Cherished (6 page)

He continued to stare at her and his hand tightened against her skin.

“No,” she finally whispered.

Nico nodded and then let his hand fall away, gently rearranging the sarong to cover her once more.

“Good girl,” he murmured. “Xander will be pleased that you complied with his wishes.”

There was a look in Nico’s eyes that made her breath catch in her throat. She should have protested him touching her so intimately. But she’d been too mesmerized by that intense gaze. And Xander had made it very clear that she was to…submit…to his men as well as to Xander.

He guided her toward the door but paused as they stepped into the hallway leading to the stairs. “Are you nervous?”

She blinked, surprised that he’d ask and that he seemed to genuinely be concerned. Well, she wasn’t going to lie.

“Extremely,” she breathed out.

He took her arm, tucked it underneath his and gave her hand a warm, comforting squeeze. “Don’t be. I know this is overwhelming for you, that this situation is…foreign. But know that Xander, myself and Bastien and Garon will never harm you.”

There was no logical reason she should believe a complete stranger, but she found comfort in the quiet vow. There was no hint of deception in his eyes. Just earnest determination, as if he wanted nothing more than to reassure her.

No, it probably wasn’t smart for her to believe anything at all, but she found she did. How she could trust this man, she had no answer for, but she found herself curling her fingers tighter around his arm as they descended the stairs. He’d suddenly become her anchor in a stormy sea of uncertainty.

“Are you afraid of me?” Nico asked.

There always seemed to be a surprise. It was a bad habit she had to break herself of. It seemed nothing was off limits and the normal boundaries of propriety were clearly not upheld here.

He stopped at the base of the staircase and glanced down at her, waiting for her response. He looked…well, he looked like he actually cared one way or another whether she was scared of him.

She blew out her breath. “You know what? I’m not. I probably should be. I should probably be a lot of things right now. I’m questioning my sanity. I’m questioning whether any of this is real, but oddly enough, no, I’m not scared of you.”

He smiled then, and it was amazing the transformation. From the serious, almost somber countenance came a startling handsome light. His eyes warmed and he reached up to touch her cheek.

“I’m glad. I want you to promise me that if you ever feel threatened or afraid that you’ll come to me.”

She cocked her head to the side, enjoying the feel of those strong fingers on her skin. “I will,” she promised quietly.

With seeming reluctance, he dropped his hand and then took hold of her arm once again. He led her through the spacious living room and into the formal dining room that overlooked the huge terrace that spanned the entire backside of the villa.

Xander was already seated. Garon stood to the side on a cell phone, his expression one of concentration. Sebastien was just taking his seat further down the table from Xander.

When they saw her, Xander rose, Garon simply shut his phone in midconversation and Sebastien stopped in midair, resuming his stance instead of continuing down into his chair.

“Come.”

The one-word command from Xander sent a shiver down her back. It was delicious, though, and somehow being there beside Nico had infused her with confidence she badly needed. She
glanced up at him, flashing a grateful smile before hurrying toward where Xander stood.

Xander’s arm was outstretched and she instinctively stepped into the shelter of his body. He made a sound of approval as he curled his arm around her, pulling her in tighter. He kissed her forehead.

“You look beautiful. Did you carry out all of my instructions?”

She nodded and then verbalized the response, not knowing if a simple nod would be sufficient. “Yes.”

“Show us.”

That drew her up short. She glanced up at him, automatically seeking confirmation that he was serious. His lips tightened and she realized that she’d displeased him. But did he expect her to…?

Apparently he did.

She started to argue, to tell him that Nico’s hand had already been up her sarong and over her ass. He could certainly vouch for the fact that underneath the very thin, very sheer flowing material, she didn’t have a stitch on. But she realized that any further delay would only make him more displeased than he already was.

Her hand shaking, she slowly reached down to pull aside the sarong.

“Turn so we can see,” Xander directed.

She briefly closed her eyes and summoned all her courage for what she was about to do. She was naturally modest and didn’t have one single exhibitionist tendency. Seeking the spotlight was not in character for her and the idea that she would be on display for these four men plus whoever else happened to wander through made her want to break out in hives.

“We’re waiting, Talia,” Xander said in a clipped tone.

She turned so her profile would be presented and then she carefully pulled the material up and over her hip until the curve of her behind was presented.

“More.”

Using her other hand, she gathered the material that shielded the juncture of her legs and pulled it up and out of the way so that her entire lower half of her body was bared to their gaze.

She’d never felt so vulnerable in her life. Then she made the mistake of glancing up and making eye contact with Garon and then Sebastien. They were obviously aroused, their gazes burning over her skin. But there was blatant approval there and no disrespect. No tasteless remarks. No catcalls or whistles. Nothing at all except long, lingering looks filled with lust and a promise of the darkest kind of pleasure.

Her gaze cut to Nico, but he wasn’t looking down. He was staring right back at her, his gaze fastened on her face, meeting her eyes, and in his depths she found support. Comfort.

Xander slid his hand over her behind and cupped her intimately before motioning for her to let go of the sarong.

“I’m pleased you followed my directive,” he said. “In time, I’ll cease to question and assume that you have obeyed me. But that trust must be earned. Right now we are still learning each other and it’s understandable that you would have been reluctant to do as I asked. I’m very pleased that despite whatever discomfort you may have felt over fulfilling my wishes that you did so without question.”

He leaned over and cupped her jaw, sweeping his mouth possessively over hers. “You please me very much, Talia.”

She stared back at him, a little dazed by all that had occurred. And they hadn’t even sat down to eat yet. She was still reeling from…well, pretty much everything. The entire day.

He pulled back the chair beside him and then eased her down, making sure she was comfortable. As soon as everyone settled into their chairs, fatigue and reaction hit her like a ton of bricks.

She stared down at the delicious-looking food and wondered if she had the energy to get through the meal.

“Talia.”

She yanked her head up and stared down at Garon. Now
he
scared her. Not in an I-think-he’s-going-to-kill-me way, but he was…huge. She had yet to see him smile or look anything but focused and somewhat fierce-looking. This was a man she’d never want to piss off in any way.

“Come here,” he said.

She glanced hesitantly at Xander. Was he okay with this? Xander had said that orders would come through him, but he was sitting right next to her, so why would Garon have told her to come to him?

Still, she had no desire to anger Garon. Or Xander and since Xander returned her gaze very calmly, she assumed he meant for her to obey Garon.

God, but this whole thing was giving her a monster headache. Her nerves were shot and she hadn’t even been here a full day yet.

She pushed back from her chair and unsteadily rose to her feet. Fatigue beat at her temples and her shoulders sagged as she walked the few steps to where Garon sat.

He reached for her hand and then sighed when she tensed. Then he simply pulled her onto his lap and tucked her legs between his so she sat sideways, leaning against the muscled wall of his chest and shoulder.

Just when she thought she couldn’t be surprised by anything else, he forked a bite of the fish and held it to her lips.

“Eat,” he said, still holding the fork to her mouth.

She parted her lips and he carefully fed her the bite.

One corner of his mouth tilted upward at her obvious befuddlement. It wasn’t as if she could hide her complete what-the-hell look.

“You looked as though you were about to fall over,” he said simply. “And I’m sure you’re hungry. Lean against me. Make yourself comfortable while I feed you.”

“But what about you?” she protested.

That lip twitched again and his eyes gleamed. “I don’t think missing a meal is going to hurt me. Now stop talking and eat. The only way you’re going to figure out that we aren’t going to rape and murder you is for you to spend time with us and build trust.”

She had nothing to say to that because it was the truth.

He not only forked bite after bite into her mouth but, at the same time, he rubbed her back with his free hand, stroking up and down in a soothing, comforting motion that had her sagging against him.

After a while he delved his fingers into her hair and then underneath it to massage her nape. It was sheer bliss.

For a man of his size and intimidation factor, he was surprisingly tender. His touch was gentle, even more so than Nico’s had been.

When she peeked from the corner of her eye to the other occupants of the table, she realized what they were doing. The meeting earlier. Nico coming to get her for dinner. Garon feeding her. Xander’s own familiarity with her. The kiss. The touches.

They were taming her much like they would a wild animal. They were getting her used to their touch, their demands. Acclimating her to the environment she’d been pulled into.

They didn’t want her to fear them, and they were going to great lengths to build trust.

Some of the tension that had been building the entire day fled. She relaxed and let go of the jumble of questions crowding her mind. If she tried to look at the whole picture, it overwhelmed her. She had no clue how it could ever work. So instead she focused on just one thing. How it felt to sit in Garon’s arms while he fed and pampered her.

That one was pretty easy to answer. He may be big and menacing, but he treated her like a precious piece of glass that may break if he breathed too hard on her.

His hand felt wonderful on her back and at her nape and the food was delicious, maybe even more so because of the intimacy of the act of him feeding her.

When she’d had enough, she sighed her contentment and leaned her head against his shoulder. He continued his conversation with the other men, almost as if she weren’t there on his lap.

Wickersham brought in another plate and Garon ate a portion of fish while holding her against his body. She tried to focus on what was being said, but her mind was tired and it was hard to follow the conversation.

When she stifled a yawn, Garon only pulled her in closer to his body until her forehead rested against his neck. She closed her eyes, no longer able or willing to fight the urge to give in to her exhaustion.

She stirred against him just enough that she could snuggle farther into his warmth. She felt his lips brush across her forehead and she sighed at the pleasurable sensation of his kiss. Maybe…Maybe he wasn’t so scary after all.

Chapter 6

Xander watched as Talia settled into sleep against Garon’s burly frame. The big man held her as gently as he would the most fragile piece of fine art. He smiled to himself. Talia was responding well—far better than he’d anticipated.

The others were already devoted to her. It was evident in the way they looked at her. How they handled her and how gently they spoke.

Firm but gentle.

It had been his directive. He wanted Talia to know her boundaries. To know whom she belonged to and whom she obeyed. But he wanted to guide her with a gentle hand and tender touch.

The idea of causing her pain made him grit his teeth. He hated that she’d come all this way fully expecting him to demonstrate his mastery through pain and discipline or that he’d collar her or put even one mark on her beautiful skin with a whip or a flogger.

He was shaking his head before he could control the motion. Sebastien arched an eyebrow in his direction.

“Problem, Z?”

Xander’s lips tightened. “I was just lamenting the fact that from the inception of our contract, she’s assumed that she would be subjected to all manner of pain and discipline and God only knows what else.”

Nico scowled. “I hope you’ve fully dissuaded her of that notion. Hell, we don’t go around whipping women or punishing them for some supposed infraction.”

Xander sighed. “There are those who think a submissive relationship automatically means bondage, spanking, absolute control. Hell, even slavery.”

“Now you’re just starting to piss me off,” Garon growled.

Even as he spoke, he smoothed Talia’s hair and shifted so he could hold her more securely. She never stirred and her eyelashes remained resting on her cheeks.

Sebastien shrugged. “People are into it. Whatever does it for them, I guess. Some women enjoy that sort of thing. Some men like it.”

“Can you imagine, even for a moment, doing anything that would cause her pain or suffering?” Nico demanded. “Look at her, Bastien. She’s curled up against Garon even though he probably scares her shitless. She trusts us, even if she doesn’t fully grasp that. Can you imagine what would happen if we hit her?”

Nico sounded so appalled and horrified that Xander winced.

“Now wait just a damn minute,” Sebastien snapped. “I was merely pointing out that some people were into that sort of thing and more power to them. If they like it, if it’s consensual, then I don’t have a problem with it. I did not say that I had any such intention toward Talia. Hell, it would be like kicking a puppy.”