“You seem nervous, Victoria.” I got excruciatingly close to her. I brushed her leg and whispered in her ear. “Would you like to tell me why?”
She blushed and shifted so uncomfortably, I thought she might actually be wet. She seemed naturally submissive, but completely unaware of it. God how I wanted to find out, but I just continued to let her squirm. She breathed out an exhale that shook, and I couldn’t help but smile. Too easy.
“It’s okay. I can find another assistant. I just thought it might help you out.” I moved away from her, paying the check.
“William?” I could tell how anxious she felt. “I need to tell you something.”
“Ok. Should I be nervous?” I joked, trying to stifle how off-guard her question caught me.
She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “Um, I want to work for you, but, is that wise? I mean…” She struggled. “I think I have a crush on you,” she blurted out and put her face in her hands.
I unexpectedly chuckled. Somehow her question had set me off kilter, but now I exhaled, feeling back in control as I watched her discomfort. Her face, red and confused, peeked out at me through those long strands of her blonde hair. I took her hand and kissed it. “Good,” I said simply, leaving her on edge and confused. I stood. “Looks like you’ve got some thinking to do then, sweetheart.”
She gasped as a surprised look met my unflinching gaze. I placed my napkin on the table and walked right out of the restaurant, leaving her there alone. I have no idea why I wanted to be so cruel to her in that moment, but I couldn’t control it. I fought back my feelings of doubt and continued on my way.
****
The next morning, I went into the coffee shop and found her immediately. It was clear she hadn’t slept well, if at all. Those eyes. So emotional. Bloodshot, puffy. I had made her cry. I felt a weird sensation. A tiny stab of what? Guilt? No. I shook it off. She would love every minute of being my personal assistant. She would be a natural. She would make an excellent salary, be able to follow her dreams, whatever they may be, and make a life for herself. I forged on.
Victoria caught my eye and immediately turned in the other direction.
I followed her as she stormed into the back, trying to escape me. Heads turned but no one bothered to help. I grabbed her arm and pushed her into a corner, and then, I kissed her, hard, unforgiving, and she panted. She struggled to push me off of her, but I only intensified the kiss. I didn’t expect her to taste as good as she did. I didn’t expect how much I would like kissing her. And then she gave into her emotions, kissing me back as if her life depended on it. That’s when I let her go.
“Why?” She panted, trying to find her breath, as tears pooled into her eyes. I wanted to kiss her tears away and I wanted to watch her cry. It was a twisted reaction on my part. I liked knowing that she felt emotional, emotional towards me, that she was starting to fall apart under my control where I needed her to be. But it surprised me that I wanted to kiss her tears away at the same time. A little bubble of doubt rose in me again, but I quickly shook the thought from my mind.
“Why what?” I bit her lower lip, drawing an intake of her breath. I could see her pulse beating fast in her neck, and it made me smile.
“Why did you just leave me there last night?” She was fighting back her tears, her voice low, cracking, and I loved watching the struggle she waged to maintain control. Pretty soon she would have no control at all. I would be sure of that. Still, I liked watching her fight.
I ignored her question, and on total caprice, surprising even myself, I said, “You are quitting your job today, you are coming home with me, leaving that shitty apartment behind, and you are becoming my personal assistant. I will have my driver Ralph pick you up in two hours, right here. You do not need anything but yourself.” I walked out and went home in wait of her.
I half wondered if she’d actually go through with it, but when Ralph pulled up in front of my house, and Victoria stepped out in her waitressing uniform, I knew she wanted this as much as I did. First thing to go would be that hideous uniform. I couldn’t wait to see what was waiting for me underneath it. I smiled as I watched how unsure she was, wondering what she was getting herself into as she surveyed my private, country home.
“Wow, William. This is…well…it’s…”
“Yes. I know, Victoria. It’s an impressive home with a lot of history. We have twenty acres here on the Yadkin River. You will have access to all of it.”
“We?” she asked. I could hear how nervous she was. Her voice caught and hitched in her throat. She really had no idea what she was getting into.
“Yes. We. You. Me. And my other employee, Jennifer. You will get to know her well.”
“Oh,” she stared at the plaque hanging on the front of the house. “Charles B. Keen?”
I didn’t feel like having meaningless chit-chat, but she stood there, a quivering mess. I could see how painfully uncomfortable she felt. She was stalling, her weight shifting from side to side, unsure of her decision, and I couldn’t help but humor her at that moment.
“That was the architect who designed this house back in 1928 for a tobacco company family member. And I detest the tobacco industry. So it’s mine now.” I felt anger rising in me at just the mere thought of the lineage belonging to this house. Their ancestry was long and powerful. I knew that all too well.
“So it will just be the three of us?” She was tentative at best to step inside, even as I held the door open for her. It must have donned on her that she’d be completely secluded here, both inside and out. “It’s seems so big for just…”
“It is big. But it’s been furnished to feel like home. And I have made use of the seven bedrooms. The twelve baths may be excessive, but I do hold retreats here occasionally, conferences. You need not worry. Your living space will be comfortable. I’m sure you’ll find it rather inviting for your stay.”
She nodded and I began to lose my patience with her.
“Come in.” I ordered. “Now. No more small talk.”
She walked through the door ahead of me. “William, I’m not sure I should be…”
I pushed her inside against the wall and stopped her with a kiss, hard, firm, and completely spontaneous.
Fuck.
The look of hope on her face startled me, and I straightened up. There was no sense in not being completely honest, straight-forward, explain to her exactly what this was and what this wasn’t. “This is a business arrangement. Do not make any mistake about that. You will be trained as my personal assistant. I hope you are not expecting something else.” And I turned on my heel.
She stood frozen in place.
“Come,” I commanded. “I will first show you your office. Then I will show you where you will live over the course of the next few months.”
“Um,” she stammered. I knew she was confused.
“Um? You will have to work on your vocabulary, Ms. …” I realized I didn’t even know her last name.
“I just…”
I was sharp, curt. “Your last name, Victoria? Surely you have one?”
She flushed yet again. It was so easy to embarrass her. I knew she wanted to ask me questions. She was so flustered, confused. “Um, Rose,” she muttered.
“What?” I laughed. “You’re pulling my leg.”
She looked down perplexed. “Why is that funny?”
The fact that my last name was Thorne was no matter in that moment. But the irony was not lost on me.
“Forget it, Ms. Rose. Follow me.”
I walked in front of her, trying to hold back my grin as we made our way into the room that would serve as her office.
“Sit,” I ordered, pointing to a chair in front of a large, oak desk.
She did, and I watched her gulp. I really did enjoy her unease in my presence. I liked knowing I would be able to control her, dominate her. Anything less and it wouldn’t work.
I leaned back against the desk in front of her, towering over her and folded my arms. “I will exp
ect you to work Monday – Friday, 9-5, like any normal job. I will have Jennifer take all your measurements and will supply you with a wardrobe. You will wear only clothes provided, especially when I need you to accompany me on meetings, conferences, to my office in town, etc. Jennifer will also fill you in on all the other requirements.”
She simply nodded.
“You will be on a three-month contract, up for renewal every three months. I can terminate it at any time as can you. We each have that decision, that right. You following so far?” I asked carefully.
“Yes,” she whispered.
I noticed her looking off over my head. I turned around to see her staring at a portrait a local artist had painted of me in oils when I was three, which I almost had forgotten was there.
“Pay attention, Victoria.”
She continued to stare at the painting. “Your hair, that dark hue. And your eyes. That hazel color, the way they look right now too, so intense, so determined. You haven’t changed much.”
“You know what?” I was agitated. “This is all laid out in writing, and you can read it all over before you begin next week. This is a waste of time. Talking like this. I think you will be quite pleased with the salary. You can live here starting tonight if you wish. I am busy and have things to attend to. Let me take you to your area.”
I barely waited for her to rise from her chair. I could hear her heavy breathing trailing behind me, as I marched quickly upstairs. She struggled to keep up.
“This is your room. And here is your bathroom.”
She gasped. ”Wow. It’s beautiful.”
I ignored her, though I knew she would be pleased with it. I rarely used the same area twice in a row for my personal assistants, and when I did, I remodeled. From the moment I met Victoria and knew she would become my next personal assistant, I knew her living quarters would match her personality: Classic in beauty and traditional; dark cherry woods on the four-poster bed; floral wallpaper and linens; the warmth of a real fireplace, the original wood preserved and restored to its original beauty after one owner dreadfully painted over it; and her own sitting area and balcony overlooking the grounds so she could appreciate and soak in the natural beauty that she reflected. She would need its comfort, considering what was in store for her over the next three months.
“You will eat in the kitchen downstairs, and I will show you the amenities of the grounds, including the use of the swimming pools and spa. Besides your office, you have internet access here, telephone, television. But there are rules regarding the use of these things, all outlined in the paperwork. And you will find that you will not have all that much free time. Any questions?”
“I…forgive me. This is all just a bit overwhelming. I am confused. You…oh god,” she paused, flustered, looking down at the ground, blushing, “You kissed me earlier…” She fought off her embarrassment. “You’ve kissed me twice now. I just don’t understand what…”
I cut her off by holding up my hand.
Her questions were endearing and I didn’t know if I could play this game with her any longer. I wanted her. I wanted to devour her, possess her, dominate her. And truth be told, I was going off my usual script, my usual plan. I hadn’t done my full research. Jennifer hadn’t done her full research. And I had never kissed a personal assistant like that. I needed to pull my shit together.
I sat on the bed and motioned for her to come sit beside me. She hesitated. “Come here, Victoria.” I did not give her much room to refuse me with my tone.
She sat on the bed, leaving a large gap between us.
I chuckled. “Closer. I don’t bite. You’ve known me now for months.” I laughed heartier. I did much worse than bite, I reminded myself. Not only that, I realized I hadn’t allowed her to get to know me at all really in all those visits to the coffee shop. I didn’t want her to know me. Truth be told, I didn’t really want to know her all that much either.
She complied but I felt her shudder. “I don’t understand you…”
I started to unbutton her blouse. “You don’t have to. I don’t want you to understand me. That’s not what this is about.”
“But…”
“Not a word,” I interrupted her, and I saw her eyes widen. In fear? Anticipation? Lust? It was hard to say. “How many partners have you had?” I slowly removed the shirt of her uniform, leaving her in a tight, cheap, too-small black bra that squished her tits.
She squirmed and tried to move my hands.
I stopped. “I asked you a question. I am not going to have you until I have you examined, so just relax. I’m just looking, and I know you want me to. I know you want more. Not yet. Jennifer is my personal physician, among many other things. She will give you a full exam. I don’t like the use of condoms. And I have a clean bill of health. Jennifer will show you all the documentation. Now answer me. How many men?”
She got up from the bed and tried to grab her shirt back.
“No, Victoria,” I growled. “In fact, remove your skirt and answer my question.”
“You’re embarrassing me,” she said quietly, turning away from me. “I’m so confused…I don’t know what you want…I have no idea what this is.”
“Well, you’re about to find out.”
I walked over to her and put my arms around her waist from behind her and slowly undid the button to her hideous skirt. “You do it or I will,” I whispered menacingly into the back of her neck. I felt her shiver as goosebumps appeared on her smooth as alabaster skin. She wanted this as much as I did. “Or, you can leave this arrangement behind and go back to your measly little apartment and shitty waitressing job.”
“Please. I don’t want to ruin our business arrangement. I told you. I like you, that I have a crush on you. You made it clear that you do not feel the same way. Don’t hurt me like this. I am unnaturally attracted to you. I don’t think I can refuse you.”
She completely caught me off guard yet again. And she was right. Crush was not what I wanted from her. Complete submission. That’s what I wanted, needed, from her. And I didn’t care what she might have wanted. I couldn’t escape how unequivocally attracted I was to her. It was unusual for me.
“How many men, Victoria?” I had now removed her skirt, and she stood in her bra and panties only. She was fucking gorgeous. A woman this fucking endowed should not be wearing such shitty lingerie. I would have Jennifer take care of that immediately.
She was blushing so furiously, it made me want her even more. How could someone this gorgeous not know it? Her humiliation was perfect. I was rock hard, and again, I wondered if she were wet. I drew a finger across her panties and she first gasped, shocked, but then let out a whimper when I removed my touch. I laughed. She was soaked. As I suspected, she was a natural submissive. She just didn’t know it yet.
“You are so wet, Victoria. I think you have a little more than a crush on me. So answer me. How many men?” I could hear my tone. It must have intimidated the shit of her. I liked that.
“One,” she whispered.
“One?” I asked shocked, almost angry. “Tell the truth. You are telling me that you look like this, you are twenty-five years old, and you’ve only slept with one man?”
Defeated, she slumped back down onto the bed, putting her head in her hands like she did at the restaurant, embarrassed. “Yes. One serious boyfriend through college. We were going to be married. We never had sex. We…I…was saving myself for marriage, but I found him with another woman. I found him having sex with another woman, my best friend actually. He said I couldn’t expect him to not have sex until we were married.”
“Jesus Christ. Are you kidding me?” Suddenly, my whole plan was shifting. I had a true innocent, and I didn’t know how it made me feel. It excited me and it revolted me simultaneously. I knew she was naïve, but this? What had I gotten myself into?
“Have you ever had an orgasm?”
“Um,” she whispered. “I don’t think so.” She looked down, even more humiliated.
Jesus Ch
rist. “Did you come here to work for me, or were you hoping for more? Were you hoping I took away your virginity, that this would be some kind of a romance?” I was incredulous. She was a walking contradiction, confusing the shit out of me and my needs at every turn.
She agonized. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “I wasn’t sure what you wanted exactly. But I guess…I guess I was hoping...”
I ran my fingers through my hair and realized that what I thought was incredibly clear may not have been clear to her at all. Jesus fucking Christ.
“If I take away your virginity, you will like it. You will like it a lot, Victoria. Make no mistake about that. But I am not a romantic; in fact, I’m sadistic by nature and not a romantic one by any means. Do you know what that is? What that means?”
I was shocked by my own admission.
She looked up at me. “Yes.”
Again, she surprised me. “I am not looking for any type of attachment or commitment outside of our agreement. Don’t come crying to me when you want romance and love. I want you. Make no mistake. But I want you on my terms. I like to tease and torment my women. I like to make them squirm. I like to humiliate them. I want to do all those things to you. And I think you will like the things I plan to do to you or I wouldn’t have chosen you.”
I hadn’t planned on telling her all this, so bluntly. I had never had to before. This wasn’t how I normally operated. But it spilled out of me as if I were drunk on shots of tequila. There was something different about her, and I wanted to make sure she had a way out if she chose. Her lack of experience, her innocence. I knew I would savor her torment, maybe too much. The reaction my hard cock had to her revelation let me know that. I would crush her.
“Please. Give me back my clothes.”
“Let me explain this situation more clearly. Let’s see if you understand what the overall expectations will be, starting right now. You stay. You’re mine. Mine to do with as I please. It’s all in the contract you will sign. And right now, it pleases me to get you completely naked. You either take off the rest of your clothes right now, or you leave and you never look back. Do you understand?”
THORNE: Rose's Dark Contract Page 2