C29 Twenty Nine

Bianca POV

The silence after my hand cracked across Damian’s face was heavier than thunder.

My palm still tingled, my heartbeat deafening in my ears. I hadn’t planned it.

I didn't think it through.

It was instinct, I just snapped and here I was standing right in the middle of my worst nightmare.

For a moment no one even breathed in the dining room.

Then, Nathan’s chair screeched back. He shot up, face flushed with a mix of shock and fury. His voice snapped across the room like a whip.

“What the hell is wrong with you?!”

The words punched straight into me, but I couldn’t reply.

My throat fell too tight to even speak. All this was still overwhelming for me.

For maybe the first time, it wasn’t Nathan's judgment that crushed me… it was my own.

“What the fuck have you done, Bianca?!” Nathan's voice came again, this time more fierce than before.

The words landed on deaf ears as my mouth remained shut, my eyes wide open.

A few minutes ago, I ran away like a wounded child, after Damain stripped my dignity from me, and then I snapped like a cornered animal.

I gripped the edge of the table to steady myself, my nails digging into the well furnished wood.

My mouth felt like it was glued shut. I couldn’t answer him. I couldn’t answer anyone.

Then, finally Damian moved.

He moved calm and carefully and at a slow speed that was terrifying.

Slowly and gracefully, he rose from his chair. Then, his eyes flicked from Nathan to Cecilia, then back to me, and I swore I could feel the ground tilt under that gaze.

Then he spoke, his tone low and somewhat daring.

“Dinner is over.”

That was it. Just three words. But it was enough to slam the door shut on the entire evening.

Nathan tensed behind me, I could feel it, it was like he wanted to say more.

But then, he hesitated.

He glanced at Cecilia, then back at Damian, and took a step forward.

His voice was quieter this time, but urgent.

“O-our deal, it still stands, right?” he asked, his tone almost desperate.

My eyes snapped to Nathan. Even in the mess I was in, he was always a bigger d**k.

All he cares about his money and his business.

Damian didn’t answer right away. He didn’t even bother acknowledging the question.

He only lifted his hand, dismissively.

“Out.”

That single word dropped like a stone.

Nathan’s jaw tightened, but he knew. He knew there was no room to push further. His fingers found Cecilia’s arm, guiding her up from her seat.

She looked around nervously, her eyes darting from Damian to me.

I could tell by her gaze that if we were alone in the room she would strangle me to death.

The two of them moved toward the door. “We'll see Bianca..”

I heard Nathan's voice, it carried an edge, almost like it was a threat.

And then the door clicked shut behind them.

The silence that followed was unbearable.

It was just me and him now. Damian.

I forced myself to look at him. He was still standing, composed, like he was unbothered by the chaos that had unraveled at his table.

I still managed to spot a faint red mark on his cheek from my slap. An action I already knew I would pay for.

His eyes caught mine and held them in a grip I couldn’t break.

He didn’t raise his voice. He didn’t shout or curse. He didn’t need to. His calmness alone was so punishing ad it was.

“You’ve done a very bad thing today, Bianca.” he stepped away from his table, slowing walking to me.

My breath trembled.

Then, his voice dropped lower and somehow more dangerous.

“And you know what happens when you do bad things…”

I didn’t move. I couldn’t. My legs felt like they were rooted to the floor, my own body was betraying me.

Then, when he was close enough, he leaned foward to me.

His presence wrapped around me.

Then, his lips went near my ear and he whispered, words that burned down my spine.

“…you get punished.”

My throat tightened. I wanted to say something… to fight back, to curse him, or snap at him that he had thag slap coming, but my voice wouldn’t come.

Then he straightened, towering over me, his eyes never breaking from mine.

And he said it.

“Go to my room. And strip.”

The words hit harder than a slap.

I froze, every muscle in my body locking in place. My breath caught, and my fingers curled into fists at my sides.

Strip?

That's what's I was reduced to. And the worst part is that he had every right to it.

How small I had felt under his control. How helpless, how utterly powerless I was to his mere command.

There was nothing more frustrating.

Then slowly, I turned my head away from him, and moved to his room.

The room was dimly lit, the air around it felt heavy with shame.

Strip?

The words felt too easy for him.

And then, slowly I zipped open my black dress, pulling it over my body.

I unbuttoned my bra and pulled off my panties till I was stark naked on his bed.

The soft sheets clung of his bed clung to my curves, accentuating the delicate lines of my frame.

And it felt, oddly satisfying..

My breath came in shallow gasps, and my chest rising and falling with the rhythm of my heartbeat, as I waited agonizingly for him.

And then, I heard his footsteps marching to the room.

Each step was louder than the last.

Then, he pushed the door wide open, and stepped into the room, his presence was commanding, his eyes dark and intent.

But my breath caught the moment my eyes landed on what was between his fingers.

A whip?!