Chapter 13 Resistance
Nico POV
Maybe that was it, maybe it was the brokenness depicted on her face that made her seem so tempting...for me. I just couldn't fathom why he would have wanted to be romantically involved with her. If Nikolai had wanted her purely just to fuck, I'd understand that. I won't deny the fact that she was a beautiful woman. But Nikolai? lila just didn't seem like the kind of woman he would find alluring, or even interesting. He and I, we were a lot alike, but when it came to women, we were like night and day. Nikolai being day, me being night. He preferred the sophisticated, well-mannered women whom he could wear as trophies at his side. I, on the other hand, I liked the more complex kind of woman-the broken ones, hiding behind impenetrable thick skin, too afraid to embrace the darkness that they craved. Fucking them into the twisted world they yearned for was euphoric. Right now, I'm not exactly sure which kind of woman lila Falcone really was, but I sure as shit was going to have fun finding out.
I leaned closer, my cheek touching hers ever so slightly, and I felt her stiffen as I inhaled deep before I moved my lips to her ear. "You stink."
She turned her face toward me, bringing her heart-shaped lips inches from mine. "Fuck you."
I smiled, her sudden daring bravery intriguing me. "I think it's time for you to clean up."
I grabbed her chin in my hand, and she flinched as I gripped tight. "I can't have you looking like a used up whore and smelling like a pig when I present you to the rest of my family."
Her eyes widened, the courage portrayed mere seconds ago gone. "What do you mean, present me to the rest of your family?"
I let go of her chin with a jerk and stepped back. "Perhaps present is the wrong word. Let me rephrase...I need you cleaned up before I put you on display for the rest of my family to see."
"What are you going to do to me?" Her voice lacked the fear it had earlier. It was like she had somehow scraped together every bit of courage she had left to try and hide the terror she was feeling inside her gut.
I stepped back. "First, you need to clean up." I walked out of the room, not the least bit worried she would try to make a run for it. Besides, there was another security door between the monitor room and the outside hall, and the only person who knew the security code was me. The only way Damon got access was when I let him in.
I grabbed the silver bucket of water and the bar of soap I had placed on the floor earlier, before walking back in.
She spotted the bucket. "What is that?"
I placed it down in front of her and dumped the bar of soap into the water. "This is your new Jacuzzi, Miss Falcone."
She looked up at me. "That's a bucket of water. How the hell am I supposed to clean up with one bucket of water?"
I shrugged. "You'll be amazed at what we can do when we realize we have no choice but to use what is given to us." I grabbed the chair and placed it right in front of the bucket before taking my seat.
Her big, blue eyes widened. "What? You intend to watch me?"
"Of course."
"I'm not going to wash myself in front of you."
"I'm afraid you have no choice, Miss Falcone."
Like a damn child she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "I'm not washing myself while you sit there and watch me like a fucking pervert."
"Watch your mouth, Miss Falcone. I've been real nice so far, so do not force me to show you what I'm really capable of so soon in our little game. Now" I glanced down at the bucket and back up at her "clean yourself up." "If I refuse?"
I leaned forward, my elbows on my knees, clutching my hands together in front of me. "Let me explain to you how this is going to work. Lesson number one, every time you do as you are told, I will reward you."
"Like a fucking pet?" she snapped, her eyes burning holes through my forehead.
I smiled wickedly. "If that's the way you see it, yes. Like a pet. Clean yourself up all nice, and next time I might consider letting you take a shower. Every time you obey me, you will get your reward. Defy me, and you'll be punished."
She shifted uncomfortably from one leg to the other. "Punished how?"
"That depends on how creative I feel at that moment. But I would advise you not to chance it since I have the tendency to be very creative when it comes to punishment."
The way her throat moved as she swallowed hard was proof she caught my drift. God, I loved every fucking second of this.
"I'm going to tell you one more time, lila. Clean yourself the fuck up."
For a few seconds we both continued to stare at each other. I could just imagine all the gruesome images of how she'd like to murder me playing inside her head. The way I stared back at her, I made sure she got the message loud and clear that she really shouldn't fuck with me. Although, there was a part of me that wanted her to defy me, to give me a reason to punish her so that I can see just how far her body can go.
Finally she crouched down, reached for the soap in the water, all the while keeping her intense scowl on me.
"That's a good little pet," I taunted.