OBSESSED

65

"Free will is an excuse," I said. "Your body knows what you want better than you do."

I dipped a finger between her cheeks, tracing it down the seam of her core. She gasped and fell onto her elbows, shifting her ass to the air. I bit back a groan. Damn perfection.

"Tell me what you did," I said. "Say it for me, baby."

Her jaw tensed. She fixed her eyes on the bed and kept her chin defiantly raised.

Raising a hand, I brought it down harshly against her ass. She jumped with a startled cry. "Ah!"

I bent down to brush my mouth against her ear. "Tell me. I want to hear you say it."

"I did nothing wrong!" she yelled.

I straightened. My dick was at full attention now. I hated and loved how much of a brat she was. She shivered as I raised my hand again. This time when I spanked her, she was ready. She didn't make a noise or flinch. I grinned down at her. My hands snaked over her body to where the waistband of the boxers hugged her hips. She sucked in a breath.

"No," she whispered.

Ignoring her, I peeled the boxers over her ass and down to where her knees were pressed into the bed. Saliva flooded my mouth. Her shirt slid forward without the friction of the shorts to keep them in place, revealing the bottoms of her breasts. I breathed through my nose to keep from outright panting. She was delectable. Just the sight of her bare flesh sent a rush through me.

"You can speak at any time," I said before spanking her again. "I just want a confession."

She grit her teeth. "Fuck you."

I spanked her again and leaned down to kiss her bright red ass and mumble, "Gladly."

This went on much longer than I anticipated. Leah's ass was covered in my hand prints and red as a ripe tomato. I must have spanked her twenty times but she showed no sign of relenting. She was just being petty now.

Fine, I thought. Two can play that game.

"I truly admire your grit," I said.

Her eyes opened and she looked back at me for the first time. Her eyes swam with unshed tears. I lost my breath for a moment. Was it too much? Had I broken her?

"You're a bastard," she snapped.

Nope. I moved one hand to her thighs and pried them apart. She fought me but I was stronger. Swiping my finger between her lips, I pulled out to show her the gleaming wetness.

"You can fight me all you want," I taunted her, "but we both know the truth. You defy me because you want the punishment. You like this."

"No!" She stuffed her face back into the bed.

There was a moment of quiet between us. I debated what to do, what would be best for her in this moment. James kept plenty of toys downstairs that I could use to whip her ass into shape, but I knew that would work against me. I could beat her all night and she'd be too stubborn to admit what was so obvious.

She needed tenderness. I had punished her as promised but now she needed to be tended to.

My hands found her waist again and flipped her over onto her back again. Her face was wet as she tried to cover it with her arms. I let her hide behind her arms.

"Easy, Leah," I said softly. I pulled her shirt down to cover her top half and kissed her neck. "You handled your punishment well. You are more stubborn than most could handle, but I know what you need."

Her body, even in all its softness, remained rigid under my touch. I didn't take offense. She had just been spanked more than she ever had. My hand even still stung. She needed to be loved now, needed the pain to be washed away with serotonin and pleasure.

"Relax." I climbed onto the bed and hovered over her, staring down at where her arms were folded over her face. I kissed the tips of her elbows. "I love you, baby girl. So, so much. I'm sorry I had to punish you."

She shuddered.

"Look at me, Leah." I lightly touched her side until she lowered her arms. Her eyes were red but she wasn't crying any more. "You are so beautiful."

Sniffling, she wet her lips. "Thank you."

"Will you let me make you feel better?" I asked.

Her eyes flickered between mine. She slowly nodded. "Yes."

Smiling into her skin, I bent down and placed my lips to hers. She didn't kiss back but she didn't pull away. I moved my mouth down to her jaw and neck, sucking and nibbling on my way down the length of her body. Leah squirmed when I pushed the shirt up and traced the fuzzy dream between her plush thighs.

"This is about treating you," I whispered. "Let me."

With that, I crawled down between her legs. Her gaze burned into me, conflicted, while I licked and sucked on her body. At the first notice of her pleasure—a strangled moan—I plunged my tongue into her folds. Her fingers gripped onto my hair. While I thrusted my tongue hungrily into her, my thumb rubbed her clit. Her breathing hitched.

"Jarrod," she whimpered. "Oh-oh! I'm coming!"

Her salted caramel essence poured into my mouth. I lapped it up eagerly until her lips were clean. By this point, my dick was hard as a rail. I wanted to slide it into warm wetness so badly. This wasn't about me, though.

Pulling back, I moved up her body and kissed her before laying beside her. She breathed raggedly until it gradually leveled out.

"How do you feel?" I asked, thumbing her bare hip.

She didn't respond. I lifted my head to look at her, but she was already looking at me. A strange expression filled her face.

"Leah—"

Without lifting her body, she raised her right hand and brought it down to my arm. Pain erupted before I realized what had happened. I hissed and pushed away from. My gaze locked onto the syringe sticking out of my arm and I hurriedly yanked it out. The warmth of Xyrem already was diffusing through me. As my body relaxed under the drug, I looked back at Leah. My last, fading glimpse of her was startling. She hovered over me, her jaw set determinedly and her eyes shining with ferocity.