His Possession (The Owners) (20 page)

Violet was going to throw up her lunch. No way could Cadeon be anything like the way this woman described. There was no way. He was sweet and tender. She knew about his dominance, but that had always been part of him.

She rubbed her cold arms and wished the woman would get up and leave. Anne shouldn’t have let her open the door.

“You won’t last long. He’ll see you’re not like me, and you’ll join the many other women he’s tried to put in my place. I don’t know why he won’t just propose to me. I can give him everything. Respect, obedience and a good woman to come home to. What exactly can you give him? You’re a nobody from nothing. Everyone will laugh at him because of you.”

The lash of words struck Violet as no other physical hit could. Her head ached, and the way the other woman kept raising her voice and pointing her finger made it harder for Violet to focus.

“I think she’s heard enough from you,” Anne said the moment she entered the room. The tray of tea was placed on the nearest counter. “I want you out of this house. Cadeon will hear about this.”

“Doesn’t matter, Anne. I’m leaving.” Olivia picked up her bag and made to leave the room. “If you’re in doubt of what I mean, go to the top floor to the door on the right. It’s always locked, but you can open it with a combination of zero, zero, zero, one. See who’s lying then.”

The door slammed making Violet jump. Seconds later Anne walked back into the room. “That spiteful bitch. She deserves a good fucking slap.”

“Don’t worry about her. She’s only trying to warn me.”

“I don’t call that warning, love. I call that being fucking spiteful.”

The day had been ruined by Olivia’s presence. Violet got up and moved around the house. She stopped and stared at the stairs, Olivia’s words going through her mind once more.
“If you’re in doubt of what I mean, go to the top floor to the door on the right. It’s always locked, but you can open it with a combination of zero, zero, zero, one. See who’s lying then.”

****

Cadeon wasn’t in a good mood. His business was taking time away from being with Violet. So many errors and boring meetings. He wanted to go home and sink himself in the scent and pleasure of his woman. Glancing down at his watch he saw it was almost five in the afternoon.

The telephone on his desk rang once again. “Hello,” he said logging off his computer.

“I’m sorry to bother you, Mr. Ashwood,” Anne said on the other line.

“How many times do I have to tell you to call me Cadeon? You keep switching between my name and that of my father. I don’t which person you want me to be.”

“Violet had a visitor today.” Anne didn’t listen to anything he said. She simply moved on with what was bothering her.

“Who came to visit?” he asked intrigued about anything to do with the woman who’d taken his heart.

“Olivia.” The one word stopped him in his tracks. That woman had been causing him problems for some time. She couldn’t take no for an answer. His mistake with that woman had been thinking he could control her.

“She said some things,” Anne said, cutting into his thoughts.

“What kind of things?”

“Private stuff. She knows about your room, Cadeon.”

Anne had been with him for as long as he could remember. She knew more about the Ashwoods than any other person. Her family could be trusted. Her own husband had been like them
, p
ossessive of his wife
,
and everyone had gotten on perfectly.

“She’s withdrawn. You need to come home.”

“I’m on my way.”

He finished shutting down the computer, his heart beating in his chest. If Olivia had ruined any of his chances with Violet, he would make sure she suffered.

His driver was waiting for him as he came out of his building. Telling him to put his foot down, Cadeon phoned his ex-sub’s number.

“I wondered when you’d call,” she said with a purr.

He felt disgusted he’d never seen this side of her before. The revulsion threatened to swallow him up.

“This isn’t a social call.”

“Then what could my Master have to tell me that he would need to phone?”

As she spoke, Cadeon came up with a good thought to pay her back. She loved her life and the lifestyle he’d brought her with the clubs. All she needed to do was say his name and she’d be allowed in many, if not all of the exclusive, BDSM clubs. He wasn’t hard
-
core within the lifestyle, but he was a Dom; and what she’d done needed to be punished.

“You’ve broken one of the club’s rules, Olivia.” A club known as Ravage was the one he talked about.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said.

“Going to a Master’s home without their permission is against the rules. You’ll find the punishment more suited to your situation.”

“You can’t do anything, Cadeon. You’re not a recognised Dom. You haven’t taken your woman with you or been present inside the club in months.” He heard the panic in her voice but refused to cut her any slack. She’d purposefully gone out of her way to make his life hard.

“You shouldn’t have fucked with me, Olivia. If there are any damages between Violet and me, I’ll hold you personally responsible,” he said.

“She’s not good for you, Cadeon. How can you be open with her the way you are with me? I can take everything you dish out and more. Please, think about this,” she said. He heard the begging tone to her voice. Closing his eyes he thought about Violet. Her sweetness, the need he felt to mark her skin and to show her his dominance. The edge he was standing on was becoming harder to sustain.

“This is the last time I’ll speak to you on this matter. You’ll leave Violet alone, or I’ll be forced to take matters further. Do you understand me?”

“I love you, Cadeon. I could be the right woman for you.”

“Do you understand?”

“Please,” she said.

“Olivia!”

“Yes, I understand.” She hung up seconds before he ended the call, closing his eyes as he knew the damage she would have caused.

Pulling up outside his house, he stared at the old building. In the sunlight the house that had been in his family for generations looked gorgeous. A place to call home. When the darkness of a thunderstorm loomed, like now, it looked like a house from a horror movie. Buttoning his jacket he walked inside. Anne stood near the door. He saw the concern.

“I had no idea Olivia would defy you. I should have been the one to answer the door,” Anne said.

“Where is she?” he asked. The house was deathly silent.

“She’s upstairs, in your
room
,” she said with emphasis on the last part.

Cadeon knew where she was.

“Take the rest of the afternoon off,” he said.

“Please, tread carefully with her.”

“I love her, Anne. I would never hurt her. I’d hoped to spare her this for some time.” He saw Anne out before looking up the stairs.

The beat of his heart pounded in his chest as he moved up the flight of stairs and down the corridor to the one room he kept for his play time. The door was open slightly, and he could hear her heavy breathing. In the last few weeks he hadn’t bothered to venture into the main room. He’d been afraid of what would happen if he let this side of him loose. The window was covered, the only light coming from the single bulb. This room he’d had converted when he’d first moved in. He loved to play at Ravage. He’d made a name for himself as a hard but trustworthy Dom.

He never wore leather or any of the ge
t
-up some of the people associated with Dominant
s
. He loved wearing his suit and being every bit the dominating boss. The persona he gave was the person he was. Nothing about him faked. Everything came from him naturally.

“I heard you had a visitor today,” he said, leaning against the doorframe. She tensed and turned to face him, her face pale.

“You could say that. The woman practically handing off your body the other day.”

His body froze at the sound of her voice. He heard the challenge within her tone, and the man he’d tried to keep at bay rose to the surface.

“Be careful how you speak to me,” he said. The bench in the centre of the room was at the ideal height to bend her over and spank her ass. He owned a paddle that would be the right size for her full ass.

“That’s what Olivia warned me about. You hadn’t shown me your true self.”

“Olivia is wrong.”

“Is she? Do you need this stuff? I thought the possessive thing was the worst, but you like to hit your woman?”

Tears were shining in her eyes. The panic and lack of understanding were winning her over.

“This isn’t what it looks like.”

“No? Then explain it to me because all I see is a wealthy man who has a special room to beat a woman up.”

“This isn’t like that. I would never hurt you, Violet.” He moved closer into the room and ground his teeth as she took a step back. “Don’t pull away from me. I’m your Master.”

“What is this room, Cadeon?” she asked.

He remained silent, staring straight at her. This is what he was afraid off. Unleashing too much of himself and watching her withdraw from him. He saw it in her eyes. The fear rising inside her. This room wasn’t what she imagined. This room had the potential to make their relationship so much more. The trust required was something she couldn’t comprehend. Olivia had done a number on her. When he introduced her to this part of his lifestyle, he’d hoped to have experienced some of the lighter stuff.

Closing his eyes, he counted to ten as she repeated the question. He’d have to risk everything and hope she trusted him.

Chapter Nineteen

“What is this room?” she asked again. The walls were painted black, and the furniture blended in with the walls. The only colour in the room was the red silk sheet on the bed. The light came from a single bulb above them. The room had no personality and was an oddity she couldn’t understand. After what Olivia had told her, her curiosity had gotten the better of her. She’d sought out the room and been scared by what she’d found. 

“I think you know.”

Violet didn’t know. She didn’t understand why this room existed. With the way he was about his possession of her, why did he need a room like this? Going to the centre of the room, she ran a hand over the bench. It looked similar to a work
-
out bench but sturdier. Putting her back to him made her heart pound. She knew in her heart that he was the same old Cadeon, the man she’d come to love, but looking at him, he seemed different to her. A little bit scarier. His arms had been folded as he stood in the doorway. She took a breath and then turned back to him. 

“I don’t understand what’s going on. What are you? What is this?”

“I think you know,” he said.

“If I knew I wouldn’t be asking you. I don’t understand this.” She stared along the walls and at the bench, the bed. The room looked out of place, and it scared the shit out of her. Cadeon had left her for the day, and Olivia, an ex-girlfriend, had visited and now this. She hadn’t expected to find this room, believing the other woman had lied about the room. Turning back to face him, Violet felt the pulse of her blood beating in her veins. Biting her lip she tried to think about all the revelations of the past few hours. Cadeon was a possessive man, not some kind of Master. Then she recalled the time in his office when he’d told her to call him Master.

He took a further step inside the room, and she took a step back. Her nerves were getting the better of her.

“I won’t hurt you,” he said.

Violet burst out laughing. “You won’t hurt me? Everything in this room looks designed to give people pain.”

“It is.”

Her heart raced, and the need to escape intensified. She had to leave. To get before something happened they would both regret. 

“I’ve got to get out of here,” she said. Violet was level with him on her way out of the room when Cadeon caught her with an arm around her waist. “Let me go.”