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  “I never wanted to do a man. Not for a second.” He planted a kiss at the base of her spine. “But all that butt-fucking going on…I gotta admit, it made me think about a woman’s ass.” One hot hand stroked up the side of her butt. “About what it must feel like to be inside.”

  If he’d never actually done it, chances were he’d stop short of doing it to her. Or after all those years in prison, would he be too eager to resist?

  “Tight and hot, I bet. Tighter than a virgin’s pussy.” He leaned over her, his chest hair tickling her back as he moved up to whisper in her ear. “I’m gonna take the only virginity you’ve got, Kate.”

  “No! No, Jake, don’t.”

  “Did I ask for your permission?” He bit her neck, hard. “What makes you think you have a choice?”

  Alcatraz. She didn’t say it. He was just testing her, that was all. Trying to prove that he was too damaged to be out of prison. She’d seen it before.

  But she’d never had a man play it out in her bedroom.

  Wet lips nuzzled her ear. “You said nothing I do can make you stop wanting me. That was just talk, wasn’t it?”

  She shook her head. “I meant it.”

  “Let’s see.” He slid down the bed toward her legs, leaving her back chilled where he’d been lying against her. Little licks followed in his wake, trailing down her spine, all the way to—oh God, he was licking the crease of her behind!

  “I’m gonna make you want it, Kate—”

  No way. Never.

  “—and if you don’t, I’m gonna take it anyway.”

  Like hell. Before she could protest, his tongue dove lower, probing at her asshole. She bit her lip to keep from screaming. Shocking and sinful…and yes, damn him, arousing. Nothing had ever felt so good. Or so forbidden. With her hands tied, all she could do was lie there, letting him explore her bottom with his hot, eager tongue.

  Eager? What an understatement. He ate her ass as passionately as he had her sex, lapping, kissing, licking, pressing a little against her tight hole. Uninhibited moans rumbled from his throat, as though he enjoyed this more than she did.

  Suddenly the glorious pressure was gone, and she heard him chuckle. “Having fun yet?”

  No reason to lie. She still had the safe word, after all. “Yes.”

  A probing touch slid up the wet crease of her ass—his finger. “Do you know what it does to me, seeing you like this? All wet from my mouth?”

  She had a good idea. But she couldn’t think of anything to say.

  He drew a tiny circle around her sensitive opening. “I’ve never seen such a pretty asshole. All puckered and rosy. Just begging for me to—”

  He pressed that trailing finger inside, just an inch. She squirmed at the invasion. But after all that play with the vibrator, it didn’t hurt much. No, it felt oddly satisfying. She bore down, relaxing tense muscles, and his finger slid deeper. Wriggled, opening up a bit of space.

  Never, not in her wildest dreams, had she imagined how good this would feel. Even through the soreness, the stretching of her tender flesh, the pleasure was unmistakable.

  She squirmed, jogging her hips a little.

  “You can’t get away.”

  Heat bloomed in her face. If he only knew she’d been trying to urge him on.

  Suddenly he withdrew, and the mattress shifted as he rose. What now? “Jake?”

  “Stay put.” He chuckled at his own joke.

  Where was he off to? She couldn’t see the door from where she lay, but she heard him pad barefoot down the hall. When he returned, the mattress dipped again. He pulled her legs apart and knelt between her knees. The hair on his legs felt unbearably rough against the inside of her thighs.

  With her hands tied, her legs spread and her ass in the air, she’d never felt so vulnerable.

  A faint scraping sound came from behind her, as though he was opening a jar of some kind. When something cool and wet hit her ass, she jumped a little. Vaseline? He slathered the cream into the crease of her behind without a word.

  As he worked the soothing cream in, one finger slipped easily inside her. Then a second. Oh, that hurt. Only a little, though. The slippery gel eased the tight passage. But two fingers was a long way from the width of his cock. He was huge.

  Rustling noises now—a foil packet tearing.

  “If you want to chicken out, all you have to do is say the safe word.”

  Another challenge. “Would you stop if I did?”

  He chuckled again, but the sound had no mirth. “I’ve been dreaming of fucking a woman in the ass for three long years. What do you think?”

  He hadn’t answered her question, but she didn’t really want to know. Heaven help her, she wanted to be the one to give him this fantasy. Not some drugged-out hooker.

  Huge hands grabbed her hips, lifted her ass higher. “Say it. Tell me to stop.”

  Reject me. He might as well have said the words aloud. That’s what he meant. She’d worked with ex-cons long enough to know. If she said the safe word, he wouldn’t stop. He’d take her regardless of her protest, proving to himself that he didn’t belong on the outside. He’d do something crazy to violate his parole and end up back inside. Typical. She’d seen it all before.

  She clamped her lips shut and grit her teeth. Nothing would make her say the safe word. Nothing. Not even when he probed at her tender asshole with the tip of his cock. Not even when he started to press against it.

  Before he entered, he paused on the brink. “Say the word, Kate.”

  She shook her head.

  Huge fingers gripped her hips tight. A warning? “Say it now, damn you.”

  “No.”

  His cock nudged her opening. With all that lube and stretching from his fingers, she felt tingling, but not actual pain. Just a teasing ache.

  “For the love of…”

  “I’ll never say it.” She lifted her hips, just a couple of inches, the most she could manage.

  “Damn you.” With a guttural moan, he pressed all the way in, and her eyes went wide from the searing pressure.

  She braced herself for rough, painful thrusting. But he held still, stroking her back, oddly gentle even though she felt his cock throbbing within her. He panted, his breath harsh in the quiet room.

  Slowly, he lay down over her, keeping most of his weight on his forearms. Hot lips nuzzled her hair out of the way so he could get to her ear. “Does it hurt?”

  Did he want her to say yes or no? “Not much.”

  “Stubborn. You were always so damned stubborn.” He sighed and started to move—withdrawing slowly.

  Was he stopping? God help her, she didn’t want him to. But he pushed back in, just as slowly. He slid out, then in, over and over, setting a steady, gentle rhythm. For all his bitterness and anger, he cared enough not to cause her unnecessary pain.

  He nuzzled against the side of her face. “You have no idea how good this feels.”

  Yes, I do. She couldn’t admit it, though. The unusual pressure, the shattering intimacy of having him penetrate her this way, the hot movements of his cock in her narrow channel, it all drove her to the edge. It hurt a little, but—Oh! That was a deep thrust—It hurt so good. She gave in and moaned, just a little, to let him know.

  He growled in her ear, and the vibrations made her shiver. “You’re so tight. Tighter than I dreamed.”

  He shifted a little, lifted her hip a bit. Enough to slide one hand under her crotch and find her clit with unerring accuracy. “Oh!”

  “Come for me, baby. Come in my hand.”

  He rubbed her clit harder, thrust deeper, until she felt his balls slapping her with each push. The soreness of her ass and the tingling of her clit was too much…far too much. She canted her hips, rising to meet his fevered thrusts, aching to take him even deeper.

  He pushed his fingers inside her, pumping in tandem with his cock, rubbing her clit with the heel of his hand all the while. When he bit her neck, she exploded, jerking helplessly beneath him as she came, trembl
ing as the force of her release shook her from head to toe.

  Jake kept his hand moving, kept thrusting, once, twice, pushing so far into her, she almost choked with the force of it. He pounded into her with raw abandon, but the spasms of her orgasm distracted her, relaxed her, did something to mitigate the pain and amplify the pleasure.

  She pushed back, pushed him deeper, and a deep groan reverberated against her neck as he climaxed, shaking and moaning, muttering unintelligible words into her shoulder. Rough, urgent motions, raw and needy. And exactly what she needed. When he collapsed on top of her, hot and sweaty and panting, the steady, rapid thump of his heart beat against her back.

  How long they lay there in silence, she couldn’t say. Time had no meaning. Nothing was real but the sweet sound of his breath rushing against her shoulder, the lingering warmth and soreness of her ass, still cradling his softened cock. She didn’t want this to end, didn’t want to have to face him. What could she possibly say?

  He left her far too soon, taking her by the hip and shoulder and rolling her over to face him.

  At first, he looked wary. She smiled to reassure him.

  He scowled. “Don’t look at me like that.”

  “Like what?”

  His mouth twisted. “Like I’m some kind of hero. For God’s sake, I just fucked you in the ass. Against your will.”

  He looked so frustrated, she bit her lip to keep from grinning at him. “Did I tell you to stop?”

  His jaw worked back and forth, as though he ground his teeth. “You think you know all about me now. That I’ve shown you the worst I’ve got.”

  She laughed. Nothing could have stifled it. “I think your bark is worse than your bite, Monroe.”

  His eyes blazed. He looked around the bed, then reached out for something. When he pushed himself up and leaned over her, another scarf was in his hand. To tie her legs?

  He wound it between his hands, twisting it into a rope. Then he put it against her mouth. When she opened her lips to ask what he was doing, the scarf slipped between her teeth. He tied it at the side of her head.

  And his face, hovering over hers, still looked furious. “Do you remember the safe word?”

  She nodded. With the scarf gagging her, she couldn’t say an intelligible word.

  “Good,” he answered curtly. “If I hear you say it, I’ll untie you.”

  He wanted her to fear him. Mission accomplished. Without the safe word, she had no protection from him at all. No protection from his anger, his frustration, his self-loathing. She moaned and squirmed on the bed.

  He lowered his face to hers. “What’s that?” He chuckled humorlessly. “Now you can’t say it. No matter what I do. No matter how perverted I get.”

  Her breath whistled through her nostrils. She could barely breathe. No, that was panic talking. She could breathe…just not as easily.

  His hands ran over her, hip to stomach to breast, all the way to her throat. He circled her neck with one enormous hand. “Now you’re all mine. Really mine.”

  He could do anything he wanted, and she couldn’t protest. But she wouldn’t have protested before. No reason to panic now, just because he’d made sure she couldn’t. This was all part of his game. Trying to frighten her, trying to make her reject him.

  Just a game. Just a game. Just a game.

  But her heart was beating faster than ever.

  Chapter Six

  When he left the bed, she panicked. What if he left her like this? “Jake—” No use. With her mouth gagged, she couldn’t say a thing.

  From the corner of her eye, she caught sight of his bare back going out the door. He’d left the room naked. Surely that meant he’d be coming back.

  From somewhere far off, she heard sounds—a rattle of glasses, a faucet turning on, then off again. The noise of tinkling glass came closer. When he came back into the room, she saw a glass of ice water in his hand.

  He stood by the bed and looked down at her thoughtfully as he took a sip. His tongue came out to lick his full lower lip.

  The mattress dipped as he sat next to her. One hand traced the side of her face, his forefinger following the edge of the gag. “This has one drawback.”

  What? She couldn’t ask, so she arched an eyebrow.

  His grin was wicked. “I can’t make you suck my dick.”

  Heat filled her face, and he laughed. “Now you’re all shy. That’s rich.” He reached out for the glass and took another sip. “Want some?”

  If she said yes, maybe he’d remove this stupid gag. She nodded.

  He made no move to untie her. Instead he held the glass high, where she could see it easily, and reached inside. Long fingers came out soaking wet.

  A freezing drop of water fell onto her throat. She tilted her head, trying to rub it away, but it slithered wetly around her neck to leave a tickling trail of moisture.

  He flicked his fingers at her chest, raining a cascade of chilling water droplets down onto her heated skin. As she squirmed, he chuckled. Damn him, he was enjoying this…this…water torture.

  He bent his head and lapped at her breast—heat to soothe the coldness from the water. “I’m a sadistic bastard,” he muttered. “Didn’t I say so?”

  She couldn’t answer, and he didn’t look like he wanted one. Instead, he pulled a dripping cube of ice out of the glass and lowered it slowly to her chest.

  No. No. She shook her head, but he ignored her.

  The first brush of the ice against her nipple felt like fire. She moaned, but he persisted, rubbing the frozen cube up the slope of her breast to her nipple. He lingered there, and the numbing cold had her shivering. Damn him. At least he’d made her enjoy the anal sex, but this—

  Heat engulfed her breast—his mouth. She arched up into the pleasure. After the freezing ice, the warmth felt extraordinary.

  He released her breast far too soon, and dragged the ice cube across her chest to her other nipple. But this time, no soothing hot mouth followed. No, he trailed the ice down her belly, down to her pubic hair.

  Surely he wouldn’t…

  He did. The ice moved between her legs, cold enough to make her moan in pain. But he brushed her with his fingers in the wake of the freezing cold, soothing as he tormented her. He rubbed the freezing cube over the sensitive lips of her labia, circling her vagina until rivulets of icy water dribbled down her skin onto the comforter. When he pressed the cube inside, she cried out at the burst of cold, whimpering as the chill receded with the melting ice. With the gag in her mouth, she sounded pathetic.

  “Your pussy’s so hot, I’m seeing steam rise from you.” He bent his head and licked, suckling at her aching flesh, filling her with the heated thrust of his tongue, kissing and licking at her clit, driving her higher, higher—so close—

  And then he pulled away, damn him. She clenched her hands into fists around the scarf that bound them, squeezed her eyes tight so he couldn’t see how badly she was hurting.

  Light suddenly flared in her eyes. She squinted up at him, her eyes narrowed against the glare. He’d taken the burning votive candle in his hand, and now he held it over her chest.

  “The match didn’t hurt you earlier.”

  No, it hadn’t. She shook her head.

  His face looked hard. Scary. “Maybe this will.”

  The glass holder tipped in his hand. Surely he wouldn’t…

  She shook her head wildly. Her shoulders ached from pulling against the scarf that bound her wrists.

  His hand made little circles, swirling the wax in the glass. “Saying no won’t stop me.”

  Alcatraz. Before, she hadn’t wanted to say it. Now she couldn’t.

  The match hadn’t burned her. The wax wouldn’t—

  The wax would be hot.

  If he burned her, he’d comfort her. Maybe he’d eat her until she came.

  She whimpered and squirmed as he tipped the votive, her gaze fixed to the candle. A slow dribble of wax fell onto her chest, right between her breasts.

  Ho
t. So hot. Not unbearable, but she writhed under the heat. The gag muffled her moans. The wax splattered onto her skin in hot bursts, then cooled and left her aching.

  The hot bath moved…down her chest, over her stomach. Oh God, would he drip it between her legs? She tried to close them, to protect her sex, but he was kneeling between her legs. She moaned and twisted.

  The dribbling trail of heat stopped at her navel. She heard the soft clink of the candle holder when he put it back down on the nightstand.

  His head dropped to her stomach, blowing cooling air on her. The heat faded slowly, leaving a tingling, raw feeling in its wake.

  “Too much?” His breath whispered across the side of her breast.

  Nothing was too much. Nothing he wanted. She shook her head fiercely.

  “Stubborn Kate.” His gaze caught hers for an instant before he looked away. Lifting to his knees, his powerful legs spread her thighs wide. “I can do anything I want to you, baby. I could fuck you without a condom.”

  Oh, no. Her eyes went wide; she shook her head again.

  His hand moved over his cock, stroking. “That’s right. Beg me. Beg me with those big green eyes.”

  He stroked her cheek above the gag with the backs of his fingers, his touch oddly gentle. After a long pause, he ran his hand down her chest, following the wax trail. “I’ve given you hickeys. I’ve fucked you in the ass. I’ve left a little path of red down your belly. And it’s still not enough.”

  What more could he possibly do to her?

  With his free hand, he gripped her thigh, the thumb stroking tiny circles on the inside of her leg. “If I could, I’d tattoo my name right here. So that every man who took you would see it and know that I was here before him.”

  She couldn’t talk, couldn’t tell him that he’d already left his mark on her—that she’d never forget him, whether he tattooed her or not.

  “Or I’d pierce your clit.”

  God, no. She cringed at the thought.

  “Now you’re scared, aren’t you?” He rubbed her clit with his thumb, just a teasing stroke. “You might like it, Kate. You’re a slut for pain. Did you know that?”

  Not before tonight, she hadn’t.