The hotel room door clicked shut behind me. My heart thudded hard in my chest. I didn't speak. I knew better. The rules were already clear--when I entered, I waited.
Nathaniel didn't even look up. He stood across the room near the full-length mirror, sleeves rolled to his elbows, his whole body still. Calm. In control. Always.
His dark brown hair was still damp from the shower, curling slightly at the ends in that way that made him look undone by accident--except nothing about Nathaniel ever felt accidental. The green of his eyes caught the low light like glass in sunlight.
He wore nothing but a pair of worn jeans that hugged his hips. The top button was undone, as if he'd only gotten halfway dressed before deciding it was enough.
The muscles in his forearms flexed as he adjusted the base of the mirror--slow, deliberate, precise. Even that mattered to him. Even the angle I'd see myself from.
When he finally turned toward me, it was slow. Intentional. My breath caught. The air shifted.
"Close the door," he said quietly. "And take off your clothes."
I froze.
Then he really looked at me. Met my gaze.
"Down to your underwear," he said. "No bra."
My hands moved on instinct. Slowly. Almost reverently.
I peeled off my dress first, letting it slide down my hips and puddle at my feet. Then my fingers found the straps of my bra. I hesitated before slipping them off my shoulders and unclasping the back. It dropped to the floor.
I stood in nothing but my black lace panties, arms crossed loosely over my chest. Not to cover myself, exactly. Just to hold something.
That was when I saw he was holding the collar.
"Come here," he said, low and firm.
I didn't hesitate. I stepped toward him like my body knew the way.
His fingers brushed the back of my neck as he fastened it around me. The click of the buckle sounded louder than it should have. I exhaled. My eyes fluttered closed. I leaned into the weight of it. Into him.
"There," he murmured. "Now you're mine."
I didn't answer. I didn't need to.
"Drop your arms," he said. "And go to the mirror."
My limbs felt heavy, but I obeyed. The carpet was soft beneath my feet. When I reached the mirror, I stopped. I could feel him move behind me--tall, steady, close enough that I could feel the heat of his body, but not touching me.
The space between us crackled.
"Look," he said.
I dropped my gaze instead.
"Juliet."
I lifted my chin, met the mirror and immediately looked away again.
"I said look."
"I'm not--" I started.
"You are beautiful," he said. "When I fuck you. When you beg. And just as you are. Right now."
I blinked. Heat crept up my neck. Shame, maybe. Or something more dangerous.
He stepped closer, and I felt his hands trail lightly down my arms until they rested at my sides.
"Don't hide from me," he said. "Don't hide from yourself."
"I don't like looking," I whispered.
"Which is why you have to."
I tried. I really did. But my eyes darted upward--not to my body, but to his. To the place where our eyes met in the mirror. His gaze was calm. Unflinching. I clung to it like a lifeline, desperate to anchor myself in his steadiness because I couldn't stand the sight of me.
"Not at me," he said coldly. "At yourself."
I looked down again. And that's when the slap landed on my ass--hard and sudden.
My breath hitched. The sting bloomed across my ass, hot and humbling.
"Eyes on yourself," he growled, stepping closer. "You don't get to hide in me."
The words cut deeper than the strike.
My body jolted. My cheeks flamed. Slowly, shakily, I raised my eyes again. And there I was.
The curve of my collarbone. The flushed skin across my chest. The soft slope of my stomach, the slight tremble in my thighs. The collar sat snug against my throat. My lips parted. I watched my breath fog the mirror. I looked... beautiful. Owned.
The instinct to look away rose up fast. I wanted to shrink, to disappear. But then his hand landed lightly on the back of my neck. He didn't push. He didn't hold me there. He just made it clear he was present.
"I see you," he said, voice no longer a growl but something softer. A tether. "Now you see you."