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Nora waited in sub-roons of their long association: the B&ouift last December 21 for his forty-sixth birthday, the tassel of an embroidered bookmark she’d made for hi out from a volume of John Donne poetry, a lock on the bottom door of a cabinet under one of the bookcases Only she and he knehat he kept behind that lock And on the fireplace ht scratches in the wood left by her desperate fingernails on a night he had shown her no ht

Søren caazed down at her face She kept her eyes respectfully lowered It had been the first subht her

"Why are you here?" he asked

"To give ain?"

"Yes"

"Completely?"

"And utterly, sir," she said "Without conditions or constraints" The words ca back felt as easy as falling, as siht, were you?" Søren demanded and Nora blushed

"No, sir," she whispered

"You ith your editor last night Yes?"

"Yes"

"And did you do as I told you? Did you make him hurt you?"

"Yes, sir"

From the corner of her eye she saw him raise his eyebrow at her in clear skepticism

"Show me"

Nora held out her hands and displayed her wrists, the purple bruises on her skin

"He held you down," Søren said "Your arms were over your head"

"Yes," Nora said, ale of the marks

"What else?"

Nora unbuttoned her blouse and let it fall to the floor She unzipped her skirt and stepped out of it Without shame or fear she shed all her underclothes, as well She stood naked before Søren and waited He studied her body with appraising eyes Stepping behind her, he raised her hair off her back

"He bit your shoulder, I see Several times He took you from behind"

"Yes, sir"

"Anal?"