"Strip."
The demand cut through the heavy silence of the room, sharp and unyielding.
Damian Sterling sat behind his massive mahogany desk like a ruthless king in his lair. The crisp suit he wore only emphasized his cold, untouchable power.
"What did you just say?" Anastasia frowned. A violent shiver racked her frame under the terrifying intensity of his dark gaze.
She stood in the center of his top-floor office. Outside the tall glass windows, the New York sky rumbled, a violent storm bruising the horizon.
"Doll, don’t make me repeat myself." Damian’s eyes dropped, dragging slowly down her dripping wet body. He tracked every drop of rainwater soaking through her white blouse... the one he bought for her. "Unless you prefer me to peel the fabric off your flush skin myself?"
Anastasia gulped. The memory of his heavy, unforgiving hands made her stomach flip. She shook her head quickly. "I’ll do it myself."
Damian’s lips curved into a slow, contented smile. "That’s my good, obedient pet."
He watched her standing meekly before him, shivering and utterly embarrassed. A surge of dark pleasure filled his chest. He loved seeing her like this... completely under his control.
"Walk closer," he commanded, his voice dropping an octave. "With each piece of clothing you strip off... walk to me. Until you stand with absolutely nothing left to cover yourself."
Biting back her burning humiliation, Anastasia forced her trembling fingers to move.
In that freezing, empty office, she started to strip for the Devil. With every layer she shed, she took a step forward, leaving a trail of wet, damp clothes on his pristine hardwood floor.
The moment she unclipped her bra, the room shifted.
Anastasia heard it... the sudden, rushed catch in his breath. Damian’s eyes hungrily devoured the sight of her naked skin. They burned into her with a raw, desperate ferocity.
For a split second, his cold malice vanished. It was replaced by a terrifying hunger that made it look as if he wanted nothing more in this world... than her.
He patted his thigh, gesturing to his expensive leather chair. "Sit here."
Anastasia’s heart hammered wildly against her ribs. She knew exactly what happened the moment she sat on his lap.
"Damian... we are in the office," she whispered, her face flushing scarlet. "What if someone comes in? What if we get caught doing..."
"Shh..." Damian cut her off, his dark eyes flashing with dangerous amusement. "This is exactly what makes it more thrilling, isn’t it?"
Anastasia gasped.
"I... I don’t want anyone to see me like this with you," she said, looking down at the floor. She instinctively clutched her arms across her bare chest to hide from his piercing stare.
"But you can’t refuse me."
Her eyes shot up to meet his. The warmth in his gaze was entirely gone, replaced by the icy authority of the contract she had signed.
"Remember, Anastasia?" Damian purred, leaning forward. His voice was a lethal promise. "You gave your soul to this Devil to pay off your debt. Now do what I say. Because if I have to start punishing you... the entire building is going to know exactly how Anastasia Vance screams in pleasure."
Anastasia choked on her own breath. The threat hung heavy in the air, wrapping around her neck like an invisible leash.
She couldn’t let that happen. She simply couldn’t.
For the past few months, she had worked tirelessly at his corporate headquarters. She had pushed past the whispers, the dirty looks, and the cruel rumors.
Finally, she had earned respect among her colleagues. They were finally starting to see her as an individual... a hard worker, a capable professional... rather than just Damian Sterling’s disgraced ex-wife.
If Damian carried out his threat, if someone walked past that door and heard her, everything she had built would crash to the ground. She would be reduced to his plaything in the eyes of the world.
"I..." She hesitated, her chest heaving as she swallowed her pride. She forced the burning embarrassment deep down into the back of her mind. "I’ll obey you."
Damian’s dark eyes flared, a sinister, beautiful satisfaction rolling over his features.
"This is getting fun, my beautiful doll," he murmured, his voice laced with thick, dark amusement. He didn’t hide the predatory hunger in his smile. "I like when you put up a little fight from time to time. It makes me want to watch you get lost in pleasure even more."
He slowly brought his hand up toward hers, offering it like a king demanding his subject’s allegiance.
Anastasia hesitated for a fraction of a second before her small, trembling hand slid into his large, warm palm. The contrast between his heat and her freezing skin made her shudder.
With an effortless flick of his wrist, Damian gave a slight, commanding tug. He pulled her close, urging her body toward his.
Anastasia didn’t fight the authority of his movement. Guided by his hands on her hips, she lifted her legs one by one, straddling his lap. She sank down onto his thighs, her bare skin making direct contact with the expensive fabric of his suit trousers.
They were sitting face to face now. Impossibly close.
The heat radiating off Damian’s body was dizzying. Anastasia looked directly into his eyes, her heart hammering so hard she was certain he could feel it against his own chest. His gaze locked onto hers, dark, intense, and completely consuming, as if he were memorizing every line of her face.
Suddenly, his hand moved. His large palm slid down her bare, damp back, his long fingers trailing along her spine.
Anastasia gasped loudly at the sudden sensation, her back arching instinctively into his touch.
"You’re so cold..." Damian whispered, his hand spreading warmth across her skin, anchoring her firmly against his chest. His thumb stroked her hip, his touch a confusing mix of possessive cruelty and intense desire. "Want me to warm you up, doll?"
Unable to handle the sheer intensity of his gaze, Anastasia looked away from him, staring at the dark wood of his desk.
Her defiance only made him smirk. He reached up, his rough fingers catching her chin and forcing her face back to his. He wouldn’t allow her to look anywhere else.
"Why do you keep defying me, Ana?" he questioned, his voice dropping to a low, dangerous rumble. There was a sudden edge of frustration bleeding through his arrogance. "I told you to not make me worry about you. But even then... you didn’t listen to me. You went out in this terrible storm just to deliver some meaningless reports?"
"It... It was necessary..." she whispered, her voice trembling. "The department needed them by five. I had to do my job."
"Shh..." Damian breathed down her jaw, his lips brushing against her sensitive skin, sending a violent wave of electricity straight to her core.
He leaned in closer, his scent completely clouding her mind until she couldn’t think straight. His lips hovered just a millimeter away from hers, his breath hot and commanding.
"Nothing is more necessary than you being in my sight," he growled softly, his grip tightening. "Nothing."
Before she could even draw a breath to reply, Damian eliminated the remaining distance, crashing his lips down on hers with a bruising, desperate finality. As the storm roared outside the glass, the world narrowed down to the suffocating heat of his mouth and the brutal hunger of his touch.
Shuddering against him, all Anastasia could think about was the terrifying truth burning through the darkness... her Devil ex-husband was entirely, hopelessly obsessed with her.
And she was, yet again, completely at his mercy.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!
Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter