“You’re overly dressed for a sub, Piper.”
“Do you want me to undress, Tal?”
“Sir. In here you call me Sir. Look at me.”
She let her eyes drift up. His face was hard, no tenderness at all in his eyes. And his slacks sported a magnificent erection. “Yes, Sir?”
“Do you have any idea what you’re asking for? Do you understand what you seek? I never meant to come down this path with anyone again.”
Tears pooled in her eyes because she suspected Rafe and Kade didn’t know the whole story. “Because you loved Lily so much you can’t stand the thought of another sub?”
His eyes narrowed. “My brothers have been talking.”
“Please, Talib. I would rather know. I have to know what the boundaries of this marriage are.”
“I suspect I could tell you and you wouldn’t respect them at all. Perhaps you’re right. Perhaps you do need to see this part of me. Maybe then you will understand. You have one chance to get out of this. Get up and walk away, and we can simply be friends and lovers and partners in our intellectual pursuits. If you stay here, you will belong to me in ways you cannot imagine. You’ll be mine to command, to torture, to fuck as I please.” His hand tangled in her hair, drawing her head back, forcing her to look up at him. He towered over her, a dark, menacing, entirely sexual presence. “I will not go easy on you. Never imagine that because you’re my bride that I won’t make you scream for me.”
Every word that came from his mouth was a promise of dark pleasures. She was a little afraid, but refused to walk away. “I want to try this, Talib.”
“There is no trying. Yes or no.”
Piper drew in a shaky breath, hoping she could handle him. But really, she had no choice. Deep down, she trusted that he would never truly harm her physically. Knowing that, she could put her body in his hands and hope that his heart followed. “Yes.”
“Then take off your clothing. You aren’t allowed to be dressed in my dungeon. You will fold your clothing, come back, and present yourself to me. Slave pose, but with your arms locked behind your back.”
Piper stood, feeling awkward and ungainly. It wasn’t easy to get up. Tal’s hand came out to steady her. “Thank you, Sir.”
His face was like perfectly sculpted granite. “I expect you to practice. You will practice every day until you can rise with exquisite grace. Your grace speaks much about your Master.”
She flushed, embarrassment flooding her. “I’m klutzy.”
“But capable of learning, Piper. Now remove your clothing and present yourself to me.”
Her shaking fingers went to the buttons on her blouse. He watched her every move with dark eyes that missed nothing. She was caught between apprehension and anticipation as she carefully folded the blouse, then pushed the skirt to her hips.
“Slowly. This is a show for your Master. It is a delicious reveal of what you’re offering me, and I can either accept or reject it.”
It. He was talking about her body. He was talking about her heart.
She slowed, her hands skimming down her body as pushed the light skirt past her hips. The minute he forced her to slow her movements, she became aware of what she really was doing—and her effect on him. This was a dance for her Master. Maybe she didn’t have to be good at it yet. She only had to show him all she offered.
She turned to him, letting him see her body. It wasn’t something to hide. Her body was his. It didn’t matter what he felt now. Maybe he was only looking for sex. Piper suddenly realized that she couldn’t control Tal’s heart. She could only do this, offer him everything she had. She loved him. She admitted to herself that she’d probably loved him even when he was just a name on a computer screen. Those months of computer exchanges had bonded her to him. Deep inside him, that man existed, and she couldn’t let him go without a fight. But the only heart she controlled was her own.
Tears pricked her eyes. Deep inside her soul, she could hear Rafe and Kade whispering to her as they did when they had made love. They’d promised her they loved her. They told her she was lovely. Her heart was a worthwhile gift, and Tal was a worthwhile man. The whole sheikh thing, she’d decided, wasn’t everything it was cracked up to be. She’d watched as Talib gave and gave to the people around him while they just asked for more. He might have everything money could buy…except life’s treasures that were free but priceless, like moments of pure respite with a woman who would give all to him whenever he wished.
She folded her skirt, grateful for once that she was wearing the frilly underwear Rafe had bought for her. The white lace clung to her curves, and she could practically feel Tal’s eyes rake her as she bent over. She slipped off her sandals and added them to the neat pile.