Howard took a step towards his assistant, his eyes darkening to almost black. “I don’t give a fuck if she checked in. I want to know why, when my client went to the airport to pick up his package, she wasn’t there.”
I pressed my hand over my mouth to stifle my gasp. Was I hearing correctly? Or was I just reading into it because I didn’t trust Howard?
“Do you have any idea how much money this is costing me?” The rage in his voice had slipped away and now his tone was flat, and it was somehow more frightening. “My top girls, like her, bring in thirty thousand a night in Saudi Arabia. She was supposed to serve my client for three months. Do the math, Annie. That’s a hell of a lot of money.”
“Yes, sir.” She nodded, her face pale.
“And it’s not just the money.” He stepped around behind her, using his body to turn her towards his desk. “You know Saudi Arabia is my biggest country of export. That’s why we have a partner there. We don’t want to disappoint him, do we?”
When he put his hands on either side of the desk, encircling Annie in his arms, my stomach clenched. What the hell was he doing? This wasn’t flirting or even inappropriate comments, this was full-blown sexual harassment.
“No, sir.” Anna’s face turned even paler.
“If I can’t provide assurances to my clients regarding delivery of their merchandise, they’re going to go elsewhere.”
He put his mouth against Annie’s ear as his hands moved up to take her wrists. He put her hands flat on the desk. I couldn’t see all of her face, but I could see enough to notice how her expression had changed. She didn’t look annoyed or frightened now, more like she knew what was coming and wasn’t sure how she felt about it.
“If they go somewhere else, Annie, that would be very bad.” Howard’s voice was almost too low for me to hear. He slid his hands up Annie’s hips, over her ribcage, and then around to cup her small breasts through the thin silk of her dress.
I swallowed hard, wanting to look away but unable to actually do it. Annie wasn’t fighting to get away, but rather arching her back, pushing her breasts further into his hands.
“I want to keep you here with me, Annie.”
Howard dropped one hand, moving it low enough that it was out of my line of sight. I was able to see, however, the material of the dress shift, and then Annie caught her breath. I didn’t need to see what was happening to know where Howard’s fingers were now.
“But I need a replacement for my missing girl and unless you can find one for me, I’ll have to send whoever I happen to have on hand.”
Annie made a noise half of protest, half of pleasure. Her face was flushed, her eyes closed.
“And I’d have to make sure they know I punished the person responsible, so I’d be forced to hurt whoever is being sent.” He wrapped his free hand in her hair and pulled, yanking her neck back until she gave a cry of pain. “I’d have to mark their skin with a cane, and still, my client will likely negotiate for their time and inconvenience.”
He pulled his hand from between her legs and she made a sound of frustration. He pushed her forward until she was bent over the desk. He ran his hands over her body, his fingers flexing and squeezing.
“Because of your mistake, I might even have to give them that replacement permanently.” One of his hands went back up her skirt, this time from behind, and she yelped in pain, her nails scratching over his desk. “Do you know what they do to their permanent girls? The ways they fuck them? How many men use them at a time?” He chuckled, and I could see on his face that even though he was angry, he was enjoying himself. His hand moved under her skirt, continuing to do whatever it was that was hurting her.
“What about that new woman, Carrie?” Annie asked, her voice strained.
I caught my breath. She couldn’t be talking about me.
Howard scowled. His hands both moved to the front of his pants, but I wasn’t really paying attention to that now. I wanted to hear why Annie had said my name.
“Carrie’s not ready yet,” he said. “I thought for sure she’d be groomed by now. Gavin has really disappointed me. I’m starting to doubt that he’s the one to take over as my recruiter after all.”
Chapter 3
My head spun and, for a moment, I was afraid I was going to pass out. I stayed at the door, staring into the office, but I barely registered what Howard was doing to Annie now. Her cries and his grunts were background noise to the chaos in my mind.
Howard was selling women. He’d probably sold Patricia. The women downstairs recruited for him. Gavin recruited for him. Everything between us had been a lie. Every touch, every kiss. It all fit. He’d been grooming me for Howard, teaching me how to submit and obey, conditioning my body to respond to commands. His comment about spanking made perfect sense now too. I was learning obedience. Next, he needed to teach me how to enjoy pain.