"Please follow me." Stefania said as she went through an open doorway.
Veronica followed and entered a room of equal size to the bathroom but with racks of clothing. She was amazed with the dressing room and thought about how it looked like an expensive boutique she would always go into but never be able to afford anything from.
"These are your clothing. Lingerie is along that wall and in those drawers. Along this wall is casual and beach attire and then over there are your gowns."
"Gowns?"
"Yes, part of this process will also be training to escort Stavros to social events he must attend."
Veronica looked at the gowns and recognized brands she'd only heard of from magazine red carpet coverage. Designs by Valentino, Marchesa and others. More casual attire by Stella McCartney and Balenciaga. Shoes by Christian Loubouton and Manolo Blahnik. Lastly the most beautiful lingerie she had ever seen by La Perla. These were just the brands that stood out to her. She knew these were all things she could never dream of having before and began to chew her bottom lip nervously about whether she could fit in with Stavros and the other wealthy people at the events he needed to attend.
"Stop chewing your lip."
Veronica spun around to face Stavros and immediately stopped chewing her lip.
"Sorry. I just don't think I'm the right girl. I'm sure you can find one that's better suited for this. Maybe one from your past." She said.
"What's that supposed to mean? From my past. And who do you think you are, trying to make decisions for me? I told you before if you don't want to do this, then don't. You are free to go at any time."
"Am I? Last I seem to remember I was drugged and then chained in order to be here." She folded her arms and was silently amazed that she stood up for herself until she heard him let out a deep growl. She felt the hair raise at the back of her neck and a chill shot down her back.
"Never! Never talk back to me like that."
He charged towards her, his eyes blazing. She froze, frightened and uncertain what to expect. He grabbed her by her arm and dragged her out of the dressing room, back into the bedroom and over to a door she hadn't seen before. He pressed several numbers into an electronic lock and pulled her into the room once the door slid open. He threw her forward, further into the room as he let go of her arm. She put her hands out in front of her as she fell to the floor.
"I have no time for disrespect. I demanded a submissive and if Drew was wrong in his appraisal of you, then I'll be sending you back to the cell where you'll live chained like an animal until you learn how to behave."
She knelt on floor afraid of getting up. She blinked as her eyes adjusted to the darkness of the room. There were no windows in the room. The walls were dark, almost black, and as she looked around she realized she was in a dungeon. She quickly stood up and backed away from him as he began to laugh.
"Ahh I see you're not as comfortable here as you were in your other rooms. Maybe now you'll understand better what it means to be a slave."
He walked over to a wall that had several whips, floggers and rope on it and looked over some of them as he ran his fingers along them. She backed into something, turned around and saw it looked like a simple wooden bench with a padded cushion and arm rests. She sat on the bench as he turned to her.
"Yes, an excellent choice. Perhaps a spanking will let you see clearer," he said as he walked over to her. "You are sitting on Pandora's Chest. Would you like to know what's inside?"
She looked at the bench she was sitting on. It looked like an ordinary piece of furniture which made its placement in the dungeon odd. She immediately shook her head and Stavros laughed.
"Another time then. I can see you still don't trust me. Trust is vital. You cannot begin training until I have gained your trust."
He held his hand out to her. She didn't know what to do. She didn't want to take his hand yet she wanted to touch him, to be close to him again. She barely knew the man but she hated and loved him at the same time. She was sure something was wrong with her to think that way.
She finally put her hand in his, stood up and looked at him, not removing her hand from his grasp, instead enjoying the warmth.
***
Stavros Theoharis was used to getting whatever he wanted. What he wasn't used to was wanting something as badly as he wanted Veronica. Without a word he left her in her room and closed the secret dungeon door. There was so much he wanted to share with her, she just wasn't ready. She needed to trust him, and he needed to trust her.
Trust. It was such a simple word yet everything was wrapped up in it. Stavros thought about who he could trust in his life, there hadn't been many. Those who had proven their trust to him were on San Sebastian, his island. Drew, his oldest and closest friend, and Stefania, his former governess.
As it was, Drew had betrayed his trust with his handling of Veronica. Stavros didn't want to make a scene in front of Veronica but he didn't know about Drew's treatment of her. He was glad he decided to check the closed circuit monitoring installed in Drew's wing when he did.
San Sebastian had always been his place to escape. He spent millions of dollars transforming an old Spanish fort into a place of luxury and pleasure. When he first kept the old prison cells which were the home's foundation, he never thought he would one day use them. That was Drew's idea and Stavros let him run with it although he didn't realize the extent of Drew's plans. He knew he had enough money to take care of any legal issues that could arise from relocating women to his island; he never called it kidnapping.
As he walked down the long hall, his sandals made a soft clapping sound against the tile floor. He stepped out onto the stone terrace where Drew was waiting for him.
"She's perfect isn't she?" Drew asked as he made drinks for the two of them at the outdoor bar.
"She is. But I knew that. I spent the time chatting and emailing her, remember? You didn't think she was good enough."
"No, I said we could get a more beautiful woman."
"Veronica is beautiful. And intelligent. Intelligence is undervalued."
"Yes Stavros, perhaps she's too intelligent. Did you ever consider she might be playing you? Using you to have an easier life here?"
"You've never liked her. I think you secretly want her." Stavros tried to examine his old friend's face but Drew quickly turned away. "Yes, I can see that I'm right. You could never hide anything from me."
"Do you think she'll agree to the larger part of why she's here?"
"I haven't mentioned it yet. I might never mention it. She's very sensitive right now. It seems you put quite the scare in her."
"I'll do better next time."
"There won't be a next time," Stavros growled. "She is it. She's the one. I'm sure of it."
"And if she says no?" Drew cocked his head as he waited for Stavros's answer.
"Then I'll forgo the inheritance."
"You're a foolish man, my friend."
Stavros didn't respond. He didn't consider it foolishness. He never felt such an attraction to a woman as he did to Veronica.
He had given the sex slave speech to countless women. He convinced them he had a sexual addiction so they would accept his infidelity. It was a tactic he'd been doing for years to satisfy his lust for the scene with his need for privacy. He screened women to find a willing submissive, but in the end they were merely bodies to him...until now.
His entire adult life he'd been considered a playboy. He was never seen with the same woman twice and that's how he liked it. No attachments, no feelings, and no concern over whether they could be trusted. His father's death changed all that...rather the will did.
The will required Stavros to stay out of the spotlight and take his proper place as the face of the Theoharis corporate empire. It was too much for him to manage, especially with his sexual appetite, so he vanished to his island. The other requirements in the will, the ones Veronica had yet to hear about, were even more complicated.
In a nutshell Stavros needed a wife
. He wasn't sure if he was ready for that kind of commitment, but Veronica was the first woman he couldn't imagine his life without.
He really didn't know what he would do if she said no but he would never rush things. Because of the requirements of the will he could lose everything, but he didn't care. She was the only thing that mattered to him now.
***
For the past month that Veronica had been living in the mansion, the only time she saw Stavros was for dinner. He didn't treat her like a slave, she was actually surprised with how well he treated her. They would spend most of the meal talking and getting to know each other. Eventually she even figured out that it was Stavros she had been in contact with online.
Stavros hadn't touched her since the day they met. She couldn't stop thinking about how not only sexy and wanted he made her feel, but special too. She wanted him so badly and was beginning to wonder if he didn't find her attractive at all. He once told her he had a sex addiction but it didn't seem like he wanted her.
She hoped that if she took some extra time to make herself look pretty, that maybe she could at least manage to flirt with him. Remembering his sexual addiction, she hoped to ask him about it as well the training he said she needed in order to please him.
While she was enjoying her time there, she was eager to begin. She was also eager to spend more time with him than just dinner. She needed to feel his body pressed against hers again.
She chose a floor length sapphire Michael Kors halter dress that had a belt around the waist and an open back. She paired the dress with silver gladiator sandals and let her wavy blonde hair hang loose.
The dress was a soft material that felt seductive against her skin. She couldn't wear a bra with a dress like that and it made her feel even sexier feeling the fabric brush against her breasts. She would never have had the courage to wear something like that back home.
Stefania had told her earlier she would be meeting Stavros on the terrace that evening for dinner, which was a change. She arrived at the terrace five minutes early, knowing that Stavros hated to be kept waiting, but he was already there.
"I thought it was too beautiful a night to eat indoors," he said as she stepped out onto the terrace.
The night was warm yet breezy and the salt air tickled her nose. The wind tousled Stavros's hair which brushed his chiseled cheek bones and jaw line. His button down shirt draped perfectly over his muscular frame, the raw silk clinging to the muscles in his chest as he moved. As she looked over at Stavros, she wondered again why such a gorgeous man would want her.
"What are you thinking about?" He asked her.
"There's so much I need to know but..."
"But what?"
"But," she sighed, feeling uneasy. "But I'm not sure I want to know the answers."
"This is about why you're here isn't it? And what I've told you." He took her hand as she nodded and led her to a pair of teak chairs where they sat down. He looked into her eyes. "I don't see fear anymore. Have you learned to trust me?"
"Yes," she said softly, unable to take her eyes off his and loving the lilt of his Greek accent.
"Then you are ready. Trust is the most vital and important thing in our relationship. Without trust we cannot continue. This is an absolute for all relationships." He paused a moment to make sure she understood how important this was. "I will now tell you why I am here, why I need you. I'll also tell you how we will begin.
"You know of my wealth and my reputation. I'm sure you know I am wealthier than you can ever imagine. And that's just with my own success. When my father Khristos passed, he left everything to me...with certain stipulations." He sounded bitter.
"I don't need his money. I could care less about my father's money, but I have my pride. You see, my father never approved of my lifestyle. He felt I wasted my life and my money. It was his opinion that I would die young and have no one to leave my legacy to. I'm sure he wished he had other children besides me."
She could hear the pain in his voice when he spoke about his father. Looking into his dark eyes she saw disappointment and sadness. She reached out to touch his hand but he pulled away and stood up to pace as he spoke.
"This isn't about the money. This is a matter of pride. In order for me to take his place in the company, I was given requirements and a deadline.
"The first requirement I've already told you. I am to put an end to my lifestyle. No more parties, drunkenness or womanizing. He felt my poor image was a deterrent to investors. I resolved all that by moving here."
"But how do you cope? You said you have a sexual addiction."
He smiled, sat back down in front of her and took her hand excitedly.
"It's gone. Since we met you're the only one I think of, the only one I want to be with. When you become my slave you will experience pleasures you've never dreamed of. I'm looking forward to training you. It was worth the wait to make sure you're ready."
"What if I change my mind? What if I want to go home?"
"Do you want to go home?"
She shook her head and looked down. "I want to be with you. I know it was you in the emails and chats. I was confused at first but we got to know each other too well. I know you." She looked back up at him, a little confused. "Why didn't you just ask me? Why take me?"
"If I said I'm the richest man in the world please stay with me, you wouldn't have believed me. Plus it sullies everything. You couldn't just make the decision about me. My lifestyle would keep coming up in your decision. It might've been wrong, but it was the best thing I could do."
"Yes, you're right." She was quiet again for a moment but couldn't help herself. Just being so close to him was enough to send her head spinning. She could feel the pulsing between her legs begin and she couldn't help but wonder when she could be with him again. "When can we start my training?"
"Now."
He stood up and held his hand out to her. Once she took it he lead her back into the house and to her suite.
"Are you taking me to the dungeon?" She asked.
"Hush! You will not speak unless I allow it. You will ask for permission to speak unless I ask you a question."
She nodded and followed him into her bedroom. He motioned for her to sit on the bench at the foot of her bed.
"Do you recognize that?"
She looked at the large light wood chest that sat at the foot of her bed. It had a thick ivory cushion with matching bolsters on it that she had sat on earlier while slipping on her shoes. She sat on the chest, confused by his question and rested her elbow on one of the ivory bolsters.
"It's been here in my room, so yes I recognize it."
"It hasn't always been in your room."
She looked at it again and slowly remembered seeing it in the dungeon. She wondered how she didn't realize it had shown up in her room and wondered how long it had been there.
"Pandora's Chest?"
"Yes," he said as he sat down beside her. "Before I show you the chest, we need to make some arrangements. I know you trust me but we will need a safe word. Some word you can use if any of this becomes too much and you need to stop. You utter the word and I will stop whatever I'm doing." He picked up her hand from her lap and held it as he looked deep into her eyes. "You might be considered the sex slave but you are the one in control. This is the only time you'll hear me say that."
She felt her heart pound faster as he held her hand. She didn't know what it was about this man that turned her on so much. Yes he was gorgeous with his wavy brown hair and intensely dark eyes. Sure he had the body of an underwear model, there was something else about him though. Something deeper within him that called out to her.
"Soul. My safe word is soul."
"Soul." He nodded as he said the word. "There are a few more things you need to know about what your life as a slave will be like. I won't cover everything today, it can be overwhelming. Just make sure you understand how important your training will be and if you disobey me and go against the training, you will be punished. Unders
tand?"
"Yes."
She nodded and felt impatient wondering when she would be able to touch him again. Just listening to his sexy Greek accent and knowing she belonged to him was enough to get her excited. She could already feel the pulsing that started between her legs.
"When we are alone like this, you will call me Master and I expect that you will not speak without permission."
"Yes Master."
"Superb. Drew was right, you are a natural submissive. Every master/slave relationship is different but there are a few other things I expect from you." He stood up and handed her a small, sleek tablet computer. "You will use this everyday to journal your thoughts and feelings. I have access to the file and will be checking it. This isn't something that will be used for punishment so feel free to write whatever you want. The journal is just a way to help you learn to open up to me more as your master. It's a communication tool."
She took the tablet and placed it on her lap. She was already beginning to feel overwhelmed. So much had happened in the past few days. She ran her finger along the glossy screen and thought about how she missed writing. It was something she had done her whole life.
She briefly thought about the new reporter job she had been so happy and proud to get. She wondered what was going on in Portsmith since she left and if anyone even noticed she was gone, then she realized she didn't care. She was happy to be at Saint Sebastian and hoped she didn't have to go back to her boring life. She would do whatever she had to to stay there.
"I believe you will enjoy your time here. I am not a harsh master but I am strict. When we are with others, I expect you to present yourself properly. What we do here in your room and in the dungeon is between you and I. It is a testament to the trust and respect we have for each other and no one else needs to know about our arrangement. I'm sure the past few days have been overwhelming thus far but I have tried to give you as much information as possible. Do you have any questions?"
"Yes...what is Pandora's Chest? You mentioned it before."
A Captive's Submission Page 3