Total pages in book: 109
Estimated words: 104165 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 521(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 347(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104165 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 521(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 347(@300wpm)
No one masters me but myself.
I step in and ride the elevator down. When it pings and opens, my back is ramrod straight. I’m galled to realize that in spite of my breathing, in spite of my determination, I’m still fucking nervous to see her.
Jaysus Christ, is this what the morning after feels like for regular people? I never bothered with it before. I play at the club and leave it there. Like sane people do. My life is tidy with none of the unholy mess of a relationship. Though god knows, this is no relationship.
As the doors roll open, I look around for Madison.
She’s certainly not in position like I explained to her she ought to be at the sound of the elevator bells last night.
Annoyed, I step down the hall, and yup, there she is still curled up in bed. I clear my throat, and I swear, before she realizes what she’s doing, the small curve of a little smile lights her face as she looks between me and the plate in my hand.
“You brought me breakfast?” she asks with a hope that borders on affection.
“No,” I say sharply, then am annoyed at myself for being affected by her nearness all over again. “I mean yes. But it’s hardly for breakfast’s sake. It’s for your training. You’ve ought to have been awake and waiting for Sir. At the ping of the elevator door, you are meant to be waiting, in position.”
She sits up, hugging the covers to her. Still in the slinky nightie from the first night, she looks adorably rumpled, and sexy as fuck.
“But there’s no alarm clock. And I never know when you’re coming, anyway.”
I stop myself from rolling my eyes at the very last moment. She should not be able to see that she affects me at all. “Yes. You’re meant to be prepared at all times. Tomorrow, I expect you in position when I arrive.”
“That’s stupid. Just give me a schedule or something. Then I’ll know. And an alarm clock.”
Finally I can’t keep back my exasperated breath. “That’s not how this works. Now do you want your hot breakfast, or should I keep standing here while it gets cold?”
“No, don’t, it smells so good!”
I finally approach the bed and, with a small flourish, pull off the cloche revealing the perfectly cooked vegetable omelet and crisped-but-not-too-crisped bacon. American bacon is a fecking tragedy compared to the Irish kind. But I’ve come to live with it, especially when it’s cooked right.
Madison’s eyes light up and she immediately reaches out for a piece of bacon. I yank the plate back before she can touch it.
“This is a training session.” I reinstate the chill in my voice. “You eat only what I feed you.
She looks at me like she might strangle me. I smile coldly. “You know I’m happy to walk back upstairs. There’s always the feeder.”
Her mouth drops open, eyes narrowing in fury.
But I don’t stop there. “And failure to take your training would also mean a punishment.” I tilt my head at her. “Or perhaps you enjoyed last night so much you want to be punished again?
“You’re a fucking rat bastard son of a brothel whore, Donny Callaghan.”
She pulls back and lifts a hand to cover her lips in surprise right after she says it, looking down at the mattress, then back up at me, eyes wide.
“Oh Mads, there’s no reason to bring my mother into this. I told you about her whoring in confidence.”
Outside I keep the same demeanor, but inside, I feel a tense excitement. Donny. She was the only person to ever call me Donny. She’s slipping. And I’m hard with the thrill of getting past another layer of her bullshit.
“What?” she asks, still seeming confused and off-kilter. Just how I like her. “I didn’t—”
I start to laugh.
Rage comes back into her eyes like a storm, and she swings her arm wildly like she’s trying to smack me. With the arm not holding her plate, I easily catch her wrist.
“Ah ah ah, there’s no violence allowed in the dungeon,” I say, tugging her in close to my chest. “Don’t make me cuff your wrists again. You know I’ll do it, and I’ll like it.”
She screams in fury and yanks back from me. “What the fuck is wrong with you? Do you even have any feelings?”
“All I’m asking is for you to eat your breakfast while it’s still hot.” I hold out a long piece of bacon for her. She doesn’t need to know all the ways she affects me. Feelings are inconvenient, and I’ve refused to have them for a good long while. I won’t be starting again now.
“You’re only fighting with yourself, Mads. Not me.”
She glares at me. “I’d rather go hungry.”
“You’ll take punishment instead of breakfast? You really are a randy lass, aren’t you?”