Dominic’s fingers tightened on Eleanor’s chin, his grip firm but not painful, forcing her to hold his gaze. His eyes bore into hers, unrelenting and filled with a primal hunger that made her knees weak. The air between them was thick with an unspoken promise, the flickering candlelight casting jagged shadows across the room.
“You’ve spent your life pretending,” he said, his voice a low growl. “Pretending to be in control. Pretending you don’t want to be taken, owned, and broken down to what you really are.”
His words struck her like a lightning bolt. She wanted to deny them, to argue, but the heat blooming in her chest betrayed her. The truth, unacknowledged for so long, hung in the air between them, daring her to confront it.
“I….’’ she started, but her voice faltered, caught in the web of his intensity.
“Don’t speak unless I give you permission,” Dominic interrupted sharply, his tone brooking no argument. His thumb brushed over her trembling lips, silencing her. “You don’t get to be in charge here. Do you understand?”
Her breath hitched as his dominance enveloped her, suffocating in its weight but intoxicating in its clarity. She nodded, a small, submissive gesture that sent a shiver of exhilaration down her spine.
“Say it,” he demanded, his voice like steel. “Say you understand.”
“I understand,” she whispered, her voice breaking on the words.
“Good.” He released her chin, but only to circle her slowly, like a predator appraising its prey. The room seemed smaller with him stalking her, his presence filling every inch of space. Eleanor stood frozen, her bare skin prickling under his gaze. She felt exposed, vulnerable, and yet, somewhere deep inside her, thrillingly alive.
Dominic stopped behind her, so close she could feel his breath against the nape of her neck. His hand came to rest on her shoulder, heavy and possessive. “You begged for this,” he murmured, his lips brushing her ear. “So don’t think for a second you’ll get away with holding anything back.”
Before she could respond, he spun her to face him, his strength sending a sharp jolt through her body. His hands moved with purpose, gripping her wrists and pinning them to her sides. “You don’t move unless I say so. You don’t touch unless I allow it. Tonight, Eleanor, you’re nothing but mine to mold, to break, and to rebuild. Do you hear me?”
Her throat felt dry as she tried to respond, her voice a trembling whisper. “Yes, Sir.”
Dominic smirked, satisfaction flickering in his expression. “Good girl. Now prove it.”
Without warning, he pushed her back against the wall, the cold surface biting into her skin as his body pressed against hers. His hands moved over her, not gently, but with a roughness that claimed every inch he touched. His fingers tangled in her hair, pulling her head back to expose her throat, where his teeth grazed her skin, not a kiss, but a mark of dominance that sent a shiver down her spine.
“You’re trembling,” he noted, his voice dripping with dark amusement. “Are you scared?”
“Yes,” she admitted, her voice barely audible.
“Good. Fear will keep you honest. And honesty, Eleanor, is the only thing I’ll accept from you tonight.”
His hands slid down her sides, exploring her curves with deliberate slowness, only to stop abruptly at her waist. He gripped her hips tightly, his thumbs pressing into her flesh.
“But don’t confuse fear with weakness. I don’t want you weak. I want you willing.”
Eleanor’s heart pounded in her chest as she fought to hold his gaze. The room felt like it was spinning, the world outside forgotten. In this moment, there was only Dominic, his strength, his control, his unrelenting presence. She wanted to surrender, to give him everything, but the years of conditioning held her back, clawing at her resolve.
He noticed the hesitation and leaned in, his lips brushing her ear as he whispered, “You’ll let go, Eleanor. You don’t have a choice. I’ll rip that control from you if I have to.”
Her breath caught as his hands tightened their grip, his words igniting something deep within her, a dark, forbidden desire she hadn’t dared to acknowledge. She didn’t resist as he pulled her from the wall, guiding her toward the center of the room, where the shadows seemed deeper, darker.
“You’ve been waiting for this your whole life,” he said, his voice low and commanding. “You just didn’t know it until now.”
The night stretched before her like a vast, uncharted sea, and Eleanor knew there was no turning back. As she stood before Dominic, trembling and exposed, she felt the last fragments of her old self begin to crumble. What lay beneath, she wasn’t sure, but she knew he would stop at nothing to find out. |
