Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 64704 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64704 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
And that's what I was supposed to do, right? Please Mr. Langston?
God, I was in way over my head.
Under the satin sheets, I felt like royalty, but I knew my place in this household. If I had a title, it certainly wouldn't be Queen or Princess.
Whore. Slave. Those were more appropriate.
I wasn't much before, but this? Someone who could be bought? How had I fallen this low?
Even if Mr. Langston was handsome and wealthy, I knew that there was something dark lingering inside of him. I just needed to keep my head down, push through this next month, and be careful not to let him destroy me.
* * *
“Wake up.”
A cold voice that I couldn’t quite place broke through the thick haze of my uneasy sleep. I woke with a start, my heart pounding and breaths heavy. My early warning system hadn't been useful. I hadn’t heard him come in at all. Mr. Langston stood over me with a dark angry scowl on his face and my collar in his hands. “Did you really think that you could keep me out of this room? This is my house!” he hissed.
“No, that's not what I meant to do,” I whispered, scrambling to sit up in the bed. “I just—”
“I'm not done. You’re not allowed to speak yet. First you block the door, and then I find that you've taken the collar off when I told you not to. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't toss you out right now?” he growled.
I couldn’t breathe. He wanted to kick me out? My heart crashed against my ribs and tears pricked at my eyes. Was staying with this man really worth not being homeless? As much as I didn’t want to be here, I knew the truth. Being on the streets wasn’t safe for me at all.
Mr. Langston's heated gaze skimmed over my exposed skin, and I pulled the sheet up tighter against my body. Despite being fully clothed, I felt naked under his angry stare.
“I was afraid of breaking the collar if I slept in it. It looks really expensive. I'd never be able to pay you back,” I finally whispered.
His features didn't soften as he tossed the choker at me. “Put it on and leave it on. I don't give a damn if it breaks. I can afford a hundred of them without breaking a fucking sweat. And trust me when I tell you that if you try to bar the door again, you aren't going to like what happens next.”
Setting rules in his house was one thing, but threatening me was another. Anger burned my throat and I couldn’t stop myself from talking back.
“I wasn't trying to block the door,” the words burst out of me. “And if you'd let me speak, you'd know that. I just don't like being surprised. I only wanted the table there to be able to hear it moving and wake me up if you came in.”
Mr. Langston narrowed his eyes, jaw clenching. “I haven't given you a reason to be afraid of me, Daisy. Please me, and I promise, you'll like everything that I do to you. You'll want to leave your door wide open and be begging me for more. Do you understand?”
“No.” Hot tears burned my eyes. “I don't understand. I don't know what you want from me, and I’ve never done anything like this before.”
Finally, his shoulders relaxed, and he sighed. “Put your things in the armoire. I don’t want to see them while you’re here, and if I do, I’ll burn them. You'll only wear the clothes I have chosen. They’re on hangers for you. Underwear included.”
Panic swelled inside me. “What?”
“Be thankful that I don't strip you naked right now,” he muttered darkly. “I'm leaving for work. There’s a letter for you in the kitchen listing your duties for the day. I have a small library that you're welcome to as well as a DVD collection, and you may use the computer in the living too. Do not enter my bedroom until I have invited you, do not enter my office, and do not leave the penthouse. When I return tonight, I expect you to be dressed for dinner and have our meal set out.”
Before I could ask for more clarification, he stomped out of the room and slammed the door behind him. Holding my breath, I scrambled off the bed and peered out the window, not daring to move until he ducked out from under the awning and entered the back seat of a dark car.
The diamonds glittered in my hand. I thought about refusing to put it on until he returned tonight, a small act of rebellion, but for all I knew, the jerk had video cameras up in the condo and could see me.
The thought shook me to my very core. Opening the doors to the wardrobe, I draped the sheet between them and ducked inside. There. Now the only way he could see is if there was a camera directly above me. Hastily, I clasped the collar back around my neck and looked at the clothes.