Chapter 25
Violet
Julian’s mouth slammed into mine, fierce and unrestrained, hands locking around my hips as my spine hit the tree with enough force to knock the air from my lungs. Any sound I made vanished between our mouths, swallowed by the feverish urgency of his lips.
For a split second, my mind went completely blank. Shock short-circuited every thought, every instinct, every rational response. Then reality finally kicked in again.
This was really happening.
Julian was really kissing me.
He did it like he hunted; hard, relentless, and confident, like he expected me to surrender to it. And…
I did. In those fraught seconds, every ounce of resistance melted away, and I let him do it. Let him have me.
I tried to convince myself that my decision to do so was just about surviving the hunt. About self-preservation. Because as long as Julian’s mouth stayed busy on mine, then he wasn’t hurting me the way he’d hurt so many others in the past.
But that was total bullshit.
I didn’t just want to live. I wanted him. Wanted him despite the cruelty in his words, despite everything he’d done. I hated to admit it, but the only thing that was threatening to ruin me right now wasn’t my fear of him, but the unbearable need to feel him inside me.
My fingers twisted into his jacket, pulling him even closer, because there was no point lying to him or myself anymore. Not with his body pressed this close to mine. Not with his teeth catching my lower lip. Not with the ache still pulsing between my legs.
His mouth slid to my throat, teeth dragging slowly over my skin. He exhaled sharply, something feral in the sound, and then we were moving again, his hands roaming, gripping, stripping away whatever stood between us.
My sweater was gone first, peeled off and flung somewhere behind us.
My bra followed, stripped away without ceremony.
Then Julian dropped down fast, urgency written into every movement, hands yanking my cargo pants down my legs before I could even catch my breath.
My underwear didn’t survive the moment. He ripped them aside like an inconvenience, already gone, already forgotten.
There was no slow build. No mercy. His mouth claimed me with brutal intent, tongue pressing hard against my clit like he meant to overwhelm me from the first touch.
A raw sound ripped out of my throat as my body reacted instantly, hips jerking forward as he devoured me like restraint didn’t exist. Like his hunger was the only thing that mattered.
“Julian…” My voice cracked as my fingers clenched into his shoulders.
He worked my pussy relentlessly, mouth and tongue moving with savage focus, sucking and circling until my legs trembled beneath me. Every nerve felt lit on fire, pleasure hitting too hard, too fast, building before I was ready for it.
I was right on the edge when he stopped. He stood abruptly, breathing heavily as he looked down at me. The pause was cruel, and I knew he’d done it on purpose. He was fully aware that I was this close to coming.
“You’re going to take me, Violet,” he said, voice low and commanding. “All of me. And you’re going to love it.”
Before I could respond, he turned me around and bent me forward, big hands pressing me flat against the tree’s rough bark.
“Stay still.”
Cold air nipped at my bare skin, followed immediately by the heat of Julian’s body closing in behind me. I heard the sound of his belt and the slide of fabric, and then his length brushed against me, thick and unyielding, gliding through my slickness.
“Fucking soaked already,” he murmured, satisfaction threading his tone as his hand reached around, thumb tracing slow, deliberate circles over my clit. “I knew it.”
A moan slipped free as I widened my stance without thinking, offering myself up.
“You want this,” he went on. “Right here. You want me to fuck you exactly like this.”
It wasn’t even a question. Just a comment.
“Yes,” I said breathlessly, utterly desperate. “Please.”
He teased me for one more unbearable second, the head of his cock dragging along my entrance, and then he finally pushed inside.
The stretch stole the air from my lungs, a sharp cry tearing out as pleasure and pain collided.
It burned, deep and demanding, but I welcomed the sting. Welcomed every inch. Needed it.
“Oh, fuck,” Julian ground out, pushing deeper. “You feel so fucking good, baby. I knew you would.”
His hands locked onto my hips, his grip possessive, his thrusts deep and unrestrained.
Each one drove me harder into the tree, skin scraping, sensations blurring until nothing existed except the force of him and the way my mind and body responded.
I was crazy for this moment. Addicted to the brutality of it.
“More,” I choked out. “Harder.”
A dark sound left him as he leaned close, mouth near my ear. “You should hate me, Violet,” he muttered. “So why are you begging me for more? Why are you so wet for me?”
The rawness of his words made my entire body shudder. I hated how right he was. Hated how badly I wanted him despite myself.
“Don’t stop,” I gasped. “Please.”
“That’s it,” he said roughly. “I want to hear you.”
I reached down between us, fingers finding my clit as he drove into me with punishing rhythm. Wet sounds filled the air, obscene and undeniable.
“Listen to your body,” he growled, thrusting hard. “You’re made for this. Made to be my little fucktoy. Aren’t you?”
My thoughts dissolved. All I could do was nod.
“Mine,” he said. “Say it.”
“Yours,” I choked out.
“You want to come like this?”
“Yes. Please.”
“Do it. Now.”
Everything shattered, and I cried out as pleasure crashed over me in violent waves, my entire body locking and trembling around him.
Julian didn’t slow down.
“I knew you’d scream for me,” he growled, thrusting relentlessly. “And I fucking love it.”
“More,” I whimpered weakly.
He pulled out suddenly, leaving me empty and shaking. His fingers slid between my legs, gathering the wet mess he’d made and spreading it back, slow and deliberate, until his cock pressed against me again, this time somewhere tighter.
“Ever taken it in here?” he muttered against my ear.
“Yes,” I bit out. “I love it.”
“I knew it. Knew you were going to be a filthy little whore for me.”
I sucked in a sharp breath as he pushed forward. The stretch was intense, almost overwhelming, my body resisting before I forced myself to relax. He withdrew only to drive back in hard, taking me completely. No patience. No tenderness. Just ruthless control.
The rhythm was unforgiving, pain and pleasure twisting together until I couldn’t even tell where one ended and the other began.
“Every part of you is mine,” he growled. “Your pussy. Mouth. Ass. All of you.”
“Yes,” I gasped. “Fuck me. Fuck my ass.”
He chased his release with brutal focus, movements turning desperate and wild. Then his body tensed behind me as he slammed deep one final time, a raw sound tearing from his throat as he spilled inside me.
I sagged, shaking, barely able to stay upright.
When Julian finally pulled out, my legs threatened to give way, breath ragged as warmth slid down my thighs. The aftershocks were leaving me dizzy, oversensitive, undone.
I leaned forward weakly, the world tilting, but he caught me before I fell and turned me around to face him, arms firm around my waist, holding me upright as the forest spun and my body buzzed.
His thumb traced my jaw, almost tender, before his expression shifted back to something more controlled.
Then he stepped back, and the cool night air rushed between us.
“We need to go,” he said, his voice still rough. “Get dressed.”
Reality crashed back. The forest. The hunt. The fact that I was his captive, no matter what had just happened between us.
I gathered my clothes from the ground, minus my ruined underwear, and slid back into them, slowly and haltingly.
“Hands,” Julian said when I was done.
I blinked. “What?”
He was already pulling something from his jacket pocket. Zip ties. Of course he'd come prepared.
“Hands behind your back,” he said, his tone leaving no room for argument.
“Are you serious?” I muttered. “I'm not going to run again. Not after… all that.”
“Yes, you are.” His mouth quirked slightly. “Or you'll at least try. So, hands. Now.”
I reluctantly turned around, and he pulled my wrists together behind my back. I felt the plastic bite into my skin as he secured them. Not tight enough to hurt, but definitely tight enough that I couldn't slip free.
“Is this really necessary?” I asked, voice rising. “You already caught me. Where am I going to go?”
“It's necessary,” he replied, coming back around to face me. He pulled out his phone, the screen's glow illuminating his face in the darkness. “Because you're clever, Violet. And stubborn. So I'm not taking any chances.”
With that, he pulled out his phone, the screen illuminating his face in the darkness.
He tapped something, then held it to his ear.
“It's Julian Valcourt. I need a car at…” He glanced at his screen, reading off a string of numbers that meant nothing to me.
“Closest access point to those coordinates. Fifteen minutes.” A pause. “Yes, I have her. Just send the car.”
He ended the call and pocketed the phone, then took my arm. “Can you walk, or do I need to carry you?”
The image of being hauled through the forest like a trophy made my stomach turn. “I can walk,” I muttered.
“Good. Let's go.”
He started guiding me through the trees, one hand firm on my elbow. I stumbled almost immediately over a root I couldn't see in the darkness.
“Careful,” he said, steadying me.
How thoughtful, I thought bitterly. My captor doesn't want me to trip and hurt myself on the way to imprisonment. How considerate of him.
“Watch your step,” Julian said when I nearly tripped over again a moment later.
“It’s hard to walk properly with my hands tied behind my back,” I snapped.
“Would you prefer I throw you over my shoulder?”
“I'd prefer you let me go.”
“Not an option.”