Page 101 of Hot Ghost Summer

He pulls back and uses my pinned arms to steer me from the wall across the room. “I gave you a rule: I told you—expressly—not to go back to Plot Forty-Seven. That it wasn’t safe. And you did it anyway.”

He guides me through to the bedroom.

“But Brigid was—” I protest.

“In danger, and a friend, I know. I understand,” he interrupts. “You wanted to save her because you’re a good person with a kind heart.”

He relinquishes his hold, places a firm kiss on my temple, and commands me to, “Stay.”

I do as I’m told, but only because I’m torn. His quiet voice, soft praise, and easy affection make me want to crawl inside him and never emerge. They’re safe. He’s safe. But that same quiet tone is laced with danger. His soft words disguise hidden sharp edges, and that easy affection is a reward… and where there are rewards there are also punishments. And punishments carry an appeal all their own.

Methodically and precisely, he rolls the sleeves of his shirt to his elbows. “So nice to be back in proper clothes. You enabled this, did you know that?”

I shake my head—no, I didn’t.

“The moment I shared my form with you, when we merged on a cellular level, you gifted me this.”

He takes hold of my chin once more, that vein in his head throbbing. I stare at it.

“But I only needed to do that because you disobeyed me. And as perfect as you are, Baby, I need to know that when I give an instruction like that—for your safety—that you’ll follow it.” He kisses my open mouth, then sits on the edge of the bed. “I’d give up every one of my luxuries to know that you’re safe.”

“I will be, I promise. I won’t do it again.”

“You will. It’s who you are, Theo. Selfless and reckless. My beautiful brat. But you have me now.”

Unaccustomed to being spoken to this way, a blush creeps over my cheeks, and I dip my head. But worse is how my thoughts swell and churn in the face of this kind of intimacy.

As if he can feel the storm brewing in my mind, he issues a single-word command in an iron-backed tone that drops like an anchor. “Strip.”

I don’t hesitate. I latch on and let him guide me away from the chaotic surface down to the still depths below. I rip my T-shirt over my head and toe off my sneakers. Each item of clothing I shed becomes symbolic. No matter how much the tempest rages above, Hollis is the steadfast counterweight whose unyielding grip will stop me from being dragged to ruin.

Unless, of course, he’s the one doing the ruining.

Those electric eyes cast an appreciative gaze over my nakedness, then he holds out his hand in invitation. I accept; there’s no one else I’d rather drown in.

“Your body recognises me, but has your mind worked out what I am to you yet?” He rubs cooling circles over my wrist with his thumb. “I’m your safe space, Theo. Somewhere you can always come home to. Can you feel me?”

My cock bobs in answer, and I hum my agreement.

Like a baited hook, Hollis reels me in. “Good. That’s my promise to you, Theo. With me, you’ll learn your limits. Learn the rules.”

Standing just off Hollis’s knees, I stiffen. “Rules?”

Hollis pats his lap. “Oh yes, rules.”

I don’t move.

“You’re beautiful in your freedom, Theo. Truly. But sometimes that freedom is too big. It offers too much space, and in that space you can get lost. You can go too far.”

My brow furrows as it scrunches over the bridge of my nose. “Like… getting myself possessed?”

Hollis hums, “Like that.”

He tugs me closer, and I realise he means for me to lie across his lap. Holy fuck, yes!

How many times have I dreamed of having someone care enough about what I do, or don’t do, to punish me for it? Too many, but there’s never been anyone who wanted to take me on. Until now.

Eagerly, I do as expected, and make sure when I lie down that my aching dick is positioned carefully between Hollis’s knees.