Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 63082 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 315(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 63082 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 315(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
Their gazes locked. She gave him an imperceptible nod.
Relief passed over his face for an instant, here then gone before he wiped it away, replacing it with another lewd grin. Then he shimmied down her body and lowered his mouth over the silk covering her breast. His teeth closed around her nipple sharply. Shock. A sting. She yelped in genuine response. The crowd cheered.
More adrenaline flooded her system. He repeated the motion with the other breast, his teeth making an even more intense impact.
This time, she did exactly what Nash demanded. She screamed.
The cheers became a baritone of lusty roars, all egging on her defilement. Even Mr. Gray chuckled into the microphone, as if the sound of her fear aroused him.
Nash hovered over her breast before licking the still stinging, silk-covered tip. Shrieking, she shook her head and thrashed beneath him as if his every touch terrorized her.
He nuzzled her neck and dragged his lips up to her ear. “Good. Keep fighting.”
Pressing her lips together, she whimpered and jerked her head back and forth. She had never tried her hand at acting, but even though Nash was the man on top of her, it wasn’t difficult to act afraid.
With a groan, he raked his lips up her neck. “That’s it, baby. Fight me. It’ll make fucking the sass out of you that much sweeter.”
Though he spoke for the crowd, Haisley shuddered. But the onlookers loved it, erupting in another series of degrading whoops and laughs.
God, what kind of human beings believed it was all right to hurt and enslave others for sport?
“Stop! No!” she protested for the depraved crowd, who undoubtedly believed her wails were for Nash.
“This isn’t a date. I spent ten million on you, so no doesn’t mean no anymore. Time to take what’s mine. To knock your fine ass up and put you in your place.”
The roars of the crowd erupted even louder. A horrifying lust-frenzy settled over the room, seeming to grip every one of the onlookers. It was shocking. Disgusting. Dehumanizing.
Fear gripped her. As Nash settled over her body again, she lifted her gaze to him. He sent her a reassuring stare. We’ll get through this together.
Relief and dread filled her. This wasn’t over yet; she still had a role to play. They both did. The horrible inevitability of that stung her eyes with tears. They pooled, then rolled from the corners, down her temples like hot acid.
“Why are you crying, bitch? I haven’t hurt you.”
He hadn’t, but what if he had? What if this was real? She thought about all the women who had been abused tonight in this very bed, taken against their will and stripped of their dignity, of the right to refuse the man on top of her. She sobbed harder for them.
Nash seemingly ignored her and whipped the edge of his cape aside to flash onlookers her hip and thigh. At their whoops and hurrahs, he burrowed his fingers under her and squeezed her ass, fingers digging into her flesh. Thankfully, his palms were so big, he covered most of her exposed skin.
With his free hand, he reached between them and wriggled his pants to his hips.
Haisley reacted as if she was his victim, panicking and flailing, trying to kick and shove him off of her—all to no avail. She kept the screams rolling and forced herself into the worst possible headspace to keep the tears flowing. Above her, Nash pretended to ignore her struggles and cries as he settled the crest of his cock against her.
She tensed.
He nipped at her neck, just below her ear. “This is a show. This isn’t us. You know that. Right?”
It wasn’t easy to keep pretending something this awful, but she didn’t have a choice. He didn’t, either.
She managed to nod.
“Good,” he breathed. “I’ll make this as quick as I can. I’m sorry.”
“I know.” That realization only made her sob harder.
Then she closed her eyes and tried to block out everything.
CHAPTER SEVEN
With a grunt and a jerk of his hips, the terrible fucking charade was finally over.
The audience leapt to its feet and gave them a hearty standing ovation. Nash did his best not to puke as he withdrew from Haisley, then wiped himself on the sheet and zipped up.
God, this had been one of the most wretched nights of his life.
A glance down at Haisley twisted his heart until he physically hurt. Though everything they’d done tonight had been an act, she looked wrecked. Shellshocked. Shattered.
The sight shook him to the core. He fucking wanted to wrap his arms around her and promise it would never happen again.
He couldn’t do either.
Instead, he lunged for the restraints shackling Haisley’s wrists. Her skin was clammy beneath his touch, her pulse racing at her throat. Fuck, she was terrified and bravely trying to play her part. He had to get her the hell out of here.