The Devil of Danforth Estate
Titus Danforth x Reader
WARNINGS: Dub-Con/Non-Con, blood, murder, power imbalance, exhibitionism
âĽÂ banner by @vase-of-liliesÂ
summary: You expected to sign away a piece of your soul when you were hired on to serve the Danforth family, but Titus Danforth wouldn't be satisfied until he owned you in mind, body, and spirit.
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When you were hired on to serve the Danforth familyâor the Danforth Clan as many liked to call themâyou knew that you were stepping foot into the devilâs lair the moment a huge stack of papers were placed before you to read and sign. You knew thereâd no doubt be things youâd witness and be privy to that youâd be legally barred from ever speaking about. You hadnât known then just how depraved and differently the top 1% of the world behaved, but youâd known that you were signing a piece of your soul away in a sense.Â
âŚbut when you impressively scrawled your name in cursive on that dotted line, you hadn't known youâd be signing your body away too.
Titus Danforth was a gentle brute, if such a thing ever existed. He was one half of the Danforth legacy, a title and inheritance he shared with his twin sister Ursula. He was gruff and crass and possessed a childâs demanding nature despite not having been one for decades. With all of the money in the world in his pocketâand an army of people ready to answer his every beck and call and request at the drop of a hatâhe could behave however he pleased without fear of consequence.Â
An unfortunate fact he took great advantage of.
âThis oneâs new.â
That was how you were formally introduced, the older man eyeing you in a way that felt extremely distrusting. It didnât necessarily offend you, understanding the protective nature of some rich asshole to guard his assets and livelihood. Still, the screening process to get hired onto the Danforth estate was a tedious and rigorous one, hardly a walk in the park, so he shouldâve known that no one passed through these doors without the utmost confidence they could be trusted.
Your superior, Pernilla, had taken on the task of showing you the ropes, and sheâd stopped any and all focus on anything else to give the grey-haired man her undivided attention. It was your first example as to how to act around the immediate family members, and youâd followed her lead, straightening and focusing on nothing else but him.
Such a small act had his full attention.
âYes, Mr. Danforth,â the other woman confirmed despite the fact that it wasnât a question. âSheâs one of two new editions to the staff, fully screened and hired on only a week ago.â
You hadnât moved a muscle as he eyed you, looking down his nose at you in a way that had you reminding yourself what youâd signed up for. The money you were getting just to wait on some privileged jerks had you ignoring the glint that passed through his gaze as he ran his eyes over you, slowly as if not to miss a thing.
Mr. Danforth only hummed, a low and deep sound from within his chest.
âLetâs hope you last.â
He was gone without another word, completely dismissive of your presence, and that was the last time you saw him for a while. Two months, in fact. The job didnât require much more out of you than you expected, and that wasnât to say that it was easy, but youâd been prepared for the demanding nature of your new employers. Two months. That's how long the wool stayed over your eyes, how long youâd been under the impression you were working for normal rich assholes.
âŚbut then Ursula announced her engagement and then the wedding seemed to happen only a month later and then the wedding night changed everything.
The screams that rang throughout the estate gave you nightmares for months, assaulted by the visions and memories of mopping up fresh blood off of the hard wood floors. You hadnât been able to stop shaking, a heavy weight settling in your chest as the reality of your new employer crept in. The mountain of papers youâd been forced to sign made more sense than ever in that moment, and youâd only been able to ask yourself one question.
What had you gotten yourself into?
Youâd had no way to guess that cleaning up crime scenes would be the least of your problems. Your bloodstained hands took up all of your attention as you slowly and dazedly walked back to the servantsâ quarters, cheeks damp from your tears and wondering if there was any way to get out of this. The contract was legally binding, legally preventing you from saying a thing, so surely you could justâŚleave, right?
So distracted by the physical evidence of your part in all this, you almost ran into one of the few people who could decide your fate in this household. You hadnât been able to stop yourself from gasping in shock, stopping in your tracks and lifting your gaze to his face. The first time you ever met him felt like a whole other life ago, the events of Ursulaâs wedding night serving as some paradigm shift.
There was only before and after, now.
Titus Danforth stood before you in all of his intimidating glory, made doubly so by the bloodstained shirt he was still wearing, and you forced yourself not to linger your gaze on it. He seemed to notice your discomfortâyour fearâand if you hadnât known better, youâd say he relished in it. When he took a step towards you, it took everything in you not to take one back.
âWhatâs your name?â
You forced your mind to work, blinking as you started to mumble the throw away name youâd been told to choose. However, before you could fully get it out, the older man was interrupting you with a bark of a tone. He sounded upset.
âYour real name.â
At that, you frowned, uncertainty tainting your chest. You furiously wracked your brain, accepting that you had never been trained on such a situation before. No one in the family was supposed to even care to know your real name and anything pertaining to your personhood outside of your role as their staff, let alone go out of their way to ask for it.
You nervously swallowed.
âPernilla saidâŚâ
Your quiet words died in the air as Titus Danforth slowly shook his head, stepping towards you with an unyieldingly stern look on his features. You tried and failed to ignore the way your heart raced, keenly aware of the blood on his person and the confirmation of a violent disposition. The terrifying man before you clasped his hands behind his back, and you were forced to stare into his eyes as he held you hostage in this dimly lit corridor.
âWhatâs my name?â he asked you, that gruff tone of his making the question sound like a growl.
âTitus Danforth,â you answered without hesitation.
âExactly, and that means this is my estate youâre working on, my money that employs you, and my person that your boss answers to. Do you know what that makes me?â
He didnât give you a chance to answer.
âThat makes me your boss. That means that anything Pernilla or any one of these other disposable staff members ask of you is irrelevant as far as Iâm concerned. If she tells you to go left and I tell you to go right, you fucking go right,â he said to you, and you nodded. âDo you understand? Say you understand.â
âI understand,â you forced out, finding it hard to breathe.
Your shaky breath was noticed, and you didnât like the way he straightened, eyeing you differently now. There was the faintest twitch to his pink lips, and something resembling a faint yet cruel smile lingered.
âNowâŚwhatâs your name?â he repeated, his voice softer now.
You quietly told him without hesitation, and he mimicked it.
âY/N,â he said again with a nod, voice louder now. âGo get yourself cleaned up, and bring a bottle of brandy and a fresh set of towels to my room.â
âYes, Mr. Danforth.â
At that, he finally moved again, hand coming up between you and you werenât able to stop yourself from flinching. He only held it there, and when he stepped towards you again, this was the closest heâd ever been. The silence was suffocating as he merely looked at you, a thoughtful look behind those hazel eyes.
âSir. I want you to call me sir, Y/N.â
You really hated the way he said your name, and you regretted ever telling it to him.
âYes, sir,â you whispered, and he slowly nodded, a satisfied look washing over his features.
With a simple nod, he dismissed you, and in a short time, you found yourself increasingly more worried about Titus Danforth than the bodies piling up on this estate.Â
âWhat about this one?â
You hesitated for only a moment before answering.
âThat oneâs nice.â
Mr. Danforth threw you a look at that to which you glanced away, and his deep laugh had a shiver crawling up your back.
âYou said that two shirts ago,â he distractedly replied, reaching behind his head to slide it off.
âTheyâre all very nice, sir,â you told him, an honest response.Â
You avoided looking at him as he searched for another expensive shirt that looked like any other regular shirt, wondering if you would ever stop feeling soâŚafraid around him.Â
You didnât know how nor why, but some kind of way, Titus Danforth decided that it would be you who would see to his every beck and call no matter how small it seemed. It felt like so long since you were even able to fulfill any other kind of household duty, recalling that every time you had a broom or a duster or a load of laundry in your hand, you were being summoned by the older man.
He needed a drink or he wanted a caddie as he golfed or he needed someone to lay out an outfit for him while he showered. You were hired on to answer to the every whim and need of the Danforths, but somehow it was only Titus who consumed most of your time. It was a strange position to be in, having to constantly be around this man who frightened you, but in a wayâŚsometimes you felt like his friend. Or something like it.
The man grew up with the shiniest of silver spoons in his mouth sure, but all of the money and expensive education and best nannies the world had to offer just couldnât refine the man. They couldnât make himâŚfit. The expensive clothes and the handsome face could not hide how rough he was around the edges, how much he seemed to struggle withâŚbehaving.
You, a seemingly nameless staff member, barely counted as a person in their eyes, and soâŚMr. Danforth talked. He talked about any and everything to you, some of it interesting and some of it disturbing, but forced to be his confidant regardless. You were a nobody with no one of consequence to repeat it to, and he treated you like your sole purpose was to amuse and humor him.
When you heard him approaching you again, his voice pulled you from your thoughts.Â
â...and this one?â
He was just barely pulling it on when you looked up, and you ignored his watchful gaze as he moved closer. Sometimes Mr. Danforth watched you like he was looking for something from youâexpecting somethingâand you really wish you knew what it was at times so that you could give it to him and end that observant little stare he liked to fix you with.
âThat oneâs my favorite,â you honestly told him, and he liked that.
You could tell by the way he tilted his head at you, a secretive smirk on his pink lips.
âThen Iâll wear this one.â
You nodded at that, just wanting this to be over.Â
You were sure the other staff members thought you got it so easy being forced to spend so much of your time sucking up to and answering to Titus Danforth, but it was worse than scrubbing the kitchen floors to you. The man terrified you beyond belief, even more than Chester Danforth who youâd met only on occasion, the elderly man confined to a bed most days.
Mr. Danforth was quick to reactâquick to angerâand in the time you were forced to spend with him, it became clear that the man couldnât be controlled. Ursula tried, oh she tried, but even you knew that she only had as much control over her brother as he allowed her to. Her hold over him wasnât real, very easily broken, and you tried not to linger on the things youâd seen in your time here.
âWhat will you do while Iâm gone?â
His gravelly voice had you giving him your attention, and you wracked your brain.
âYour father wants the main garden replanted, and itâs something Iâve been assisting with in between other duties.â
Mr. Danforth had a look on his features like he didnât like that, lips turned up ever so slightly as he turned his back to you, arms spread out. You rushed to grab his suit jacket from a nearby chair, helping him slide his arms through the sleeves. You didnât like the low hum that reached your ears, and when he abruptly turned around to face you, you flinched. He was so close, and his gaze slowly dropped, and you took the silent hint.
It was scary how much you grew to know him.
âI want you to wait hereâŚuntil I get back,â he slowly said as you buttoned the piece of clothing.
His words gave you pause, and he noticed.
âI donât like these stupid gatherings, and I donât want to have to hunt you down when I finally return.â
When his jacket was buttoned properly, you took a few steps back, forcing yourself to nod. You regretted it almost immediately, briefly squeezing your eyes shut.
âYou know I hate thatâŚâ
âSorry, sir.â
âI want to hear you say it.â
âI understand,â you said to him. âIâll be here.â
He fixed you with a look that you couldn't name, and then he was gone, and you let out the breath youâd been holding.
It wasnât the first time Mr. Danforth demanded you basically die of boredom in his bedroom while you waited for him to come back. Sometimes you had to when he was meeting with his father or having a drink with a friend in one of the studies or even when he went out for the night and brought some strange woman back to one of the many guest rooms. Heâd offhandedly mentioned once that he didnât like bringing women back to his bedroom.
You only guessed why when you had the unfortunate task of cleaning that previously occupied guest bedroom one day, disturbed by the alarming amount of blood on the sheets.
Too many times did you find yourself fetching him a fresh towel or something to drink or even eat in the middle of the night, doing your best to ignore his state of undress while some other staffer handled the task of escorting his woman of the night off the property. You felt like a mere object with the sole purpose of serving him in some way, like a letter opener patiently waiting in his desk drawer until it needed to be used.
You told yourself that you could be spending this time doing worse things, acknowledging that at least his bedroom was five times the size of every apartment youâd ever had. During moments like this you mostly sat around in a chair, occasionally poking around in something innocent. Even rarer, you sometimes nodded off, hard to fight sleep when Mr. Danforth had you waiting around like some dog.
âŚand it didnât help that he required so much of you.
You sometimes thought that it was fortunate you didnât get to accomplish many other household tasks because waiting after the older gentleman took so much out of you itself. It never sank in just how much youâd been running around until it was time for bed and your body felt weighed down by sand. This being one of those times.
Approaching his bookshelf, you pulled one at random and plopped yourself into a chair.
You were at the estate for a year when Mr. Danforth made you cry for the first time.
It was a miracle really that you lasted a year before he âbrokeâ you, but the circumstances didnât call for any other reaction. A year of doting on him and validating his every choice and fetching him his every desire no matter how ridiculous ultimately amounted to nothing. WellâŚit wasnât nothing, but more so the complete opposite of anything youâd ever expected.
Titus Danforth was a protective and selfish bastard when it came to anything he deemed as his. His fortune, his house, his car. Resource guarding is the term you often heard used for animals, and Mr. Danforthânot all that removed from an animalâwas very guilty of such. You were a frequent witness to the way he snapped and growled and protectively curled over anything he thought someone was trying to take from him. That description didnât seem like an exaggeration in your mind, thinking to yourself that thatâs exactly how he came off.
It didnât scare you until the thing he was viciously guarding was you.
A year of answering his every beck and call had certainly garnered you the unofficial title of Titus Danforthâs servant amongst your coworkers. His food was always handed to you, his rooms were left alone by anyone but you, and it was only you who handled his every need and request. So much so that when he needed to travel, he wouldnât hear of taking anyone but you to accompany him.
Youâd gotten sick once, and hearing that it wouldnât be you fetching his towels, he hadnât wanted assistance from anyone else. Of course, heâd made that known at the time in a way that was less than polite, but the message had gotten across loud and clear. You thought he just saw your labor and your time on the clock as hisâhis right, you supposedâbut you hadnât realized that he saw you the person, not the employee, the same way.
You made a mistake by getting distracted.
Mr. Danforthâs food wasnât quite ready when you went to retrieve it, and so youâd occupied the wait time by exchanging silly bullshit with one of the cooks you saw often. He was younger than you, but still handsome nonetheless in that boyish charm sort of way. You two werenât best friends or anything, but you were no strangers to each other. A soft laugh had been on your lips when the kitchen grew so silent so quickly, it couldnât help but to be noticed. The young man in front of you had swallowed the rest of what he was saying, looking over your shoulder now with a back so straight that you knew who was back there before you even turned around.Â
Titus Danforth wasnât looking at anyone but you when you faced him, and you swallowed at a look in his eyes you werenât used to being on the receiving end of. His hands were behind his back and his legs were spread just enough to firmly plant his feet, looking more like a strict military man than some spoiled heir. The relaxed slouch of your frame dissipated, and the older man before you took notice.
You could hear a pin drop.
âIs this how you choose to spend your time when youâre supposed to be waiting on me?â he slowly asked, a sarcastic lilt to his tone.
âNo, sir,â you hurried to answer. âYour food isnât ready yetâ.â
âSo you come back to me and tell me that,â he sternly interrupted with a nod. â...and then you come back down here and get it when it is ready.â
You swallowed, starting to nod before thinking better of it.
âYes, sir.â
Those hazel eyes of his eyed you for what felt like a long time, and youâd gotten better at not squirming beneath his gaze. You couldnât tell what he was thinking at this moment, but you knew that you didnât like it, and you didnât relax at all when he turned his attention to the man behind you instead.
âWhatâs your name?â
He accepted your friendâs response, slowly nodding.
âWhen my food is ready, you bring it to me,â Mr. Danforth pointed at him, and you fought to keep the frown off of your face.
The grey-haired man sharply cut his gaze back to you, jerking his head, and you moved quickly, not wanting to upset him further.
His footsteps were heavy behind you as you exited the kitchen, and the walk back to his room was silent. For the most part. You could hear his breathing, that's how close he was, and you could feel the heavy and heated weight of his gaze on you. You mentally scolded yourself, torn between wanting to call yourself all kinds of idiotic names and giving yourself grace for arguably the smallest fuck up you could make.
âŚand it was your first offense too.
âI want to apologize again, sir,â you said to him once the door was closed behind you both. âI didnât think it would take more than a few minutes.â
He didnât respond right away, merely looking at you as he moved about his room.Â
âUrsula has taken it upon herself to be a gracious host to some friends tomorrow night,â he finally said, completely ignoring your apology. âFind me somethingâŚnice to wear.â
You felt somewhat relieved at the direction of the conversation, a soft âof courseâ leaving you as you made your way to his closet. You knew what he liked and what colors suited him best, so you were completely immersed in your thoughts when he followed you. You hadn't even heard him approach, normally so careless about the sound of his footfalls.
âDo you like him?â
His voice surprised you, and you jumped slightly before turning to face him.
Mr. Danforth was staring at you with an expectant look on his face, brows furrowed just the slightest. He was closer than he normally stood, head tilting just a tad as you processed his words.
âIâm sorry?â
âDo you like him?â he repeated, saying your friendâs name.
Understanding washed over you, and you blinked.
âHeâs my friend,â you answered with a shrug. âI see him a lot whenever I have to go down to the kitchen.â
Mr. Danforthâs only response was a low hum, seemingly satisfied with that answer, and he took a step back just as a knock sounded on his door. You had no doubt that was the food that heâd just made such a fuss over, proven right moments later, and as you tilted your head to gaze into the bedroom, you watched the way the older man eyed the younger one. Mr. Danforth stood close to him as he watched him set down his food, thick arms crossed over his chest, and when those hazel eyes rose to meet yours, you quickly looked away.
You found it odd that he both asked for your friendâs name and asked him to bring him his food. It was unlike him, and while Mr. Danforth could be unpredictable on occasion, he was a pretty consistent man who liked his routine. Thatâs why no one was more surprised than you to be woken out of your sleep by Pernilla, the other woman telling you that Mr. Danforthâyour Mr. Danforthâwas requesting the presence of you both.
âItâs probably some poor woman heâs brought back to the estate,â sheâd mumbled as you both hurried through the corridors. âHe must need a clean up.â
Her wording gave you pause, and you recalled the blood you saw on occasion after he spent a night in a guest room. You had naively assumed things got a little rough, perhaps a nose bleed or some kink gone wrong, but it hadnât occurred to you that anyone in this family could be killing people outside of a wedding night gone wrong. Your stomach churned at the thought, but you frowned as you thought to yourself that you never knew Mr. Danforth to bring women back to his room.
Your uneasy feeling only increased when you made it through his threshold.
The older man stood there in a bloodstained shirt, reminiscent of that night of Ursulaâs wedding, and his hands werenât too much cleaner. He looked so calm, like he wasnât standing before you as some bloody mess, and you found yourself shaking much like you had that night. As you moved closer, your vision was drawn to shiny black work shoes just barely peeking out past the foot of the bed.
âPernilla, give that to Y/N so she can start wiping this up. Go bring us a mop too.â
He said the words so nonchalantly as you slowly moved further into the room, the frown on your face dropping completely.
The scream that left you sounded like something out of a horror movie, and you couldn't stop yourself from stumbling back against a nearby chair. Your hysteric reaction had Pernilla following you before listening to him, and you even heard her gasp. If she was just as shocked and horrified as you, she didnât show it, and you could feel her eyes on you as you stared at the bodyâthe familiar bodyâthrough tearful wide eyes.
âPernilla,â Mr. Danforth snapped, and she didnât hesitate any longerâŚleaving you alone with him.
He tossed the towel at you, and it bounced off of your chest and onto the floor.
âClean this up,â he spat, but you couldnât move.
The body of your friend was facing away from you, facedown but the way his head was turned on his cheek allowed your eyes to connect with his empty lifeless ones. There wasnât much blood beneath him, most of it on Mr. Danforthâs shirt, and you couldnât stop yourself from shaking. You could hear him speaking, but barely so, the sound muffled to your ears.
When he was in your line of sight again, you just stared at him in a mixture of horror and disbelief. Your body kept going back and forth from hot to cold, growing more lightheaded by the minute as the room started to sway. You hadnât even realized that your legs had begun to shake until you reached out for the chair to steady yourself.
âY/N,â he finally said your name, voice gruff and bordering on angry. âClean. This. Up.â
You just stared at him, unable to move and asking yourself why, using your eyes to ask him why.
Pernilla returned before you could move, and you could feel her looking between you both. Logically you knew that you needed to listen to him unless you wanted to lose your job or worse, but you physically couldnât move. He was giving you a demand, and you couldnât bring yourself to obey. A sob climbed out of your throat, and you tried to blink the tears away.
âMr. Danforth, Iâd be more than happy toâ.â
âNo, Pernilla,â he barked, keeping his eyes on you. âShe will clean this up.â
Your gaze turned pleading as you looked at him, slowly shaking your head.
âNo?â Mr. Danforth wondered, leaning in. âAre you telling me no?â
Your breath was coming out in chops, now, and you were finding it so hard to breathe.
âPleaseâŚplease,â you softly said. âIâŚâ
You felt like you were going to be sick, but before you could be, Mr. Danforth lunged for you. The shriek you let out was loud, a pained whine escaping you at the harsh grip he had on your arms. He was sadly just as strong as he looked, and you couldnât swallow down your cries as he all but threw you to the groundâŚright next to his body.
You were an inconsolable mess as you attempted to stand, but the older man was right there, harsh hands on your shoulders as he forced you back down to your knees. He forced the towel into your hands, his own hands wrapping around your wrists as he physically made you move yours back and forth along the bloody floor.
âPernilla, get it out of here,â he told her, and your sobs grew louder as she did just that, dragging the body of your friend towards the door. âY/N will clean up this mess.â
You could barely see through your tears, crying out every time more blood got on your hands. Mr. Danforth knelt over you the whole time, fingers harshly pressing into your skin and nose gently at your ear as he forced you to do what he demanded. When the towel had served its purpose, he repeated the actions with the mop, harshly yanking you to your feet.
Mopping up the rest of the blood felt like an out of body experience, his hands over yours and his chest at your back as he forced you to participate in the disposal of your friend. When the floor was spotless, Pernilla returned to retrieve the cleaning supplies, and again you could feel her eyes on you.
You knew what she was thinking.
What did you do? How had you offended Titus Danforth to deserve this? And how had you dragged your coworker into it? The man had so much as never laid a finger on you, and in one hour heâd yanked you around and threw you to the floor into a pool of blood. You were covered in it.
With her gone, and with the floor clean, Mr. Danforth kept a firm hold on you as he forced you into the bathroom. The bright lights had you blinking and squinting, looking down as you stumbled forward. His firm chest was still at your back, and you couldnât even linger on the oddness of that, too distracted by the blood on your hands.
When he turned on the sink, it felt almostâŚromantic as he put both of your hands under the water. The hot liquid and soap broke up the bodily fluid, and you could only tearfully watch the pink water swirl down the drain. Mr. Danforth meticulously washed both of your hands together, his even breathing in your ear such a contrast from your own. You absentmindedly noted how warm he felt against you, the smell of cigar smoke and cologne filling your nose.
When he was satisfied, he turned off the water, and he took half a second to grab a towel and push it into your hands. He held it there, and you slowly lifted your tearful gaze to meet his evenly cold one, pink lips pressed together. The grey stubble around them moved slightly as they twitched, and he eyed you with a look that made your blood run cold.
âI hope that now nothing else will distract you from me.â
An unintelligible sound left your throat at his words, and for the first time ever, you shrank away from him in unbridled fear.
Mr. Danforth watched you keenly as you wiped down his desk, and you pretended not to notice.
Youâd always been a little terrified of him, but it was different now. Seeing the aftermath of his brutality or watching him manhandle some other staffer hadnât prepared you for being on the receiving end of it yourself. Especially not in the manner you had that night, and you swallowed at the thought.
The memory of blood and a body haunted you for months, plaguing your mind with nightmares night after night. It made it hard to find sleep, and many days you might as well have been dead on your feet. Your friend had been killed because of you, that much you knew whether Mr. Danforth came outright and said it or not. He never did even try to give some half assed excuse that explained how an employee ended up dead in his bedroom, but this was the Danforth Clanâa family that practically controlled the worldâand what was one body of some insignificant employee?
Your friendâs fate often brought tears to your eyes.
Sometimes you wondered if youâd be next should you piss him off enough, but there was a part of you that vehemently denied that. Mr. Danforth seemed veryâŚintent on youâintent to watch you, intent to have you near him, intent to keep you. Funnily enough, that knowledge scared you more than anything, keenly aware of the way he studied you any time he so much as told you to get him a drink.
Tonight, it was several drinks.
âIâll be back late, but I want two glasses brought to my room,â he said to you.
âYes, sir.â
The greying man simply eyed you at that, so close and so silent as he ran his hazel eyes over your face, drinking you in. That air of distrust heâd first expressed when you first met was long gone, the older man more than sure that heâd scared you into submission, scared you so much that you would never even dream of crossing him.
You hated that he was right.
When he was around, the hours seemed to drag on for ages, but when he was gone, time seemed to fly by. Between cleaning duties and fetching a thing or two for Ursula, the hours passed swiftly, and you were informed when he was back at the estate well into the night. You were alone as you fixed the drinksâalways alone these daysâand you tried not to linger on the aftermath of that night.
None of your coworkers wanted to get too close to you, the rumors spreading amongst the staff, a mix of speculation and the truth swirling around you. Pernilla often sent you a sympathetic look when no one was looking, she being the only other witness to that horrible night and Mr. Danforthâs treatment of you. Only she had witnessed the second defining night of your time here, and as you made your way upstairs, you were unaware that a third was in the making.
So focused on pleasing him and not wanting to be on the receiving end of some other traumatic treatment, you hadnât realized what youâd walked into until you were right in front of it. You almost dropped the tray of drinks, a full bottle of some expensive Cognac in the other hand. You were quick to steady your grip, squeezing your eyes shut and turning your head away.
âI apologize, sir Danforth, I had not realizedâŚâ
Your words died in the air as you completely turned away from the scene before you.
You werenât currently looking at them, but the sight of his taught form brutally pushing into the woman beneath him was at the forefront of your mind. You could still hear her soft moans and his heavy breathing, and you briefly looked towards the ceiling, wondering if this could get any worse.
âSet it down,â you heard him say, voice strained and tone thick with an unsatisfied appetite.
You did as he said, placing everything just as he liked it, fully prepared to leave.
âDid I say you could go?â
His question had you halting your steps, and your lips parted as you stared at the wall in front of you. The woman he was with made a slight noise filled with frustration and confusion, and you noted that you didnât hear the soft movement of the bed anymore. A chill passed through you as you internally wondered if this was actually happening, and you felt you shouldâve known this night was going to be off when he brought a woman back to his bedroom.
You knew Mr. Danforth was entirely serious, and your shoulders sank.
âTurn around.â
The huskiness of his tone has you shuddering, and you hesitated for half a second before doing just that.
You stared at the wall behind them, forcing yourself not to cry at the trajectory of your night. The room was filled with silence, and you could feel his gaze on you, watching you and watching your reaction. You didnât understand why he was doing this, but then he told you to look at him, and your frown deepened.
When you did, he held your gaze for a few seconds before he started moving again. Your brows twitched as he fucked some woman youâd never seen before, her tan skin contrasting against his pale hue. She didnât seem to mind, at all that you were an unwilling voyeur to this, and when the older man looked down at the woman beneath him, you looked away.
That lasted for all of four seconds.
You heard her gasp in shock and when you looked over he was up and coming towards you. You couldnât stop your eyes from widening, keeping your gaze on his face as Mr. Danforth approached you in all of his naked glory. The muscles in his arms and chest moved with every step, and your employer didnât stop until he was right in front of you.
His bare chest heaved as he stared you down, nostrils flaring.
âWhat did I say?â
Your face was on fire, but your eyes were anything but, looking at him pleadingly.
âSirâ.â
Your words were cut off as he roughly grabbed your chin, holding it in his hand as his gaze passed between your own. You glanced behind him briefly, noting the way the woman was propped on the bed, an impatient look resting on her face. When you looked at him again, his thumb brushed along your skin, and you were sickenly aware of his state of undress and his close proximity.
âYou will look at me, and if I catch you looking away, Iâm going to be very unhappy,â he gruffly told you.
When you gave him the response you wanted, a tear skipping down your cheek, he turned his back on you.
Forced to watch this, you couldnât do anything but wring your hands together, flinching every time his palm sharply came down against her skin. She seemed to like it, and you wished you could disassociate on command, but alas you were acutely aware of everything. Every groan he made, every curse that fell from his lips, and every animalistic noise that climbed out of this throat. You were even aware of the way his tongue touched his lip as he watched himself disappear into her and the way his stomach tightened with every push of his hips.
You felt yourself shudder every time his gaze lifted to you, and you knew that Mr. Danforth had no doubt you wouldnât disobey him. He just wanted to watch you watch him fuck this woman. Those hazel eyes of his wanted to watch you squirm with discomfort, wanted to look at you as you observed him in his most bestialâyet vulnerableâmoments.
Your skin was warm and your head was spinning and to your great dismay, there was tightening that had begun in your lower stomach. You hated this, and youâd only been more miserable one other time in your life, but even still the sight before you had you squeezing your thighs together, wholly ashamed of what was happening.
âŚand when he came inside of her with a brutish grunt, pinning her beneath him and a thin layer of sweat coating his frame, you couldn't have run away faster, consequences be damned.
The trajectory of your relationship with Mr. Danforthâwith Titusâshouldnât have surprised you.
âŚand yet it did.
It seemed that he didn't want to deal with the hassle of a body every time he wanted to break you a little more, so his new favorite pastime was getting his rocks off with you as a witness. Nameless woman after nameless woman was brought onto the estate, and night after night, you were forced to stand there and watch as he fucked every single one. You wondered if this was your punishment after running out that first night, or if this was inevitable and staying put wouldnât have changed a thing.
Every time he finished inside of them, he crudely sent them on their way, promising that someone would see to it that they get home. They would leave while still struggling to get their dress zipped up or their underwear completely on, and Mr. Danforth would stride around you as naked as the day he was born, telling you to turn his shower on while he nursed his drink.
This psychosexual torture he liked to engage in was messing with your head, and he knew it, and you often wondered what the end goal was. Maybe he took pleasure in just messing with the staff, with you, or maybe this was all part of some drawn out punishment for offending him months ago. You often wondered when it would end, when he would grow bored of tormenting you or bored of even just having you around.
It had never occurred to you that he was purposely fighting against something that was inevitable.
Titus Danforth wanted you, and not just in the way that a spoiled child wants his favorite toy all to himself. He wanted every part of you in his hands and beneath his lips. He wanted all of you in every way he could get you, and the countless women he fucked underneath your terrified gaze served a purpose of satisfying the twisted sexual craving he had for the very same woman he was forcing to be a witness to his depravity.
You didnât know any of that though.
Not until he was gruffly telling you to sit on his bed one day.
Youâd hesitated, glancing at the untouched dinner you brought him, and you could tell by the darkening look in his eye that he didnât want to have to tell you twice. Your heart was in your stomach as you slowly walked towards the impressive piece of furniture, legs shaking with every step. You didnât want to believe what your mind was lingering on, but something in the back of your mind scolded you, calling you a fool for never considering this is where youâd end up.Â
Any man that could kill without so much as a blink or ounce of remorse was a deviant, and any man that could force you to watch him have sex with countless women with no care to how uncomfortable it made you was a sexual deviant. It made sense in the moment that he wouldnât just stop there, and still you hoped. His eyes never strayed from you once, and giving him one last glanceâlooking for anything that might ease your worriesâyou leaned your hands and backside against the mattress.
You didnât miss his slow exhale as you pressed down, sliding back.
âRight there is just fine,â he said, forcing you to stop, just seated on the edge.
The silence surrounding you was deafening, and Mr. Danforth only stared at you for a moment or two before slowly walking towards you. You couldnât stop yourself from swallowing at his approach, and you had no doubt that he noticed. You didnât take your eyes off of him as he stood this close to youâtoo afraid toâand you only had a few seconds to mentally prepare yourself for whatever was about to happen.
He was slow to kneel in front of you, and your fearful confusion morphed into just plain old fear when his hands found a home on your knees, slowly pushing. You couldnât stop your lips from trembling as he parted them slightly, hands sliding up your thighs to meet at the button in the center.
âI donât want you wearing these pants anymore,â he quietly said to you from in between your legs as he unbuttoned them. âA skirt. Youâll look nice in a skirt.â
Your gaze slowly lifted to the ceiling as he curled his fingers over the top of your slacks, yanking and jerking them until he was sliding them off of your legs. If he noticed the tears in your eyes, tears that eventually fell, he didnât say anything. He likely didnât care.
When he leaned in, you could feel his breath on your clothed skin, your legs trembling when he slowly parted your thighs further. His rough fingers gently brushed along your flesh, and you heard him deeply inhale the closer he got. His fingers were getting dangerously close to your underwear, and you could only close your eyes as he hooked a finger into them.
The tip of his tongue touched you as he held the fabric to the side, stretching it to give him access. It was a featherlight touch, and yet you jerked all the same. Your nails dug into his bed as a means to cope, wishing that you could just push him away and run off of this estate without fear of consequence, never looking back. As it were though, all you could think about was bloodstained shirts and dead bodies and a family with enough money to make you disappear a thousand times over.
Mr. Danforth gently touched you with his tongue againâŚand again, and when he did something unexpected, pressing an open mouthed kiss to your mound, you couldnât hold in your gasp. It seemed to trigger something in him, a switch turning on as he practically growled against you before leaning back and roughly ripping the thin scrap of fabric past your thighs and off your ankles.
When the older man fully pressed his mouth to your cunt, you tried to control yourself. One of your hands slid to behind your back, struggling to remain sitting up as his stubble scratched against your thighs in a way that had you squirming. His hold was tight on you as he ate at you, tongue sliding between your folds so slowly and in a gentle way you didnât expect. When he yanked you just a little more towards the edge, your arms faltered, and you desperately wanted to remain as unfazed as you could.
âŚbut Titus Danforth was good at what he was doing.
When he sucked at your flesh in time with pressing his tongue to your walls, you let out a shuddering breath against your will. The longer he moved his tongue inside of you, the harder it was to remain sitting up, lashes fluttering as you desperately pressed a hand to his head. He didnât budge, and you sank your teeth into your lip.
You wanted him off of you.
No such thing was going to happen though, you knew that, and you whined in frustration. When he spread your thighs further, your arms finally caved, failing you and you stared at the intricate designs on the ceiling when you fell back. Your thighs were trembling, and steady moans started to crawl out of your throat, each one louder than the last.
You could hear yourself pleading, sometimes pleading for more, sometimes pleading for him to stop. His fingers dug into your thighs painfully as he held you open for him, and your head slowly moved from side to side in time with the heaving of your chest. When you dared to look down, all you saw was a vision of silver in between your thighs, and you threw your head back once again.
When you came, it was with an embarrassing whimper, eyes squeezed shut and thighs pressing against his head. You came so hard it almost hurt, and Mr. Danforth didnât pull away until he felt like it, mouth completely pressed to you as you fell apart onto his tongue. When you tried to crawl away, he just held you in place, lazily curling his tongue into you and making your toes flex.
When he finally pulled away, letting you go and allowing your legs to drop, the tears finally spilled over. You laid there on his bed with tears running past your ears as he stood over you, and you didnât know where to go from here. You didnât want to look at him, just waiting for him to dismiss you so you could be free to lose your mind in peace.
When he eventually did, you couldnât get away from him fast enough, grabbing your underwear and your pants with a quickness that surprised you. Your speedy exit however was stopped by a harsh grip on your arm, and when that harsh grip became outright painful, you were forced to meet his gaze, shrinking away at his close proximity.
You didnât know what he was thinking as he intensely eyed you, and you flinched when he jerked his head.
âMy food is cold,â was all he said, making you deflate.
When he let you go, you took a few shaky steps away from him, struggling to organize your thoughts.
âYes, sir,â you forced out with a nod. âIâll get you a new plate, right away.â
You felt nauseous as you grabbed the tray, legs unsteady as you walked towards the door. He didnât stop looking at you once, and you felt deeply uncomfortable with every step you took, cringing at the wet feeling between your thighs as you made your way back down to the kitchen.
Titus Danforth was an insatiable man.
That one evening in his bedroom triggered a chain reaction of events that werenât surprising to you, just disappointing and terrifying. The number of women he brought back to the estate decreased until he eventually brought none back at all. Why would he now? That was what you were forâa âwillingâ and bought body that couldnât fight back or refuse him.
You didnât know if youâd ever get used to the sound of his heavy breathing washing over you, a rough and tight grip in your hair as your lips covered his cock. That was mostly what you did at first, suck him off during just about every visit, and that seemed to be all he wanted for a time. That and spending the occasional afternoon with his face between your legs, making you fall apart again and again when you were supposed to be steaming his clothes or dusting his furniture.Â
It almost seemed like he was holding himself back from crossing another lineâthe final lineâbut you knew that it would be crossed eventually. He was never going to be satisfied with just the feel of his cock in your mouth, inevitably giving into that hunger for more. It was an every day thing, his hands on or in you, curling his fingers into you and massaging your walls, whatever task youâd been in the middle of long forgotten.
It went unnoticed. After all, it wasnât unusual for Titus Danforth to take up so much of your time, and itâs not like the sexual abuse was taking place anywhere outside of his bedroom. For the time being anyway. The toll it was taking on you, however, did go noticed, and Ursula merely pursed her lips at the third piece of china you broke this week.
âIâm so sorry, Ms. Danforth,â you hurried to say, looking for something to clean it up with.Â
You didnât even bother giving some excuse, only struggling to avoid her thoughtful gaze as she looked down at you. A soft hum left her throat, and her heels slowly clicked against the floor as she circled you.
âMy brother isnât working you too hard, is he?â
You almost laughed at the loaded question, schooling your features and looking up at her with a tight smile.
âNo, Ms. Danfoth,â you lied. âI just havenât been sleeping very well.â
That part wasnât a lie, and the half truth seemed to satisfy her although it did nothing to lessen the frown on her face. Ursula was by no means a good woman, but you knew that she didnât appreciate her brotherâs brutal nature. Especially when it came to women, and she only watched you for a moment more before telling you to be swift in cleaning up the mess.
Ursula was smart, and you knew that she didnât fully believe you, but clearly she didnât feel unnerved or worried enough to press it further. Her brotherâs attachment to you was no secret, and truthfully, sheâd probably long seen where this would inevitably lead before you had. Even if you did tell her the truth, you knew that she couldn't stop him, Ursula having no real control over Titus.
She wouldn't have been able to stop him from killing your friend just to scare you into submission nor stop him from forcing you to be a witness to whatever depravity he was up to at night nor keep his hands off of you. She especially wouldnât have been able to stop him from fucking you.
There was nothing special about the day he first pushed his cock into you.
The sun was shining and the food you brought him was only half eaten and heâd only taken a few sips of the brown drink you brought him before he was roughly reaching for your face. Heâd never kissed you before, and the action took you by surprise, a noise of shock escaping you. His hands were tight on your face, holding you so fiercely that you couldnât even think about getting away.
Your hands against his chest meant nothing as they became pinned between you, and as he pressed himself against you, you could feel him. You could feel his arousal, feel how hard he was, and you knew then that he had no intention of stopping. He had no intention of letting you walk out of that door without knowing what it felt like to be stretched around himâto be dominated in the way that mattered most.
You hadnât been prepared for all the biting.
Titus liked to leave little nips along your neck and shoulder and even breasts, hands painfully tight on your skin as he drove himself into you again and again. The bands of muscle that were his arms rippled with every movement, and you hadn't been able to swallow down a single noise as he fucked you into his bed, his bare skin slapping against yours.
However brutish you thought he was during the day was nothing compared to what he was like when he had you wrapped around his cock. He was borderline feral, noises leaving his lips that sounded a lot like the growl of some predatory animal enjoying the taste of its prey. Every movement from you resulted in him tightening his hold on you like some constrictor, satisfied at the way you could barely move beneath him, serving your only purpose of taking the length of him with ease.
Titus fucked you well into the evening, coming into you with loud groans before catching his breath in the crook of your neck. You laid beneath him shaking like a leaf, chest heaving and skin glistening with sweat. When he eventually pulled out of you, any thoughts you had of leaving were shut down as he gruffly told you to get his shower going for him.
You hadnât expected him to pull you inside with him, feeling wholly out of place as he showered with his back to you. Youâd glanced at the exit through the glass shower door, turning back only to find his intense gaze on you. He said nothingâhis eyes saying it allâand youâd swallowed as he moved closer, handing you a bar of soap and turning back around.
âMy back,â was all he mumbled, and you listened to the unsaid request.
When you were done in the shower, you hadnât been prepared for him to force you to your knees, a harsh grip in your hair as he pulled you closer.
Titus loved the sight of your lips wrapped around him, sometimes more than satisfied with just that, sending you on your way for the time being with the taste of him lingering on your tongue. But he didnât love it more than being inside of you, looking the most at peace youâd ever seen him when he was watching his cock disappear into you.
Every chance he was presented with, he was fucking you with a vigor that always left you so worn out. When he summoned you to his room at night or when he bent you over his desk and even when he had you on his bathroom counter, your lips parted and head forced back as he yanked on the hair at the nape of your neck.
âLook at me, Y/N,â he breathed, thighs pressing against yours. âLook at me.â
There was an edge creeping into his voice when he repeated himself, and you obeyed him, tearful eyes on him as he pounded into you. Your uniform was haphazardly thrown somewhere, and one of your hands was pressed against the hard wood of his desk, the other pressing into his defined chest. Your breathing was choppy and your eyes were fluttering, the weight of unfinished tasks and all that came with Titusâ demanding appetite catching up to you.
âKeep them on me,â he told you. âI want you to look at me when I fuck you.â
The desk shook beneath the force of his thrusts.
âI want those pretty eyes on me when I take you apart.â
His nose brushed against yours with every movement, and you fought to hold his gaze, recalling the last time you disobeyed him. Your backside had been sore for days, shuddering at the memory of his hand coming down again and again onto the sensitive skin of your ass cheeks.
Titus always talked to you during like a normal coupleâtelling you what felt good, telling you what he wanted you to do, praising you. It was an interesting position to be in because hours later, heâd be treating you like the servant you were, but somewhere in his twisted mind, this whole arrangement wasâŚnice. To him, this was wholesome.
So much soâŚthat when Chester Danforth demanded a marriage and an heir under threat of revoking the fortune, Titus Danforth would not consider anyone but you.
âŚwhatâŚ?â you breathed, frowning at Ursula, tears collecting in your eyes.
She looked just as distraught as you though she did a much better job of hiding it.Â
When she requested your presence in her study one morning, youâd had no way of guessing what this could possibly be about. All sorts of possibilities ran through your mind, your unconventional dynamic with her brother being at the top of the list. Youâd been wracked with nerves the whole way there, and the words she said to you were the absolute last thing you'd ever expected.
âItâsâŚnot going to happen,â she slowly told you, leaning against her desk and gazing down at you. âTitus is no better than a child with his favorite toy of the week.â
You took no offense to her analogy, often repeating something similar yourself.
âAlthough I shouldnât be surprised at the true nature of yourâŚrapport.â
She made a slight face at her choice of word, and you swallowed. The blonde woman didn't miss that, and she pursed her lips, something akin to a look of sympathy on her beautiful features.
âMy brother has never had any qualms about getting what he wants, no matter how frowned upon or uncouth it may be. I canât imagine what youâve endured.â
You blinked back tears, looking away and shaking your head in disbelief.
âFatherâs putting his foot down and giving us an ultimatum and Titus is lashing out,â she assured you. âThatâs all this is.â
That's what she said, but somehow you still found yourself standing before Chester Danforth in all of his sickly glory, having a discussion with him you never thought youâd have.
âWhat is the nature of your relationship with my son?â
You said nothing to the ailing man, pressing your lips together as you fought the urge to tell him that his son was a depraved rapist, fully aware that the man in question was just outside of that door. When your lips quivered and you looked away, the older man made a noise.
âAh.â he quietly said. âI feared that was the truth of it.â
You werenât some gold digging whore after the Danforth fortune, and you werenât some wanton maneater looking to get your claws into Titus Danforth. You were a woman who realized too late that she signed every single part of her away on that fateful day, and that was the gist of what you said to him.
âIâm sure you can find some other womanâany womanâwilling to be his bride who he will be satisfied with.â
The other man coughed, an awful hacking sound, and you flinched.
âHe demands no one but you,â he finally breathed. âHe is entirely willing not to fight me on thisâŚso long as it is you.â
You looked down at that.
âThat is the only satisfaction he seeks.â
You wracked your brain, fully prepared to come up with some other argument when he spoke again, completely quieting your fears.
âIt will not happen,â he said with so much conviction that it shouldâve offended you, but you were only glad to be in agreement with the dying oligarch. âI will not give into his childish whims.â
The old man told you that, and you certainly believed it, but even he hadnât been able to predict the ruthlessness Titus could possess when he felt like he was being controlled.
Chester Danforth died peacefully in his sleep, and for a long time, that's what mostly everyone believed, but only you and a few others had been privy to the screams that night. Only an unlucky few heard the sound of Ursulaâs panicked voice bouncing throughout the corridor walls, asking Titus what heâd done. Only you had the luxury of stripping the old manâs former bed, shaky gaze locked onto the small spots of blood on his pillowcase.
It wasnât long before Ursula was singing a different tune, and you didnât know what Titus said to her, but sheâd only watched in perfect silence and an unspoken disapproval as her brother presented you with a ring. Youâd stared at it in horror, stomach churning to a painful degree, and you made the mistake of looking to the blonde woman for help.
âDonât fucking look at her,â Titus snapped, and he forced your gaze back to him. âWhat are you looking at her for?âÂ
He tilted his head at you, that hazel stare of his so intense, and you could feel your legs shaking.
âTitus,â you breathed, a few tears finally spilling over.Â
You could tell he was getting angry, his chest starting to heave, and when he pressed his chest to yours, all you could do was squeeze your eyes shut. The ring carried the weight of the world as he slid it onto your trembling finger.
The wedding was a small intimate affair, only close family in attendance, many of whom youâd met before but under completely different circumstances. On one hand, you felt like you shouldâve counted yourself lucky to be marrying into the Danforth family, but you knew you held absolutely no power even though you carried the name.
The ring, the dress, the ceremonyâŚnone of it was proof of your transition from a nobody to someone with a hand in the biggest influence over the world. It was not a ceremony that propped you up as an equal, worthy of walking side by side with Titus Danforth as he controlled the seat in tandem with his sister.
You were official property now.
The ring may as well have been a collar, the dress a noose, and the name a brand placed upon your skin. You were not Titus Danforthâs wife now, but his property with nothing to your name that wasnât acquired through him. He owned you with pride, and as you said âI doâ and allowed him to fiercely press his lips to yours, there was no escaping him.
Your only hope was the wedding night.
The fucked up tradition was no secret to you, and as the defining moment drew closer, you could only hope that youâd pull the one bad card. You practically prayed for it, knowing that youâd only escape your new husband through death, and some part of you wondered if he would have what it took to do it should fate have other plans for you that didnât involve a married life with Titus.
You begged and begged and begged for it, desiring death over this.Â
You considered it an act of mercy, one you hoped you were granted, and as you all sat around the table, no one was more nervous than you as that old intricate card dispenser was passed from hand to hand and then finally you. Your left hand felt weighed down by the ring you didnât want, and as you turned the box in your grasp, you briefly glanced up at Ursula.
You knew if it came down to it, sheâd have no trouble killing you.
The thought almost made you smile, but you didnât, glancing over at Titus as he leaned back in his chairâŚwaiting. You looked around at your other new in-laws too, your veil grazing your cheek as your heart raced. You could tell by the sound of him shifting that Titus was growing impatientâanxious to see how this night would progressâand you flinched a bit when the box clicked, the sound of your fate ringing in the quiet room.
You felt yourself go stiff when the card was finally in your hand.
You could hear a pin drop, thatâs how quiet it was, and the longer you stared at the card, the more your heart started to race. Your lips trembled, and you couldnât stop yourself from collecting tears in your eyes, wanting a hole to swallow you up.Â
âWhat does it say?â Titus impatiently asked, and when you didnât answer he took it from you.
The tears finally spilled over just as you looked up at Ursula, a familiar deep laugh reaching your ears.
âShe got Old Maid,â he huskily said, flipping the card around to show everybody
Light laughs reached your ears, and you tried to hide just how upset you were, but when your gaze met that of your husbandâsâŚhe saw. He saw the sadness and fear and even disappointment, disappointment that you wouldnât be killed tonight, and his jaw clenched.
You paid for it later when it was just the two of you, consummating your marriage in true traditional fashion. Your dress was a bundle of white on the floor, and Titus had your legs wrapped around his waist. His strokes were slow and torturous, his heavy breathing mixing in with yoursâhis excited and yours pained.
His hand was tightly curled around your throat, thick fingers harshly pressing into your skin as he leisurely fucked you. He didnât take his eyes off of you once, wanting to witness every part of you tonight, basking in the spoils of his victory.
Titus had you, officially and legally and bloodbound and all. The heaviness of your vows still rang throughout your mind, and youâd wanted to faint as you agreed to âthe possession of each otherâ. Maybe in some sick twisted way youâd never understand, Titus did belong to you, but all that mattered was that you belonged to him. The ring on your hand was proof of such.
His other hand pressed into the mattress as he curled his hips unto yours, basking in the feel of you clenching around the length of him, moving inside of you with ease. It still embarrassed you how wet you could get when he was fucking you, desperately wishing that your body could be as repulsed by him as your mind.
His facial hair gently grazed your skin, almost like a kiss, when he leaned closer. He didnât look away from you once, and you winced when he tightened his hold on your neck.
âI know you wanted to die tonight,â he whispered to you, and you bit your lip. âI know you wanted to pull that card and just wait for one of us to kill youâŚto take you away from me.â
A particularly hard thrust had you gasping, and Titus hummed.
â...but Mr. Le Bail wouldnât do that to me. Iâve always followed the rules, always played the game well, and youâre my reward.â
You sniffed at that, struggling to breathe under his grip.
âYou are my pretty little prize, Mrs. Danforth, and you are never getting away from me.â













