a P
remain a passive tool, a living poultice for his pain. I nee
to the manor's vast back garden. I began to practice the basic
hment and the lingering effects of the poison I now knew I'd be
, you couldn't even
rus was standing there, dressed in black workout clothes, his h
rept up my neck. I felt like a
ronger?" he asked,
ared back at him, my jaw
nt defiance. A corner of his m
derground, opening into a space that looked like a high-security training center. There was a firing rang
of pride in his voice. "From now on, you will mee
o train me? The man who suspected I was
weak any Rogue could snap your neck. As my property, you need to have at lea
ty. The word stung, but I
," I
and-to-hand combat. He
ith contemptuous ease, twisted, and in a blur of motion, I
d, his breath ghosting over my e
ine in a shockingly intimate position. His chest was pre
k my hand, guiding my body through the motion of a punch, starting from the
uscles with every movement. When he spoke, the vibration of his chest
ivers running down my spine, to focus on the mechani
ected it with precise, hands-on adjustments. Under his guidance, I felt a dormant s
ually broke his hold. It was only for a second-he had me controlled again in
ssive," he said, his voice tight,
t a exhilarating sense of accomplishment. For the firs
esting pet. He was looking at me like... an equal. A prey that was proving to
to be warring with a raw, primal
stepped back, putting a de
curtly, turning his back on me an
y lips. His plan to control me through training seemed t
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