“Open it.” He smiled.
I tentatively tookthe box from his hand, pulled the ribbon off, and opened the lid tofind a beautiful platinum diamond studded infinity ring fromTiffany’s. I had always wanted one, but now that it came fromDarren, I just wanted to throw it to the floor and crush it undermy foot.
“Do you like it?” he asked me.
“It’s beautiful.” I smiled like Miss FuckingAmerica.
Darren then tookthe box from my hand, pulled the tiny ring out, and slipped it onmy left ring finger. My eyes widened in shock as I looked up athim, hoping my suspicions were mistaken.
He just chuckleddown at me. “No, it’s not what you think it is, princess. It’s justthere to keep this finger warm until I decide the time is right.Consider it a gift for the dramatic improvement in your behavior aswell as a promise for the future, which I expect to lastinfinitely.”
“Thank you, Darren. I love it.”
I fucking hatedit. It matched my fucking cuffs!
“I’m glad,” he said and then his expression became veryserious. “It is never to leave this finger. Is thatunderstood?”
“Yes, of course,” I said a little taken aback by hisabrasiveness.
“Good. Now, I have another gift for you. Followme.”
Oh,no.
He took my handand led me downstairs to the foyer where we stopped and he smiled down atme.
“This is your gift,” he said slowly holding his arms out andlooking about. I gave him a very confused expression as I looked inall the same directions he had. “I’m officially giving you theability to roam the house while I’m gone. I think you’ve provedwell enough that you are capable of following my rulesand should, therefore, receive a reward for pleasing me the way youhave.”
I blinked a fewtimes, really wondering if I had even heard himcorrectly.
“Really?” I asked softly, disbelief filling myvoice.
“Yes, really,” he replied.
I was in shock. Ihad wanted to be able to leave my room so many times only to havethe slight reminder of a minor shock instead. And now, here I was,finally able to explore and live just a little bit. I was sooverfilled with joy that I ran over to him and slammed him in a hugso tight I thought I would break his bones, but of course, he feltnothing.
“Thank you,” I whispered against his chest. “Thank you somuch, Darren.”
His arms wrappedaround me and held me in a tight embrace as he kissed the top of myhead. “You’re welcome.”
He then held meback by my shoulders and lowered his face to mine. “You are stillto remain indoors at all times. No going outside, Jaden. If you candemonstrate your ability to continue to follow my rules, that couldchange eventually, but I need to see how you handle this first.Don’t disappoint me.”
“I won’t,” I vowed.
“Good girl. Now, let’s go upstairs so you can thank meproperly.”
ChapterTwenty-Seven
Fuel
Another week went by after that, and I feltso much better being able to roam the house while Darren was away.There was so much to explore and do, and I could feel my spiritsfinally lifting. Each day after breakfast, I would wash my makeupoff, work out and train for an hour or two, shower, and make myselfpretty all over again. My workoutsdid wonders for the depression that had been slowly seeping in, andI looked forward to it every day. I could feel myself gettingstronger, and it wasn't long before my body began to bounceback. Darren still had not supplied me with boxing gloves, andI think he was afraid I’d break another nail again. Stupid girlyconcerns.
Now that I was able to roam, I had a betteridea of the staff who helped manage the estate. I discovered therewere, at least, five guards whoroamed the inside of the house and three who guarded the outside.They never spoke to me, but I knew they were watching me, reportingmy daily activities to Darren. I was careful not to draw too muchattention to myself as I was still plotting my escape. I had madeit through phase one; now, I just had to be able to make itoutside.
The rest of the staff was quick to ignoreme. There were a few maids here and there along with gardeners andpeople who tended to the grounds. Once I thought one of thegardeners had recognized me. I had been watching the birds throughthe windows and caught him staring at me as if he was trying toplace my face. I had glanced at him for only a second, but theglimmer in his eyes told me he suddenly knew who I was. A twinge ofpanic had filled my stomach then as I wondered if he would act onit, and then I sighed to myself hoping he wouldn’t because he wouldjust get himself in trouble. I left the window then, hoping hewould forget about me. I was still lonely, but at least, I had so much more to do with my time.I welcomed the distractions, but with more privileges came moreresponsibilities.
When Darren came home, he enjoyed hunting medown and fucking me, no matter where I was or what I was doing.Some days, he would throw me over his shoulder and carry me up tohis bedroom, and other days, he would call ahead to one of theguards, telling them to inform me to be waiting for him at the dooror in his bed the second he came home. I had to admit the smile onhis face when he first walked through the front door did make mefeel pretty special. I hated that I felt that way, but mysubconscious was clinging to any feeling that made me feel good, nomatter who or what it came from.
How I ever got past the disgust of him beinginside me, I’ll never know. I had somehow trained myself to forgetand pretend it was consensual, but the more I pretended, the more Icame to realize a disturbing change in my body. The oddest thing tocome out of my conditioning was the horrifying surprise
