Pride Read Free

I let his hand direct me, until I was kneeling, looking him in the eyes.
    “You’re strong, more powerful than most males, and I need to make sure we both know you’re my lioness. A simple fucking isn’t going to do it. You know I’m going to have to break you. As leader of your little pride, you understand what I have to do, don’t you?”
    “Yes, My King, but I’m not accustomed to lions explaining themselves ahead of time.”
    “I told you, I’m holding onto my humanity. I don’t always explain beforehand, but I know you’re in a position to understand.” He nodded towards my stocks. “Put your neck and wrists in.”
    I tried to stand, tried to do as he said, but my lioness wanted me to fight. I fought her, and stayed still, forcing my eyes down so I wasn’t looking him in the face. “I don’t think I can, Your Highness. I can control her enough to keep from fighting you, but not enough to put myself in the stocks. Can you help me, please, My King?”
    He released some of his power, so I could barely breathe again, and I stood and turned towards the stocks. Walking felt like wading through pudding, his power filled the room so, but it suppressed my lioness enough I could walk to the stocks and settle my neck and wrists into the slots.
    Is there anything more humbling than being locked into equipment you made with your own two hands? I’d never intended to be the recipient here — they were built to hold my underlings, members of my pride who needed to be reminded of their place. Never me.
    The Amakhosi locked the top piece down and I knew there was no way I’d get out. I’d built it to hold lions, not just lionesses. I wasn’t going anywhere.
    A full-wall mirror was mounted in front of me, but I’d installed curtains in front of it, so I could choose whether my victim could see herself — and me behind her — or not. The curtain was closed now, thank goodness. I didn’t want to see myself like this.
    Iron rings are securely chained to the floor, placed so the victim’s legs are held apart, for when I want to fuck them without being kicked.
    He didn’t bother securing my ankles, and I had my feet together, trying to be as invulnerable as possible, which was a joke. He could do whatever he wanted to me, whether I was restrained or not. All he had to do was unleash his power and I’d spread my legs as far as he ordered.
    He started with his belt. He didn’t double it over, but used it as a strap, laying a line of fire across both of my ass cheeks. I screamed and tried to run in place after the first burning strike, and he gave me a few seconds for the pain to fully register before swinging again.
    After the first couple of dozen strikes, there was no time in between — he rained them down on my ass, thighs, and back, paying no mind to my screams and pleas.
    I don’t know how long he beat me. Maybe fifteen or twenty minutes, if I had to guess, but when you’re in that kind of a panic, feeling more pain than you’ve ever felt in your life, time does screwy things.
    When he finally stopped, he opened the curtains over the mirror, looped them over the side hooks so they stayed, and ordered, “Look at yourself, Jessica.”
    I did as ordered, and didn’t recognize the red eyes and splotched face of the woman in the mirror.
    His voice was once again soft, gentle.
    Deadly.
    “Ask me for ten more.”
    I looked at him, our gazes met in the mirror, and I begged, “ Please don’t make me, My King!”
    “Are you going to disobey an order?”
    Such a casual tone of voice, as if he were asking if I was going to stop at the store on my way home.
    I shook my head and forced the words out through my tears. “Please, My King, may I have ten more?”
    I could run for miles without being out of breath, and yet I couldn’t breathe fast enough, now, and my lungs burned while every cell of my body screamed for oxygen.
    “Since you asked so nice, we’ll make it six instead of ten. You’ll thank me for every