Chapter 7

Genevieve

My first conscious thought upon waking was that every part of my body ached, but in an amazing way. The memory of his dick in me and the pleasure it brought made my pussy clench anxiously for more of what he gave me last night.

Nero...

How ' d I get so lucky? I just hoped that I wasn ' t just some one-night stand. Screw the virgin and then dump her. That would break my heart, but I couldn ' t think negatively. I refused to allow those thoughts to ruin the high I felt upon waking.

There was just one problem. My head was throbbing. There was a consistent throb at my temples that made me groan. I really shouldn ' t have spent the night with Nero. Jules would be worried sick. The least I could have done was send her a message to let her know I was okay.

I ' d do that right now.

As I opened my eyes, I attempted to stretch only to realize that I wasn ' t able to move my wrists from over my head. What in the hell?

Looking up, I frowned, seeing that my hands were handcuffed over my head with steel cuffs, secured to the rung of the bedpost. I gave it a tug and it didn ' t so much as shake the massive bed.

" Nero? " I called, looking around the room as I struggled to sit up. There was enough chain between the cuffs that I was able to squirm my naked body up and into a sitting position. Unfortunately, all my squirming ended up kicking most of the bedding from my body and to the side of me.

When did he lock me up? We ' d fucked a lot, until every inch of me was sore, but I didn ' t recall him pulling out handcuffs. That would have been a hard no, I enjoyed touching him too much.

Goosebumps began to coat my arms and legs. Shit. There was a chill in here that I hadn ' t noticed last night.

" Nero! " I called out a little bit louder and then listened for an answer.

When did he handcuff me? The question sprung up again in my mind. The night seemed pretty clear. The taste of his lips. The heat of his skin against mine. The feel of him penetrating me over and over until the pain was gone and only pleasure remained. I couldn ' t recall him pulling out handcuffs. I ' d fallen to sleep with his arms wrapped around me.

Didn ' t I?

No, I did. I was sure of it.

" Nero! " A bout of panic struck me. " This isn ' t funny! I have to pee. "

I gave the chains another tug, harder this time, using enough strength that it should have at least made the post creak or jiggle. But it did neither.

" Seriously, Nero! Nero!"

No response. Just dead silence.

With each minute that passed I found myself becoming more panicked.

Oh my God, what if something happened? What if he forgot I was locked up and went out for the day? Looking towards the window, the sun shone bright on the other side. It must be midday sometime.

What if he was dead? I could be locked up here until I starved to death. I ' d watched a movie once where the husband had died and the woman went crazy while handcuffed to a bed.

My phone. It was in my handbag. Closing my eyes, I had to clench my jaw to keep from screaming. I ' d left my handbag in the kitchen. Dammit.

Don ' t panic. I can ' t panic. He ' d be back at any moment. Maybe he was preparing breakfast and was going to treat me to breakfast in bed. Yes. That was it. Had to be it. This was his idea of a joke, or morning foreplay.

A key. It was probably on the nightside table.

Looking to my left, I fought back tears when I saw nothing on the nightside table except a brass antique lamp. The matching one was on the nightside table on the other side of the bed.

What in the hell had I gotten myself into? I ' d felt a bad vibe from him when I first met him, but I let my hormones dictate my actions instead of going with my gut. My gut was always right. Why the hell I ignored it this time was beyond me.

Well, maybe it wasn ' t a complete mystery. When I was with him, I felt normal. Like I was finally getting the attention I'd always craved, but the other girls always got. I felt special.

Closing my eyes, I forced myself to think positive thoughts. I hadn ' t been awake for very long. Twenty minutes. Perhaps half an hour. Definitely not long enough to panic yet.

I was about to lose myself to hysterics when I heard a door open and close shut coming from the floor below. My heart began thumping in my chest as I struggled back up into a sitting position.

A few minutes passed before I heard footsteps coming up the stairs and down the hallway towards the bedroom.

Looking down at my nakedness, I did my best to kick the blankets back over my body. I managed to cover my lower half, but my titties were free for him to feast his eyes on. I could only hope it was him who was coming to the bedroom and not someone else.

My breath caught in my throat as I watched the handle turn and door open to reveal Nero, bare-chested with a pair of black satin lounge pants riding low on his hips. So low that I could see the trail of hair from his belly button dipping beneath the waistband of his pants. In his hands was a bowl of fruit and a couple bottles of water.

Oh, thank God. Relief washed over me.

" I don ' t remember you handcuffing me. Must have been a wild night, " I joked.

" I handcuffed you this morning when I woke up. " He gave me a wink. " Wouldn ' t want you running away. "

That was a strange thing to say.

Crossing the room, he placed the fruit and one of the bottles of water on the nightside table. Opening the other bottle, he brought it to my lips. " Have a drink. After last night you need to replenish your fluids."

Confused, but grateful, I parted my lips and accepted the water as he brought the bottle to my lips and allowed me to drink. After several mouthfuls, I motioned for him to take the bottle away.

" Can you uncuff me? My arms are sore and I need to pee."

He stared at me a moment. " Of course. " Opening the drawer to the table he grabbed the key from inside. Reaching over me he undid the cuffs. " There ' s a bathroom over there."

" Okay. Thank you. " Rubbing my wrists, I slid from the bed. Suddenly feeling shy, I pulled the top sheet from the bed and wrapped it around my body, then made my way to the bathroom.

Something felt seriously off from last night. Last night there was a strong, undeniable attraction. I ' d been swept up into an experience right out of my fantasies. But this morning felt different. I just didn ' t know why.

Nero

Just watching her make her way to the bathroom made me hard. I was feeling a connection with her that I ' d never felt with anyone before and it was playing with my mind. She was also the most powerful I ' d ever encountered, could that be it? I was confusing emotional attachment with the exhilaration that came from the power I siphoned from her while we fucked?

Either way, it didn ' t matter. There was only one way this was going to end, with me draining her very being from her until there was nothing left. It was the only way.

Or was it? Would it be possible to siphon power from her for decades to come? Use her as my on-tap fountain of youth? When I got bored of her, I could just finish her off?

Overanalyzing it wouldn ' t do any good. It had to happen now. I ' d never heard of any other way. Her power would peak on her twenty-second birthday and that ' s when I needed to take it.

After a few minutes, she reappeared in the doorway of the bathroom a lock of dark hair had fallen over one eye and her cheeks had a newly fucked flush to them. Damn she was sexy and she wasn ' t even trying to be. Her innocence was as intoxicating as her power.

" Come here. "

She hesitated before crossing the room to me. " I really should be going. Jules will be worried sick. "

Taking her hand, I pulled her onto my lap, tucking the lock of hair behind her ear. " Don ' t worry, Jules will be fine. I ' m not nearly done with you yet. "

Genevieve

I knew I needed to leave. There were a slew of thoughts – not all positive – about this situation that I needed time to consider, but as his lips ghosted over mine, I found myself slipping back under his spell.

He grabbed the end of the sheet I ' d wrapped around myself and gave it a tug, causing it to fall open and slip down my torso. I needed to stop this or I ' d be spending the day in his bed.

" Nero, no! " Placing my hands on his chest, I pushed him back as I slipped from his lap. " I had a wonderful time, but I think I really need to leave. "

" Just one more night. I ' ll make it a night to remember." He took a step toward me and I matched his step moving backward.

Something had changed. He wasn ' t the guy from last night. There was something different about him. I just couldn ' t put my finger on what. " I ' d love to, but I have to go. " Where was my clothing? I looked around the room frantically and remembered that most of it was downstairs. Shit.

I started to make my way to the door, only to have him grab my wrist and pull me back towards him. " I must insist. "

Anger surged within me. Dude needed to learn to take no for an answer. Spinning around, I yanked my wrist from his grasp. " I ' m going, " I growled. I turned back towards the door and started to hastily make my way to the exit, only to have him race ahead of me, blocking my path.

" I ' m sorry, but I have to decline your request to leave. " Stepping to me, he grabbed me by the waist and tossed me onto his shoulder. He carried me to the bed and then tossed me onto it.

Anger and fear surged through me as I realized what he was about to do. He was going to shackle me to the bed again. " No! " I cried out using all of my strength to push him backward. He barely budged.

My fear turned frantic as he placed the cuff around one wrist. He was about to snap it closed when an odd energy seemed to well up within me, an intense force that screamed to be released.

" Nooo! " I screamed, the palm of my free hand slamming against his chest. As my hand came into contact with his chest there was a loud clap in the air, reminding me of thunder. Nero was sent flying backward with so much force that he was slammed against the opposite wall.

What in the hell? Every nerve in my body seemed to have come alive, pulsing with energy.

I was momentarily frozen, confused by what had happened and the sensations flowing through me. By the time I ' d broken out of my trancelike confusion, Nero had gotten to his feet, crossed the room, and secured my wrist to the bed with a click.

Looking at him, my brow furrowed as I spotted a black mark on his chest in the shape of my hand where I ' d pressed it against his skin.

His laughing drew my gaze up from his chest to his amused face.

My frown deepened, fear overtaken by confusion. " What happened? " By the look on his face, he seemed to have a better idea than I did. " What ' s going on? "

His laughter faded as he took a seat at the foot of the bed. " You truly have no idea how special you are. "

I gave the shackle a tug, then pulled my knees up to my chest. " Whoever or whatever you think I am, you ' re wrong. I ' m just some plain, average girl from Massachusetts. That ' s all."

" You ' re so much more than that. " He wiped the handprint from his bare chest. " You just proved it. That ' s why I chose you."

" Chose me for what? "

" You ' ll see."

You ' ll see… I didn ' t like the sound of that. I watched as he exited the room, closing the door behind him.