CHAPTER 3
Late in the evening, after the official ceremonies had concluded and the guests had dispersed into the villa’s luxurious rooms, Chloe set out to find her chamber. The historic hallways were dimly lit at this hour, wall sconces casting long, soft shadows.
Ana stepped onto the threshold. In her hand, she held a heavy brass key. Her gaze was no longer that of a gracious host, but of someone in total command of how the night would unfold.
“Yes, they moved me,” Chloe answered, surprised to run into Ana again.
Chloe stood frozen. It was undeniable now—Ana was deliberately closing in on her. None of this was a coincidence.
Ana extended her hand, offering the key.
As Chloe reached for it, their fingers brushed despite Chloe’s attempt to avoid contact.
Ana’s presence was too intense for Chloe—too much for the first night.
She wondered where all this was heading.
Above all, she was exhausted and wanted nothing more than peace. A bit of space.
“If you can’t sleep,” Ana whispered, her tone penetrating, as if deliberately ignoring Chloe’s obvious weariness.
Her palm closed softly around Chloe’s wrist.
“Just knock. Don’t call Rachel, and don’t wake the house. Come straight to me. Understand?”
“Why would I...”
Ana tilted her head, locking eyes with Chloe in a gaze of deep, forbidden resolve. She smelled like danger—the intoxicating kind.
“Because I know what it’s like when something grips you this hard for the first time,” she said, her voice low and intoxicating.
Chloe shuddered. Ana’s words spoke of her as if she had known her forever—as if reading her mind and her very soul.
“How do you know? That I’m gripped?” Chloe challenged.
“Because you look at me like you already know where this leads.”
Chloe couldn’t reply. Her heart was in her throat, while a deep, undeniable heat settled under her skin. Ana opened the door to Room 14, switched on a small bedside lamp, and paused in the doorway.
“You’re beautiful when you’re confused,” she added with a faint, enigmatic smile. “Tomorrow will be even harder. For both of us.”
The door shut with a soft, final click.
Chloe sat frozen on the edge of the bed, still dressed in her evening wear, her skin literally burning from the memory of Ana’s touch.
Tomorrow will be harder? Why did she say that? Why is Rachel’s mom focusing on me so much?
Through the thin wall, Chloe heard quiet movements—the unfastening of jewelry, footsteps across hardwood, and finally a silence louder than any noise. Every sound felt intimately close, as if she and Ana shared the same room, separated only by a thin layer of wood and air.
Chloe’s chest tightened—a strange mixture of confusion and a quiet, restless curiosity. Instinctively, she held her breath, terrified that Rachel’s mom would hear the slightest noise.
For an hour, she squeezed her eyes shut, but sleep refused to come. All the adrenaline, the memories of the evening and Ana kept her wide awake.
Shortly past midnight, she had had enough and stood up abruptly. Without hesitation, she stepped out into the hallway, determined to step outside for some fresh air.
At the first quiet thump against the wood, the adjacent door swung open. Ana was standing in the doorway, as though she hadn't gone to sleep at all. As if she had been waiting for the right moment to strike again. Or perhaps as if she couldn’t sleep either, pulled by the same unspoken tension.
“You can’t sleep,” Ana said. It wasn’t a question, but a confirmation.
“New surroundings... and a full moon,” Chloe tried to dodge.
“A searching soul knows no rest,” Ana said in an instructive tone that instantly disarmed Chloe. “Do you even know what you’re searching for?”
“Searching? Maybe just a little rest,” Chloe chuckled nervously.
Ana wasn’t laughing. In the dim light, her eyes looked dark and even larger than during the day.
“Come,” she said warmly, her extended hand leaving no room for refusal.
Chloe hesitantly gave her hand and allowed herself to be guided into Ana’s room.
A single nightlight burned inside, casting a warm glow across a massive bed.
On a side table stood a prepared tray: a bowl of warm water, a white cotton cloth, a candle, and a small glass jar of thick honey with a silver spoon.
“Do you live here?” Chloe asked, trying to ignore how staged the entire scene felt.
Ana closed the door behind her and quietly turned the key in the lock. The muted click shut out the outside world.
“Only sometimes,” Ana said, turning back to her with a composed, authoritative gaze. “I know a game that will help you find what you’re looking for.”
Noticing Chloe’s bewildered look, Ana continued in a smooth, calm tone.
“This is no ordinary night, and tonight you won’t be sleeping until you have clear answers—and your soul is finally at peace.”
“My soul will be at peace? That sounds nice,” Chloe offered a faint smile.
“Of course. The rules are entirely simple: you remain quiet, and I take care of you. If you groan or break the rules, we start over. If you say stop, I stop immediately. Understand?”
Chloe’s breath hitched. “What kind of game is this?”
“The kind you can stop at any time,” Ana said, closing the distance between them until she was dangerously close.
Once more, Chloe was enveloped by Ana’s invisible cloud—fragrant, warm, and irresistibly magnetic.
Chloe nodded slowly, her breath tight in her chest. “Why... what is this tray for?”
Ana glanced in that direction. “I’ve been watching you all day.
I see how restless you are, how your skin radiates nervousness, and how hungry you are for the attention I give you.
Tonight, I’m going to show you what it feels like when someone slowly dismantles you down to the last piece—so you can finally assemble yourself into your true form. ”
Chloe assumed the talk of dismantling was just a mind game—a test of her restraint. She managed a small, tentative smile and waited, unaware that Ana’s promises were about to turn intensely physical.
Ana rested her hand on the hem of Chloe’s dress. “Take it off.”
“Take it off?” Chloe shivered.
“Fold the dress on the chair. Stay in your underwear.”
Chloe hesitated. “What kind of game is this, exactly?”
“Chloe, if you don’t play along, you’ll never find out.”
“And what if I don’t want to?”
“Then you can go back to your room. And try to sleep.”
Chloe trembled with excitement. None of it made sense. Just hours ago, she had been innocently driving to this estate for her friend’s wedding. Now she was standing in Rachel’s mother’s bedroom, on the verge of stripping off her dress?
“You ask for a lot,” Chloe said, desperately grasping for a reason to stay.
“Big things in life don’t come without sacrifice. And taking risks, little one,” Ana replied, calmly awaiting Chloe’s next move.
“And stripping for you... will bring big things to my life?”
“You can’t even imagine, sweetheart.”
Chloe froze, releasing a slow, shaky breath.
“Will anyone find out?” she asked carefully, her voice already carrying the compliance Ana expected.
“Only these four walls around us. And me.”
The words settled deep inside Chloe. The thought of this being their private secret felt extraordinarily intimate—sending a warm shiver straight through her body and quieted her final lingering doubts.
I’m actually doing this…
Chloe’s fingers trembled as she unzipped her dress. The silk slid over her skin and pooled on the floor. She was left standing in only a black bra and thin panties, completely exposed to Ana’s gaze.
Ana slowly appraised her from head to toe, like an art collector examining a precious, newly claimed masterpiece.
“Beautiful,” Ana rated softly. “Now go into the bathroom and sit on the edge of the tub. Keep your legs slightly apart—like the shameless girl you are. Like someone who doesn’t know how to behave in polite company. And await my instructions.”
The bathroom was clad in marble, the air smelling of fresh orange and warm steam. Chloe sat on the edge of the tub as instructed. She braced her hands against the marble rim, her thighs trembling as she opened them shyly. Just a fraction.
Ana entered, carrying the tray, still wrapped in her elegant black silk robe, which only amplified her dominance.
She slowly took the white cloth, dipped it into the warm water, wrung it out, and then—with an exquisitely slow, steady drag—placed it against the inner side of Chloe’s thigh.
At the sudden touch of heat and soft fabric, Chloe let out a shaky exhale.
“Quiet,” Ana warned her, her voice low and stern.
She moved the cloth higher toward the crease where Chloe’s thighs met her young body. And then back down again.
“Tell me, Chloe... do you know how to obey? Do you know how to follow instructions?”
“I do... I guess,” Chloe whispered.
“That’s not quite the right answer,” Ana said calmly, pressing the cloth slightly higher, right against the edge of the black lace panties. “Every indecisive answer will only prolong your waiting. Prolong your agony. Try again.”
Chloe drew a deep breath. “I do... I know how to obey.”
“Do you also know how to do exactly as I command?”
“I do.”
Ana’s subtle smile signaled her satisfaction with the answer. Using two fingers, she caught the hip band of Chloe’s panties.
“May we take them off? For the game. Just for the game.”
“For the game,” Chloe exhaled cautiously.
At this point, she was no longer sure if it was truly just a game, but she didn’t care anymore. Ana’s hold over her drove her into a longing she desperately wanted to wash away with passion.
With a fluid motion, Ana pulled her panties down. Chloe instinctively pressed her thighs together, but Ana parted them once more with a firm, unyielding pull at her knees. She looked directly between her legs, where a state of slick surrender was already evident.
“Look at you,” Ana whispered. “You’re so ready. And we haven’t even kissed.”
Kissed...
The word echoed in Chloe’s head. This definitely didn’t sound like just a game anymore.