The Deception series boxset: FaCade, Cadence, Beneath Innocence (6 page)

I swallowed back the self-disgust, the humiliation and the misery and I ate. I ate to give me strength, I ate to fuel my revulsion and I ate to show them I wasn’t done yet.

Maria watched me, her eyes on the rapid movement of my tongue. I couldn’t work out if she was an ally yet, but I had the impression she would turn on me quickly if it granted her leverage and ‘ranking’. She seemed nice enough but there was something about her that made me wary.

I knelt back once I had managed to get what I could from the bowl without having to squash my nose in the bottom. The man sneered at me, chuckling smugly as he looked from me to the bowl. “See how easy that was.” He kicked the bowl at me, the remaining soup splattering over my thighs, making me flinch and scuttle back towards the bed. “Amazing what you can accomplish when you understand how this is gonna work.”

I didn’t answer him; I didn’t think he expected me to. His mocking grin curdled the fresh contents in my stomach. He turned to Maria. “Prepare her.”

My eyes widened. “What?” I turned to Maria, my eyes begging her for an explanation. “Prepare me for what?”

“Of course.” She spoke quietly but serenely.

He left us to it as Maria stood and walked towards me.

“What are we doing?”

She smiled softly and nodded her head as if to encourage me. “We need to prepare you for him.”

“Him?” What the hell? Who?

She sighed gently and held out her hand for me. “It’s time for you to be
presented
.”

Something told me, with the way she said the word and the way her eyes darkened, my presentation wasn’t going to be something quite as simple as a posh dress to welcome the queen in. Nor would it be as pleasant.

I HADN’T A CLUE WHO I was being presented to but he had to have a perversion because I was dressed in tiny jeans shorts that rode up my ass, a tee that barely covered my boobs with the slogan
‘Red Hot Chilli Peppers’
splashed across the front, the material just covering my ample chest. My hair had been braided into two side braids, and cowboy boots adorned my feet. I was completely free of make-up and feeling so sick to my stomach I could barely breathe.

“Ready?” Maria chirped as though she was dressing a daughter for her prom. Her over-eager smile showed too many teeth. I wanted to question her sanity, but who was I to question anyone I didn’t have a functioning memory of?

The door clicked open and the big man who had showered me in ice water approached. His eyes flicked over my attire briefly before his giant-sized palm wrapped around my upper arm. His hold was light but firm; he didn’t squeeze the flesh like the man in charge who tried to hypnotize me with his words and the intensity of his glare did.

I had no choice but to clumsily follow next to him. I could have been imagining the intake of breath he took as he leaned towards me, but I didn’t, he was smelling me, which made my insides tense and stir even more.

I didn’t understand the reasoning of my mind and body but when the man in charge did these things, he did frighten and repulse me but my body betrayed that and yearned for his touch. Yet this intrusion, the simple inhaling of my scent by this man had my body recoiling and my mind battering at my survival instincts to kick in and flee. This was the first time he had really shown me any attention apart from to give me orders and indifference which made him all the more frightening.

“Go inside,” he mumbled gently, shooing me forward towards a slightly open door. I was wary, my soft footfalls small and cautious. I felt his heavy palm on the bottom of my back, coaxing me forward.

I lifted my hand and slowly pushed the heavy steel door open further. The shadow crept across the white tiled floor, revealing more of the room to my view. My breathing divulged the truth of my nerves but I tried to hide them behind my stoic face.

The pressure on my back from the giant’s hand forced me to stumble into the room, its bright florescent light illuminating the space before me. There were three walls made from what looked like a mirrored glass, but maybe thicker. My eyes darted around, soaking in the scene laid out in front of me.

Dark penetrating eyes roamed over me as the man who confused all my senses sat at a large table set up in the center of the otherwise barren room. He was dressed in slacks and a blue shirt, his tie hanging loose like he had tugged on it at the end of a hard work day.

Heat burned bright in his eyes then simmered to anger, the furrowing of his brow confirming it as his eyes dragged over the length of me. “You’ve changed so much, but then not at all,” he murmured. The air was still but also charged like the calm, thick atmosphere before a storm.

I shuffled from one foot to the other, unsure of what was expected of me. The room had my brain scratching for memories it couldn’t reach. What was this place and why was I there?

I hated myself. I wanted to pound at my own skull and berate my absent mind for failing me so drastically. Thoughts were so jumbled I didn’t know if I could even trust myself.

What he said earlier played back in my mind making my lips move without permission. “How do we know each other?”

His hard glare made me want to fade into the air, evaporate into particles and then be carried away through the vents to freedom. What was freedom for me? What if my world was worse outside? No, I couldn’t believe that. There was something inside me, granted it was deeply buried under the fear and clogged thoughts but there was something that told me I wasn’t alone. I had something…someone.

The scraping of the chair and heavy presence in front of me commanded my attention. An iron-fisted grip tightened on my arms. “Why would you think we knew each other?” he barked at me, the small spray of spit from his angry question misting my cheek.

“You know my name and said I look different but the same,” I squeaked as he shook me. My head thumped angrily against the abuse.

He stilled, his eyes studying my face before he answered. “I don’t buy stock picked from a cattle farm, Star.” He looked down at himself then back to me with a quirked brow. Yes, he was beautiful and shouldn’t have trouble finding any woman to cater to any type of need he craved. “I chose with reason.”

I was surprised at how forthcoming he was being and decided to push for more. “So we do know each other?” My eyes rebelled against what I wanted them to do, making me want to poke them out with a rusty spoon when they focused on his lips as I waited for his reply. They were full, the bottom one slightly fuller than the top, pink and smooth unlike the chapped, peeling sore lips of my own.

The side of his mouth lifted into a smirk. I wanted to cry that he knew what I was thinking. “I know you! But you have no idea who I am.”

My body deflated. If we didn’t know each other then there were no binds that tied us to make him more human towards me. I was just a captive to a man clearly deranged.

A chill blew gently against my exposed skin. Goosebumps scattered over my still sore flesh, making a tingle shoot through my body. I jerked from the intensity of it.

A throaty chuckle resonated from his chest and I glanced at him in shock.

His head tilted like a cat’s does when it’s curious about an object. Dipping his hand into the pocket of his slacks, he pulled a small tin out and flicked the lid with his thumb. The smell of cherries lifted from the tin, teasing my nose. The pad of his thumb skimmed over the surface before he reached towards me and swiped it across my bottom lip. It was warm and soothing, a silky smooth layer of moistness coating my parched lips.

I gasped involuntarily from his gentle touch, my eyes holding his, trying to decipher his play. Was it wrong that my whole being ached from such a tender caress? I wanted to sob and be held onto and told that everything would be okay.

My mind raced with all the instability. I didn’t have time to react when a warm palm slid up my cheek, cupping me behind the ear and bringing me forwards to crush me against the full lips I had been admiring not moments before. My body tilted into his and for a split second I allowed myself to enjoy the connection before reality morphed back in.

His scent invaded me. His warm comfort turned to the fire of the underworld, trying to corrupt me. His taste exploded on my tongue, mint and wine swirling in the wet massage as his tongue danced and explored every inch of my mouth.

Images reminded me of Maria’s mouth wrapped around his cock. My teeth clamped down as anger and confusion drowned me in what was real. This wasn’t comfort, this man had kidnapped me.

A metallic tinge hit my lips as a hand gripped my braids in one fist, dragging forcefully downwards. My head snapped backwards. My mouth opened, releasing the damaged tissue of his now swollen, bleeding lip. I stared at him and winced at the black orbs swallowing any other color, glassy and terrifying as he glared down at me.

“You kissed me back.” He seemed stunned, his eyes wide and searching which made me feel even more like a needy, dirty whore. “You like to bite?” A shadow marred his features.

I tried to shake my head to tell him no but his grip was so tight I was frightened if I moved too much I would lose the hair that was confined in his grip.

“Biting, marking, drawing blood is claiming in my world, Belle,” he breathed before pushing me forwards across the table. My stomach hit the surface, my face following. His hand pushed hard making my cheek ache on impact with the wood. The air rushed from my lungs. He was so strong, the weight of him impossible to shift. He was hard; I felt his pleasure digging into my prone ass as the rest of him covered my back.

His lips rested at my ear, taunting me. “I like to bite too!”

Tears filled my eyes and leaked out. A weak, broken cry rippled through my compressed chest. The ripping of the barely there shirt had my heart exploding into a thousand tiny shards.

Oh, God, no! My body fought against him, flipping frantically beneath him. I heard him grunt and then I was moving as he yanked me up. I spun to face him, my hand coming up and round as my body did, hitting him across the face. Fire exploded across my palm from the contact and then my own cheek smarted, my body giving way under the power of his backhanded attack. I met the floor in a crumbled mess.

Anger fueled me, making me act foolish. I knew I couldn’t win but how could I live with myself if I didn’t try? I kicked my foot out at his shin, making him swear and rush me, grasping my attacking foot so it couldn’t make a second blow.

I was dragged a few feet, the tiles making me glide on my jeans-covered ass. Before I could stop him he grasped my other foot. I wiggled to free myself but it was useless. He parted my legs, his smirk mocking me as he overpowered me. His leg lifted, pressure coming down on me from his foot. I shook my head, pleading with him. “You going to behave?” he asked, amusement coloring his tone.

I shook my head as I still fought to defy him, but said yes over and over. He dropped one ankle, leaned forward and ripped at the remaining strands of fabric left of my tee, leaving me completely topless. My nipples hardened from being met with cooler air. My hands instinctively cupped my breasts, hiding them from his amused gaze.

“Stand up,” he commanded, releasing my other foot.

I knew he saw defeat in my eyes. I was too weak, I knew I was, but I was too scared of the repercussions if I didn’t do what he asked. Maria told me he never wanted full on intercourse, so maybe if I didn’t provoke him with violence which he seemed to enjoy, he would get on with whatever he planned and permit me go back to my room.

I maneuvered my forearm to cover both breasts while I freed my other hand to help lift my body from the cold floor. I looked him in the eye, grateful my tears had dried.

“Clean your mess.”

My eyes pinched in confusion. I scanned the room but there was no mess, nothing out of place or dirty. I came back to rest on his face, shrugging in bewilderment but before I could ask what he wanted me to clean, his finger lifted to the blood still pooling from his fattened lip.

I sighed loudly, my beaten down spirit finally giving in. I stretched my free hand up towards his face but he grabbed my wrist, shaking his head. His other hand forced my arm to free my breasts, the bounce slightly drawing his attention to them. Heat sparked in his eyes like when I first arrived. “Use your tongue.”