30. Prey and Predator
PREY AND PREDATOR
CHELSEA
“W hat the fuck is this?” Sean’s voice was harsh, his fingers pushing the sleeve of my shirt to check if I had any more bruises.
“Did you get hurt?” He demanded, holding my other hand and tugging up the sleeve. He seemed exasperated and looked at me. “Remove your top. Let me see.”
He moved to hold the hem of my tee shirt, but I stepped back. Sean clenched his jaw, and he kneeled in front of me, surprising me. “Chelsea, please. I need to know if you’re hurt or not.”
Chelsea. Not Princess. But why was he doing this?
“I’m not.”
“You’re lying,” he said, his eyes pointing to the bruise on my left arm. “Who did this? Who touched you?”
“Can you calm down?” I said, my breathing increasing. “You’re scaring me.”
“Tell me who did this,” he repeated.
I knew I couldn’t face him and confess everything while standing, so I pulled him up and led him to the couch. He sat beside me, thankfully keeping some space in between. I didn’t want to be consoled when I told him the truth.
“Promise me you won’t get mad at me,” I said, keeping my hands on my lap and avoiding meeting his eyes.
“I’ll try not to, Princess.”
I took a deep breath and told him about the loan sharks and how my father fucked up.
“And you didn’t tell me?”
I shook my head, staring at my fidgeting fingers. “I was afraid they would do something to you, threaten you, harm you.”
Sean remained quiet, and I took a peek at his face and sucked a deep breath. His features seemed harsh. “I’m a lawyer, Princess. If I had known earlier, I would have helped you.”
“I was afraid.”
He lifted his hand, but it hovered over my thigh. “Can I hold your hand?”
I nodded and his large palm covering my hand, squeezing it. “It’s my job to keep you safe, sweet girl. If you are scared, I need to know so I can protect you. Understood?”
I nodded, staring at his thumb that rubbed over my knuckles, soothing me.
His other hand gently tucked my chin up to look at him. “Say you understand, Princess.”
“I understand, Daddy.”
He kissed my forehead. “Good girl.”
My heart hurt being praised by him when I had betrayed him. “T-there’s more,” I started. “The debt is over five million dollars, so I went to the auction night.”
I didn’t look at him. I wanted to get it all out, so I continued, “I got auctioned for five-hundred thousand dollars, and we stayed at the club. He… he forced me to dance with him and—b-but the guards helped and I came here.” After showering and scrubbing myself until my skin turned pink and raw.
There was silence in the penthouse. I peered at him, biting my lip and hoping he wouldn’t get mad. He seemed quiet, his eyes pinned on my arm, his warm hand still holding mine.
“Sean?” I asked, swallowing.
I fucked up, didn’t I?
I pulled my hand back and said, “I-it’s okay if you want to stop seeing me. I-I didn’t tell you about?—”
“ Shh ,” he said. I stopped breathing when he looked at me. His eyes were so dark that I couldn’t make out his pupils.
“What happened to that man?” He asked slowly, as if he was holding something back.
He was scaring me. I had expected him to snap at me, yell at me, or get annoyed and give me silent treatment. But he did neither of those and remained calm and composed. Or at least he looked calm from the outside.
“Th-they kicked him out and banned him from the club.”
“That’s it?” He said. “Tell me his name.”
I said the name, my voice barely a whisper.
“Did he touch you anywhere else?” He asked, leaning closer.
I moved back, the arm of the couch blocking me as I shook my head. “I didn’t let him. Not even a kiss or hand-holding.”
“ Hmm .” His hum felt like a growl.
When I was little, I used to watch national geographic and animal planet where the narrator described the lion or a tiger in hiding as a massive, clever predator. Full of patience and an agile body, ready to pounce on its prey, it has set eyes on.
And right at that very moment, I felt like a prey being hunted by a predator.
“Strip out of your clothes, Princess,” he said, his eyes pinned on me. His mouth set in a firm line. “Daddy needs to check if his brat behaved or not.”
I swallowed, warmth pooling between my thighs. “Y-you’re not mad?”
“You really want to know?”
“Yes, please.”
His eyes narrowed, his masculine perfume making me heady. “I’m not mad, Princess. But I am disappointed.”
That hurt more than him being angry at me.
Tears burned my eyes as I asked, “Why are you disappointed?”
His eyes softened, his large hand cupping my cheek, and I stayed still. “Because you don’t trust me enough to share your problems. It’s my fault, Princess. If I had?—”
“ No , it’s not your fault.” I held his hand on my cheek. “I-I should have told you about it, but… you have already done so much for me, I didn’t want to take advantage of you.”
“Take advantage of me?” He leaned closer. I shivered when his lips brushed over the shell of my ear. “If you knew about the things I want to do to you, Princess, you’d call me a filthy old pervert.”
My lips parted in a gasp when he kissed my neck, his hot tongue making me feel hot. He pressed his teeth into my skin, making me groan. “What if I want you to use me for my money and body, hm, Princess?”
“I’m going to remove your clothes, Chelsea,” he whispered, pulling back. “You remember your safe words?”
Thunder rumbled over his broad shoulders, and I saw a flash of lightning through the glass.
“Yes, Daddy.”
Sean kissed me. His hands cupping my cheek before moving down to squeeze my breast. I moaned into his mouth when he bit my lip, wrapping his arms around me and lifting me up. My legs went around his torso when he stood up. The flex of his muscles turned me on and how easily he weighed me.
Our kiss turned clumsy when I removed my top and threw my bra somewhere. I didn’t know we were already in his room until he threw me back on the bed. I gasped, watching him close and lock the door and stalk towards me.
I licked my lips, watching him remove his belt and pants. I quickly unzipped my jeans and tugged them down before he pushed me back on the bed, straddling my hips. I felt the heat of how huge and muscular he was compared to me. His weight on me felt erotic and my panties were completely soaked.
“Will you be a good girl for Daddy, Princess?” He asked, his eyes roving over my naked skin.
“Yes, Daddy,” I nodded quickly. “I’ll be your good girl.”
“I know you will be,” he smirked. “You can’t run away from me now.”
I didn’t want to run away from him. I craved him.
“Please, I need?—”
“Daddy knows what naughty Princess needs.” He shushed me. “Give me your hands.”