Chapter 3

Anaïs stood at the edge of the large window, looking out over the mansion's well-kept grounds. Her thoughts were distant. Just a few weeks ago, she was a simple girl living in a simple local settlement but here she was, in an estate foreign to what she had known and a future that hung in a balance. 

The sky was getting darker and the horizon was lit up by the fading sunset. The estate felt more like a cage than a haven, with its vast fountains, tall pillars, and infinite acres of space.

The contract preparation had been swift.

Shortly before that, her father had an emergency and was rushed to the hospital.

“The surgery is inevitable”, the Doctor had said.

Anaïs had proceeded swiftly with the contract preparation. She had spent long hours in companies of medical staff who had been monitoring and preparing her body for a baby.

Finally it was today. It was the day she had been getting ready for, yet never really prepared for.

Under the opulence of the space, her body appeared to belong to someone else, someone who now had control over what would happen next. 

She couldn't resist touching the area on her wrist, where the nurse's expert, icy touch had secured the IV needle.

She turned as she heard the door creak open behind her.

Her breath caught as he entered the room.

Cael. Her boss. The man who had effectively purchased her body.

His presence appeared to chill the air in the room.  His sharp features and a lofty stature, with the same detached look he always had. His gray eyes glanced over her as if nothing, and no one, were interesting. It was his default mode, his way. A distance master.

"I'm ready,” he said in a flat, low voice that showed no emotion. There was no question. It was a factual statement.

Though she wasn't sure if it was habitual or out of agreement, Anaïs nodded slowly. Her hands clenched nervously together as she turned towards him a little surprised why he came alone, without the nurse. Beside her lay the bed, sterilized devices arranged like a surgery table, and bed linens folded with clinical perfection. Although everything was ready for artificial insemination, she was now doubtful.

Before she could calm her voice, she trembled and questioned, "Ready for what exactly?" 

Cael didn't respond Rather, he approached her with the same deliberate steps, his footsteps gentle on the plush carpet.

Cael's tone was low as he finally said, "I don't want to do this the conventional way."

A flood of bewilderment washed over Anaïs. "What do you mean?" she inquired, her pulse abruptly increasing in anticipation as her heart rate sped up. She could already feel the heat of his body as he inched closer.

Cael stopped and fixed her with his piercing gray eyes. He could see that she was unsure. He could see how the situation was causing her to shift. However, he wasn't going to make this simple.

His voice sounded like gravel when he added, "Anaïs, I don't do things by the book. You agreed to carry this child, but you didn't specify the method."

The tension in the room increased, and the intensity of the air became nearly oppressive. Something about the steel of his posture and the way he stood told Anaïs she wouldn't receive the answers she sought, even though she wanted to push for an explanation and ask him more questions. At least not yet.

She opened her mouth to utter something but stopped. She couldn't understand why but she felt oddly calm by the idea. She has always felt an unexplainable allure towards him despite his cold demeanor, and he was right, a method wasn't specified.

He stepped forward, bringing them even closer. His cool, purposeful fingers ran over her shoulder. 

Cael held Anaïs by the wrist and led her firmly but gently toward the bed before she could say anything more. At the touch, her body locked in protest, stiffening. Beyond every lingering doubt, his intentions were becoming clear but this was not the intended course of events as she had imagined. 

Something about the way he held her, something about his cool, collected demeanor, silenced the voice in her head that cried out for her to refuse.  She had the feeling that she was being drawn into something from which she was unable to free herself, something she may never recover from.

"What are you doing?" With difficulty, she asked in a whisper.

Cael said gently, "You'll see," but she could tell it was already determined. Now it was too late to turn back. She had already signed the legal documents. This was the bit no one had mentioned to her.

He led her to the bed, where she lay, her breath shallow, the soft silk sheets slipping beneath her back. She had an odd combination of uneasiness and... something more. She couldn't be certain whether it was his closeness or her own suppressed, silent desires, desires she never acknowledged.

Cael stared into her eyes as if searching for something, he withdrew a little and effortlessly took off his shirt, exposing the tense muscles underneath. A testament to his due diligence at the gym. Anaïs gasped at the sudden seductive sight. Her cheeks flushed red with embarrassment. 

It was her first time; she had only heard murmurs and read about it in books.

She was unable to avoid the intensity and heat of his stare. Here, there was nowhere to hide from him.

He advanced slowly until he towered over her. Despite their grace, his hands had a force that immobilized her. She couldn't decide whether to give in or to be terrified

"Cael," she said in a tremulous murmur.

"Please," she said, uncertain if she was requesting that he halt or continue.

Her body had betrayed her, and she wanted to scream, to tell him that this was not what she had signed up for but there was no denying the warmth that permeated her veins. His presence and force had confused her thinking too much. She was unable to think clearly. She was now beginning to have desires she never thought she had.

Cael cupped her cheek gently and lowered.

His lips touched hers, gentle at first, then demanding, as though he were claiming her in some way she couldn't comprehend, marking her. 

Anaïs was entranced by the thrill of a first kiss, She let herself become absorbed in the moment as she gave in to her desires, now wild and demanding. 

Cael kissed her deeply, savoring the taste of her soft lips, nibbling the tip of her lower lip causing her to squint a little, savoring the metallic taste like a hungry beast. 

She felt the weird, agonizing thrill flowing through her body. 

His kissing was becoming wild and intense as his hands ran across her shoulders, relieving them of the thin hand of her silk gown and exposing the tender smooth skin beneath her shoulders. 

Anaïs shivered as he kissed down and sucked at the skin of her neck, his hands skillfully sliding down her gown exposing her gorgeous bosom.  

Anaïs instinctively tried to cover her chest with her arms but Cael held them still and lowered his head 

She gasped as he cupped his mouth about her left breast. Every touch sent fresh unrecognizable signals to her brain, she let out a soft moan as she tugged at the bedside and the last bits of reasoning became a jumble of mess in her head.

Her body movement showed she wanted more. 

Cael stopped briefly and stared at her, it seemed like he was admiring the beauty before him. 

“I'd have you now”, he said as though rehearsed.

Anaïs was too lost to consider his words, she was past logic. Her body was experiencing the thrill of the first time and she wanted more. She was dripping generously in between her thighs. She instinctively grabbed at him, she wanted him, she needed him.

Cael as though on cue, gently slid into her. A short gasp escaped her mouth as he penetrated her walls. She felt pain confused by pleasures unknown. She wanted to pull him out but her hands held him tight. 

The atmosphere was erotically charged by the heat that emitted from their intertwined bodies. 

Anaïs' moan filled the room as Cael thrust deeper into her. She held his head firm on her breast as her legs wrapped tightly about his back.

Cael though gently initially started thrusting harder and deeper. He locked lips with her and kissed her intensely as he kept plunging into her. 

Her heated wet depth could take no more, her walls tightened around him as she came but he was just starting.

It was her first time, and even though she had felt pain, it was short-lived, and soon beneath it, a strange warmth had blossomed.

However, a sensation of violation persisted even as she allowed herself to experience it. It seemed as though she had lost control and that something basic was being violated. But now it was too late to back off. It was too late to alter events.

A new path has been set!