Chapter Four

Chaos Theory

Ella

Her head was cloudy at his caresses, the ache his infernal cloth had inspired morphing into something hotter and slicker. What was happening to her? Stretched out on his bed, it was difficult to say. His swats had driven her to the edge of sanity, their ceaseless hurt amplifying with every impact. At one point, Ella had been on the verge of breaking down altogether, her desperation as real as the wood pinching her nipples.

He did that.Her already parched throat dried at the realization.

Tucker had attached the clothespins to her, but even though she hated the intensity and everything they represented, she couldn't deny the way they'd affected her.

Now that she had no choice, now that he'd removed all chance of her insurgence, she could finally acknowledge the effect of his treatment. He'd taken and displayed her before swatting and pegging her, and there wasn't a damn thing she could do to prevent his deeds. Worse still, there was an appeal to her powerlessness—a part of her that knew the more he took her over, the more she'd relish each subjugation.

The heat his punishment inspired was the same as the bite of the clothespin's claws, a distraction she could no longer ignore. Each humbling experience at his hand had heightened her need, silently making the point she couldn't bear to hear.

I like this.Her breaths came faster as the conclusion ran through her mind. I like him being in control. I like having no choice.

That was why the impromptu spanking in the forest had stirred her so. It was also why, despite her disgust at his audacity, his unwelcomed fondling in the barn had stimulated her all the same. Why she'd succumbed to his sensual kiss in that very spot and why, despite the way he'd whipped her, her clit now throbbed with urgency.

However much she fought to kick against his tyranny, her need never lessened. She felt the thrum of desire whirring as his thumb moved, each small circle it traced tightening the need inside her.

She shouldn't want his touch. Shouldn't want the man who'd stripped, bound, and humiliated her, but desire knotted at her core all the same.

She did want him.

Despite how much she loathed him, how little respect he'd shown for her, and all the complicated reasons she found herself there, she still wanted him.

It made no sense.

I can't feel this way.Her breaths labored as she wrestled with the intoxicating conundrum. I'm exhausted and in shock. That's why I'm confusing my dismay with arousal.

I don't want him, can't want him…

"Then I'll guide you."

His voice sounded distant, as though he was standing on the other side of the giant trees sheathing his cabin and not right beside her.

A strangled moan escaped her throat as his fingers swirled to her clit. They hovered over her excited bud before trailing through her hair. She caught her lower lip between her teeth at the intimate touch, conscious of what he'd find if he delved any deeper.

For all the agony his cloth had caused, there was also arousal. She recognized it there between her thighs. It pooled close to the place where his fingers played their teasing game, and for the first time since she'd woken, she was glad for the binds, content to be splayed, and all his for the taking.

Despite all of her unresolved fears for her fate, she realized she craved the submission. Let him do what he wanted because, secretly, she yearned for those things, too. She longed for his dominance, and her bondage meant she couldn't be held responsible for whatever followed.

Slowly, his fingertips brushed along her slit. Holding her breath, she remained rooted to the bed, insisting her hips stay still in spite of their aspiration to rise at his provocation.

Oh God.

Her pulse quickened at his leisurely pace. His unhurried touch was sweet torment, each second his digits neared her clit almost as torturous as the cloth had been.

Forcing in a gasp, she tensed, waiting for the inevitable outcome. He would discover how much she'd enjoyed her punishment, and what would he think? She could scarcely catch her breath as one finger plunged lightly between her lips.

"What's this, little girl?" His blue gaze was on her face in a heartbeat. "Are you wet for me?"

Shame washed over her at his direct approach.

Wet for him? It sounded even worse when he put it that way.

"I…" Unable to meet his powerful stare, she forced her eyes closed again, trying not to concentrate on his fingers or the way his clothespins squeezed her nipples.

This isn't happening.

How many times had she thought that in the last day, yet her reality had always been true?

"Tell me the truth." His fingers skimmed her clit, compelling her hips to rise, whatever her thoughts on the subject. "Tell the truth, and I'll reward you."

Reward me?She risked a glance his way, regretting the choice as their gazes locked.

"I don't know what to say… sir." Her head spun at how little the deference bothered her now. In fact, it was possible referring to him that way actually increased her desire.

"If you enjoyed being spanked, then say so." His free hand snaked along her skin and cradled the underside of her right breast. "There's no shame in it. In fact, I demand it."

He was wrong, actually. There was a lot of shame, even in thinking about her desire. Guilt at being aroused by such base behavior and self-loathing at having found any pleasure in the touch of her captor, Ella was caught in his trap, pinioned between the weight of his expectant gaze and his soft touches.

"I didn't want to like it." How could she ever reconcile the way she felt? "Didn't know that I would, but… I did." Fresh emotion burned in her eyes as she was forced to hear her own confession.

"You did." The hand at her breast stiffened, grasping her mound and drawing her pegged nipple to attention while his other finger grazed her clit. "Being spanked turned you on, didn't it?"

Yes.The answer was there on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't quite transfer it to her lips.

Two fingers dipped between her folds and buried themselves in her arousal until she moaned.

"Little girl?" A flicker of a smile painted his lips as his attention shifted between her face and her sex. "I don't think it will take much to topple you, but I'm going to need your honesty before I permit your pleasure."

Honesty?Why not ask for blood?

How could she disclose more to him than she already had? Ella had hardly even registered her own needs. She couldn't even contemplate sharing them with someone else, least of all the man who insisted on tormenting her.

"Oh God."

There was, however, little choice but to murmur aloud as his fingers flicked inside her entrance and teased her. The pressure at her breasts was growing, ratcheting up the knot of tension in her body. Tucker seemed right about one thing—if he kept up the display of authority, she wouldn't last much longer.

"Tell me." His tone was harder, mirroring the sudden deep thrust of his digits.

She panted at the intrusion, lifting her hips to receive more of his fingers. Had she ever been this wanton before? So desperately horny at this most obscene predicament?

"Tell me that being punished turned you on."

"Yes." Fuck, she did want him. She couldn't recall wanting anyone like this. "Yes, sir. It turned me on, and I want you inside me."

Whatever shame there had been evaporated as his fingers picked up their incredible pace. Guiding her in a fast and satisfying rhythm, the digits spoke of the visceral connection tugging between them, of something so forbidden, she hadn't brought herself to contemplate it. They spoke of the chemistry she should have resisted, yet had all too easily succumbed to.

"Christ, Ella." His hand shifted from her breast, nudging the wooden clothespin en route to her mouth. "You're beautiful."

She gasped at the abrupt pain, finding her hips rocking faster as the sensation heightened the intensity burgeoning at her core.

"Yes!" It was all she could say as the tension swept across her body, every fiber of her being focused only on one outcome—her imminent release.

Gazing into her eyes, Tucker grazed his fingers over her lips. "Open your mouth for me."

She obeyed on instinct, no longer caring what had motivated the instruction, but only that his fingers didn't stop.

He could never stop.

"Good girl." He leaned closer, that same dark glint shining in his gaze as the edge of his palm added the perfect amount of friction to her frantic clit. "You're going to suck my fingers while I fuck you with my other hand."

No one had ever made anything sound so fucking sexy before. It was like Tucker had hypnotized her.

"Yes, sir." Her tongue darted from its hiding place and licked the edge of his waiting digit, inviting him inside.

"Suck me." He slid two fingers into her mouth, groaning as she clasped around them and suckled. "Fuck, little girl."

The resonance of his growl reverberated through her, the primal sound the final push she required to press her right over the precipice. Mewling around his digits, her body was rigid as the first jolts of pleasure rocketed through her. Tucker might not have power running to the cabin, but she swore it was electricity they generated as she came, pulsing around four of his fingers.

With two shoved in her mouth and another two lodged inside her pussy, her body was alive with sensation, fireworks exploding in her brain as she struggled to process the experience.

"Amazing." His voice crooned from somewhere, but she was too far gone to respond.

He waited with her as she enjoyed the aftermath, the fingers in her mouth sliding to her chin and cradling the side of her head. Her whimpers died to silence as he withdrew from her body altogether. Finding the baby blue blanket, he covered her exposed flesh and held her.

The sense of repletion was overwhelming, her tranquility only shattered briefly when he released the wooden claws and discarded the clothespins on her nipples. She cried out then, temporarily blinded by pain as the blood rushed back to her sensitive tissue, but her distress quickly passed, assuaged by his kisses and the blanket that was urged farther up the length of her body.

His head rested on her chest as her breathing returned to normal, the heat of his face adding to her odd feeling of serenity. There was nothing normal about what had just happened, nothing sane about captivity or being held down while pleasured by a virtual stranger. Some distant part of Ella suspected she should be disgusted, and perhaps she was, yet she couldn't muster the energy to be concerned.

Finally, after hours of turmoil and angst, there was peace and calm.

She needed that, almost as much as she'd wanted the hedonistic release.

For the longest time, they stayed in stillness. Quiet and satiated, she gave in to the longing for more sleep as he listened to the sound of her heart beating.

Two strangers who hardly knew each other.

Two people pretending there could be solace in the dirty gloom, but for that one moment, it didn't matter.

The last thing Ella heard before the slumber came to claim her was the contented noise of his deep and regular breaths.