Chapter 14

Elena's POV

His lips left mine, but the heat of his kiss lingered. Dominic's eyes were dark and intense, watching my reaction with a predatory focus that made my pulse race. I should have been terrified—and part of me was—but another part, a part I barely recognized, craved more.

"Stop thinking," he murmured, his fingers tracing a path from my collarbone down between my breasts. "I can see every thought crossing your face. The fear. The doubt." His hand paused just above my navel. "And the desire you're trying so hard to deny."

I swallowed hard. "I don't know how to do this."

A smile played at the corner of his mouth—not warm, but not entirely cruel. "That's the point of education, isn't it? To learn what you don't know."

His hand continued its downward journey, and my breath caught. Every rational thought urged me to stop this, to cover myself, to remember that this was a transaction—nothing more. But my body betrayed me, arching slightly into his touch.

"Good," he whispered, approval darkening his tone. "Your body knows what it wants, even if your mind resists."

He guided me backward until my legs hit the edge of the bed. With a gentle push, I fell onto the plush mattress, looking up at him as he loosened his tie with deliberate slowness. His eyes never left mine, gauging my reaction to each movement. It was like being stalked by a predator who enjoyed playing with his prey before the kill.

"Do you want to please me, Elena?" The question hung in the air between us.

"Yes," I finally whispered, my voice barely audible.

He removed his tie completely, letting it slip through his fingers before dropping it beside me on the bed. "Then you'll need to trust me. Can you do that?"

Trust seemed a strange request from a man who had essentially bought me. But I nodded anyway, caught in the gravity of his presence.

He began to unbutton his shirt, revealing tanned skin and taut muscle underneath. "The first lesson is simple: pleasure and pain are not opposites, but companions. One heightens the other."

With his shirt open but still on, he joined me on the bed, looming over me like a storm cloud heavy with rain. His hand cupped my face with surprising gentleness, thumb brushing across my lower lip.

"When I touch you here—" his fingers slid down my neck, across my collarbone, down to circle one nipple "—what do you feel?"

"Good," I gasped as he pinched lightly. "It feels good."

"And when I do this?" He pinched harder, sending a sharp jolt of pain-pleasure through me.

I arched up, a small cry escaping my lips.

"Better or worse?" he asked, his voice clinical despite the heat in his eyes.

"Both," I admitted, surprised by my own honesty. "Intense."

His smile was knowing, almost smug. "Exactly. Remember that."

He guided me down onto him, filling me completely in one swift motion. The sensation was overwhelming—pleasure edged with the lingering pain of my recent initiation into physical intimacy. I gasped, my hands bracing against his chest.

"Move," he commanded softly. "Find what feels good for you."

Hesitantly, I began to rock against him, uncertain at first but growing bolder as waves of pleasure built within me. His hands remained on my hips, not directing but supporting, allowing me to set the pace while he watched with those intense, otherworldly eyes.

"That's it," he encouraged as my movements became more confident. "Let go, Elena."

And I did. I moved faster, chasing the release building at my core, no longer caring how I looked or sounded.

Suddenly, his patience snapped. With a deep growl that didn't sound entirely human, he flipped us over, pinning me to the mattress with his weight. His thrusts became harder, deeper, almost punishing in their intensity.

"Wrap your legs around me," he ordered, voice rough with desire.

I obeyed instinctively, ankles locking behind his back, pulling him even deeper. The new angle sent jolts of pleasure so intense they bordered on pain shooting through me. I cried out, my nails digging into his shoulders hard enough to break skin.

"Dominic," I gasped, barely recognizing my own voice.

"Say it again," he demanded, one hand sliding between us to touch me where our bodies joined. "Say my name when you come."

His skilled fingers circled the sensitive bundle of nerves, and combined with his relentless thrusts, it was too much. The climax hit me like a tidal wave, more powerful than anything I'd experienced before. "Dominic!" I screamed, my body arching beneath him as wave after wave of pleasure crashed through me.

He followed almost immediately, his rhythm faltering as his body tensed. The sound he made wasn't human—a deep, primal growl that reverberated through his chest into mine.

For several moments afterward, the only sound was our ragged breathing.

When he finally rolled away, the sudden absence of his heat left me feeling strangely bereft.

"You exceed expectations," he said after a long silence, his voice carrying that same clinical detachment that had become familiar. As if what we'd just shared had been some kind of evaluation rather than a moment of raw passion.

I pulled the sheet up to cover myself, suddenly feeling vulnerable in a way I hadn't during our frenzied coupling. My body ached pleasantly, particularly between my legs.

He noticed my movement and turned his head, eyeing the sheet I clutched to my chest. "False modesty doesn't suit you, Elena. Not after what we just did."

My cheeks burned. "This isn't exactly familiar territory for me."

Something flickered in his expression, but it vanished as quickly as it appeared, replaced by that calculating look I was beginning to recognize all too well.

He rose from the bed, unself-conscious in his nakedness. His body was magnificent—all lean muscle and precise strength, marked now with the evidence of my passion. As he moved toward the bathroom, I couldn't help but stare at the play of muscles beneath his skin, the perfect proportion of his form.

"Tomorrow," he said, pausing at the bathroom door, "we'll formalize our arrangement."

I propped myself up on my elbows. "What does that mean?"

"It means I'll have a contract for you to sign." His tone left no room for discussion. "Six months of your time, exclusively. Every detail laid out clearly—what I expect, what you'll receive in return."