Chapter 205: Pull The Leash

Holly’s POV

I laughed nervously, scratching the back of my neck after dropping the bags on the floor. “It’s… nothing. Just a scratch. Barely even worth mentioning. You should’ve seen the other guy’s face…like a wax statue melting in the sun.”

“Mm-hm.” She took a slow step forward, eyes narrowing. “So, what you’re saying is: our car kissed another car, and you weren’t going to tell me?”

“Kissed is a strong word, Kay…more like… waved. With a bumper.”

“Holly.”

“Yes, dear?”

“Do you have a death wish?”

I raised my hands in surrender, laughing harder than I should’ve. “Come on, it’s not that bad. Besides, Caden promised not to snitch, instead, he folded faster than a lawn chair. You should be comforting me because of the betrayal,” I said, holding my ground.

Kayla stared at me like she was deciding whether to strangle me with her apron or the nearest throw pillow.

Well, she made up her mind, chasing me with a pillow, but I ran.

I darted around the living room, laughing so hard I almost tripped over the rug while Kayla brandished the pillow like she’d been training for this very moment.

“Kayla, mercy!” I wheezed, ducking behind the couch.

“Mercy?” she shot back, her eyes flashing with mock fire. “The only mercy you’ll get is a funeral with no flowers. Holly, stop running and let me hit you!”

“Never!” I shouted, half-laughing as I bolted down the hallway toward my room.

“Dinner’s ready in ten!” she called after me, her voice carrying that usual mix of command and care I've become so used to.

A soft smile tugged at my lips. Yeah… I could definitely get used to this.

By the time I came out for dinner, my hair still damp and clinging to my cheeks, I was still shaking off the imaginary picture of David in my head, begging me to come back. Honestly, it had nearly made me choke in the shower as I chuckled in the shower like a maniac.

So when I spotted Caden sitting at the dining table with his plate, swinging his legs and grinning like sunshine, I made a decision: I was going to tease him with silence.

I marched right past him, chin high, not sparing him a glance. I sat down, poured myself a glass of water, and started sipping like I was auditioning for the role of “Most Annoyed Woman Alive.”

Caden froze mid-bite. “...Uh, did I do something, mommy?” His big eyes blinked up at me, all nervous.

I gave him nothing. Not a word. Just chewed slowly on my salad like I was above conversation and he doesn't exist.

Kayla arched her brow at me. “Really, Holly? Silent treatment? What are you, a child?”

I tilted my nose higher and stabbed a tomato like it had personally wronged me.

Caden slumped dramatically in his chair. “Oh, come on, mommy Holly. Don’t be mad.” He leaned forward, voice softening. “Okay, okay. I’ll get you a car. A big car. The biggest car ever. Like… like a tank! Will that make you smile at me again?”

I couldn’t help it. My lips twitched, then curved into a grin. A laugh bubbled out of me before I could stop it.

“Gotcha!” I said, pointing at him triumphantly. “And don’t think I won’t remind you of that tank promise in the future.”

His jaw dropped, and then he laughed too, high-pitched and infectious. “Nooo! You tricked me!”

I reached over and started tickling his sides. “That’s what you get!”

He squirmed, giggling so hard he nearly fell off his chair. “Stop, stop! Mommy!”

That’s when Kayla cleared her throat…loud. The kind of throat-clear that meant business.

We both froze, caught red-handed.

Her hands went to her hips as she gave us the look. “No playing at the dining table. And no talking either. Eat. Now. Both of you.”

Caden and I exchanged a guilty glance before sinking back into our seats. I stabbed at my chicken like it was a court order, while he shoveled mashed potatoes into his mouth, cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk.

But under the table, he nudged my leg with his little foot, and when I looked at him, his grin came back. I couldn’t stop my own from slipping out. We both ducked our heads, shoulders shaking with barely suppressed giggles as we obediently “ate in silence.”

Dinner was over before we knew it, and soon the house had settled into its nighttime quiet. I wished them both goodnight, then slipped into my room, curling beneath the covers with a content sigh. My mind buzzed with thoughts of Monday…the drama waiting just around the corner.

I couldn’t help smiling in the dark. I honestly couldn’t wait for Monday to come.

The belt cut the air with a sharp snap, and I swear the sound itself thrilled me. My grip tightened around the leather, the other end looped snugly around David’s throat. He was on his knees, crawling toward me, his eyes blazing yet shackled by the leash I held like a crown in my hand.

God, he looked magnificent like this.

The man who thought he could deny me himself. The man who dismissed me. The man who humiliated me publicly. Reduced now…brought low, not by accident, not by chance, but by me.

I tugged, and he lurched forward, chest straining, breath ragged. My heels clicked against the marble as I circled him, the red lacquer gleaming under the flicker of low lights. I pressed one pointed heel into his shoulder, digging in until he winced.

“Yes,” I whispered, a dark thrill coursing through me, “that’s exactly where you belong.”

He lifted his face, jaw tight, fury simmering in every line of him. And yet, he didn’t resist. My heart hammered harder. His defiance only made this sweeter.

I dragged the leash, forcing him forward, his palms smacking against the floor as he crawled after me. The sight stole my breath…David, proud and powerful, now following like a drugged beast. Mine. Completely mine.

“Do you hate this?” I purred, bending low enough for my lips to graze his ear. My voice came out silk and poison all at once. “Do you hate that you need it?”

He shuddered, his breath hot against my ankle. My heel traced from his shoulder to his jaw, tilting his face until he had no choice but to look up at me. His green eyes blazed with everything…rage, hunger, shame, want.

And I drank it in like wine.

The belt strained in my hand as I pulled tighter, choking back his voice, stealing his air, controlling his every gasp. My pulse pounded with savage delight.

“Kiss it,” I commanded, planting my heel against his lips. “Kiss what you’ll never own.”

And he did. He kissed it. Reverent. Desperate.

Heat rushed through me, wicked and unstoppable.

Power and desire tangled into one dizzying, intoxicating rush, flooding every nerve. I wanted to laugh, to scream, to savor this forever.

Because here he was…David, the man who haunted me, the man that swore he’d never look at me…brought to his knees, surrendering in the only way he could.

And I wanted more. God, I wanted so much more.

But then—

BRRRRT! BRRRRT! BRRRRT!

My body jerked violently. The belt slipped from my hands. The fire-lit room vanished like smoke, and I snapped awake, tangled in damp sheets, my chest heaving as if I’d run for miles.

The phone on my nightstand wouldn’t stop screaming, vibrating in shrill bursts that shattered the last pieces of my dream.

I pressed my hand to my racing heart, my skin damp with sweat, my body trembling. But the images clung to me…David kneeling, my heel against his lips, the leash cutting into his throat…as vivid as if it had truly happened.

And maybe… Just maybe… I'll make it happen. Soon.

Obsession. That’s what this was. It owned me just as much as I owned him in that dream.

The phone blared again, demanding, insistent.

And still, for one reckless second, I wanted to close my eyes, sink back into that crimson-lit room, and pull the leash tighter.