With a smile, he looked down at Raine. His cock slipped from her mouth, and she rested her head on his thigh, eyes closed. Oddly, her contentment revved up his blood until he was fired up and ready for her again.

Damn, he was demanding most any night, but this need was over the top, even for him. And it was all because of her.

Hammer lifted her to her feet. Bleary-eyed, she blinked at him, body limp. Her legs didn’t seem able to support her, and she stumbled. He caught her with one arm and turned off the shower before grabbing a towel. Wrapping her in it, he lifted her onto the vanity and patted her dry, squeezing the excess water from her hair that continued to drip down her smooth back. A bolt of something deep and burning pierced his chest as he watched her pale cheek resting on his shoulder. He stroked her soft, soft skin.

With his arms wrapped tightly around her, he carried Raine to the bed and laid her on the cool, wrinkled sheets. She gave herself over to exhaustion like a child at the end of a long day, tumbling almost instantly toward sleep.

He stepped to the foot of the bed and gazed at her naked body. Unconsciously, she spread her legs for him. Inviting. Pliant. Once again his cock jerked to life, stiff and hungry for all she offered. In the muted light, he saw more of his markings on her, and that damn violent urge to take, mark, claim even more slammed him. He should leave her alone, let her rest. But why start pretending now that he was anything other than a horny bastard who would fuck her constantly?

Sliding onto the bed, he wedged against her side and sucked her nipples, toying with her clit. Her eyes fluttered open.

“Macen?” she whispered weakly.

“Yes, precious. I have to feel you again.”

“So...tired,” she whimpered.

Yeah, she’d had an eventful twenty-four hours. He’d used her hard. Liam, that fucking bastard, had taken her before him. He tried to tell himself that her fatigue was normal. But he knew that whatever Liam had done to her wouldn’t be any less demanding than what he would have done himself if he’d been fucking her all day. Than what he’d do to her tomorrow or the day after...or the day after that.

“I know. It’s just that… I don’t know if I’ll ever get enough of you.”

As his fingers teased her pussy, Raine lifted her hips to him, searching. She was wet. She was ready. She could take him again.

Calling himself a stupid bastard, he climbed on top of her and spread her wider with his thighs. A slow smile of contentment curled her lips. Then he sank into her sweet, so swollen cunt, and she gasped. Thrusting with deep, long strokes, he rode her hard. All the while she whimpered and clutched him with the last of her strength. As he demanded her next orgasm, tendrils of worry licked his brain.

All too soon, her arms and legs gave out, and she lay splayed beneath him, wilted and almost still. Occasionally, she winced. Hammer knew she had to be sore. Just one more orgasm with her, then he’d let her rest…at least for as long as he could stand not touching her.

Her whimpering cries of discomfort filled him with guilt, and with a curse, he pulled from her pussy, gripped his cock in a rough fist, and worked it until he showered her full breasts with his come.

He collapsed against her, panting, kissing her closed lids, her temple, her jaw. Then he forced himself to roll away. If he stayed here, pressed against her softness, with his seed marking her, her face inches from his own, he’d only try to fuck her again.

Jerking away from Raine, he cleaned her up, then showered again, dressed in a pair of sweats and sprawled out in the chair in the corner, hoping he could give her some time to rest…and wondering how many more nights might be spent exactly like this, watching her sleep as this insatiable need to fuck her again clawed at him.

Hours later, Hammer felt strung tight enough to snap any goddamn second. He’d ventured onto the bed sometime during the night and slept for a few hours. Now, he laid on his side, watching Raine in slumber. He’d been clenching his fists since he’d awakened. His rigid dick still craved more of her.

Gazing at the soft curves of her face, his heart swelled. She was so gorgeous, more beautiful than any angel in heaven. And he couldn’t deny for another moment how he felt.

“Raine?” He called out to her as dawn began to color the sky, but she didn’t stir. Damn it, there was so much he wanted to say to her…do to her.

“I’ve tried damn hard to shut you out of my heart, but you stole it so quickly after I laid eyes on you. I love you, precious. I always have, and damn me to hell, I always will.”

It had fucking killed him to deny her day after day for years. He’d helped her, yes. But he’d also brought her so much pain.

And today wouldn’t be any different.

“I’m so sorry, my sweet girl. I’m a pathetic excuse for a protector. I’ve tried to shelter you from everything that can harm you. That includes me.”

Goddamnit, the pain of constantly wanting her had finally grabbed him by the balls and squeezed hard. And he’d given in. But Raine was so deep inside him, he’d felt the relentless ache of trying to live without her for months and years...and it had been slowly driving him out of his mind.

Even as he called himself every kind of pervert, his cock jerked as he stared at her red, plump lips. Skimming his gaze over her alabaster flesh, a bittersweet smile curled upward. The marks of his possession colored her milky flesh. She’d be wearing them for days and have no choice but to remember this, remember him.

Wasn’t regret a bitch? And he had so much of it. That he couldn’t be the sort of man who’d be good for her. That he couldn’t, in good conscience, mold her into what he needed. That he was so goddamn warped he couldn’t settle for less.

Her raven hair spilled across his pale sheets, and Hammer reached out, threading his finger through her soft mane. Need clutched him with a desperate grip as he squeezed his hand in her hair and pressed his lips to hers.

She moaned in a dreamy whimper, eyes still closed, then nuzzled her cheek against his.

As much as he longed to slip inside her pussy one more time, he had to back off. He’d exhausted her. She couldn’t endure his unquenchable sexual need, which she only seemed to exacerbate. And that was only half the problem. Dread flooded his veins.

With a silent curse, he shook his head. He’d known from day one that Raine would never be able to acquiesce to the beast inside him. Not the way he needed her to. She was too innocent. Too fragile. Too headstrong in ways that would keep her from bending to all he’d demand. It would break her, just as it had Juliet.

His stomach twisted in a rancid knot. Knowing what he had to do, he swallowed down the bile rising in his throat and pulled her against his chest instead. He needed a few more minutes to hold her, feel her warm supple flesh on his. Feel her heart beat next to his. Feel her breath feather over his neck. He needed a few more selfish moments to savor her before he destroyed every feeling she had for him.

She rolled over as sunlight flashed brightly through the window, hitting her eyelids. Every muscle in her body ached, like she’d been in a fight. No, like she’d been run over by a truck. In a good way. It wasn’t like having the flu, thankfully. This was delicious, and a smile curled her lips. But as she stretched and arched her hips, the sore folds of her pussy rubbed against one another. She hissed in a breath—and smelled Hammer all around her.

Her eyes flew open. Hammer’s room. Hammer’s bed. The night rushed back. Hammer using her over and over. Hammer...now not lying beside her.

She turned over, struggling up to her elbows, and found him sitting on the bed beside her, in sweats and a T-shirt, staring. Regret lined his familiar, beloved face. Resignation dimmed his eyes.

“No. Whatever you’re going to say, don’t. Just don’t,” she spit out between clenched teeth. “Don’t you dare tell me that you made a mistake or changed your mind or feel like you fucked your sister.”

He only sighed and shook his head, and it made her angrier. She knew that her words weren’t going to change his mind. He’d never listened to her. Why couldn’t he do it just once now?

“Raine, listen to me. Last night was a mistake, precious.”

His words hit her like a bullet to the chest. Agony ripped through her. All she did for this man was yearn and hurt. For six years of pain, she’d only gotten a few hours of ecstasy, and now he was going to rip her open again? “You didn’t seem to think that when you had your cock inside me.”

“Christ, I’m so sorry, but this isn’t going to work. Goddamnit!” He jerked to his feet and paced the room, raking a hand through his hair. He didn’t look at her.

“But…I never refused you anything. I gave you every bit of me. We were amazing together. I know you enjoyed it. You can’t fake that.”

“You’re right, I loved every fucking second. Feeling you was all my most sinful fantasies come true. I won’t lie to you anymore. But you couldn’t handle everything I’d do to you.” He spun back to her, torment choking his words from his throat. “You have no idea what I’d demand. Fuck, Raine, you passed out on me after I’d barely gotten a taste of you. You’re not wired to deal with my needs. Look at you. Look at the marks I’ve left. You’re already bruised and…fuck! They almost didn’t stop me. You’re built for a tender Dom who can give you that picket fence you crave. I can’t be anything but an unrelenting Master.”

“What kind of bullshit is that? So I got tired? I’m here this morning. Use me.” She tossed off the blankets and spread her legs, trying to hold in her wince of pain...and failing. Hell, she was so sore. And Hammer’s stare flicked over her, settling on her pussy for a long moment before drifting back to her face. His cock grew hard in his sweats, but he didn’t move a muscle toward her.

“Whatever you want, I’ll get used to it. Give me more than five minutes to adjust! Bruises are no big deal. And I never said anything about picket fences. Can’t we just...be together right now and see what happens? Make love, have breakfast, work together, grab a nooner, then a nice dinner before the club starts hopping and—”

“No.” He silenced her midsentence. “You don’t understand. I’m not the kind of man who shares a relationship. I demand one. On my terms. There’s no vanilla give and take.”

None of this made sense to her. “But…you’re great with everyone. Employees love you. Patrons all say you’re flexible and fair and—”

“Because they don’t wear my collar. Let me tell you what I’d expect if you did, because it’s a far cry from what you’re imaging.” He spun back to the bed, eyes blazing into hers. “In the morning when you wake up, I’ll unchain you from the bed.” Her eyes flew open wide in disbelief. “That’s right, unchain you from my bed. Then I’ll force your mouth to my cock and you’ll suck me off before your feet even hit the floor. Then you’ll leave the room to fix my breakfast. There won’t be any sweet talk at the table unless I wish it. Most likely, you’ll be on your knees at my feet while I eat. I’ll spoon-feed you what and when I decide. You’ll be naked twenty-four/seven, unless I take you out in public. Then—” His grating scoff sliced into her skin, up her back—“you’ll wear what I choose. You’ll cut your hair the way I want it. You’ll wear the fragrance I like. Your pussy will be waxed at all times. Your fingernails will be short with clear polish only. Most of all, you’ll take my cock anywhere, any way, and any time I decide without so much as a peep of protest. If I want to fuck you on the sidewalk in broad daylight, you’ll let me. And if I want to share you? Yes, that’s right, I said share you, you’ll spread yourself wide and welcome another man’s cock into your pussy, ass, or mouth at my command. None of this is negotiable. You will tell me every day that you accept and crave my every desire. Because that’s what I need to be happy. And don’t blow smoke up my ass and tell me that what I’ve described is your dream, too.” He jerked upright as his frustration poured through the room. “I need a slave, Raine, not a sub. And you have no idea the toll that would take on you. I’ve already been through the havoc it can wreak on a woman ill prepared, and I’m not willing to live through it again. That’s fucking final.”

“Seriously? This is the lie you’re going to tell me to get away from me? I’ve seen you every day for the last six years. I’ve even watched you scene when you thought I wasn’t looking. You’ve never treated a woman like that.” She rose with a stomp of her feet and looked around for her clothes, only to remember that he’d dragged Liam’s robe off her in the bar, and they’d left it there. And she’d be damned if she would put anything of Hammer’s on her body right now. “You would have had more success just telling me that you’d fucked me out of your system and are done with me. This slave bullshit is pathetic. But whatever. You want me gone? I’m gone. I should have left yesterday, like I planned. At least I’d be minus a few hickies, bruises, and a sore pussy. But I get the message. You’re just a miserable fucking bastard who wants to be alone. No problem.”