Sebastian - Dark Bonds by Janey Rosen

will hurt me here?” I ask meekly.
    “I’m saying that I will punish you, Elizabeth, until you learn the consequences of displeasing me.  However, to clarify, in turn you will want to please me because the pleasure you’ll receive here will be immeasurable.”  He’s so calm, so sure of what he wants and expects from me but I don’t think I can be what he wants me to be.
    “Look at this differently,” he steeples his fingers under his chin and frowns in concentration.  “You need a dominant man …”
    “Why do I?” I interject and he scowls at me.
    “Don’t interrupt.  You need a dominant man, Elizabeth, so that you can be freed from the pressures and stress of your life.  You’ve struggled for years.  You’ve been married to a weak man and you’ve compensated for his weakness by becoming the patriarch of your family.  The time has come for you to defer to me in all things, so that you can rediscover who Elizabeth Dove really is.  Give yourself to me, and you’ll find a freedom which is unimaginable.”  He pauses and looks me in the eye.  His words strike a chord. He’s very astute.
    “You know me too well, Sebastian.  If I’m totally honest with myself, I am tired.  I really am.  It would be heaven to have a strong man to tell me what to do, agreed.  But, and it’s a big ‘but’, I’ve never been told what to do and I’m not sure that I’d be very good at taking orders or being submissive.”
    “Would you like to try?”
    “What does it entail?  Can we talk about the punishment aspect?  What do you mean when you talk about pain?”  This is a huge worry for me.
    “Nothing you can’t cope with.  To begin with, you will undoubtedly defy me and be a pain in my ass,” he’s smirking at me.  “Therefore, I’ll ensure that you have a pain in your ass – probably by flogger or crop.”  A what?
    “You’d beat my backside?” I ask, wide-eyed. Oh why does that send a tingle to the apex of my legs?  Crossing my legs, I squeeze my thighs together, which doesn’t go unnoticed by Sebastian, who smiles knowingly.
    “Yes,” he confirms.  “It’ll smart, but it will be bearable.  You’ll be punished when you’re disrespectful toward me or break the rules.   I won’t enjoy punishing you Elizabeth and you won’t enjoy it either.  I’ll always explain the reason I’m punishing you so that you understan d not to break the rules again.  There will be other times when you’ll be whipped, or chained, purely for my pleasure – not as a punishment.  You will enjoy making me happy and that, in turn will make you happy.”
    This is all so confusing.
    “Are you going to punish me now?” Remembering how riled he’d been in the kitchen over dinner, he will no doubt take me over his knee right now.  I hope?
    “No I’m not.  Don’t focus on the punishment. In general, what I will impart to you will be discipline.  I will transform you not only into what I’d like you to be, but what I believe will enhance you as a person, Elizabeth.  I want you to think about what I’ve asked of you.  If you commit to this, then I expect to see a change in you immediately – and any slips in your behaviour will be punished from now on.  There are many other aspects of this that we need to discuss too.  For example, you don’t cross your legs when I’m in the room.”  What the hell?
    “That would be because…?” You’re a loony control freak.
    “Because, as my submissive, your legs are open to me at any time and by crossing your legs you are signalling that they are closed to me.  You are closed to me.  That is unacceptable.”  His eyebrow is cocked again, daring me to challenge him.
    “I’ll try and remember.  What else?”
    “You avert your eyes when we’re in this room or the outer chamber.  You don’t look me in the eyes.”  Weirder by the second… Outer chamber?  The wine cellar?
    “Isn’t that a little extreme?”  Scarlett doesn’t look him in