Author: admin

Not decorative. Not metaphorical. A cage with iron bars and a latch. To the left, a long padded bench sits beneath mounted metal rings. Its purpose is far too obvious, the spanking bench. Chains hang from the ceiling. Leather straps. Padded cuffs. Paddles of varying thickness line the far wall beside something that looks suspiciously…

She draws again from the cigar, eyes watering as she braves the burn. Then she leans forward, blowing smoke into my face. “Is that a yes or a no?” she says. “Do you want a taste of me or not?” I grab her waist and pull her flush against me. “Shoot me if I ever…

I don’t wait. I toss the shirt over my head and fling it aside. “Kneel,” he adds. I drop to my knees and look up at him. He circles me slowly, and I hear him reaching for something behind me. Leather rustling. Metal sliding. And then he bends toward me, reaching for my glasses and…

“But you didn’t. You wouldn’t.” “You don’t know that.” “I do.” There’s something in her voice, something that makes me turn. She’s sitting there, chest rising and falling, hair a mess, glasses still on. “You think you’re the first person close to me with chronic PTSD?” she asks, eyes narrowing. “These things are manageable. We…

“What is it, Knox?” “What is what?” “You look kinda… frightened.” He breathes in, deep and slow. But I can hear it. The tension behind every breath. The pulse beneath my cheek, too fast to be steady. “Do I?” he murmurs. “Stop hiding things from me. It’s starting to get annoying.” Silence. His breathing fills…

I kiss him back just as hard. Tasting the faint trace of whiskey on his lips, feeling every nerve in my body respond to his. There’s nothing soft about this moment. It’s claiming. It’s raw. When he finally pulls away, he rests his forehead against mine. His breath Successfully unlocked! “I’ve been meaning to do…

Finn and his “devices” have never led to anything but trouble. And now that he’s pulling stunts that involve hospital beds and security violations, I can’t afford to hope he’ll magically change course. He won’t. Not unless someone forces him to. And that someone might have to be me. The bathroom door creaks open. Knox…

I wake to trembling. At first, I think it’s me. A dream, maybe. But then I feel it again. Not mine. Him. Knox. His body jerks beneath me, not violently, but enough to shake the mattress. His chest is tight against my neck, and I can feel the tension in him-tight like a pulled wire…

He stops. Turns to me. Successfully unlocked! The hand that’s on my waist pulls me toward him until my body meets his. Chest to chest. Hip to hip. The feel of him-solid, warm, grounding-sends a current up my spine. I hate that it calms me. That it makes me ache, No Cream which I’m certain…

“So you thought watching was a better option?” Silence. “I’m sorry, Sloane,” he says. “I don’t care if you’re with my brother now. I just want my friend back.” “It’s too late, Finn.” There’s a beat. And then- “I’m in the hospital.” “What?” “I was crossing the street. A car came out of nowhere. I…