Chapter 6 Taught to Kneel

The elevator ride lasted an eternity.

Sebastian's hand burned like a brand on Olivia's arm, his fingers digging deep enough to leave marks she'd feel tomorrow. He hadn't spoken since dragging her from the gala.

The slap still throbbed across her cheek.

The elevator doors opened to the penthouse. Sebastian released her suddenly, and she stumbled forward, catching herself on the back of the sofa. She turned to face him, touching her cheek where the heat still pulsed.

Sebastian stood motionless, watching her. His bow tie hung loose around his neck, his jacket discarded somewhere between the car and the elevator. In the dim light of the penthouse, he looked less like the polished businessman who'd escorted her to the gala and more like something feral that had finally been unleashed.

"What did he say to you?"

His voice came out quiet. Too quiet. The kind of quiet that preceded earthquakes.

Olivia's throat closed. "Nothing. He was just-"

"Don't." Sebastian crossed the space between them in three strides. "Don't lie to me, Olivia. What promises did my brother make?"

She lifted her chin, defiance flaring through the fear. "He asked if I was okay. That's all."

"That's all?" The sound that left him wasn't a laugh so much as a wound tearing open. "He followed you into a bathroom, put his hands on you, and that's all?"

"You were too busy with Isadora to notice if I was breathing, let alone okay."

Sebastian's eyes went dark, that terrifying emptiness she'd learned meant danger.

"Isadora is business," he said, his voice dropping lower. "You are my wife."

"Your property, you mean." The anger felt good, burning away the humiliation of the evening. "Just another asset in your portfolio."

Sebastian moved closer, forcing her back against the sofa. "Did he tell you he could save you? That he'd rescue you from the monster?" His fingers caught her chin, tilting her face up. "That's always been Ethan's weakness. He thinks love conquers all, that being the hero makes him better than me."

"Maybe it does."

His grip tightened. "Love makes you weak. It makes you stupid. It makes you..." He trailed off, something flickering across his face before the mask slammed back into place. "It makes you vulnerable."

"And you're never vulnerable." It wasn't a question.

"Never." He released her chin, stepping back. "Strip."

Olivia's hands flew to her chest. "What?"

"You heard me." Sebastian loosened his cufflinks, the small sound impossibly loud in the silence. "Every inch of you belongs to me. I think it's time you remembered that."

Her pulse roared in her ears. "No."

"No?" He tilted his head. "Section 8, paragraph 3. Would you like me to read it to you?"

The contract. Always the contract. That piece of paper that had signed away more than her name.

"Please," she whispered, hating herself for begging. "Not like this."

"Then tell me what Ethan said. Word for word."

Her mind raced. If she told him about Ethan's offer to help her escape, about the way he'd touched her face like she was something precious instead of purchased, Sebastian would destroy him. But if she didn't...

"He said..." She swallowed hard. "He said I was more than what you'd reduced me to."

Sebastian went perfectly still. "And what did you say?"

"Nothing. You arrived before I could answer."

"Before you could agree to run away with him, you mean." His voice carried no inflection, which somehow made it worse. "Before you could break our contract and destroy everything."

"I didn't agree to anything! I told him about my father, about the deal. I told him I couldn't leave."

"Couldn't?" Sebastian stepped closer again. "Or wouldn't?"

Before she could answer, his hands found the zipper of her gown. The sound of it sliding down made her flinch, but he moved with brutal efficiency, peeling the silk away until it pooled at her feet. She stood in nothing but the diamond collar at her throat and her heels, exposed and trembling.

"Don't move," he commanded.

Sebastian circled her slowly, his gaze cataloging every inch of her skin. Olivia fought the urge to cover herself, to run, to scream. This was worse than if he'd touched her. This clinical assessment, this inventory of assets.

"My brother's hands were here." His finger traced her jaw without touching. "And here." Her waist. "What else did he touch, Olivia?"

"Nothing." Her voice cracked. "He didn't-we didn't-"

"But you wanted to." Sebastian stopped in front of her. "I saw how you looked at him. Like he was salvation and I'm damnation."

"You are damnation."

For a heartbeat, something raw flickered across Sebastian's face. Then it hardened into stone.

"On your knees."

"What?" she whispered, though she understood perfectly.

"I said," Sebastian repeated, his voice deadly quiet as he loosened his tie, "on your knees."

When she hesitated, his hand shot out, gripping her shoulder and forcing her down.

Horror and humiliation washed through her as he freed his penis, already hard.

"Open your mouth," he commanded.

Tears stung Olivia's eyes as she looked up at him. "I've never-"

"I know." His smile was cruel as he gripped her jaw. "Which makes this all the more satisfying."

His thumb pressed against the corner of her mouth, forcing it open. "Consider this your first lesson in obedience."

Sebastian guided himself to her lips, his other hand fisted in her hair. "Take it," he ordered. "Show me you understand who owns you."

Trembling, Olivia parted her lips. He pushed forward, filling her mouth, making her gag as he hit the back of her throat.

"Breathe through your nose," he instructed coldly. "And use your tongue."

Tears streamed down her face as Sebastian set a brutal pace, holding her head still as he thrust. His fingers tightened in her hair, pulling until it hurt.

"Look at me," he demanded. When she raised her tear-filled eyes, he smiled. "There. That's what I want to see. The moment you finally understand your place."

His movements grew more erratic, his breathing heavier. With a final thrust, he held her in place as he finished, forcing her to swallow his cum.

When he finally finished, he released her so suddenly she collapsed onto the cold marble.

"Your body's contaminated," Sebastian said, tucking his penis back into his trousers. "Ethan's filthy hands all over you. I can't fuck something that's been touched by him."

"Then let me go," she spat on the floor. "If I'm so contaminated, tear up the contract and release me."

A cruel smile ghosted over Sebastian's lips "And give you exactly what you want? Where's the fun in that?"

He stepped over her like she was debris, walking toward his bedroom without looking back.

"Clean yourself up. You look pathetic."