Caged (Dark Empire #2)

Twenty-Three.

Ashlee

II had no idea what Mags was playing at, but as soon as my glass was empty, he thrust me to my feet. I stumbled in my high heels, struggling to keep up as he led me downstairs and through the pulsing crowd. The thumping bass seemed to match the rhythm of my racing heart.

I caught sight of Rose dancing with her friends, her laughter echoing through the crowd, but Magnus was singularly focused. He found a spot in the middle of the dance floor and yanked me into his body, his grip on my hips firm and possessive.

“Now dance for me, Red,” he commanded, his voice a seductive growl that sent shivers down my spine.

“What?” I stared at him, confusion and excitement swirling inside me.

“I said, fucking dance for me,” he growled again, his eyes dark and dangerous, a wild beast barely contained. It was intoxicating, the raw power and desire radiating from him. My heart pounded harder, the adrenaline making me dizzy.

I swallowed hard, feeling a lump in my throat. His gaze locked onto mine, unwavering, making it clear he wasn’t taking no for an answer. The electricity between us was palpable, the tension crackling in the air.

I began to sway to the music, hesitantly at first, but his intense focus on me made my movements bolder. Magnus tried to keep up, his awkward steps almost endearing. Despite his lack of rhythm, his eyes never left me, his attention making me feel like the only woman in the room.

The longer we moved together, the more I let go, losing myself in the music and the heat of his gaze. The world around us faded away, leaving just the two of us in a dance of raw, unbridled passion.

He lifted my hand, holding it high above my head. "Spin, Red.”

I did, swaying my body as I came back to face him.

“That's it, show me what you've got.”

The more he encouraged me, the more I surrendered to the rhythm. Each beat of the music pulsed through me, igniting a fire that had long been suppressed. Dancing like this felt like shedding the weight of my past. My childhood had been a series of relentless trials, but the nights out with Hannah and Grace had offered a glimmer of salvation. In those clubs, with the music blaring and lights flickering, I discovered the freedom I had been deprived of for so long.

Surrounded by a sea of bodies, all lost in their own euphoria, I found solace in the collective abandon. It was intoxicating to be part of a crowd that embraced the chaos, where everyone moved with reckless joy and no one cared about appearances. Tonight, even without the haze of alcohol, I was high on the pure, unfiltered energy of the moment. The music surged through us, binding us together, and in that pulsating throng, I felt a sense of belonging, a wild and liberating connection that made me feel truly alive.

“Princess, how can you possibly tell me that you aren't sexy?” Mags stepped closer to me, our bodies flush together moving as one.

“I’m not.”

His hand trailed down my back to cup my ass. "So why is every man around us staring at you.”

I looked around but didn't see anyone looking. "They're not.”

“Ash, they’re trying not to be too obvious about it. That dude there dancing with that girl, he keeps checking you out. He's trying to be discreet, but I can see it.”

I looked where he was and just caught the man quickly averting his eyes. I felt the blood rush to my cheeks.

“And that man there, he's not even trying to hide it.”

I turned my head and sure enough, a man was looking at me with hooded eyes.

“You are fucking beautiful, Ashlee. Anyone who thinks otherwise is an idiot.”

"Mags...” I said softly.

“You need to believe in yourself more.”

“It’s hard when I was brought up being made to feel worthless.”

“Fuck your parents, Ash. You have us now, and you're fucking everything to us.”

His voice was so full of sincerity that it made my heart flutter. I leaned up and pressed my lips to his hard. He grabbed the back of my head as his tongue forced it's way into my mouth, staking his claim on me for everyone to see. "I love you, Ash.”

“I love you too, Magnus,” I murmured.

He gave me a quick kiss. "Now show me some more of your moves.”

We continued to dance, our bodies practically touching when a large frame suddenly pressed up behind me.

“I don't like all of these men watching you, baby,” Ethan growled in my ear.

“See, Red.” Mags chuckled. "She doesn't believe that she's sexy so I brought her down to show her that every man desires her.”

“Too right they do,” Ethan growled. His hand slipped into my left hand, holding it up so that we could see the rings on my finger. "But you’re a married woman now. You’re ours.”

I bit my lower lip

Mags grabbed my chin, forcing me to meet his eyes. "Ours.”

Being sandwiched between these two powerful men was making my body hot. I pushed my ass back against Ethan making him grunt in my ear.

"Careful, sweetheart, or you’ll make me hard.”

I smirked and wiggled against him, feeling his dick slowly stiffen in his pants.

“Ash,” he growled. He grabbed my ass cheek with one hand while wrapping his other around my throat. "You’re a naughty girl.”

"Am I?”

“Yes, and naughty girls get punished.”

Ethan forced my head to tilt to the side and then sucked on my neck. He pressed his hard-on against my ass, grinding it so that I couldn’t stop the moan that escaped me.

“Fuck, Red,” Mags hissed.

Ethan made some animalistic noise in my ear before sinking his teeth into my flesh. Then he stood back and rearranged his dick before grabbing my hand and leading me back through the crowd towards the stairs.

Mario and Luca were sat around a table with Rose and a few of her friends.

"I wondered where you’d disappeared to, Ethan,” Mario said with a grin.

“I went to find my wife.”

“Ah, she was well taken care of.”

“I know.” He led me to a few empty seats, pulling me down onto his lap with Mags sitting beside us. "People were staring at them so I wanted to make a point that she was taken.”

Mario burst out laughing. "You’re even more obsessive than dad is with mum.”

"Well, she's ours,” Ethan muttered.

Luca raised an eyebrow.

"Don’t look at me like that. This is what works for us.”

"Don't judge them,” Rose slapped his arm.

“What? You knew about it?”

"Yeah, I found out the other day,” she said.

“Fuck’s sake, I only found out this evening.”

Mario laughed again. "Suckers, I worked it out before they were even engaged.”

Rose’s friends looked confused but none of them said anything. I got the impression that they were intimidated by the three brothers here all together. They were all tall, dark men with dangerous intense eyes.

Ethan shook his head. "We're happy, okay?”

"Hey, nobody's judging,” Mario said. "I think it's nice that you're finally getting some pussy. You were so upright before her.”

"Ro,” Ethan snapped.

“He's not wrong.” Mags chuckled.

I snorted a laugh.

“Ash,” he warned.

“What? I thought you were dark and brooding when I met you.”

He chuckled and shook his head. "I wasn’t.”

“Was. You were a grumpy ass.”

“Sweetheart,” he warned again.

I knew that if I continued, I’d end up over his knee.

Would that be so bad?

“You’re still a bit of an ass.”

He growled under his breath and I just knew I was being punished when we got home.

Ethan ordered us one more round of drinks and we chatted to his brothers and Blake while Rose danced with her friends. She asked me if I wanted to join but I declined. I was quite happy sitting on Ethan’s lap.

“Shall we go, baby?” Ethan eventually purred in my ear. "We need to deal you out a punishment.”

My heart rate started accelerating in anticipation. I knew this was coming because I purposely pushed his buttons. Some twisted part of me wanted him to punish me.

“We’ll see you on Sunday,” Ethan said as he pushed me to my feet.

“You off already?”

"Yeah,” he said, smirking at me.

“See you Sunday then, brother,” Mario said.

After we said goodbye, Ethan led me out of the club, grinning as we approached the car. "I hope you’re ready for your punishment, sweetheart. Mags is going to spank that ass of yours until it's as red as your hair.”

I gulped, although a big part of me was excited. I was kind of looking forward to being put over Mag’s knees.