Chapter 19: Chapter Eighteen

Hunter’s eyes locked on Mirabella across the wide marble counter, his chest heaving from the run of adrenaline she had just caused him. She stood opposite him, palms pressed flat to the cool surface as though the slab of stone could shield her from his hunger. Her breaths came shallow, her cheeks flushed, and her lips trembled though she stubbornly lifted her chin.

“Stay there,” Hunter growled, his voice a low warning, his impatience was already pushing at the edges of his control.

Mirabella’s lashes fluttered. She tried to stand her ground, even dared a soft laugh that betrayed her nervousness. “W-what do you intend to do to me? Why are you looking at me like that?”

Hunter’s lips curved into a dark smirk. He leaned both hands on the counter, closing the space with his presence. “What I want…” His eyes burned into hers, voice dropping to a rasp, “…is your soft nipples in my mouth.”

The words snapped something in her, harder than any threat could. Her knees wobbled. Heat rushed to her belly, and she clutched the edge of the counter as though it were her lifeline.

Her lips parted in innocent shock. “W-will it feel good? Will you make it feel good?” She knew she shouldn't be trying his patience. Not when he was looking at her like she was his favorite meat which he can't wait to devour.

How could she sound this innocent, asking him if what he plans to do to her would make her feel good. Could she be any cuter?

A sound half growl, half groan tore from his throat. Hunter didn’t wait another heartbeat. He stormed around the counter, Mirabella’s gasp echoing in the quiet kitchen. She tried to back away, but his stride was longer, his speed deadly. In one rough sweep, he caught her against his chest, his mouth crashing onto hers in a kiss that stole her breath and her resistance all at once.

Her hands pushed weakly at his chest, but his hold was strong.

Hunter deepened the kiss, tasting every inch of her trembling lips before dragging his mouth down to her throat. “You drive me mad, Bella,” he murmured against her skin. “Running from me, teasing me with those eyes. You think you can escape?”

Before she could answer, his arms tightened, and with effortless strength, he threw her over his shoulder like she weighed nothing. Her fists pounded weakly at his back. “Put me down!”

“Never,” he snarled, striding toward his bedroom.

The heavy door slammed shut behind them, and in the next instant, Mirabella was flung onto the big bed. She bounced against the soft sheets, hair falling wild around her flushed face. She looked up at him with wide eyes, caught between fear, curiosity, and something far more dangerous.

Hunter stood at the edge of the bed, his chest rising and falling, his eyes dark with hunger. Slowly, deliberately, he stripped off his shirt, every flex of muscle making her breath hitch.

“You shouldn’t have run from me,” he said, his voice raw. “Now you’ll learn what happens when you defy me.”

Her lips parted. She wanted to protest, to cling to the little scraps of innocence she had left, but her body betrayed her again. Heat pooled between her thighs, and she found herself whispering, “what do you want to do?”

Hunter’s smile was feral. He leaned over her, his hand sliding down her arm, pinning her wrist above her head. “Punishment, Bella. Sweet punishment.”

Her heart raced, but she didn’t pull away. Instead, she whispered, almost daring him, “I have never been given sweet punishment. Is there even something like that.”

That was all he needed. “I will show you."

He slowly tugged at her top and skirt, making her bare in front of him. He unclasped her bra, removed it and threw it somewhere in the room. He removed her black panties too.

The night turned wild. Hunter’s hands moved over her body like fire, his mouth claiming every inch he desired. She gasped when his teeth grazed her collarbone, when his tongue traced the swell of her breasts and bit a little to sting.

He pinned her wrists above her head, his grip unrelenting, his weight pressing her into the mattress. She writhed beneath him, torn between resistance and surrender, but he didn’t give her the chance to decide. With a deliberate, almost cruel slowness, he reached under the bedframe and pulled out the iron chains he had hidden there.

Her breathing became shallow and her eyes widened in fear. “Don't… “

“You’ll fight me,” he murmured, his voice low and dangerous as steel, fastening the cool cuffs around her wrists. The chains clinked sharply as he spread her arms apart, stretching her wide, exposing her helpless form beneath him. “I don't need any interruption when I work on your body.”

She shivered at the cold bite of metal on her skin. The weight of it, the finality of the click as the locks snapped shut, made her pulse quicken.

Hunter wasn’t finished. His eyes, burning with hunger, dragged down her trembling body. His hand slid down her thigh, gripping it firmly, forcing it open. She whimpered, shaking her head as though in protest.

“Not enough,” he growled, reaching for another length of chain. He caught her ankle and snapped the cuff around it before she could pull away. The sound echoed in the darkened room; merciless, inescapable. He chained the other leg next, spreading her apart until she lay completely open, her body a canvas for his dark intent.

Now she was his captive, displayed and bound, unable to close herself off from him, unable to shield herself from the intensity of his hunger.

Hunter leaned back to admire his work, his chest rising and falling with a predator’s satisfaction. The sight of her bound before him, her wrists stretched wide, her legs locked open, sent a deep, possessive growl rumbling from his throat.

“You’re mine now,” he whispered, leaning down, his lips brushing her ear, his breath hot and commanding. “No hiding. No running. No escape.”

He tugged on the chains deliberately, testing their strength, making her feel every bit of her helplessness. The clatter of iron filled the silence, drowning out her soft gasps.

Darkness wrapped around them like a second skin. His eyes gleamed with a hunger that promised no mercy. He wanted not just her body, but her surrender. The sweet punishment she secretly craved, the helplessness she could only find in him.

And he would take it.

“H-Hunter…”