31 Become Submissive

A moment of baffled silence.

"Huh?" Adeline was taken aback, confused, and puzzled. "Get closer to him. Why?"

Caesar laughed, dropping his head against her left shoulder. "To get what you want, of course!"

"But, how can I do that?" Adeline questioned, starting to grow irritated. "He hates me and he wouldn't do so much as even touch me. What makes you think that would be possible?"

She shuddered at the hotness of his breath against her collarbone.

Caesar pulled his head up and palmed her cheek. "Become submissive."

"What?" Adeline was stunned, at a complete loss for words. Her expression darkened, and the soft gleam in her brown pearls disappeared, almost as if she could kill Caesar with a mere gaze.

Caesar quickly raised his hands defensively. "Hear me out, first." He cackled, humored.

"Do you know one thing some men seek a lot when it comes to women?" he asked.

Adeline shook her head. "No."

"Submission, baby doll." Caesar playfully caressed her hair, his gaze never leaving hers. "Some love it when a woman falls to their knees, completely submissive. They like a woman in distress who would makes them feel important and needed. Some men admire compliant women, and Dimitri is one of them."

"Look at you, my doll... You are nothing of the sort." He shook his head, his eyes searching her face thoroughly. "You are different from what he wants, so how could he desire you?"

"You are everything he hates and does not want in a woman. You can fight and stand up for yourself and it isn't what he wants, do you understand?" 

"He needs more from you. A soft version of you, one that he can control."

His hand curled to the back of her neck, tangling itself in her hair. "You have to become a lady in distress for him, to creep your way into his very heart." He spoke against the skin of her shoulder, the vibration of his voice making her breath hitch. "You can break him, Adeline, you can ruin him."

Adeline choked a breath. "Caesar…" Her face was heavily flushed.

Caesar ran his hand up and down her back, his arm circling her in a hug.

"You just have to pretend, be smarter for a while, and you will get what you want. Old man Fyodor is like a tree with many branches, and you'll have to destroy his branches first, the likes of Dimitri, to be able to uproot him completely."

He bit into her shoulder, leaving a deep hickey as if making a claim. "This should be convincing enough." His canine, which had stretched instinctively, itched.

The need to do much more than just leave a hickey was a bit frustrating.

"That stings." Adeline hissed, tightening her grip on his suit jacket.

Caesar left a gentle kiss on the hickey, his canine vanishing. "There, much better." He pulled back to look at her face, his lips curving into an exotic smile. "You are going to love the show I'll display for you. Just trust me and get that information."

"Also, I expect a very rewarding kiss," he teased, purring.

Adeline wasn't sure if she heard it right, but it sounded as though he was purring, almost like a contented cat. Was she imagining it? Perhaps.

"Call me once you find out." Caesar planted a kiss on the dorsal of her hand. "And drink with me before you leave. I got these brands especially for you," he said.

Adeline pulled off him with a deep breath, her blush splotchy. She walked over and sat down on the chair, her gaze appearing a bit distant.

She wasn't sure what could have possibly been the reason, but she'd enjoyed his little teasing touch so much that she wished to stay like that for a split second more. Was she touch-starved? Could that be the reason?

Her train of thought was disrupted by Caesar, who had begun to fill her glass with wine.

The rest of their talking was based on their interests, and by the time they knew it, it'd been over two hours. Adeline stood up from her chair and grabbed her purse.

"I have to go home now. But, er, I can't really promise that I'll be able to find out what you want," she said. "That old man is impenetrable, and it's near impossible to find out anything."

Caesar shook his head at her. "You don't necessarily need the old man. Dimitri is enough." He walked over to stand in front of her, his hands shoved into the pocket of his pants.

Adeline lifted her head to look at him, her long lashes fluttering. "W-what?" Her head stopped just a bit below his shoulder, often causing Caesar to hunch in order to be able to lean closer to her height.

"Nothing." Caesar's gaze moved from her pupils down to her button nose and plump red lips before returning to her honey-brown eyes. He side-smiled. "Till we meet again, Adeline."

Adeline bit her inner cheek with a nod and turned, walking to the door. She halted and glanced at him as if having something to say, but seeming to change her mind, she opened the door and left.

The first thing the two men took notice of was the purple hickey on her shoulder. It was one hell of a hickey, almost like a bruise.

They didn't say a word but simply followed after her with uncertainty in their gazes. Every now and then, they would glance behind them.