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abused you in any way?”
    He felt Lyssa trembling beside him. Mike still remembered the ragged sobs that had shaken her frame as he’d loosened the extension cord from her wrists. She’d assured him then that she wasn’t harmed, just overwhelmed. The shattering orgasms they’d shared had shaken him as well, but he’d trusted her explanation for her tears. Was she lying when I asked if I’d hurt her that night? Is she afraid of me ? A knot twisted in his gut. The expression she’d worn after he’d taken her home following their first encounter, before she’d locked herself in the bathroom, flashed through his mind. Was I wrong? Should I have done something to make sure?
    Ignoring the inquisitive gazes around them and the hostile ones from her pair of protectors, Mike pulled Lyssa tight against him and smoothed his fingers over her cheek. Bending close so only she and perhaps the two men closest to them could hear, he demanded, “Tell me you weren’t lying when you told me I hadn’t hurt you, baby.”
    Lyssa hesitated, her gaze searching his for long, tense moments, before she finally answered, “I wasn’t lying. You’ve never hurt me physically, Mike.”
    The tension in his neck and the constriction in his chest eased at her softly spoken answer. He could tell a part of her wished she had lied. But even if it made her life easier tonight, it wouldn’t have discouraged him from pursuing her. As much as she wanted to avoid her current predicament, the honorable core of her wouldn’t allow her to defame his character.
    Assured she wouldn’t deny him, Mike turned back to Ben and Vance. “Satisfied?”
    Ben looked past him and held Lyssa’s gaze for several seconds. Mike was sure the man would risk his membership by defying the oldest rule set down in the early days of the Club if she made any protest to Mike’s right to claim her as his submissive before any other dominant could.
    When she gave a slight shake to her head, he knew she’d made her decision. Her hand flexed around his. Ben and Vance directed their nods at Lyssa more than Mike—acknowledgement of their acceptance of the choice she’d made. Even if they weren’t sure it was the right one.
    Stepping past them, Mike headed toward the stairs. He felt Lyssa tense as they passed the open hatch leading to the area behind the bar. Was her mind conjuring the same images his did of the events of four years ago? If so, she would soon learn his goals had changed. Two hours of fucking in a closet, when less than a handful of people knew about it, would hardly satisfy the craving he had for her.
    After tonight and before the end of the thirty days due him through Rite of First Claim, no one would doubt his ownership of her. Least of all Lyssa.

Chapter Three
     
    “You can stop this right now.” Lyssa rounded on Mike the moment he shut the door. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears. She took in the decor while trying to regain some semblance of control. Everywhere she turned, she saw Mike and herself. Mirrors covered two walls and the doors of the armoire. What wasn’t covered with a reflective surface was painted a soft eggshell white and trimmed in silver. The two chairs near the window, the round table between them, and the king-size poster bed repeated the white and silver. Even the Berber carpet was white with flecks of silver sprinkled through the fibers.
    Her reflection surrounded her—impossible to get away from or ignore. Harder to deny was the expression of mixed arousal and unease on her face as she watched Mike engage the lock and slip the key into the pocket of his trousers.
    “What’s with the act?” she demanded. “You’ve ignored me and stayed away this long. Why change your mind now?”
    “I’ve never ignored you, Lys.” Mike moved closer.
    Lyssa took the same number of steps away from him. “You have—”
    He silenced her protest with a look. “No, you’ve been running away. Every time I got too close. Every time I asked for