2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

-Jared-

"Ah, please!" Alison cried out, her back a vivid shade of crimson, a fresh cut on her ass cheek begging for attention. I had inflicted that wound so I could alternate between lavishing attention on her pussy and tasting her sweet blood. She trembled so violently that the restraints clinked against the wall, caught in a relentless cycle of overwhelming pain and shattering pleasure. I had denied her release, opting instead to rain down the final lashes on her back.

Real tears streamed down her cheeks, and even as her back glowed with that intense color, there remained an untouched part of her—right between her shoulder blades where an old tattoo lay, a heart encased by a dog's outline, which I vowed never to mar. The rest of her was not so fortunate.

"So, are you going to question me again?" I asked.

"I'm merely concerned! Am I not allowed to be?" she retorted, glancing over her shoulder.

"Not when it sounds like you think I might fail."

"If you lose, we both know what happens to me."

I shook my head. "Once again, you're doubting me."

"What am I supposed to do?"

"Trust me," I asserted. "I have everything under control."

Alison huffed, tilting her chin defiantly.

"God, I have really been too lenient with you lately," I admitted, chastising myself.

"I just love you," she mumbled, turning away just as I prepared to strike again.

"What did you say?"

Her words were so soft that I needed her to repeat them. She sniffled slightly, and when she turned to look at me again, she gave me that look I adored—the one that stirred wild desire within me—her broken one.

"I love you," she whispered. I stepped closer, grasping her chin and turning her face toward me, ensuring she didn't look away.

Tears still traced her cheeks as I leaned in, stopping just inches from her lips.

"Are you telling me you're going to stop loving me?" I asked. She shivered against me and gently shook her head. "Then why are you being so disobedient, Alison?"

"Because if I lose you, what else do I have left?" she replied.

Once again, Alison underscored her dependence on me, fulfilling a vision I had harbored for so long. Our intense games had brought us to this point, where neither of us could exist without the other. I might command an empire, everything Vince had passed to me, but if I were to lose Alison, I knew I'd be driven to kill myself. Yet, to her, I was her entire world. She had nothing left from her previous life. I was all she would ever have.

"Then trust that I'm not going anywhere," I breathed, teasing her lips with mine.

"So easy to say, but this is different," she whispered back.

"Different? How so?"

"You're exhausted."

"I'm just working a bit more intensely."

"No, you're concerned too. I know you," she murmured, but I shook my head, then silenced her doubts with a kiss.

She moaned against me, craving my warmth, and leaned in as much as her restraints allowed. The kiss deepened quickly, revealing our desperate need for each other. When I finally pulled back, she whimpered her disapproval, and I smiled before letting the whip drop. I released her from her restraints, and the moment she was free, she slumped against me, sighing in relief. I lifted her, carrying her over to the bed before gently laying her down. She hissed as her back touched the soft sheets, but she didn't hesitate to open her legs as I hovered above her, a small smile spreading across her face.

"You have nothing to worry about," I assured her as I positioned myself and slid into her welcoming warmth again.

We both groaned at the connection before I began to move slowly. She gazed up at me with all the longing and obsession that had initially drawn her to me—those intense emotions that once made my life miserable but now brought me happiness. I would never let anyone take her from me. Burying my face in her neck, I increased my pace, thrusting harder, and she whimpered and moaned in my ear as we lost ourselves in each other once more.

"You're mine, Alison. All mine," I groaned, feeling the pleasure build again.

"Ah, yes," she whispered back. "So don't you dare let anything happen to you."

I nodded, kissing her neck before moving up to her lips. I claimed her fiercely, ensuring she felt my power and determination. Nothing would separate us. We hadn't come this far to let a newcomer disrupt everything, but I had everything under control. Alison just needed to trust me blindly. That was what I demanded from her as I moved with intensity until she shook beneath me, overwhelmed once more.

"Oh, fuck, yes," she panted against me, struggling briefly as she gasped for air, but I didn't relent in our kiss.

She needed to focus entirely on me, so I maintained our connection. Alison moaned and whimpered, her response driving me to the edge with her. Her name escaped my lips as I climaxed, a wave of bliss filling my body as I released inside her.

We both collapsed on the bed, and I let her feel my full weight, calming her nerves and reassuring her that I wasn't going anywhere. Even after I rolled off, she moved closer, beginning to trace the scars on my body tenderly. I played with her hair, appreciating the tranquil atmosphere. I regretted how little time I'd been able to give her. When we came together, it was explosive, yet the fire between us needed constant nurturing, or else a chill of resentment threatened to surface.

I smiled slightly at these thoughts as I played with her shortened hair—still as soft as ever and scented with her signature vanilla.

"Why are you smiling?" she whispered, tracing the initials engraved on my chest with her fingers.

"Reflecting on our relationship," I admitted.

"Are we amusing to you?" she queried.

"We certainly don't seem to make sense, do we?" She blinked a little, puzzled, but I maintained my smile.

"You were angry at me," I stated.

"No, I wasn't. I'm worried," she clarified.

"No, you're angry because I haven't given you the attention you believe you deserve."

She narrowed her eyes slightly. "That's ridiculous."

"No, because I'm also angry at you, despite being the one occupied with work."

"How can you be angry at me then?" she asked.

"Because you didn't wait for me," I pointed out.

"You often return home at dawn. Am I expected to stay awake all night?" she questioned.

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I desire it," I explained. "Just as you desire for me to be home more, to care for you."

She sighed, shaking her head slightly, but then refocused on me. "It still doesn't make sense. I love you unconditionally, yet I resent not being able to spend more time with you."

"I understand. I share the same feeling. But our connection remains intense, regardless of which side we prioritize."

"Is this how it will remain between us until you resolve your issue?" she inquired.

"No, I will address it soon," I assured her.

"What do you mean?" she pressed.

"That you have nothing to worry about, and once it's taken care of, I'm not letting you leave our bedroom for days," I assured her, a smile spreading across her lips.

"Days, you say?"

"Days," I affirmed.

"Can you keep up?" she teased.

"I think you should ask yourself that."

She chuckled, the sound reaching my dark heart, and I pulled her closer, kissing her and relishing her taste—a flavor that belonged to me.

"Do you ever wonder if it will stop?" she asked.

"What will?"

"This fire between us," she clarified, her hand tracing patterns over my chest, her gaze filled with longing and desire.

"Why should it?"

"I don't know. Some couples just lose that intensity they once had."

"Ours didn't diminish over the years I was gone," I reminded her.

"No, I know, but we hadn't explored each other before that. We didn't know what it was like to be together."

"Are you suggesting our games have grown stale?"

"Not at all," she assured me with a subtle smile. "I'm just pondering if the thought ever crossed your mind. If one day we didn't have this fire, what would become of us?"

"Alison, our games extended far beyond the bedroom. If we didn't fuck, we would find other ways to torment each other, and we would relish every moment of it."

"An endless war," she remarked.

"Yes, precisely. It's the very reason I'm certain that, despite the trials, we'll always crave each other's touch," I explained.

"What about when we're so old we can barely move from our chairs?" she chuckled.

"That's when we'll resort to shouting at each other, resurrecting those old games to keep the spark alive," I teased, eliciting a smile from her.

"Why would we be shouting at each other? Are we sitting at opposite ends of the room?"

"No, we simply won't be able to hear each other."

She laughed again, and a grin spread across my face as I reclined on the bed, reaching out to continue to run my fingers through her hair, relishing the sensation.

"That doesn't sound too terrible," she reflected.

"What do you mean?"

"Just sitting in those chairs, exchanging banter. I'm sure it would be just as exhilarating as chasing each other around the house."

"Perhaps I'll still have the agility for it."

"Could you imagine?" she giggled. "We'd be so slow, leaning on the walls for support, and we probably wouldn't get far before needing to catch our breath."

We both chuckled, savoring this tranquil moment as we envisioned ourselves in old age, still striving to keep things lively.

"I think even losing my breath would be worth chasing after you," I confessed, her smile softening.

"You might struggle to rise to the occasion though," she teased, and I groaned, rolling my eyes before pulling her close, grasping a handful of her ass, bringing her against me.

"That's why medicine exists, but with a figure like yours, I'd have to be on death's door not to desire you," I declared.

"We're discussing when we're old and wrinkly."

"Yet, I'll still have the vision of your youthful body in my mind," I growled, then claimed her lips passionately, rolling us around until she was beneath me once more.

I began to explore, still unsatiated, quickly finding one of her nipples, latching onto it and sucking hard until she whimpered. But just as we were becoming enveloped in our own world once again, a knock sounded at the door.