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Heat blooms in my chest, melting the ice in my veins. The praise acts like a drug. It shoots straight to my brain, overriding the burning shame in my throat. I thrill at his approval. I relish that he recognizes my rigid posture as devotion rather than defiance. I find joy in the most twisted, broken things.
“Kiss her, Ari.”
Ari’s jaw ticks. His eyes search mine, seeking permission. A silent plea for forgiveness. I have no permission to give. I can’t even offer a comforting blink. Jax hasn’t permitted it.
“I won’t repeat myself.” The playful edge vanishes from Jax’s voice.
Ari leans in. His movements drag, offering me every opportunity to turn my head. He presses his mouth against mine. Soft. Tentative. Respectful.
It means absolutely nothing.
No spark ignites. No heat flares. I sit like a mannequin, accepting the mechanical friction of lips against lips. Every nerve ending in my body screams in protest. This is wrong. These are the wrong lips, the wrong taste, the wrong man. I belong to someone else. My heart beats for the devil watching us.
Ari pulls back, his breath hitching. Complete humiliation washes over his aristocratic features. He feels the dead air between us. He registers my absolute lack of reciprocation. He is forcing himself on a woman who clearly doesn’t want him, and the reality of it strips the hope from his face.
Jax’s low, rumbling laugh vibrates through the room. A sound of triumph. “Such perfect obedience, Liv. But your preference is glaring.” He shifts his gaze to Ari, eyes gleaming with dark intent. “Don’t take it personally, Carter. She belongs to me in ways you simply cannot comprehend yet. Her body knows its master.”
Possessiveness drips from every syllable. My pulse hammers against my collarbone, thick and heavy with shameful arousal.
Jax steps around the bed and climbs onto the mattress behind me. He spreads his powerful thighs, caging my hips, and pulls my back flush against his solid chest. His thick arms wrap around my waist. The tension drains from my muscles in an instant. I melt into his warmth, my head falling back against his shoulder. A soft, involuntary sigh slips past my lips.
“Keep touching her,” Jax orders, his breath hot against my ear.
Ari swallows hard. He reaches out, running his trembling palms over my bare arms. He touches my shoulders, dragging his hands down my sides.
Jax’s large hands slide up my ribcage. His thumbs brush the undersides of my breasts. My spine arches. My breath catches in my throat, hitching with undeniable need. I try to suppress the whimper building in my chest, but I fail. Jax knows my body better than I do. He knows exactly where to touch me and how long to make me wait.
Two men touch my skin. My body only reacts to the monster behind me. Jax ensures Ari witnesses every second of it.
“Who do you want?” Jax murmurs, his lips grazing the sensitive flesh right below my earlobe. “Who do you belong to, Liv?”
“You,” I gasp, the word tearing out of my throat without a second of hesitation. “Only you.”
Self-hatred stabs at my mind, but it cannot pierce the thick fog of lust and devotion.
“Good girl.”
His hands move with deliberate, ruthless purpose. He slips beneath the waistband of my silk shorts, his fingers finding my wet heat. He strokes me, pressing exactly where I need him. My hips roll back against his groin. I cry out, abandoning all pretense of dignity.
Ari stares, his hands falling away from my arms. He sits mere inches away, forced to watch me come apart. I unravel for my captor, panting, consumed by the pleasure Jax wrings from my body. The humiliation fractures Ari’s gaze. His jaw slackens. He is watching the complete subjugation of my mind and body.
My climax hits like a freight train, stealing my vision. I sob through the release, my inner muscles clenching tightly around Jax’s intrusive fingers. He rides out the tremors with me, his mouth open against my neck, absorbing my pathetic whimpers.
Jax withdraws his hand. I slump back against him, trembling, drenched in a sickening mix of satisfaction and shame.
“Return to the chair.”
Ari stands and retreats to the velvet armchair, chest heaving, profound relief radiating from his rigid posture. He puts as much distance between us as the locked room allows.
Jax keeps me tucked firmly against his chest. He strokes my tangled blonde hair, smoothing the sweaty strands away from my forehead. “Such loyalty. Unflinching honesty. You are perfect for me.”
A twisted, grotesque pride swells in my chest. I pleased him. I proved my unwavering devotion. He chose me over his new toy. My loyalty earned this embrace. I am still his favorite thing to break.
Jax lifts his head, addressing the broken man across the room. “Look at her, Ari. She is conditioned to me. Her body, her mind, her desire—I tore it all down and rebuilt it. She is wired to respond only to my touch. You can put your hands on her all day, but she will never want you. She exists solely for my pleasure.”
A terrifying silence follows.
“Eventually, you will understand exactly what that means. Because you are going to become the same thing.”
