Chapter 50: Bound By Fire
Diane sat stiffly on the examination chair, her skin still tingled from the pulses of the laser treatment.
The scent of antiseptic and clean linens filled the air, but none of it distracted her from what had just happened.
’Isla...’
Gabriel’s sister.
The way he had embraced her, the warmth in his normally cold expression—it had shaken Diane in a way she couldn’t quite explain.
Gabriel returned moments later, shutting the door behind him.
His usual smirk was back in place, but there was something else in his eyes now—something strange.
That gapped mouth, and extremely lowered eyebrows.
"We’re having dinner with Isla and her husband tonight," he announced, rolling up his sleeves again as he walked back to her.
Diane’s brow furrowed. "We?"
Gabriel leaned against the tray table, crossing his arms. "Yes, we."
Diane scoffed. "I didn’t agree to that."
His smirk deepened. "You don’t have to."
She clenched her fists. "Gabriel—"
He reached out suddenly, gripping her jaw between his fingers, tilting her face up to him.
"Listen carefully," he murmured, his thumb brushed over her lower lip.
"You’re mine. My toy. My wife. And when I say we’re having dinner, we’re having dinner."
Diane’s breath hitched, but she forced herself to glare at him. "I’m not your toy."
Gabriel chuckled, his grip tightened slightly. "Oh, sweetheart. You love pretending you’re not."
She jerked her head away, but his hands were already moving, sliding down to her shoulders, then lower—ghosting over her bare back where the laser had just burned into her skin.
She sucked in a sharp breath.
It hurt.
A searing, stinging pain, like fire licked across her scars.
Gabriel smirked at her reaction. "Hurts, doesn’t it?"
She bit her lip, refusing to make a sound.
He leaned in, his lips hovered against the shell of her ear. "Tell me, Diane... how does it feel?"
She swallowed hard. "Like hell."
Gabriel’s hands drifted lower, slipping down her sides, fingers pressed into the sensitive flesh of her thighs.
"And yet..." His grip felt stronger, forceful as he spread her legs apart, stepping between them, his breath hot against her cheek.
"You haven’t told me to stop."
Diane’s body tensed. "Gabriel—"
His fingers trailed higher, teasing, slow, making her ache in a way that was just as torturous as the laser burning into her skin.
His voice was a husky whisper. "Does the pain make you remember?"
Diane’s breathing was uneven now, her body felt torn between the burning stings across her back and the heat pooling deep in her stomach.
He dragged his lips down her jawline, pressing soft kisses against the sensitive skin of her throat.
"You always did like a little suffering, didn’t you?"
She clenched her fists, trying to resist the way her body reacted to him. "You’re sick."
Gabriel chuckled. "And you’re addicted to it."
The next pulse of the laser sent another wave of pain through her, making her gasp.
But before she could recover, Gabriel’s hands tightened around her thighs, keeping her open, keeping her helpless beneath his touch.
"Do you know why I’m doing this?" he murmured, his lips touched her collarbone.
Diane tried to calm her breathing. "Because you’re a sadist?"
His teeth grazed her skin, making her shudder.
"Because I own every part of you, Diane."
His fingertips pressed against her, slow, teasing her mercilessly.
"Your body. Your mind. Your pleasure. Your pain."
She whimpered, in some weird agony and unbearable want.
Gabriel smirked against her skin. "Say it."
She gritted her teeth. "No."
He pressed harder.
"Aaah!" She let out a breathy moan before she could stop herself.
Gabriel pressed it harder. "Say it, Diane."
She shook her head, refusing to give him the satisfaction.
He let out a sigh. "Stubborn as ever."
The laser pulsed again, making her arch slightly in pain, and Gabriel used that moment—his fingers slipped beneath the last remaining barrier between them, pressing just enough to make her tremble.
Diane gasped, her nails dug into his arms.
"You hate how much you want this," Gabriel murmured, kissing just below her ear. "Don’t you?"
She couldn’t answer.
Didn’t want to answer.
Because the truth was dangerous.
Because the truth was—
Yes.
Yes, she hated how much she wanted him.
Gabriel pulled back slightly, watching her with knowing, predatory eyes.
"We’re not finished here, sweetheart."
Diane’s breath came in painful gasps.
Gabriel lifted her chin, smirking. "But for now... I’ll let you breathe."
With that, he stepped away, leaving her aching, furious, and completely at his mercy
Gabriel watchee Diane with a smirk as she tried to control her breathing.
Her body was still trembling—from the pain of the laser, from him.
"Relax," he murmured, running a hand through his hair as if he was the one who had been tortured. "I was just kidding."
Diane’s dazed eyes hardened instantly. "Excuse me?"
Gabriel tilted his head, a lazy smirk tugged at his lips. "Did you really think I was going to stop?"
Before she could respond, he was on her again—his fingers gripped her jaw, tilting her head back so she had no choice but to look at him.
"I never let my toys go unfinished."
Diane’s pulse spiked. "I hate you."
Gabriel laughed, and then muttered. "And yet, you’re still here. Still burning for me."
His fingers trailed down her spine, over the freshly lasered skin, making her arch slightly at the raw sensation.
He pressed a soft kiss against her collarbone one more time, then another, slower this time, just to tease her.
Diane clenched her fists. "You’re insufferable."
"And you," he whispered against her skin, his hands touching and going back to her thighs, spreading her legs just enough, "are still trembling."
She swallowed hard.
Gabriel grinned. "Tell me, sweetheart... is it from the pain?" His lips hovered just above hers, not touching, just taunting."Or is it from me?"
Diane’s breath hitched, and Gabriel—smug, victorious—pressed a single, lingering kiss to the corner of her mouth.
"Ga-Gabriel..."
He unbuttoned her pants, and forced his fingers inside her private parts.
"N-no!" She pushed him back, lowering her head, frowning with her whole face.
Gabriel just touched her with a tip of his finger, "this says different..." he smiled when he took it out, showing her the wetness he absorbed.
Then he really stepped back.
"Now," he said, adjusting his sleeves like nothing had happened.
"I have a gift for you."