by P. Stormcrow
“Now, your hands please.”
Pulling her hands from her mouth, she let Eli position them to brace against her face, fingers apart so that they covered most of her features while her hair cascaded down. “No numbness in any of your limbs?”
“No, I’m good.”
“Excellent.” His vision complete, he took a step back and breathed in admiration. “Beautiful.”
Luna’s cheeks warmed, even as the makeup artist approached, applying similar treatment to her as she had with Cassie and August. Without realizing what she was doing, she peered through the gaps of her fingers to search for Jacob.
That was a mistake.
He had moved closer, as if to ensure he could see the details of what Eli was doing. Her gaze traveled to his crotch, where there was a visible bulge in his jeans. In an instant, the ropes went from pleasant and entertaining to kindling a fire inside her. Was it her imagination or did he tilt his chin up, as if aware and proud of the reaction he was provoking in her?
What would it be like if it was just the two of them? Would he touch her? In a dark part of her mind, she imagined his fingers slipping between her legs, parting her folds. What would it be like with his tongue licking her flesh? She grew wetter at the thought. At least upside down, it would not trickle down her thigh. But even she could smell herself. She attempted to shift her fingers with subtle movements, as if trying to cover her embarrassment.
The makeup artist gave a small smile, her next words jolting Luna from the sudden fantasy. “It’s all right, hon. Your body’s reaction is perfectly normal. I can’t tell you how many models I’ve worked with who reacted the same way. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. Okay?”
She gave the woman a nod and a grateful smile. At least she hadn’t guessed the true source of her arousal.
When the woman stepped back, Eli lifted his camera and her photo session began. After several shots, they brought Cassie back in and they were posed together, Cassie sitting below, both of them positioned to cup each other’s face like lovers.
The intimacy caught Luna off guard and she couldn’t stop flushing.
“You’re doing great, Luna. You’re gorgeous,” Cassie whispered and trailed a finger across her cheekbone while Eli was still preparing his camera. The tenderness Luna saw in her eyes stunned Luna. It was so contradictory to anything she’d ever expected from Cassie. But then the moment passed and she grinned with a wink. “Home stretch, right?”
“Yeah,” Luna stammered, still not sure what had just happened.
Then it was over. Eli released her from the ropes and made sure she was stable. One of the other assistants handed her and Cassie their robes, even as Luna studied herself. There were rope marks on her body but nothing she hadn’t expected.
When August approached, she grinned at him, exhilarated from the new experience. “I did it!”
“You did.” August smiled in return.
“Everyone!” Once more, Eli motioned for them to gather around. “Thank you again for all your hard work today. I’ll be developing these shots and send you all copies sometime in the next few weeks. It’s been a pleasure working with all of you, and I cannot thank you enough for this experience we were able to share.” He clapped and bowed once more and Luna could not help but bow back, before they all dispersed to change or pack.
“Hey, August, can you come help me with my dress?” Cassie grabbed August’s hand and tugged at it, batting her eyelashes.
August sighed and rolled his eyes. Laughter bubbling up, Luna gestured. “Go… I’ll be fine.”
As soon as they’d left, Jacob approached. “Ready for that coffee?”
Her cheeks heated, remembering the look in his eyes. With Herculean willpower, she managed to not look down beyond the man’s face.
“Yeah, let me go change.” When he nodded, she turned and started walking toward her own change pod.
“Hey, Luna.”
She paused and spun around, tilting her head to one side.
“Good job today.”
The smile that spread across her face was only matched by the warmth deep in her soul.
Chapter Eleven
He wasn’t sure why he was so excited about getting coffee with Luna. No, that was a lie.
Jacob could admit his own desires as Eli’s expert hands tied up Luna’s naked form. What he didn’t expect were the shots of jealousy that made him struggle through the session. Something in him wanted to claim her, to tell others to get their grubby hands off her. And while none of that was reasonable at any level, there was also no reason he shouldn’t explore the mutual attraction between them.
He quirked his lips in amusement as Luna told August that she was leaving with him. August had only lifted a brow and nodded with a simple, “Text me later.” It made Jacob wonder how Luna and he had gotten so close in such a short time.
Cassie, on the other hand, wouldn’t stop smirking at them until, after a moment, to save Luna, he had murmured something about having to guide Luna out of the forest to his car. Still chuckling at the others’ reactions, he’d allowed Luna to pick the coffee place and he drove there under her directions.
When they arrived, he opened the door to what seemed to be her favorite bakery and couldn’t help but chuckle again at the excitement he saw. Luna had a bounce in her steps and she was quick to lead them to the counter. As the scent of butter and sugar greeted his nose, he understood why. His little mouse had a sweet tooth.
“The apple turnovers here are amazing. But if you want something a little less sweet, the croissants are also excellent.”
Jacob smiled as he stepped up to the till. “An apple turnover, a croissant, a coffee and…?” He turned toward Luna.
“Two coffees.” As she came to his side, she pulled out her wallet.
He disregarded her actions as he handed over his credit card.
“Hey! I wanted to pay and thank you for sending me those articles and answering all my questions!”
He waited until the woman at the till had left to complete their order before he replied, keeping his voice low. “And I just got paid to stand around and watch you get tied up.”
Rewarded by the prettiest of blushes, he straightened and took his coffee and croissant, leading them to settle into one of the two armchairs by the window, also well aware of the self-satisfied smirk on his face.
“Well, thank you,” Luna replied as she settled opposite him. Without waiting, she bit into her apple turnover and her eyes fluttered closed with a small mm-m sound, then another bite and sigh of satisfaction. A sip of coffee and she leaned back, a happy smile on her face.
He had never seen anyone relish a baked good the way she did. His jeans tightened, not for the first time today, and he shifted in his seat. In his mind, he wondered, if an apple turnover elicited that kind of reaction, what would she be like in the throes of pleasure?
He cleared his throat and she tilted her head to one side, a gesture he was coming to realize was uniquely hers. There was no guile on her face, no pretense—not even a smidgen of awareness of what she looked like when she ate. That was just how much the woman enjoyed food.
She was going to be the death of him.
It was best to create a diversion. “So what made you agree to be one of Eli’s models?” He wasn’t sure if she was going to answer but thought it was worth a shot.
“Well”—she set down her mug and curled up to tuck her legs beneath her in the chair—“I wanted to see what bondage felt like and thought it was a safe setting to try it, without obligation to…go beyond.”
The urge to ask for more surged in him but he shied away from the more personal questions. “Now I understand why you were asking questions about rope earlier this week. I hope those articles helped.”
“They did.” She smiled again, tucking her hair behind her ear. “It helped a little to get a picture of what to expect”—she held up her wrist—“down to knowing that these marks would happen and that they would fade pretty soon. So…tha
nk you.”
“No problem.” Jacob took a bite of his croissant and a sip of his coffee. Outside the window, a sudden parade of people in costumes walked by.
“Is the convention this weekend?” Luna’s eyes widened as she stared out of the window.
“Looks like it. Hey, that’s a pretty good Wolverine.”
“And the yellow spandex version too! That guy’s got guts.”
Their gazes met and they shared the same grin, as one comic book nerd recognizing another. Excitement flashing in her eyes, Luna leaned forward. “Okay, favorite X-Men character.”
From there on, conversation flowed. The constant attraction was there, but the lust faded into the background as he focused on enjoying her company and getting to know her. There was no mention of kink or lifestyle, and they ranged from topic to topic, finding more in common than not.
A woman, different from the one who had taken their orders earlier, approached their table. “Excuse me. My apologies, but we’ll be closing in fifteen minutes.”
They had been there for hours. Jacob blinked in surprise but smiled as Luna did the same. “Ah, thanks. We’ll get out of your hair so you can close up.”
They rose at the same time and Luna smiled, ducking her head. “Sorry for nattering away all this time.”
“Not at all… I enjoyed it.” Jacob rose and offered a hand to her. A glance of the clock showed that it was almost a quarter to five.
“I was wondering…” Now Luna blushed, as if her shyness was returning, and she looked down, avoiding meeting his eyes. “Would you be interested in dinner? I’d still like to thank you for teaching me so much.” Her voice was growing softer and softer, even as her words came out faster and faster. “I cook a mean piece of fish and I bought too large of a filet of salmon for one person yesterday. Oh, unless you have a seafood allergy, in which case I can make something else, or—”
“Luna”—he placed a hand on her shoulder and ducked his head a little to catch her gaze—“salmon sounds great, and it would be a pleasure to try your cooking.”
They swung by a nearby grocery store to pick up a few more things for dinner—potatoes, ingredients for a salad… He’d been on his own for so long that the sheer domesticity of their errand together caught him off guard. It was nowhere near how he imagined a first date would go, but it felt natural, normal, as if they’d done it before, as if they’d always done that.
When they’d arrived at her apartment, with him insisting on helping with the bags, Jacob was curious and pleased at the same time to see her place neat and tidy. The dinner was an impromptu invite, which meant what he saw was how it was usually.
And one could tell a lot from a person’s home.
His gaze swept across the apartment. The living room held a small couch and a larger armchair, which was angled toward the wall-mounted TV. Along one wall stood a line of bookshelves, stocked with several novels and knick-knacks, including an impressive collection of Funko Pop vinyl figures. Next to where he stood by the entrance was an open-concept kitchen with a large island where two bar stools stood along one side. A large poster depicting a silhouette of a spaceship dominated one wall as decoration. Jacob recognized it as the Firefly anniversary poster. On another wall, a map of Middle-earth hung in a distressed frame.
“Can I get you something to drink? I have water, Sprite and beer.”
A woman after his own heart. “I can use a Sprite.” Damn his addiction. He could never turn down an offer of pop. He followed her movements as she took a two-liter bottle from the fridge and poured a glass before offering it to him. Only when he took it did she do the same for herself.
“Please, make yourself at home.” Luna gestured toward the couch.
He shook his head and moved to the kitchen sink instead to wash his hands. “Why don’t you let me help instead.” A Dominant, he was. A male chauvinist, he wasn’t. When she looked as though she was about to protest, he offered his puppy dog eyes and a slight pout. It was enough to make her laugh, which turned his pout into a grin.
“Okay, okay. Can you deal with the potatoes while I prep the salmon?”
It turned out to be the most fun he’d had for a while. They worked well together, despite his unfamiliarity with her kitchen. Perhaps it was the way she adjusted to work around him or her careful directions of where things were, as if it were second nature to her. And, in the meantime, she kept him chuckling with anecdotes of her more adventurous cooking and baking experiments. Before he realized it, they had dinner ready.
Luna kept her eyes on him as he took the first bite, sitting side by side on the high bar stools next to the kitchen island. Well aware of her scrutiny, he made a show of sampling his first bite of the potato first while keeping a poker face. He chewed with exaggerated slowness before taking another bite. Then, at last, he tried the salmon.
She had cooked it to perfection, with a simple balance of lemon and dill. He had spied pots of herbs to one side of the kitchen and realized that the freshness of the dill was a strong differentiating factor. He savored the bite then took another with more gusto.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of her taking her own first bite, although she kept stealing peeks at him. Keeping her in suspense, he decided to ignore the unvoiced question that hung on her lips.
“Well? How is it?” Luna burst out, anxiety making her voice squeak after a minute longer.
Oh, she was fun. He couldn’t help teasing her. It was only after he took another bite that he took pity on her and relented. “Fantastic.” He paused then grinned, well aware of the mischief tugging at the corners of his lips. “If this is what I get for answering some questions, is there anything else you’d like me to teach you?”
The ill-timed comment provoked a more intense reaction than he’d anticipated. Luna, mid-bite, began coughing. Her face turned red while she flapped her hands in the air.
“Crap!” Jacob turned and started patting her back until she appeared to recover. As her coughing subsided and her face began to return to more normal coloring, his patting slowed to rubbing in small circles. Grabbing her glass of Sprite, he held it out to her. “Here, slow sips.”
She drew in deep breaths and leaned a little back against his hand even as she took the glass and brought it to her lips. When she began drinking, taking slow sips, he let out a sigh of relief. “You okay?”
She turned toward him to nod and gave him a wan smile then blushed as their eyes met. Caught in the startling crystal blue, Jacob found himself unable to look away. Instead, he slowed his hand until it stilled behind her back, watching as her lips parted. Those very, very kissable lips. He leaned forward and had to suppress the urge to pull him to her when she did the same.
With the most willpower he’d ever had to exert on himself, he brushed his lips against her temple instead. Somehow, however, the gesture came out much more intimate. “Good.”
She had closed her eyes at the gesture and it took seconds longer before she fluttered them open once more. Jacob held his breath, wondering at how she would react next.
“Thank you,” Luna whispered and ducked her head again.
A part of him mused over just what she had in her mind when he made his teaching comment that made her choke on her food, but rather than tease her further, unwilling to ruin the moment, he let it drop for now. “Eat your food before it gets cold.”
Once more, she nodded, turned and started eating again. So responsive to commands. Even as he returned to his own meal, he chewed over his thoughts. She was a natural and he could see how easy it would be for someone to take advantage of her submissiveness. Besides education, there must be something else he could do to protect her.
For a time, he fell silent as he ate and pondered the woman next to him.
Chapter Twelve
Her heart was pounding so hard that Luna wasn’t sure how she’d managed to eat the rest of her food at all. She had thought he was going to kiss her. She wanted him to kiss her. A tinge of disappointment ta
inted the otherwise perfect day, just a wee bit.
When he’d finished his meal, she gave him a quick smile as she reached to collect his plate and fork, bringing it over to the sink.
“That was great. Thank you.”
Luna beamed at Jacob’s compliment and gave a slight nod, beginning to rinse the dishes. Then she tilted her head, watching him as he left his seat to walk toward the fridge. Maybe for more pop?
“Wait… I have a bit of a surprise for you.” With his back turned toward Luna, she couldn’t quite tell what he was up to until he stepped back from her fridge with a small white box in his hands. When he placed it on the kitchen counter and motioned her over, the intensity of his gaze as he watched her every move threatened to overwhelm her. “Open it.”
Luna pried the sticker loose with slow care and lifted the lid of the box, her eyes widening at the six-inch tiramisu cake that sat inside, topped with delicate scrolls of cream and an abundance of chocolate shavings. A small whimper escaped her lips. It must be a bribe of some form. For what, though, she had no idea.
“Good.”
Something must have shown in her face. Luna looked up, gaping at Jacob a little, even as his lips curved upward in a self-satisfied smile.
“How?” She had so many questions but she only managed that one word. Was the man some sort of ninja? How did he know it was her absolute favorite?
“Your eyes kept going to the little tiramisu cups in the bakery, and when you were busy picking out potatoes, I picked it up from the bakery side.”
She blinked at him.
“No, I’m not a mind reader.”
Luna managed a small squeak of happiness.
Jacob chuckled while rubbing the back of his neck. “Normally I’d bake something for a dinner like this, but since this was more of a last-minute thing…”
