so.”
“Very good to hear because I’m going to show you more of the man you seem intrigued with. Follow me.” He didn’t wait, knowing without a doubt she’d follow. No other woman had been here. No other woman had been allowed to see the real man, the one he’d hidden from everyone his entire life. As he walked down the long hallway, his thoughts remained unsettling. Letting his beast out wasn’t something he’d ever believed could happen, or should happen for that matter. Few could understand the complex nature of his makeup. Fewer still could ever tolerate what he required.
Jess remained quiet as she followed. Her breathing was shallow.
He opened the set of double doors and as he pushed both to the side, he heard her slight gasp. A tingle of raw excitement surged through him.
“These are yours?” she asked as she walked inside.
Glancing around the room, Craze had never really looked at the number of paintings he finished over the years. Painting was his respite, his ability to break free from the tentacles tying him to a life he sometimes loathed. “Yes.” He realized he was nervous as she studied his art, the true window to his soul. When she turned to face him, her eyes shining, he was vindicated.
“They’re amazing, absolutely incredible. This is what you do for a living?” A smile curled across her lips, she walked through the various canvases, her look full of astonishment.
Craze chuckled. “No. Quite frankly, I don’t think they’re good enough except for over my fireplace mantel.”
“You’re wrong.” Her smile broadened as she glanced at him. “They’re amazing, so rich in detail. They depict strangled emotions, a deep seeded yearning for something we all have but so terrified and conflicted we refuse to reach out.” She lifted her arm, her finger hovering over the face of a woman shackled to a cross.
“I don’t think the majority of people would appreciate.” Her words were stilling.
“You’re wrong. They’re a very telling statement as to the intimate yet locked away aspect we all endure.”
Endure. The word was intriguing and very much the way he grasped life. He endured his position of leadership, going through every day as required. “Painting frees me.”
She nodded, sipped her wine and looked away. “Are they women you’ve been with?”
Craze moved behind her, placing his hand on her hip. “No other woman has ever been here, nor has any lover or girlfriend known the man inside.”
“You say the words as if a submissive is very different, as if the dark and light side of you will never co-exist.”
The very thought had entered his mind over the last two days. Could he enjoy a romantic and very vanilla relationship with someone he longed to shackle and enslave? The answer was daunting. “I’m never attempted. In truth, I’ve never found anyone I wanted to share this side of my world with. Until now.”
Jess shuddered. “Why me?”
“Because there’s a spark about you, an amazing ability to allow me to be myself.”
She shot him a look. “That’s only part of the reason.”
How was she able to see past his bullshit? The question he knew the answer to instinctively. “Because you’re the woman I want to own. I’ve already told you that.”
“What does ownership mean to you? Owning a woman must be complicated.” She continued to sip her wine, her eyes darting back and forth. When he didn’t answer right away, she moved to another picture.
Complicated. He could see the sheen of perspiration covering her face. Excitement bristled every cell, heightening his intense desires, and he kept his distance. “Everything. I want to own every part of a woman. Her heart. Her body. Her will. Her very soul. There are always complications, my dear.”
She closed her eyes, swaying back and forth to the music. “True enough.”
He wanted this moment to last and was terrified to scare her away, but he couldn’t hold back any longer. After taking a gulp of
“Very good to hear because I’m going to show you more of the man you seem intrigued with. Follow me.” He didn’t wait, knowing without a doubt she’d follow. No other woman had been here. No other woman had been allowed to see the real man, the one he’d hidden from everyone his entire life. As he walked down the long hallway, his thoughts remained unsettling. Letting his beast out wasn’t something he’d ever believed could happen, or should happen for that matter. Few could understand the complex nature of his makeup. Fewer still could ever tolerate what he required.
Jess remained quiet as she followed. Her breathing was shallow.
He opened the set of double doors and as he pushed both to the side, he heard her slight gasp. A tingle of raw excitement surged through him.
“These are yours?” she asked as she walked inside.
Glancing around the room, Craze had never really looked at the number of paintings he finished over the years. Painting was his respite, his ability to break free from the tentacles tying him to a life he sometimes loathed. “Yes.” He realized he was nervous as she studied his art, the true window to his soul. When she turned to face him, her eyes shining, he was vindicated.
“They’re amazing, absolutely incredible. This is what you do for a living?” A smile curled across her lips, she walked through the various canvases, her look full of astonishment.
Craze chuckled. “No. Quite frankly, I don’t think they’re good enough except for over my fireplace mantel.”
“You’re wrong.” Her smile broadened as she glanced at him. “They’re amazing, so rich in detail. They depict strangled emotions, a deep seeded yearning for something we all have but so terrified and conflicted we refuse to reach out.” She lifted her arm, her finger hovering over the face of a woman shackled to a cross.
“I don’t think the majority of people would appreciate.” Her words were stilling.
“You’re wrong. They’re a very telling statement as to the intimate yet locked away aspect we all endure.”
Endure. The word was intriguing and very much the way he grasped life. He endured his position of leadership, going through every day as required. “Painting frees me.”
She nodded, sipped her wine and looked away. “Are they women you’ve been with?”
Craze moved behind her, placing his hand on her hip. “No other woman has ever been here, nor has any lover or girlfriend known the man inside.”
“You say the words as if a submissive is very different, as if the dark and light side of you will never co-exist.”
The very thought had entered his mind over the last two days. Could he enjoy a romantic and very vanilla relationship with someone he longed to shackle and enslave? The answer was daunting. “I’m never attempted. In truth, I’ve never found anyone I wanted to share this side of my world with. Until now.”
Jess shuddered. “Why me?”
“Because there’s a spark about you, an amazing ability to allow me to be myself.”
She shot him a look. “That’s only part of the reason.”
How was she able to see past his bullshit? The question he knew the answer to instinctively. “Because you’re the woman I want to own. I’ve already told you that.”
“What does ownership mean to you? Owning a woman must be complicated.” She continued to sip her wine, her eyes darting back and forth. When he didn’t answer right away, she moved to another picture.
Complicated. He could see the sheen of perspiration covering her face. Excitement bristled every cell, heightening his intense desires, and he kept his distance. “Everything. I want to own every part of a woman. Her heart. Her body. Her will. Her very soul. There are always complications, my dear.”
She closed her eyes, swaying back and forth to the music. “True enough.”
He wanted this moment to last and was terrified to scare her away, but he couldn’t hold back any longer. After taking a gulp of
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