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“Boss, please stop; you’re bleeding!” For the past hour, he’d been chewing away the ends of his nails, one of the less harmful habits he took up when something was bothering him. At least, when he didn’t do it too much. When blood started to coat his fingertips and sprinkle on his lips, it was definitely too much. Although her stomach was already twisting, wondering how he’d react to her telling him what to do.
He nonchalantly pulled his hand from his mouth to inspect the damage, and then equally nonchalantly sucked the blood off his fingers and returned his gaze to his computer. He still hadn’t so much as looked at her. Maybe he would just ignore her and go back to work, she thought hopefully.
“Tch.” Just one sound from him sent a shiver down her spine. She knew then he wouldn’t ignore her. She tensed, bracing herself for whatever was about to happen.
He sighed dramatically; it would’ve been comical coming from anyone less caustic than he, then rose from his chair and sauntered over to her. She considered rising herself, uncomfortable with him having that much physical leverage over her, but thought better of it. He’d probably see that as an act of defiance and get even angrier.
“Hey there,” he said in a deceptively sweet chirp laced with malice. He was now standing over her chair, which her rapidly increasing heartrate was certainly aware of. She could tell by his smirk that he saw and delighted in her fear. He slowly, almost gently, turned her chair to face him so he could tower even over her even more. And still he hadn’t snapped. It was almost torture waiting for the inevitable snap.
He held his raw fingernails up to her face and continued in his toxically sweet voice. “So, this bugs you, huh?” She opened her mouth to say she didn’t want him to hurt himself, but she closed it again, unsure if that would set him off. Anything could set him off, and the stress of not knowing when or how it would happen caused her to tremble.
He grinned tauntingly at her. “Worried I’ll hurt myself, hmm?” She gasped and her face grew warm. Something about being caught by him, even in something so innocuous, was embarrassing. His grin grew wider as he patted her head. “Aw, such a good girl, aren’t you?” His voice became a teasing song, and she grew even warmer and even more anxious, knowing he couldn’t be genuinely praising her. Any second now, he’d snap.
“So,” his voice dropping lower and taking on a much darker tone, “what should I do instead?” Her breath caught in her throat as he twisted the fingers still atop her head into her hair and pulled, hard. He leaned closer and she shivered under his breath as he whispered in her ear, “I’m sure you’ll help me.”
And then her neck exploded with pain so intense she saw stars. He’d sunk his teeth into her, and now she felt faint as he continued to bite and suck roughly at the spot. She leaned into him, grabbing hold of his shoulders so she didn’t fall from her chair. He responded by pulling her tighter against him in a surprisingly gentle way considering what he was doing to her. She gripped him tighter and panted to release some of her pain. In this way, it was almost bearable. In fact, as she settled into the bite, it almost felt…comfortable.
When he pulled away, his cheeks were flushed, and he breathed in a husky way that made her feel warmer and quite embarrassed. She looked down and tried to get her own breathing back to normal.
“Hmm, you know what?” His voice had gone back to its usual irritability, meaning she’d survived the worst of the outburst. She was about to let out a sigh of relief when his next words made her spine tingle. “I think you might just help me cure my nail-biting habit. You’re much more fun to bite.”
He chuckled darkly as her breath hitched. “Don’t worry,” he cooed as he leaned back over her. Worry was exactly what she did until he left a long, gentle kiss on her sore neck. The lips that had made her cry out in agony now melted away the pain in something that should not feel so warm and delightful! Afterward, he lingered, the ghost of his breath teasing her as he whispered, “It won’t be all bad.”
And, as quickly as he’d come, he now left her side, plopping back in front of his own computer. “Back to work,” he called out, eyes already on his screen. “I’ll let you know when I need your help again.” With that, he left her struggling to focus on the screen in front of her, her heartbeat too fast and her body too warm and tingly and her brain unable to decide whether it felt fear…or something else.