His to Own (His to Own #1) Read online

  Instead of trying to find a way out of the building, she tricked us. It took searching the entire building complex, over three hours doing so, to find her. I had men looking on every level, in every room and in every nook and cranny.

  She was nowhere! How the heck was that possible?

  I was sure she wasn’t looked over by any of my guards, as my men knew what would happen if so. They knew if they wanted to keep on living to not even think about touching my property other than to deliver her back to me.

  After searching everywhere I could think of, even the janitor’s closet and still no sign of the girl, I went back to the apartment, thinking maybe she went back there.

  But she hadn’t.

  I had no idea what I was going to do. Was there anything I could do? I didn’t even know what I would do when I did find her. Because I would. She would not get away that easily from me.

  Jonas’s text came through minutes after I searched the apartment, causing a breath of relief and frustration at the same time ghost past my lips.

  Found her. On roof

  ~ Jonas

  I didn’t bother to reply, taking the stairs up to the roof exit. She was smart, that was for sure. I certainly would never question any of her answer’s she’d eventually give me.

  Once more, I had no idea what I was expecting, but it wasn’t what I found.

  Jonas lifted his chin towards the left, where Avidya sat, basically unresponsive. Tears fell from her eyes as though she didn’t even notice them. Her knees were bent, her arms trapped between them and her torso. She sat there, staring off into the brightening sky. What was she thinking about?

  “Avidya?” I called out to her, but she didn’t answer. Didn’t even jerk at my presence.

  After getting no response from her, I did the only thing I could think of. I pulled her into a hug, hoping it would at least bring her out of whatever she was in. Once she was against my chest, her tears only increased.

  I had seen many women cry; it comes with what I do. Sometimes, I get off on their tears. Being a Dom, it was just as it was. Some of the women had asked for it in some way. But Avidya’s tears hurt me, which shouldn’t have been possible. I hardly knew the girl further than the surface. With her crying so hard, so desperately, was not something I knew how to handle.

  I held her as she cried, mumbling incoherently while doing so. I didn’t say anything, just held her in my arms. Maybe after she’d get it out of her system, I could get some answers. I owed her a few myself. It took about half an hour, and although she still hiccupped, she had calmed quite a bit.

  I was able to stand up with her clinging to me. I could have made her walk, easily, but I didn’t want to lose the contact with her just yet. I liked her holding onto me. She was warm and fit perfectly against me. Right then and there, I knew she was mine to keep, even if she didn’t agree.

  I knew I couldn’t make her love me, but I would show her that I did care about her after I got things in motion. She was mine. No one would take her from me.

  I wasn’t the type to fall for anyone. I loved myself. Only myself. It was a risk to love anyone, so I didn’t. I learned to hide the fact that I loved my own parents to any degree. With Avidya in my arms, hands around my neck and head laying limply against my shoulder, her fight gone, I couldn’t help but want more. More of this. More of her.

  And I would have more. She was mine.

  After getting back to the apartment, which was as I left it – door opened, I went straight to the bedroom.

  “Leave us,” I whispered to Jonas. I could handle this from here.

  Jonas was great at what he did, and he looked at the girl like she was his niece. Since he had no family, with being orphaned young, he was the perfect guard for me. I never had to worry about his running off to a family, or him worrying about their safety.

  “I’ll be in the hall,” he said with a nod of his head. He knew what would come, and I hated that I had to do it. I’d let her come back to herself first. I wasn’t a monster . . . . mostly. I sat on the edge of the bed, Avidya wrapped around me. One hand ran the length of her arm, feeling her warm skin.

  “What were you thinking?” I whispered out, not expecting an answer as I leaned my cheek atop her head.

  “I’m sorry,” she muttered tiredly.

  “I told you not to run,” I spoke. “Why did you?”

  “I had to try,” she shrugged with a cracked voice. “I . . . . I wanted to go back home. But there’s no point.”

  “Why do you think that, sweetheart?” I asked, not wanting to break the connection we were sharing. My skin buzzed where hers touched.

  “I don’t belong there, do I?” she asked, moving her head to look up at me.

  Even with a wet face and red-rimmed light blue eyes, she was more beautiful than the sunset. I could see that she felt so lost in the huge world, and it was a slow descent in bringing her here to that feeling.

  “Yes and no,” I replied. “You are where you should be.”

  “Who are my real parents?” she asked, her eyes watering once more.

  “That’s what I’m trying to find out, Avidya,” I answered. “I have a few ideas, but that’s it. No one has any good leads for me to follow. Later, I’ll explain more about it.”

  “Okay,” she said with a yawn.

  “I’ll let you sleep soon,” I went on. Something in my voice must have gained her attention, as her eyes widened. “Since you disobeyed me, there will be a punishment.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said, dropping her eyes from mine. Like I said, perfect for me in all ways possible.

  “I know you are,” I said, lifting her head up to meet my eyes again. “But there are still consequences. You could have been taken by one of the other men that roam this place. They would not have cared if you cried and begged, they would have raped you.”

  “You can’t blame me for trying!” she seethed. I watched as her eyes filled with hatred and strength. There was my kitten, claws and all. I couldn’t help but smirk as she pushed herself off my lap, glaring at me. I let her go, for now.

  “I told you to not disobey me. My rules are pretty simple, kitten,” I said. “Jonas even told you to not test me. But you still did.” I kept my voice calm, interested in seeing how she took my words.

  “I had to try,” she said, letting her shoulders drop, but the fight was still in her eyes.

  “Of course, you did,” I said. “I knew you would try. If not now, it would be later. I had hoped to talk to you first to let you know what I planned to do in the very near future, what I would like from you before you just took off. I was surprised you didn’t leave the building, though.”

  “Where would I go?” she huffed out angrily. “My parents aren’t mine. My best friend is dead. And I’m stuck here as much as I’m stuck in my own pathetic life!”

  “That will all change,” I said, standing up. I placed my hands on her shoulders, keeping her still. She was a good foot shorter than me. “But you should not have run.”

  “But I did,” she replied.

  “Yes, you did. And now we are here,” I stated. “I will be giving you three licks since you didn’t leave the building, but you scared me.”

  “Scared you?” she almost laughed out. “You scare everyone near you. I couldn’t possibly have scared you.”

  “Yes,” I said, knowing she was trying to get me off track. “Now, for your spanking. I’ll be gentle, but next time I will not be . . . nice.” I removed my hands from her shoulders and took a seat on the edge of the bed, keeping my feet flat on the floor. “I want you over my lap, ass in the air.”

  “You can’t be serious!” she barked, outraged.

  “Very,” I deadpanned. She knew very little of my world, but she’d know it well enough within weeks if I was able to get my way. And I would. “You do not want me to put you there.” Oh, I would. I wanted her to do it herself. It served a purpose, one that would be a hard lesson for anyone. But like I said, I would be gentle on the first ti
me.

  After half a minute, she sighed, giving in. She placed her body over my lap, and I helped to adjust her. I had her breasts just on the other side of my legs, and her butt was in perfect place. I used my hand to massage her cheeks for a few seconds.

  “Now, when I give you spankings, this is how I want you,” I said, rubbing her round butt to warm her up. I let her keep her pants on. This time. It would take the time to train an unknown sub, willingly or not. She was a submissive, though; her body sang to mine. I knew she was perfect for me in every way, and she’d love just how I could get her body to work with mine when the time came.

  She nodded, holding her breath.

  “Breathe, kitten,” I whispered out. Once she took a breath in, “I want you to count. Three is not nearly that many.” For a trained submissive, I would easily give out seven lashings in one swift move.

  She nodded, her head against my leg and hair dangled down to the floor. I gave her no warning as the first strike came down. She gave out a shriek of surprise as the slap echoed off the walls.

  “Number?” I asked.

  “One,” she said, her voice high. I knew the hit wasn’t painful, more of a shock than anything else.

  “One, sir,” I said and waited for her to repeat it. When she did, I instantly gave her the next one.

  “Two, sir,” she spoke, her voice back to a more level volume, although I could hear her dislike at the action. I could only assume that she felt embarrassed at being in such position.

  Her body was already betraying her, and it would certainly give her something to think about other than her family issues. In time, she’d ask more questions about my lifestyle, and I would tell her everything she wanted to know.

  “Good girl,” I said, helping her to stand after I finished the third swat. “Now, no more running away, okay.”

  She nodded, twisting her hands in front of her. I knew her mind was racing over what just happened and why her body was reacting the way it was.

  “Did your father give you spankings?” I asked as she gathered her thoughts.

  “Yeah, a few times when I was younger,” she said thoughtfully. “But it was different just now.”

  “Of course, it was,” I said, standing up. I could read her just as easily as anyone else. “Now get some sleep. I’ll be here when you wake up and I’ll go over the plan.”

  After kissing her on the top of the head, I left her be. She’d get a little sleep hopefully. I could see her mind swirling. Swirling with things she wouldn’t dare ask any time soon.

  Chapter 9

  Avidya

  It took me longer than it should have to fall asleep. No matter how tired I was, my mind raced. Raced with a million thoughts and doubts. My thoughts confused me even more, as did the way my body reacted to the man that held my life in his hands.

  I had no idea why I was so upset about things. It didn’t matter now, as I looked back. Maybe things were taken out of concept, and that was why my parents never told me anything. Maybe they didn’t tell me, fearing that I’d react the way that I did. Or maybe they didn’t adopt me at all but stole me from my birth parents.

  There had to be a number of reasons for everything that had been my life so far.

  When Zachariah had held me, I broke down even more. Could it be because I’ve never been that upset before? Could it have been because I have never been held with such care? My mom never showed that much care for me. I knew she loved me, but it still made me question everything I knew.

  Zachariah’s form of punishment was . . . . I don’t know. Not what I expected, yet it stirred something deep in me. Yes, I had been spanked as a child by father. Growing up, I had tested his rules constantly, but what child wouldn’t? I didn’t think, even looking back now, that what I did was wrong necessarily. Just wrong in my father’s views.

  With the three licks I had gotten, I felt . . . I don’t know how to explain it. Shocked maybe, yet my body wanted more. Okay, maybe it was because I liked him, and I felt content when he touched me. I felt more connected to this man than I did my own parents. That alone should have raised red flags on my entire life.

  Growing up, I didn’t feel like I belonged much of anywhere. Mother never hugged me when my father was home. He was always more standoffish when it came to showing how he felt. That would certainly explain why I felt more towards Zachariah. He had held me as I cried, not blinking at the wet mess that was left behind on his shirt.

  He told me why he was dishing out the punishment, making sure I understood before doing so. It didn’t hurt, far from it. I knew that Zachariah could hurt me, but he didn’t want to. He only wanted to show me that testing his rules, which were not all laid out yet, would not be broken.

  And the way he has spoken to relax me made the butterflies in my stomach grow in swarms. I had never felt anything like it before.

  Waking a few hours later, I felt more normal. I took a shower and dressed, finding that a pile of clothes was once again left out on the counter in the bathroom for me. I did wonder where they came from, and why. Why was there always something new for me to wear? There were enough clothes to make due with already here.

  Walking into the kitchen, I came to a stop. Zachariah sat, looking over the papers that I had seen there the night – early morning – before everything had happened. Jonas was at the counter, refilling his cup with coffee with a nod my way. I was surprised that Jonas wasn’t shooting my head off as he yelled to me about my unnecessary behavior.

  I squinted my eyes at one of the many pictures that covered the table. Glancing between the two men, I decided to just help myself as it didn’t appear that either of them was going to stop me. Father would have stopped me before I even entered the kitchen. Or maybe this was a test, to see what I would do.

  “Go ahead,” Jonas spoke up as I paused mid-reach. “Maybe you will be able to put the missing pieces together.”

  I reached out fully, not even realizing that I had already begun to do so. I looked at the picture of my father first. He was younger, but it was him. The only difference in his looks was the hair. Over the years, father had lost most of his hair. In the picture, his dark hair was combed perfectly.

  Zachariah pushed a few more pictures and papers my way, indicating me to go ahead and look. Along with the pictures, there were documents that looked to be copies of birth certificates and family tree information. There was also a number of typed pages with medical histories and phone numbers.

  I pulled out a couple pictures that drew my attention. The first were my parents. Father’s grandparents. And then me. I laid out the pictures, seeing them all right in front of me. Mom’s parents were dead, as far as I knew so they were no pictures of them. I had no idea what they looked like, as my parents didn’t have many pictures of anyone around their house.

  There were other people pictured that I had no idea who they were. The woman, who was maybe eighteen, looked a lot like I did, with the same light skin. The woman was as light as me, even in the aged photo. Her blue eyes were staring off into the distance, past the camera. She looked to be in thought about something. The other was a male, about twenty-three years old or so, and had the same dark skin of nearly everyone I knew. He had an angry look as he stared down at the ground.

  “Do you know her?” Jonas asked, tapping the woman’s picture with his index finger.

  “No,” I answered truthfully. She looked familiar, though.

  “Her name is Rachael,” Zachariah explained. “According to documents that are in this pile, she died shortly after giving birth to a child. No documents, no info, on where she was buried, or her child.”

  “And him?” I asked, indicating to the man.

  “That is your father’s half-brother,” Zachariah said. “Taylor. He went ‘missing’ just over eighteen years ago. There has been no sign of where he is, or if he is even alive.”

  “I had an uncle?” I whispered, trying to process everything.

  “Do you know of any extended family?” Jonas
asked out.

  “Just dad’s parents,” I answered. “And not that well. They didn’t really interact with me on the few times I did see them. They pretty much ignored me like I was a piece of dirt.” They certainly made sure to tell me that I was, in fact, like dirt to them.

  The two men looked at one another for a moment before Zachariah turned his eyes back to me.

  “From what I can put together with just these things here,” he began, motioning across the stuff on the table. “Is that your parents are hiding something, many things. I know from this,” he pulled out a paper, pushing it to me. “That they married like most of us do in the family business. They married because your grandfather needed your father to marry for one reason or another.