Chapter 10

Seren

She'd been back in the city for a few weeks. As soon as she'd packed up and left Brooke's—without talking to Rome first because she was a coward, but she had said goodbye to Waverly and explained that she had to go back to the city to work—she'd received two texts from Rome.

He'd excused her from her Sunday and Monday obligations and said he would text her when he required her again. The second text stated that he'd give her seven days' notice.

Only Rome could sound considerate and like a complete and total asshole at the same time.

She'd used her free day as she said she would, to catch up on work.

Several times, Becka tried to engage her in an honest conversation about what was going on, but Seren kept telling her she was okay. Just busy. Becka wasn't buying that. She'd told Seren point blank that she was acting like a crazy person and being different, and that while she still loved her and respected her need for privacy, they were going to have to have a conversation soon. Best friend to best friend. She hadn't left it alone until Seren agreed. She hadn't just said yes to put Becka off. She meant it.

She had to figure out what she was going to say. It would be pretty hard to have a conversation that went something along the lines of,

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yup. I'm fine. Other than obsessing about my arch-nemesis and since he hasn't been around to degrade me in person, I've been doing in my head for him, even though I know how absurd that sounds. I can't stop thinking about him. Okay, you caught me. I've been masturbating to him in an exceptionally angry way and it's full of self-loathing every single night."

When Rome finally had texted her to give her that notice he promised, requiring her as of Monday, she was almost relieved. It was harder to hate him from a distance, when he wasn't giving her extras reasons to. Not that she needed more reasons. Apparently, though, she did.

Now that she was finally on her way to the garage, she was a mess. Half of her felt like her life was over because her time was up, and the other half of her was just so fucked up

she couldn't begin to pick it apart. Whatever was between her and Rome, it wasn't just attraction. That wasn't nearly strong enough of a word to explain it.

She missed Waverly, so part of her was relieved that she'd be able to see her soon, even if it was six days because Rome being Rome had inexplicably given her a pass for Sunday. She wanted to ask Waverly how the rest of her time was with Rome's pack. Ask her about her cousins and the new friends she'd made. She knew Waverly would be excited to tell her. She also wanted to hear about all the things Waverly learned related to shifting and being a wolf.

Maybe she'd forgotten in the few weeks that she'd been killing herself with work, dwelling in denial, and without Rome's influence just how black his soul could be. When she arrived at the auto repair shop, locked the door after herself, and walked to Rome's office to show him that she wasn't afraid to face him and that she was far from broken, she found him waiting.

Dressed entirely in his usual black, he looked like a cold, domineering god. There was zero sign of any physical injury or discomfort. He held himself with that same brutal power he always had.

How could she have thought she was prepared for him? His presence sucked all the air from her lungs.

And then she saw the camera.

One of those tiny square action cams that people put on their heads. He held it in his hand. The way he grinned at her the second she noticed was like acid thrown on her skin. He looked like he spent every single day since they parted planning this exact moment. He'd had too much time to think. Too much time in bed spent doing nothing but healing. She should have expected nothing less than pure fuckery.

"Seeing as you're such a fan of touching yourself, I thought this would be a fitting activity."

Challenge. Motherfucking. Accepted.

She got the message like a megaphone straight to the ear. He hadn't forgotten her near pathetic attempt at a turnabout. It was never fair play. Not to a man like this.

She gathered herself and fought back. There was no way she could let this happen. "I never said you could record me. That's not in the contract."

"There are no specifics. I can indeed record you."

"No. You could use that for anything. No way."

"I'll give you the camera after. That way, you know I haven't made copies. This is for me. I'd sooner gouge the eyes out of any man's head than let him enjoy what is mine ."

"Brooke clearly healed your bones and your body, but she did nothing for your brain. Here I was hoping that giving it a good knock would have set you straight, but in this, I'm clearly made to be disappointed as well. I'm

not

yours ."

"You are right now. You'll film yourself and I'll watch you do it. This isn't for me. It's for you. You can watch your own body, your own pleasure, your own power."

"How thoughtful of you." How could she ever have thought of this man as anything but a straight up villain? He was so intent on proving that's exactly what he was. "You're punishing me, and we both know it."

"Why think of something so pleasureful as a bad thing?"

"I'm not doing this on camera. You want me to watch myself, you get a mirror."

"That can be arranged."

Damnit. Of course it

could.

Rome left and was back a few minutes later with a large oval mirror. He'd taken it off some wall, probably from the bathroom.

"Get on the desk."

"I told you, I'm not getting naked."

"This isn't about getting naked. You're going to touch yourself and watch yourself. Keep your eyes open."

If she didn't hold her ground, what else could she lose with this man? "I'm not going to get off like this."

"There's a surprise for you on the desk. You'll use it if you're having trouble."

Seren hadn't even looked that far. She took a few steps and glanced over the monitor with some trepidation. As she suspected, there was an array of toys, all laid out on the top. Butt plug, vibrator, more than one dildo, all bright pink. She'd never hated Rome more than she did in that moment.

"I'm not going to come for you," she ground out between clenched teeth. She wasn't going to win the war, but she could win this battle.

"Fair enough. You can come for you . But you will come before you leave here."

"I think I'm good. I can hold out for an hour."

"Hold out if you want, but I think your clit will be quite sore after manhandling it for an hour. As soon as you come, you can go."

With far too much skill, Rome spun the desk chair out and propped the mirror in it. He glanced at the desk, then back at the mirror, gauging the distance. If she sat on the edge and spread her legs, she'd be able to have a full view of everything that happened.

She could not let that be okay. She could not just give up. She was going to have to do this, but it had nothing to do with true surrender. "Are you going to command that too? Tell me how to please my own body? Tell me to say your name?"

"I'm just here to hold the mirror."

"And no doubt enjoy the show."

"I'm only going to be watching your face."

He might have seemingly abandoned the camera idea, but there was no way she wasn't going to negotiate like her life depended on it. "Hard pass on all of this. I'll never be able to get turned on while you're standing over me gaping at me like a first-rate stalker. The only thing that would get me off is if you weren't here."

"That's not how you felt at Brooke's cabin."

She pursed her lips, unable to refute that because then she'd give herself away.

She couldn't fall into his trap. She couldn't make herself be a mean person to save her life. She looked up while she considered what she was going to do, and for the first time, she saw the security camera. It wasn't blinking or lit up, but that didn't mean it wasn't on.

Now, she was truly angry.

She slammed her finger towards it. " That should have been disclosed. You've had that on? For all of this?"

"I turn them off in here while you're here. I repeat, this is for me only. If anyone else even looks at you…"

He didn't finish that, and she shuddered. Why? She didn't want to be his possession. Why? Why her? Why him? Why any of this?

Her brain wasn't evil and it didn't process well under duress like this, but she had a sudden burst of inspiration. The camera faced the front of the desk. If she got on, spread her legs, and pretended to play with herself, Rome would only see her back if he was watching on there. She'd technically be doing everything he asked, but she'd come out the victor.

"Turn it back on. You can watch from that camera as long as you prove to me you've destroyed the footage after. Does it have volume? Can you speak over it?"

"No."

"You're lying."

"I have no reason to lie."

"You'll show me that you've erased it after."

"Yes."

He left without ceremony, so certain that his instructions would be obeyed that it was nauseating.

No, that wasn't why her stomach was churning. It wasn't why she walked over to the desk and perched on the edge. It wasn't why she spread her legs and slipped her panties down. It was a different kind of sickness and it was turning into a full-on disease. She couldn't believe she was about to do what she was going to do, even if she was fully angled away from the camera. It was horrible, the thought of Rome watching. The thought that maybe, alone, he'd be running his hand down his thick shaft.

What was horrible was how she didn't hate any of it nearly enough.

She slipped her hand between her legs and found herself disgustingly wet.

She'd basically never had anything but vanilla sex with anyone in her life. Even her marriage had been nothing like the forced proximity of Rome. Just the thought of him or even knowing he was near was explosive, corrosive, highly flammable and utterly toxic.

Seren ran her finger down her folds and brought it up to her clit. She was going to put on an act and none of it had to be real, but the tingling warmth was all too legit. She turned her face further away from that corner so Rome wouldn't be able to see the heat in her cheeks.

What in the nine hells was wrong with her body? It had to be a wolf thing, the sway he held over her. If he was just a man, it wouldn't be so potent. Maybe he was more than a wolf. Maybe he was able to cast spells as well. She hated that as soon as she slipped her fingers into her underwear again, she felt strange. It was like she was coming down with something. A nasty flu that left her fevered and aching. Her skin felt that way. Her muscles, her bones, the very core of her. She was an entire bundle of nerves and longing.

If she got herself off fast, she could leave. Maybe she could snatch her panties and Rome would be far enough away and he wouldn't even be able to see her face as she made her escape.

But the image of him in that other room, taking his thick cock out, stroking along the veiny shaft, running his hand to the engorged head, leaking all over his hand, made a lump form in her throat. Her belly knotted, and between her legs, she felt horribly empty.

She thought about the dildo for a split second.

Why not? Why not give him a show he couldn't see? Her dress would block everything and her knees would do the rest. She could slip her panties off, reach for the dildo to taunt him, put it inside herself, and come on it in under a minute. She'd be free to walk out of here, her own power reclaimed. She'd realized at Brooke's that she'd never be able to win at this game, but she could play it to the best of her ability.

Her fingers strayed to her clit again, dancing across the hard bud, but it wasn't enough.

If she did this for herself, then it wouldn't have to be about him.

She reached for the box which was left close enough to taunt her. Once she had the dildo in one hand, she slid her panties off with the other. She'd never used one of these in her life. She never usually put anything inside herself. Her fingers were generally enough, giving her clit attention.

Perversely, she wanted it. She wanted that thickness filling up the ache. Let Rome see what he couldn't have. Let him know that she would never, ever let him be inside her body. She'd never break. Not for him. Not for anyone.

She slipped the rubbery end of the dildo through her folds, soaking it fully in a single pass. Since she was on her back, her ass crack was soaked. She shivered when the round little shape of that butt plug flashed into her mind. She'd never agree to that, but as she closed her eyes and imagined it, imagined how full she'd be, a whimper worked its way out of her throat.

She had no idea about the sizing of toys, but the one in her hand wouldn't hurt. She could take it without worrying about wrecking herself on it. It was already warm from being held against her body, and when she brought the tip to her entrance, she turned her face purposely to the camera. She didn't close her eyes as she pushed it all the way inside of her, filling her aching hole in one thrust.

Her legs trembled and all the breath ripped out of her. She didn't need to touch her clit. She didn't need to fake it. Rome would know the difference, but that wasn't her plan anyway. Somehow, he'd picked the perfect shape for her. She was full enough that it hurt just a little, until she got used to it.

She stared up at the camera while she slowly worked the toy in and out of herself. She pulled it out and pushed it back in, filling herself until the weird pink plastic balls and her fingers brushed up against her entrance.

She should have felt sated, but every time she filled herself, she craved more. The ache wasn't banished, it grew stronger. Her eyes finally closed and her mouth parted. She couldn't stop picturing Rome, but not in that room.

This time, in her mind, he was above her on that bed again, his hard body crushing hers. It was his cock inside her. It was him above her, potent and foul mouthed and black all over. It was his cruel touch digging into her as he cupped her breast, his teeth sinking into her nipple as he drove his cock in and out of her. It was his tongue dragging down her slit and then standing over her, feeding his cock to her slowly and brutally, until he reached the back of her throat and she gagged all over him. It was him turning her over, spreading her ass and burying his tongue there before he put his cock, wet with her saliva, and his fingers drenched in her juices, in that forbidden place.

He'd push in and she'd have to stretch around the massive size of him. He would have just split her pussy in two and she'd be aching from the force of him, and he wouldn't care. He'd take her asshole while she screamed and begged, while she clawed at the desk he'd bent her over, while she arched against him and begged for more, more, more.

She worked the dildo hard, brutally, mindlessly, until she was so wet it was slapping against her, until she was so brutal that it hurt, until it hit the parts inside her that no one attached to a real cock could ever find.

She hit that spot again and again, losing control, slipping into the madness.

She was losing her mind too, clearly, because she kept seeing Rome. Kept imagining it was his cock working her over. His huge hands holding her down. She spread herself open, parting her legs and using her hand so that the dildo could get further inside. She'd never needed to be filled more than she needed it now. In her head, she told Rome that. He'd be mean. He'd slap her ass and tell her she'd take whatever he chose to give her and be glad for it. If that was nothing, then she'd wait, and if it was everything, then she'd stretch to accommodate every brutal inch of his dick, no matter how much it hurt, no matter what hole he picked.

She was more than disgusted by herself, but she couldn't stop. Couldn't stop her hand from working that dildo inside herself, thrusting harder, her ass crack and entire pussy soaked. She couldn't stop herself from thinking about Rome behind her, a shadow who gathered up her hair in his fist and used it to turn her head back over her shoulder so she could glimpse the wicked things he was doing to her body. She imagined looking into his wild, half broken expression from the wrong angle. He'd let her know what he was going to do with a fierce, hard kiss. He'd never release her hair and it would sting along her scalp. It would be brutal. He'd slip his cock out of her pussy and nudge his cockhead against her tight asshole.

She'd whimper, but it would be a whimper of delight. A whimper of consent. He wouldn't go slow or easy. He'd claim her viscously, but she'd like that too. She'd like it as he worked her tight hole over his massive erection. She'd be so full. So. Fucking. Full.

Seren exploded on the toy. She threw one hand back to brace herself as she shattered. Had Rome lied about the camera having sound? She realized she was chanting his name under her breath.

Her muscles quaked, her body a fault zone. She'd never come like that in her life.

Her eyes flew open at a slow clap from behind her.

She tore the toy out of herself and cranked her head around, ready to declare war on the invader, but it was Rome. Rome, who made rules and broke them. Rome, who told her he'd be watching from a safe distance and thought nothing about tricking her and lying. Rome, who had just seen and heard her come. There was nothing fake about that climax or the images that were still burned into her brain. She would gouge out her eyes of it meant not remembering, but there was no undoing what had already been done.

"You lied! You said you'd watch from the other room."

"I did. I got bored. I decided to come back here. I wasn't stealthy about it. You were just so into what you were doing that you didn't hear me."

In that moment, she decided that turnaround was most definitely fair play and she'd return the favor one day. She'd make this man suffer for breaking his rules like she was suffering. He'd be sorry that he ever signed that contract to toy with her. She stared at the toy in her hand, shiny with her own juices, and wondered what it would look like rammed down Rome's throat.

Instead of being satisfying, that thought pulsed through her with the fury of a second detonator being hit. She was not going to sit there and think about Rome licking her juices off that toy before he got on his knees, spread her apart, and feasted on her sore, sensitive pussy until she physically couldn't handle it any longer.

It was just about as equally satisfying to think about ramming that toy into Rome's mouth so he couldn't say another word.

She hopped off the desk, making sure she was entirely covered. As an afterthought, she rammed the stupid dildo into her purse. There was no way she was leaving that behind. Who knew what nefarious activity it would engage in after she was gone. Rome didn't exactly seem like a panty sniffer, but what did she know?

She stopped right by him, thrusting a finger into his face. "You! You're just…" There were no words. "Whatever happened to you doesn't give you free license to be this awful."

He gave her his usual cold sneer. "Awful? Yes, but there's nothing that you seem to enjoy more. Or at least, your cunt is having a great time stuffed full, my name on your tongue."

Her face flaming, Seren turned and raced out of the office. As usual, she had very little dignity to salvage. Every single day was worse when it came to this man. Just when she got herself together and got a counterattack in place, he charged through it and crushed her. He was evil straight to the core of him, and he seemed to enjoy it.

He made no effort to stop her from leaving, which was at least one word he hadn't broken.