365 Days

by Blanka Lipinska

  “I look how I want and it’s none of your business,” I muttered. “You’ve left me without a word and you’re treating me like some doll you play with whenever you feel like it. But today that doll wants to be left alone.” I got up from the sofa clumsily, grabbed another bottle of champagne, and staggered toward the stern. The shoes I had on didn’t make walking any easier, and I realized how pathetic I must have looked. I kicked them off angrily.

  The Man in Black followed me, calling out, but his voice failed to penetrate the buzz in my head from the alcohol. I didn’t know the ship, but I needed to escape him. I ran down the steps and… that was the last thing I remember.

  CHAPTER 8

  “Breathe,” I heard someone saying, as if through a wall. “Breathe, Laura. Can you hear me?” The voice was growing clearer by the moment.

  I felt my stomach cramping and I threw up, coughing and spitting out something salty.

  “Thank God! Can you hear me, baby girl?” Massimo asked, stroking my hair.

  I managed to open my eyes and saw the Man in Black, hovering above me, soaking wet. He had his clothes on but had lost the shoes. I watched him, unable to say anything. There was a roar in my head and the sun was blinding me. Fabio passed us a towel and Massimo wrapped me in it and took me in his arms. He carried me across the yacht, through all the decks, until we reached a bedroom, where he put me down. I was still in shock, utterly clueless about what had happened. Massimo was drying my hair, looking at me with eyes filled with worry and anger in equal measure.

  “What happened?” I croaked.

  “You fell from the deck. Thank God we weren’t going faster and that you fell to the side of the boat. Still, you nearly drowned.” Massimo knelt by the bed. “Goddamn it, Laura, I feel like killing you myself now. At the same time, I’m so happy you’re alive.”

  I touched his cheek.

  “You saved me?”

  “You were lucky I was close. I don’t even want to think what would have happened otherwise. Why are you being so stubborn? Why don’t you listen to me?” He sighed.

  The alcohol was still buzzing in my head, and I could taste the salt water in my mouth.

  “I’d like to take a shower now,” I muttered, and tried to push myself up.

  The Man in Black didn’t let me. He grabbed me by the shoulder delicately.

  “I can’t allow you to do it by yourself. Just five minutes ago you weren’t even breathing. If you need it so badly, I’ll wash you.”

  I shot him a glance, exhausted, unable to refuse. Besides, he had already seen me naked. Not only seen, but also touched, so there wasn’t any part of my body that would still be unknown to him. I nodded slightly. For a moment, Massimo left, but when he reappeared, I could hear water running in the bathroom.

  He took off his wet shirt, pants, and boxers. In normal circumstances that view would have worked me up, but not this time. Massimo took the towel I was rolled up in and gently took my top off, seemingly untouched by what he was seeing. He unbuttoned my shorts, discovering that I wasn’t wearing any underwear.

  “You don’t have your panties on?”

  “How astute of you.” I smiled. “I didn’t think we’d see each other.”

  “How does that help?” His stare grew ice-cold. I decided to leave it at that.

  He took me in his arms and carried me to the bathroom, just a couple of feet from the bed. A huge bathtub stood by the wall, partially filled with water now. Massimo stepped in, sat down, and leaned back, turning me around and setting me down between his legs with my head resting on his chest. First, he washed my body, not skipping a spot, and then went on to my hair. I was surprised at how delicate he could be. In the end, he took me out of the tub, covered me with a towel, and carried me back to the bed. With a button on a remote control, he made the shutters roll down the windows, shading the room. I immediately fell asleep.

  I woke up terrified, gasping for air, panicking. Where was I? It took me a while to recall the events of the previous day. I got out of bed and turned the light on, revealing the impressive cabin. White, rounded sofas in the living room perfectly complemented the black floor. The interior was minimalistic and very masculine. Even the flowers in their vases perched on top of bright columns seemed somehow masculine.

  Where was Massimo? Had he left me again? I put on a bathrobe over naked skin and went to the door. The corridors were wide and well lit. I had no idea where I was going. That’s what you get when you choose champagne over a tour of the yacht. The thought of alcohol made me wince. Finally, taking the steps up, I reached the deck I remembered. Despite only learning about what happened from Massimo’s story, I felt afraid. The deck was empty and dark—the glass floor was only illuminated by faint beams of light coming from the sparsely positioned floor lamps. I headed toward the semiroofed lounge, crossed it, and reached the bow.

  “Sleep well?” I heard a voice from the darkness. I scanned my surroundings and there he was, the Man in Black, sitting in the Jacuzzi with both hands resting on the edge of the tub.

  “I can see you’re feeling better. Care to join me?”

  He tilted his head from side to side, as if trying to relax his neck muscles. Keeping his eyes on me, he took a sip of the amber liquor from his glass.

  The Titan was anchored, and I could see the lights of land in the distance. The calm waves were gently sloshing against the side of the yacht.

  “Where is everybody?” I asked.

  “Where they are supposed to be, which is somewhere else,” Massimo said, and put the glass down. “Are you waiting for another invitation, Laura?”

  His voice was serious, and his eyes reflected the light of the lamps illuminating the deck. Looking at him, I realized I had been missing him for the past few days.

  I reached for the belt of the bathrobe, pulled at it, and allowed the robe to fall to the floor. Massimo watched in rapt attention, his jaw working rhythmically. Slowly I walked toward him and slid into the water, taking a place opposite him.

  I looked at him as he took another sip. He was so lovely when he was trying to hold himself back.

  I moved closer and sat on his knees, pressing myself against him. Without asking for consent, I ran my hand through his hair. He moaned softly and leaned his head back, closing his eyes. I stared at him for an instant before leaning closer and biting his lip gently. He grew harder beneath me. I swayed my hips delicately, sucking on his lips, trailing my teeth along them, until I slid my tongue into his mouth. He dropped his hands, grabbing my ass, pulling me closer.

  “I’ve missed you,” I whispered, pulling away for a moment.

  He pushed me back and shot me a wide-eyed stare.

  “Is that how you display your longing? Because if this is your way of saying thank you for saving your life, baby girl, I can’t accept it. I won’t do it with you until you’re absolutely sure you want it.”

  That hurt me. I pushed even farther away and jumped out of the Jacuzzi, then grabbed my bathrobe and threw it over my shoulders, suddenly ashamed. I wanted to cry. I needed to be as far away from him as I could.

  I ran back down the stairs and immediately got lost in the labyrinth of passageways. All doors looked the same. Thinking I found the right one, I grabbed the handle and entered a berth. Trailing my hand along the wall, I looked for the light switch, finally realizing this was not the place I had been looking for. The door behind me closed and I heard the click of the lock. The lights grew dimmer and I froze, afraid to turn around, though I knew he wouldn’t hurt me.

  “I love it when you touch my hair,” Massimo said, stopping behind me. He snatched the sash of my bathrobe and tore my only cover away.

  As I pressed myself against him, I felt he was naked, wet, and hot. He turned me around and his lips clasped around mine. He kissed me hungrily. His hands moved around my body, stopping on my ass. He lifted me up, kissing me all the while, and carried me to the bed, laying me on the mattress. For a while, he stood there, looking at me. I met his stare and
lifted my arms above my head, spreading them to my sides, showing him my helplessness, but also my trust.

  “If we do it now, I won’t be able to stop. You know that, right?” he asked in a serious voice. “If we cross this line, I’ll fuck you whether you like it or not.”

  The way he said it sounded like a promise. It only ignited my passion.

  “So fuck me,” I said, sitting in front of him on the edge of the bed.

  He muttered something through his teeth in Italian and took a step closer, stopping a few inches away. With the faint light still on in the room, I could see his throbbing erection. I put my hands on his buttocks and pulled him closer, grabbing his manhood. It was amazing—thick and hard. I trailed my fingers down its length, licking my lips.

  “Put your hands on my head,” I said, looking him in the eyes. “And punish me.”

  Massimo exhaled loudly and grabbed my hair hard.

  “Are you asking me to treat you like a whore? Is this what you want?”

  I leaned my head back obediently and opened my mouth wide.

  “Yes, don Massimo,” I breathed.

  His grip on my hair tightened. He moved closer, and with a fluid, decisive motion, shoved his swollen cock into my mouth. I moaned, feeling it reach as far as my throat. His hips started pumping forward and back. I couldn’t breathe.

  “If at any point you stop enjoying it, tell me. Just make sure I know you’re not teasing me,” he said, keeping his movements steady.

  I withdrew a bit and took him out of my mouth, continuing to stroke his cock with my hand.

  “Same goes for you,” I replied, meaning it, before continuing to suck him.

  The Man in Black laughed, but as soon as I picked up the tempo, he gasped. I blew him harder and faster than his hands on my head were suggesting. He was panting, his hands balling into fists in my hair. I felt him growing even larger in my mouth. I took it as an invitation to show him who was in control now. He was sweet, his skin so smooth, and his body exuded the scent of sex. I delighted in him, wanting to sate myself with what I had yearned for from the beginning. Another part of me wanted to prove something to him—to show Massimo that holding him in my mouth, I held him in my power. I picked up the pace. He wouldn’t last long. I knew it, and he did, too. He tried slowing me down, but I didn’t let him.

  “Not so fast,” he hissed, but I ignored him.

  A moment later, when I didn’t slow down even for an instant, he pulled out, pushing me away. I licked my lips lasciviously as he stood and stared at me, breathing heavily. He pushed me over on the bed and turned me onto my belly, clinging to me with his whole body.

  “Are you trying to prove something to me?” he asked, licking two fingers. “Relax, baby girl,” he purred, sliding them both inside me. I let out a loud moan. Two fingers were all it took to fill me.

  “I think you’re ready.” Those words made a shiver run down my spine. The anticipation, the uncertainty, the fear, and the desire all whirled inside my head.

  Massimo slowly entered me, and I could feel each and every inch of his thick phallus.

  His arms wrapped themselves around me, almost painfully. As he slid inside me fully, he froze, only to pull out and rush in, harder. I moaned as my arousal and pleasure mixed with pain. His hips hastened, and his breath with them. The wonderful friction I felt was rippling in waves across my entire body. Suddenly, he slowed down, and I exhaled with relief.

  Massimo’s hand slid underneath me, raising my hips, and his knee spread my legs wider.

  “Show me that beautiful ass of yours,” he breathed into my ear, caressing my asshole.

  I startled. Was he going to try something I wasn’t ready for?

  “Don…” I whispered fearfully, looking back at him.

  He grabbed my hair and pushed my head into the pillow.

  “Don’t worry, baby girl,” he breathed, leaning over me. “We’re going to get there, but not tonight.”

  Slowly and rhythmically he pushed himself against me, bending my spine so that my butt thrust upward.

  “Oh yes,” he panted with excitement, holding my hips tighter.

  I loved being fucked from behind, and the control he exerted over my body in this position made me equally afraid and aroused. He bent down a bit, sliding one hand over my clit. I spread my legs even wider so he could play with me.

  “Open your mouth,” he ordered, pushing his fingers between my lips.

  When they were wet enough, he moved the hand back down to rub my pussy. He was an expert and knew perfectly well where to aim his hand to take me to the brink of ecstasy. I grabbed the pillow harder, unable to bear the frantic pace of his hips. I moaned and writhed beneath him, calling out in Polish.

  “Not yet, Laura,” he said, and turned me over. “I want to see you orgasm.”

  Massimo slid both hands under me and hugged me tightly as his penis slid inside and out, harder and faster, until I felt myself contracting inside. I swung my head back and allowed the orgasm to take me over.

  “Harder,” I moaned.

  He pushed at me twice as hard. I could feel him close on my heels, but I couldn’t stop the rapture anymore. I screamed, my body tightening as I came, and Massimo’s hips didn’t stop stroking, impaling me. Another stroke, and another. I heard ringing in my ears. It was too much. With a wild howl I came for the second time and my sweaty body collapsed to the mattress.

  The Man in Black slowed down, becoming almost lazy in his movements. He clutched my wrists and lifted my arms, towering over me on his knees and observing my breasts—satisfied and triumphant.

  “Come on my belly. I want to see it,” I breathed, exhausted.

  Massimo smiled and tightened his grip on my wrists.

  “No,” he replied, and picked up the pace, pushing wildly again.

  A while later, I felt him spilling inside me with a warm wave. I froze. He knew I wasn’t using birth control. He didn’t stop coming for a long time, fighting me as I thrashed wildly to escape his sweet seed. When he was finished, he collapsed onto me, sweaty and burning.

  I frantically tried to gather my thoughts. I wanted to wrest myself from under him, but his weight didn’t let me move.

  “Massimo, what the hell are you doing?” I asked, furious. “You know I don’t use pills!”

  He laughed and propped his head on his hands, staring at me as I jerked and fought.

  “You’re right—you can’t trust those pills. But you have a contraceptive implant. See?”

  Saying that, he touched the inside of my left bicep. There was a short tube barely visible under my skin. He let me go, and I realized he wasn’t joking.

  “When you were asleep that first night, I ordered it implanted. I didn’t want to risk anything. It’ll work for three years, but you can remove it after the first,” he explained with a smile.

  That was the first time I saw him smile like that. It didn’t change the fact that I was livid. Satisfied but livid, nonetheless.

  “Will you get off me?” I asked, looking at him dispassionately.

  “Unfortunately, I won’t be able to do it for a while yet. It would be hard to fuck you from a distance,” Massimo retorted, biting my lip. “When I saw your face for the first time, I didn’t desire you. I was terrified by that vision. But with time, when your portraits were all around my house, I began to notice the details of your soul. You and I are so alike, Laura,” he said, kissing me softly.

  I kept still, looking into his eyes and feeling the anger leave me. I adored it when he was open with me—it didn’t come easy to him, and I appreciated the effort.

  His hips started to gently move, and I felt him getting harder inside me again. He kept kissing my face and talking.

  “That first night, I watched you until the sun came up. I could feel your scent, the heat of your body. You were alive. Real. And you were right there, next to me. I couldn’t believe it. I had this irrational fear that I when I came back, you wouldn’t be there anymore.”

  His v
oice grew sad and apologetic, as if he wanted me to know that keeping me here against my will didn’t bring him any joy. But the truth was that if not for the fear, I would have slipped away at the first opportunity. His hips picked up their pace, and his arms wound around me, tightening, and I could feel his skin burning up, beading with sweat.

  I didn’t want to listen anymore—it made me remember that all of what was happening was not what I had wanted. I couldn’t help but think just how cruel, brutal, and ruthless the Man in Black could be. Not that he had ever been like that to me, but I had seen what he was capable of.

  Those thoughts made my head flood with anger again. His moving body was getting on my nerves, causing the fury in me to rise.

  Massimo pulled back for a second and looked me in the eyes. What he saw made him freeze.

  “What’s happening, Laura?” he asked, his eyes searching for an answer in mine.

  “You don’t want to know. Now get off me already!” I jerked, trying to escape his clutch, but he didn’t budge. His eyes were cold again—the don had returned—and fighting him made no sense at all.

  “I want to be on top,” I said through clenched teeth, grabbing his buttocks.

  The Man in Black watched my face for a while longer, finally wrapping his arm around my waist and turning us over, never slipping out of me. He reclined, lifting his arms, just like I had a while ago.

  “I’m all yours,” he whispered, closing his eyes. “I don’t know what made you so angry, but if you need some control over me to calm down, here you go,” he added, opening one eye. “The gun is in the drawer on the left. The safety’s off.”

  Slowly I rose above him, falling back down onto his hard cock. What he had said amused me, but at the same time I grew disoriented. I was still angry, too. I clamped my right hand over his cheeks like a vise and squeezed hard. His eyes stayed closed, but he started to clench and unclench his jaw. Steadily, I lifted myself and slid right back down, letting him slide deeper inside. I wanted him to know what I felt. I needed to punish him for everything. Hurt him. And I only knew one way to do that.