Chapter 6

“Do I own you, Courtney?” His voice was dark as he asked her quietly. “Are you mine?”

“Yes, Michael.” Courtney replied softly. “You own me.”

“Good girl.” He responded. “So now,” he continued, “we’re going to get a few things straightened out.”

“Okay?” Courtney said, questioning his statement.

“First thing, you’re going to withdraw the restraining order. You’re going to tell them that you don’t feel you need it since I haven’t been a threat.” He watched Courtney shudder nervously as the thought of the restraining order and the reason behind it entered her mind. As the thoughts played across her face, he saw the fear flash through her eyes as she looked up at him. “You’ve given in, Courtney. You don’t need to fear me.” His voice was hushed as he spoke.

Courtney nodded, swallowing hard before agreeing. “Okay.” She said, her voice tense. “What else?”

“When I call for you, you will come to me. Without delay.” He looked at her ominously. “I’m not forgiving if you test my patience.” He watched her eyes widen as fear began to return to her. She opened her mouth to speak, but she fumbled for words. “Speak, girl.” He snapped. “Tell me what you are thinking.”

Courtney closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “What about Dylan? What if I’m out of town or something? What if I can’t do what you expect of me?” The panic was evident in her voice as she tossed her questions at him rapidly.

Michael chuckled at her. “Oh sweetheart, you and your innocence.” He said, reaching out to touch her face. “As far as Dylan, this arrangement would be the same as any other secret lover would be. He won’t find out. This will be discreet. You’ll make up an excuse.” He studied her as she weighed the words. “In short, you’re having an affair with me.” He noticed the way that she winced when he said ‘affair.’ He eyed her questioningly. “You don’t like that word.” He stated.

“No.” Courtney replied, her voice dropping.

“He’s cheated on you, hasn’t he?” Michael asked, his eyes narrowing at her. He could see the answer, but he wanted her to admit it.

Courtney was kicking herself for letting it slip. He now had something else to hold over her. “Yes.” She admitted, painfully.

“And you’ve been faithful,” he pressed, watching the tears building in her eyes as he pressed her, “it absolutely kills you, doesn’t it?”

“Yes.” Courtney replied, looking down. Her voice had taken on the tone of defeat.

Michael laughed. He reached out, grasping her chin and tilting it toward him, leaning close to her face. “It’s more fun in hell, Courtney,” he growled. “You can’t always be perfect.” The look in his eyes as he stared into her made her nervous, but also reached to that intimate place again, and she gasped quietly in response.

“You will get used to it. You will become skilled at hiding it.” He continued, quietly. “Eventually, you’ll have two lives. Your everyday life, and mine.” He watched the way his words hit her, the way they played in her eyes as he spoke. His influence over her drove him crazy. “It will become easy.” Courtney contemplated what he had said as she looked at him. He was waiting for her to reply. He stared at her intensely, his dark eyes burning into her. “Well?” He asked, impatiently.

“What if I can’t do it?” Courtney asked nervously.

Michael’s hand moved from her chin to her throat. “You will do this, Courtney.” Her eyes widened in fear as his fingers curled around her throat tightly. “You are mine. You’ve agreed. What is there to dispute?” His voice was a snarl as his anger flashed in his eyes. “Do I need to demonstrate how easily I can control you?” She looked up at him pleadingly, her green eyes wide with fear as he moved and stood before her, looking down at her darkly.

“No, Michael, that’s not what I meant!” Courtney stammered anxiously as he tightened his grip on her throat. She looked at him in a panic as she struggled to explain. “I mean, what if I can’t do what you want me to ... what if I don’t know how?” Her voice cracked as her breath ran short.

He broke into a wicked grin as he loosened his grip on her throat, watching her gasp for breath. “Then I will tell you what to do. I can be patient if I need to be, Courtney.” He replied as he stroked the side of her face. “You and your innocence,” he sighed, “you’ll find that I’m not always cruel.”

Courtney winced at his touch. “Are you really that inexperienced, or are you just toying with me?” He asked, looking at her expectantly.

“I’m not overly experienced, Michael.” She admitted, embarrassingly. She looked down nervously as she avoided his stare.

“That’s not a bad thing.” He replied quietly. “It means you won’t have as many bad habits to break.” He smiled as he studied her. “Maybe you’re not as broken as you think.”

“Michael,” she started, her voice defensive, “the hell I’ve been through surpasses even what you’ve done.” Her eyes darkened as she stared at him. “But yet, I still can’t tell you to go to hell.”

Michael looked at her darkly. “You aren’t a pushover, Courtney.” He pulled her to stand in front of her. “You have no idea how alluring that feistiness is.”

He stared into her eyes as she looked at him anxiously. “You still fear me.” His voice was low as he watched her reaction.

“Yes.” Courtney replied. “It’s not just going to vanish, Michael.” She looked at him innocently. The way her eyes desperately tried to read him, how she tried to hide her fear was driving him crazy. “Not after everything.”

“I told you, you don’t need to fear me unless you act out.” His voice was quiet as he touched her face. “Now,” he whispered as he smiled darkly at her. “Come here.”

He turned her around, bending her over the bed. Before she could react, he drove himself into her again. She whimpered as he grabbed her hips, thrusting deeper into her. Her knees buckled at the intensity of the feeling as he pounded her. She dug her nails into the bed, grabbing at the comforter trying to hold herself up as her body began to shake. She cried out as he continued fucking her roughly.

His hands grasped her by the shoulders, pulling her up as she tried to stretch forward onto the bed. “Stay up.” He growled. The intensity was starting to become too much for her. Her legs began shaking as she began panting with each thrust. She moaned loudly as he dug his fingers into her hips, thrusting faster. She cried out as her climax hit, causing her knees to buckle in response as she collapsed forward onto the bed. She moaned as he grabbed her ass, digging his fingers in as he slammed himself into her repeatedly until his own orgasm hit.

He groaned as he emptied his load into her, feeling her body shaking and throbbing around him. When he finished, he withdrew from her, pulling her to her feet. He turned her around to face him, and pushed her down to her knees.

Without hesitation, she took him into her mouth, sucking and cleaning their mixture off of him. He groaned at the feeling of her tongue working him over. “Good girl,” he cooed as she finished, “You do that well.”

She looked up at him expectantly, waiting for him to speak next. “You can get up. You don’t have to stay down there.” He said quietly. He watched her as she stood.

“Go shower.” He said. “I’ll be downstairs waiting.” She nodded as he zipped his jeans up and walked away.

As she stood in the shower, the hot water cascading over her, her mind began racing. She shook her head angrily. “This has to end. It’s going to end.” She said to herself as she turned the water off.

While she dressed, she saw the black case of Dylan’s pistol sitting on the top shelf of the closet. Trembling, she reached for it. As she opened the case, fear crept into her mind. “I have to do this.” She told herself as she clicked the magazine in place.

Dylan had left the pistol and loaded magazines in their closet just in case there was trouble. Had he not been so worried about Michael’s threat of slitting Courtney’s throat the night he demonstrated his control over her, he would have used it himself.

“You know it’s here. You know how to use it.” Dylan’s voice echoed in her head as she closed her eyes. She stuck the pistol in the back of her jeans as she pulled the back of her long sleeved shirt down to cover it.

“Lock your arms. Line it up. Don’t flinch when you fire.” Courtney heard Dylan in her mind again as she stepped out of their closet into the bathroom. She tousled her hair nervously before taking a deep breath.

As she walked down the stairs, the anxiety she felt was boiling inside of her. As she saw Michael sitting on the couch, she almost ran back up the stairs. She was having a difficult time controlling her fear.

He heard her coming down the stairs and turned to look at her. He held her phone as he smiled darkly. “Give it back, now.” She snapped. “It’s locked anyway.”