Anna shrank back on the bed and tried not to cry. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.
He inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly. “Do you know him?”
Anna nodded.
“You’ve been with him before?”
She nodded again.
“Has he hurt you before?”
“That’s all he does. He likes it.”
“You looked scared when you saw him. You knew he would hurt you?”
She nodded.
“Why did you let him come in?”
“What do you mean?”
“If you knew he would hurt you, why would you let him come in and be with you? Haven’t you told Devin?”
Anna stared at Peter, not understanding what he was asking.
“Anna, why haven’t you told Devin that he hurts you?” Peter demanded loudly.
“He...he knows. Zach’s always been like this with me.”
Peter stood and walked to the window, standing with his hands on his hips and looking out into the night. Anna watched him, not knowing what to expect. Suddenly he wheeled around and looked at her.
“Let me get this straight: Devin knows how that man is, and still allows him to come to you?”
“Of course,” she whispered. “Most of the men who have visited me in the past have hurt me. It’s why I was raised the way I was. They can use me as they want and Devin gets what he wants out of them. I heal quickly...or at least I used to.”
“Is this what Aaron was talking about when he said that bruise was the least of what Devin does to you?”
“I don’t know. Maybe. I don’t know what Aaron knows.”
“Has Devin always been this way?”
“What way?”
“Abusive.”
“Well, not always. He was nice to me when I was little. And when Alex was alive, he treated me respectfully. Alex made sure of that.” She twisted her wedding ring on her finger.
Peter ran his hands through his hair and looked troubled. “Go to sleep, Anna. I need to go out for a little while.”
Anna knew better than to ask him what he was doing and simply nodded and untied her robe.
“Do you want the TV on?”
Anna gave Peter a startled look. She still didn’t understand why he was being nice. “No, thank you,” she whispered. “I’m fine.”
He kissed her on the head and then left the room. She heard the apartment door open and close a few minutes later. She turned out the lights, curled up under the covers, and cried herself to sleep, hurting and confused.
Chapter Fifteen
Arms were around her when Anna woke the next morning. She was on her side and there was an arm across her upper chest and an arm around her waist. She knew it was Peter’s warm body behind her, but why? They’d met over six weeks ago and he had never held her before, except when other people were around. She saw the alarm would be going off in a minute and tried to untangle herself from his arms. He wouldn’t be happy if he woke up this close to her.
“Anna, what are you doing?” he asked as she pulled at his arm.
“I didn’t want you to know you were holding me,” she said softly, not looking at him.
“I wouldn’t be holding you if I didn’t want to.”
Anna didn’t speak for a moment. “You’ve never held me in bed before.”
“Maybe I was wrong not to.”
Anna didn’t know what to say, so she kept quiet, though her jaw trembled slightly.
“How are you feeling?” he asked quietly.
“Okay. I’ll be fine in a few days. You can still...I mean, we can have sex this morning. You don’t have to worry about hurting me...if you were worried, which you don’t have to be....”
The thought of him taking her in the ass made her want to cry, but she wouldn’t tell him. Zach liked to do cruel things to her ass. She rolled onto her stomach, as was their morning custom and braced herself. He still hadn’t done anything except anal, aside from the first night they were together.
Peter grabbed hold of her shoulder and turned her onto her back. He cradled her cheek and then kissed her. Anna froze in shock and her mind went wild trying to understand what was going on. Why was he kissing her? Why was he being nice? Was it a trick?
He continued gently kissing her, his lips softly caressing hers until she got hold of her wits and kissed him back. He stroked her cheek and neck and shoulders as he kissed her. He gently kissed his way down her neck and to her tender breasts. She braced herself for pain, but his kisses remained gentle. He ran his hands lightly over her arms and stomach, and kissed her all over.
He moved back to kiss her mouth. “Are you okay if we have sex?”
She nodded and tried to roll over again. He shook his head and kissed her neck, then pushed her thighs apart.
“What are you doing?” she asked nervously.
He smiled gently at her. “Sex?”
“Like this?”
“Is that okay?”
Anna blinked. “Y-yes, if you want to.” She wanted to so badly, but was nervous, too. Her ass had been the primary means of pleasing men for several weeks. Even at the Gatherings, Devin had them using her ass or mouth instead of her pussy.
Peter positioned himself at her entrance and she gasped as he pressed forward. Tears sprang to her eyes and she bit her lip to keep from crying out. She was tight from disuse and it hurt. She was also swollen and sore from the previous night’s activities with Zach.
“Are you okay, Anna?”
She squeezed her eyes shut and nodded. It would be much easier to answer that question if she was facing away from him as she normally did. She didn’t know how she felt about being face to face with him.
“Anna, look at me.”
She obediently opened her eyes and looked at him with fearful eyes.
“Am I hurting you?”
Since when did he start caring if he hurt her? Well, no that wasn’t entirely fair. He never really cared if she enjoyed herself, but didn’t seem to want to hurt her.
“I’m fine,” she said quietly, looking away from his face.
He leaned down to kiss her neck as he pressed forward again. Anna held her breath and clenched her jaw as he slowly entered her body. Her breathing was shallow and she kept her eyes closed and hands by her side, clenching the sheets against the pain.
“God, you feel good,” he murmured against her ear and started moving slowly.
She didn’t dare embrace him or do anything to make it personal for fear of upsetting him. He’d made it clear many times that sex was just a physical act and he reserved the emotions for his girlfriend back home.
She moved as she could to make sure he enjoyed himself, uncertain as to whether he would want her to climax or not. She decided against it, since he liked being in control of that and concentrated her movements on what he seemed to like. His movements quickened and he moved so that it was difficult for her to not orgasm, but she kept her mind concentrated on his pleasure. When he shouted out in Russian and stiffened his movements as he came, she winced, but smoothed her face as he relaxed so he wouldn’t know she was hurting.
He nuzzled her neck for a moment before rolling to his side, bringing her with him. She lay stiffly by his side, not knowing what to do as he stroked her hair and kissed her head.
After a few minutes, he stretched and sat up. “We should get moving.”
Anna nodded, and got out of bed quickly, glad to be away from his confusing touch. She dressed in her long sleeves and pants to hide her bruises and was thankful she didn’t partner yet. That would have been difficult with how she was feeling at the moment.
*****
“Anna, this was sent to me for some reason.” Aaron handed her a large envelope and glanced at Peter, who was standing next to her.
She looked up at Peter before taking it from him. He nodded and she took it. The return address was a German one. “Do you know who it’s from?”
Aaron shrugged. “I can’t read German.”
“It looks like it
’s from a lawyer of some sort,” Peter said.
“A lawyer?” Had Wilhelm finally come to his senses and decided to disown her? She pulled at the flap and found a letter and several smaller envelopes inside. The letter was addressed to Herzogin Anna and indicated that there had been suspected fraud in the Kunze finances and that all the family members were being issued new credit cards and online account information, including her Amazon.com and Kindle account. There were five envelopes with credit cards in them with her name on them. “I don’t think Devin will want me having these.”
Aaron and Peter looked at each other. “It’s not really for Devin to decide, is it?” Peter asked. “Wilhelm is your Master and your father-in-law.”
Anna looked at Peter, once again frightened at his new niceness. Was it a trick so he could tell Devin and get her punished?
“I wanted to thank you for speaking to me last night, Aaron,” Peter said, glancing at Anna. “I appreciate your candor.”
Anna looked between the two men, not understanding what was going on. Peter hated Aaron. Aaron hated Peter. Why had they talked last night?
She shoved the papers and cards back into the envelope and handed it back to Aaron. “Send it back. Tell Wilhelm I don’t need them.” She walked away as fast as she could and sat down in her normal spot to get ready for class.
Peter stood next to his dance partner, Erin, during classes. They were dancing the part of the snow king and queen and Erin was ecstatic. She gazed at him with wide eyes whenever he spoke to her, and he usually would flirt lightly with her and some of the other women as well. Not enough to be thought of as cheating, but enough to keep them interested in him. Though when he was near Anna, he held her hand or had his arm around her waist.
Anna was surprised when she didn’t see him flirting that morning. He was friendly, but there was no sensuous smile offered and he backed away when she touched him. He and Aaron were even acting like friends.
At lunch, Peter paid for her meal, which he never did. He asked her several times if she was feeling okay, to which she always responded with a “yes,” even though her body was aching.
When they got home that evening, Peter handed her the envelope that she had given back to Aaron. “You should read the letter.” He gave her a pointed look and then went to take a shower.
She dumped everything out on the table and picked up the letter again. A line was underlined at the bottom of the letter that she hadn’t noticed this morning. “Purchases made on these cards will be monitored by the Herzog.” What did that mean? It was a warning not to use them? Then why did Peter give them to her? She sighed and rubbed her forehead. This was one of the most confusing days she’d had in a while and it was giving her a headache.
She heard the water from Peter’s shower turn off and was about to go take a shower when there was a knock at the door. She went to answer it with a churning stomach and prayed it wasn’t Zach. Jayce Corbin, one of Devin’s deacons, was standing there. Well, at least it wasn’t Zach. Jayce could be rough, but nothing compared to Zach, and sighed in relief.
“Hi, Jayce,” Anna said softly. “Won't you come in?” She stepped aside and he walked in.
“Hello, Anna. Nice place.”
“Thanks.” She looked around nervously. “I, um, just got home and haven’t had a chance to shower yet. Do you...mind waiting a few minutes?” She winced as she waited for his answer.
Jayce frowned then shrugged. “Yeah. Just hurry.”
She gave him a small smile and hurried into the bedroom where Peter was getting dressed. She glanced back at the door. “Someone’s...here to see me. He’s one of Devin’s deacons.”
Peter frowned and cursed in Russian. “Does he hurt you too?”
Anna found that question strange. “Sometimes.”
She went into the bathroom and took the fastest shower she could. When she was done, she braided her hair and put her robe on before going out to get Jayce.
He and Peter were sitting on the couch talking and they looked up when she walked into the room. Jayce raised his eyebrow at her and for a minute she couldn’t figure out why. Then she remembered that he liked her incredibly submissive, and quickly dropped to her knees by the bedroom door.
“Robe,” Jayce said, walking over to her.
She quickly untied her robe and dropped it to the ground.
“It hasn’t been that long, Anna. Is your memory going?”
“No, Sir,” Anna said softly. “I’m sorry, Sir.”
He tugged on her braid and she followed him into the bedroom. “Do you still have the toys?”
“Yes, Sir.” She went to the closet and pulled out a bag of the things Jayce liked to play with and handed it to him, then went back to her knees.
“Naughty girl. I think you need a spanking and a reminder of what I like.”
“Yes, Sir.”
Chapter Sixteen
Anna changed the sheets after Jayce left. Peter was nowhere to be seen and she was struggling with the fitted sheet. She was exhausted and sore and just wanted to go to bed, but couldn’t get the fitted sheet to work right.
She cried out in frustration and tugged again, but it still wouldn’t work. Peter would be angry, she knew it. She felt like an idiot, standing and crying over a sheet, but she couldn’t stop herself.
“Here, let me do it.” Peter unclenched her fingers and took the sheet from her. He took it off the bed and started again, doing it as he did everything: perfectly.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered and reached for the other sheet. Tears blurred her vision and she wiped them away.
Peter put his hands on her upper arms. “Have you showered?” he asked kindly.
Anna shook her head. “I wanted to get the sheets changed first.”
He took the sheet from her. “I’ll take care of the bed. You go shower.”
She did as he told her, showering quickly, and then returned to find the bed made and Peter sitting on it, waiting for her. She started to untie her robe for him and he put his hands on hers.
“No, Anna. It’s okay. Do you want some dinner?”
Anna hesitated. She wasn’t hungry, but knew she should eat. “Sure.”
He took her out to the dining table where there were several take out containers. “Do you like Chinese? I got it while you were...busy.”
She sat down and looked at him nervously. He got plates and silverware and placed them on the table. Steam escaped as he opened the containers and he pushed them towards her.
“Take what you like. I got a variety.”
Anna dished out some rice and some sort of chicken and vegetable dish as Peter sat watching her. If he told Devin what she was eating, he would have something good to report.
“My parents are coming up for opening night,” he said, scooping out a heaping spoonful of rice and dumping it on his plate. “Vlad and Nina as well.”
“Nina?”
“My aunt.”
“Oh.” She frowned. “Up?”
“Yes. My parents live in Laguna Beach. My mother is American.”
That would explain his excellent English. “I didn’t know that.”
“I grew up in Laguna Beach, but went to secondary school in St. Petersburg so I could dance there. I lived with Vlad and Nina. When they gave up the idea of having a boy, I started spending more time with them.”
“You have a thick accent though.”
“I’ve spent the last ten years primarily speaking Russian. And I spoke Russian when I lived at home too. At least to my father. My mom made sure I spoke proper English as well. Being here has helped a lot. She’s happy.” He chuckled.
“Were you born here?”
He shook his head. “I was born in St. Petersburg. So were Sergei and Pavel. But Yuri and Natalya were born in California.”
“Your brothers and sister?” They had “been together” for six weeks and she realized she barely knew anything about him. She knew he had three younger brothers and a sister, but never knew their names.
Peter nodded and smiled. “My mother is thrilled that she doesn’t have to freeze to see me dance Nutcracker this year.”
Anna nodded and smiled.
“Did you read the letter?” he asked, nodding towards the yellow envelope he had given her.
“Yes.”
“I was thinking maybe we could go shopping this weekend. You could probably use some more clothes. And do you have a dress for opening night?”
“Devin buys me what I need, if I need anything extra,” she said softly. “Though he hasn’t said anything about a dress. Maybe he doesn’t want me going to the party.”
“I’d like it if you were there.”
Anna stared at her food. “I’ll ask Devin when I see him on Friday. I suppose I have some dresses at the house, if Wilhelm hasn’t sold it. I don't know if they’re still in style though.”
“House?”
Anna glanced up. “Mine and Alex’s house. I haven’t been there since he died.”
“You have a house and you were living in that crappy apartment?”
“I don’t want to live there. I don’t even want to see it.”
“Where is it?”
“Presidio.”
“Why don’t you want to live there? I would imagine it was pretty nice.”
“It was beautiful. I loved living there, but....” She swallowed back tears. “I don’t want to be reminded of him. It’s bad enough I dream of him.” She put her fork down and pressed her fingers to her eyes to keep from crying.
“You really loved him, didn’t you?” He sounded almost awed.
“I did. He...saved me. He loved me. He told me he wanted to make up for all the years of abuse...and he did.” Her voice squeaked.
“I didn’t think Elder-Mistresses felt things so...deeply.”
Anna sighed. “I don’t know about the rest of them. They seemed to think me strange at Alex’s funeral. Like, they couldn’t understand why I was so upset about a man dying.” The tears spilled onto her cheeks. “But when he died...all the beauty in the world died with him. Devin offered to make me feel better with drugs. I couldn’t stand the pain anymore. That’s why I left Wilhelm. But maybe if I had stayed....”
The Life of Anna, Part 4: Ensnared Page 10