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I can’t believe he’s looking at me there. Humiliation rises hot and fast as I bury my face in my arm with a whimper.

Edwin turns me around and tangles a hand in my hair, forcing me to look at him.

“Can’t speak now? Are you too shy, baby?”

Hearing him call me that so easily sends my pulse straight between my legs. I nod.

“It’s gonna be fun pushing you right to the edge of what you can take.” As he circles me, his hand trails lazily over my stomach and up my chest to grab a breast and squeeze. “You’re gonna hate it. You’re gonna suffer.”

His lips press to my neck, sending a chill down my spine.

“And you’re gonna cum until you can’t stand it.”

My thighs draw together, rubbing my clit just enough to send a jolt of pleasure through me.

“Through all that, you will learn you can trust me,” he continues. “That out of every person on earth, I am the one who will care for you. I am the one utterly devoted to your prosperity.” His mouth tilts. “And you’ll feel how addictive pain can be.”

I stare up at him as he comes back in front of me, and I already believe him. Extremes are all part of his nature, and they’re becoming part of mine too.

Behind me, he runs his hand down the center of my back before landing a spank on my ass. They start slow, alternating between cheeks. Each impact builds on the last, heat spreading and deepening until it’s all I can focus on. When his hand speeds up, a helpless whine slips from me as I drift from fear to surrender, the pain growing too much, too fast.

It stops suddenly and he walks away. I sniff back tears and drag in a breath, lifting my head just enough to track him.

A row of impact devices hangs on the wall. Various whips and paddles that I’m not sure I could handle.

Edwin chooses a crop—long, with a small flap of leather at the end.

My body stiffens as I stand up straight, my attention locked on what he holds.

He returns to my side and runs the crop over my chest, pressing it against my breasts.

“I know you’re scared.” The crop traces a trail down my stomach, between my legs. “But you will come to enjoy this, angel.”

The leather traces around my body as he moves behind me. I don’t want to think of anything else, only Edwin. He’s here. He’s in control. I have nothing to worry about.

This isn’t out of anger.

The crack of the crop against my skin is louder than I expected. I startle at the sound as much as the sharp pain it elicits from my backside. My body contracts away from it as he rains down several more hits.

Each concentrated strike has more of a bite. More focused. More demanding. I cry out again, my body continuing to recoil, trying to brace for the next hit. My eyes burn with tears I refuse to let fall.

He lets the pain deepen and spread until it becomes the only thing taking up space in my mind.

No amount of squirming and whining convinces him to stop. My ass is burning, far beyond a simple sting. The next strike erupts across my skin like a thousand needle pricks.

When he steps in front of me, I assume the hard part is over. He’s giving me a break, letting me stand here panting as my ass burns.

Until he swats the crop on the underside of my breast.

My pained shriek barely conveys my suffering as my sensitive flesh lights up beneath the sharp strike.

“That’s it. Let it out.”

He taps it lightly against my breast before bringing it down hard on my nipple. Tears drip into my lashes as my body recoils. I’m too focused on the pain to notice his grin until he lowers the crop.

“Spread your legs.”

His gaze drops to where the next hit will land, and I automatically whine in protest. I took it on my ass and my breasts. My skin is already on fire.