Total pages in book: 156
Estimated words: 160192 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 801(@200wpm)___ 641(@250wpm)___ 534(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 160192 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 801(@200wpm)___ 641(@250wpm)___ 534(@300wpm)
“That’s not it at all.”
“Then what the fuck is it? Why kidnap her? Why bring her here? Do you know what sort of headaches you’ve created? Not to mention the trauma to her.”
North hadn’t actually considered the trauma it might cause Angie. He hadn’t thought much about her feelings at all. Empathy was something North struggled with.
Jared sighed and shook his head. “For fuck’s sake, just tell me. Why did you kidnap her?”
“For you. I did it for you. I knew you wanted her and so I took her. To give her to you.”
Jared just stared down at North.
He didn’t know what he’d expected the other man to say. But it wasn’t that.
“For me? Why would you think I’d want this? Want her?”
“You keep her photo in a drawer. Sometimes you say her name in your sleep. Her stuffed toy was in your closet. You want her and I want you to have what you want. So I took her. For you.”
Fuck.
He knew all of that? Jared hadn’t done that good a job of hiding his feelings, then.
Guilt filled him but he pushed it down.
“Fine. I’ll be honest. I think about her sometimes. I wonder. But that didn’t mean I wanted you to kidnap her for me. Do you realize what you’ve done? I’m going to have to call Zander and tell him where she is.”
“I don’t think that would be a good idea,” North said hastily. “She’s still unwell.”
She was doing better, though. Her fever had broken and she could keep water down.
“And it wasn’t like he was taking care of her properly. That’s the other reason I took her. I went to check in on her and when I saw the way she was living . . . well, I thought it was unsafe.”
Jared didn’t know whether to believe him. It wasn’t like North to care about something like that.
“I thought that you would care,” North said. “If I was wrong, I apologize.”
“I can’t have her, North. She can’t be mine. I’m with you and it’s unsafe for her to even be here.”
“But I know you want her as well. My feelings aren’t hurt. I’d have to have some feelings for them to be hurt.”
Jared wasn’t convinced that he didn’t have feelings, but he remained quiet.
“And I know I can’t give you everything you desire. Like a Little. Someone to coddle and protect. Think about it . . . you could have us both.”
“You want me to have you both?” Jared asked.
This didn’t make much sense. Who would go out and find a girlfriend for their Dom?
“Yes. You need someone like Angie. A Little. Someone you can be affectionate with. I can’t be that.”
Jared knew that.
But he’d always known who North was.
Jared cupped the side of North’s face, even knowing that the other man wouldn’t like that.
But screw it.
He didn’t fucking like that North had kidnapped Angie without his permission.
“You are important, North. You are not replaceable.”
Something flared in North’s eyes. A rare display of emotion. But it was gone almost as quickly as it appeared.
“I know I’m not,” he said. “I’m not replacing me. I’m adding to the dynamic.”
“Do you want her as well?”
“No,” North said quickly. Almost too quickly. “She’s for you.”
“So why now? Why not earlier?”
North shrugged. “The time seemed right. Like I said, I went to check on her, found her in an unsafe situation, and extracted her from that situation.”
“Without my permission.”
North nodded. “I figured you’d punish me for that.”
“Oh, I will. We can take care of that now.” Jared knew he should go check on Angie. But he had to get this done now. He took a step back and slowly took off his belt.
“Bare your ass and lean over the back of the sofa,” he ordered coldly.
He couldn’t have North disobeying him. Not just because he was his Dom and partner. But because Jared was “the Boss.” Things went badly when people disobeyed him.
North got into position.
Jared swung the belt without warning. This wasn’t pleasure. It was punishment. But after a few swipes, North was shifting around. And Jared knew he’d probably be hard if he checked.
But he wasn’t going to give him any release.
He let the belt fly until North’s ass was red. Then he slid it back on.
“Turn around.”
North didn’t like aftercare. Didn’t want it. But sometimes Jared needed something.
As he turned, Jared saw that the other man’s cock was rock hard. Stepping forward, he put his hand around the back of North’s neck and kissed him. Hard.
“You are important to me, North. You are mine. Understand me? Irreplaceable. But you must not ever do shit like this again or I will hurt you. Long and hard. Get me?”
“Yes, I understand.”
He bit the other man’s lower lip, then stepped back. “Now, get dressed. We need to go check on Angie and decide what to do about her.”