them. Someone coughed in the room. The sterile environment put her on edge. Running her fingers through her hair, she stared at the posters on the walls.

James refused to have anything to do with her until she talked to someone about her problems.
Four months had passed since she’d been taken. Living at her home grew easier every day she lived there. Spending time with her sister was enjoyable, but she missed the freedom of her old self. She no longer went out with friends apart from the time at Ravage. Once in the last four months was unacceptable. Becky and Anya had been offish with her for some time. She was pleased when she’d entered Ravage that she hadn’t been overcome with a panic attack. Getting on the dance floor had felt like freedom in some way. Prudence feared that Ravage would turn into a kind of hell for her instead of the sanctuary she saw it. When the pictures lost her attention she sat with her hands grasping her seat.