Rock & Regrets (Reckless Release Book 2)

by Cassandra Lawson

  “See what I mean?” Brook asked before adding, “When is the rebound guy supposed to get here?”

  I frowned. For some reason, that title suddenly bothered me. “His flight was delayed, and they hit bad traffic coming from the city. I’m supposed to be meeting him for dinner, but I was too hungry to wait.”

  “Luckily, we were here to keep you company,” Chelsea told me.

  “Do you always sit this far from the restaurant area?” I asked. We were at the farthest end of the bar with no other customers seated by us.

  “With Delaney, it’s best if there aren’t any young children close enough to overhear her,” Brook explained.

  “Hey!” Delaney protested. “I’m a mother now and not nearly as bad as I was before.”

  “That’s scary,” I said with a laugh. “You just suggested suspension bondage classes in a public place.”

  “Would you believe me if I told you I have an internal filter when I’m not breastfeeding?” Delaney asked.

  “No,” I replied. “I’ve spoken to you enough to know that’s not true. I will admit that you seem more reserved than you were when you were pregnant.”

  “That wasn’t my fault,” Delaney argued. “It was pregnancy hormones and cake deprivation.”

  “Hopefully, your man gets here before Delaney starts interrogating you about your sex life,” Brook remarked.

  From where I was sitting, I could see the front door, so I noticed right away when Austin walked in. When his eyes landed on me, my body immediately tightened with need. How could a man do that with a simple look?

  “He’s here now.” If my voice was a little breathy, it was only to be expected.

  “He looks like he’s about to stalk over here, toss you over his shoulder, and carry you somewhere to have his way with you,” Delaney said on a sigh.

  “Normally, I’d say she’s exaggerating, but that is how he looks,” Chelsea agreed.

  I stood and absently said my goodbyes to Delaney and her friends before making my way to Austin. He looked incredible in worn jeans, a tight black t-shirt, and a leather jacket. My gaze remained locked with his.

  “I’ve missed you,” he uttered when I was standing directly in front of him. He had his hands shoved in his pockets and made no move to touch me.

  “Are you hungry?” I asked, hoping he’d say no.

  “Hungry?” He looked as if he had no idea what I was asking.

  “Do you want to eat something?” I clarified.

  “Yes,” he murmured, and he wasn’t thinking about food. “We should get a table and talk.”

  “We could talk at my place,” I offered. “Andy’s on vacation, so he and Cerise went to San Diego for a few days. They won’t be back until tomorrow afternoon. We can always order something to go if you’re hungry. I actually ate. You were running late, and I was starving. I’m not good at waiting to eat when I’m hungry.”

  I was babbling. Before Austin had arrived, I hadn’t been nervous about seeing him. It had only been two weeks.

  “Let’s talk here.” My shock at his response must have shown on my face because he chuckled and asked, “You expected me to drag you out to the car and take you home to do wicked things to you while you’re wearing nothing but your bunny slippers, right?”

  “All except the bunny slippers part,” I replied. “I’m still not sure what it is with you and my slippers.”

  “Neither am I,” he admitted with a laugh.

  “Do you need a table?” the hostess asked us.

  “Yes, for two,” Austin replied.

  “Right this way,” she said, and we followed her to a booth in the back.

  “What’s good here?” Austin asked.

  “The fajitas are my favorite,” I replied. “I don’t eat here too often. Bentley recently introduced me to this place. I guess it’s her cousin’s go-to place to hang out with her friends.”

  “That would explain why you were sitting with Delaney,” he remarked. “I’m surprised she didn’t come over here to join us.”

  “I’m sure she wanted to, but her friends probably stopped her, so I asked,” Austin seemed off. “Why do you look so serious?”

  He set his menu down and blew out a tired breath. “Partly because I’m exhausted. I’m also nervous about this talk.”

  “You’re making me worry. What’s going on?”

  “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking, and I keep coming back to the fact that I shouldn’t have slept with you before I left,” he admitted.

  “Because you’ve suddenly decided to wear a chastity ring?” I asked slowly.

  Austin laughed at my question. “No, because I don’t want you to think that’s all I want from you.”

  “I get that you want more,” I assured him. “You’ve mentioned it plenty of times. Did Harley tell you off for not clarifying our relationship before we had sex?”

  “Worse,” he admitted. “Xander told me I was wrong.”

  I cringed. “Ouch. This isn’t a big deal. I’m not ready to define what we’re doing by giving us labels. For all I know, we may never get to that point. We’re dating, but it could be just to help us work through some unresolved issues from our past.”

  “It’s more than that,” Austin argued.

  “It might be, but we don’t know each other that well anymore,” I reminded him.

  Chapter 42

  Austin

  I hated hearing Piper make the same argument my friends had. It wouldn’t bother me so much if she wasn’t right. We’d been getting to know each other again, but there was still so much I didn’t know about Piper.

  “Do you like to ski?” I asked.

  “Ski?” she asked. “This is a strange change of subject.”

  “A conversation about skiing came up,” I explained. “Xander asked if we wanted to go, but I don’t know if you ski or want to learn to ski.”

  “No skiing,” she replied. “I’ve been snowboarding with Cerise a few times.”

  “So, you like snowboarding,” I deduced.

  “I wouldn’t say I like it,” she hedged. “Cerise loves it, and Andy is a big baby about the snow.”

  “Aren’t Vikings supposed to do fine in the snow?” I asked.

  “That’s what I told him,” she stated. “He’ll go with her, but he complains the whole time. I don’t complain until I’m alone in my warm bathtub in the cabin.”

  “Got it,” I said with a nod. “You don’t want to go skiing or snowboarding unless it’s with Cerise.”

  “I like waterskiing,” she added.

  “Good to know. How long have you been waterskiing?” I asked.

  “For about ten years,” she replied. “I was dating a guy who owned a boat when I was in college. He taught me to waterski.”

  “We should slow down until we get to know each other better,” I suggested.

  “Why do I suddenly feel like the guy in this relationship?” she grumbled.

  “You definitely don’t look like a guy,” I assured her.

  The waitress came and took my order before Piper could say more.

  “I’m going to feel weird eating in front of you,” I remarked.

  “Afraid I’ll think you’re not doing enough to keep your girlish figure?” she teased.

  That question got a startled bark of laughter from me. “Do I have a girlish figure?”

  She shrugged. “How can I tell with all those clothes on?”

  “You are bad,” I scolded, waving my finger at her.

  That’s when the woman pulled out the big guns. Leaning forward so I had a good view of her ample cleavage, she whispered, “Then you should spank me.”

  “Fuck me,” I said on a groan at the mention of one of my favorite Piper fantasies. I had more than a few.

  “If you insist,” she added.

  I just stared at her for a moment before speaking again. “I thought you’d be happy about me wanting to get to know you better before we sleep together again.”

  “It seems like it wou
ld be a step back for us,” she replied.

  I was about to argue with her when I caught myself. Sticking with my plan to delay things wouldn’t have been easy. Still, I’d honestly expected her to be happy with my suggestion. I was glad she didn’t want to put a hold on our sexual relationship. I wasn’t gentleman enough to make the offer twice.

  Chapter 43

  Piper

  As we walked up to my front door, I was so turned on, my legs were practically shaking. Waiting until I could say I was Austin’s girlfriend might be a good idea, but I didn’t want to wait. I wanted Austin, and he clearly felt the same desperate need.

  Spinning me to face him, he kissed me. His mouth moved hungrily against mine, and I instinctively reached out to clutch his shirt and pull him closer. With his tongue stroking mine and his hard body trapping me against the door, I was impossibly aroused. My hands slipped under his shirt to glide along the hard planes of his body.

  Austin groaned as he took the keys from my hand and reached around behind me to unlock the door. One hand went to my lower back as he opened the door and guided me into the house. He kicked the door shut and immediately spun me so my back was against the door. His hands moved up the sides of my body before pushing my hands above my head and pinning them there. When he broke our kiss, his lips trailed along my jaw until they were close to my ear. He bit down gently on my earlobe, causing a tremor of desire to move through me.

  “Austin,” I breathed out.

  “I’ve missed you, Button,” he murmured. “Tell me you want me.”

  “That seems obvious,” I replied with a strained laugh.

  “Say it,” he commanded.

  “I want you,” I uttered. “So very much.”

  Austin’s lips moved to my neck as I squirmed and struggled to free my wrists. Though I reveled in Austin’s dominance, I was dying to touch him.

  “I need to touch you,” I pleaded.

  “Not yet,” he rasped out. “We’re going to play a game.”

  “What kind of game,” I asked on a moan. It was hard following the conversation while he was sucking lightly at the pulse on my neck.

  “Submission,” he whispered close to my ear. “You’re going to turn your mind off and let me give you pleasure. You’re going to surrender your pleasure to me. When you behave, I’ll reward you.”

  I had to bite back a whimper. “What happens if I don’t behave?” I asked in a strained voice.

  “You’ll behave,” he replied with a cocky grin. “We both know you want me to reward you. What do you say?”

  “I—” My voice caught on the words. It should be a simple answer. Austin’s suggestion turned me on. I liked men who were dominant in bed. I’d played games like this before, but this was Austin. Was I ready to let him take charge? Was I ready to let my guard down this much? Austin was asking about more than an erotic game, he was asking me to trust him.

  Austin’s hands left my wrists to cradle my face. His eyes locked with mine as one of his thumbs brushed against my lower lip. “I’m not going hurt you, baby.”

  “I know,” I assured him, or maybe I was assuring myself.

  His lips hovered above mine as he spoke. “I almost feel like I need to give you a safe word.”

  “A safe word?” I asked a little nervously, not sure I was ready for anything that might involve a safe word.

  “Not for the physical stuff,” he replied much too seriously. His lips brushed against mine before he continued. “It seems you need a safe word for the emotional stuff.”

  “We were talking about kinky sex, not emotions,” I argued, even knowing he was right. I wasn’t afraid of giving him control of my body so much as my heart. I was afraid of completely letting my guard down with Austin. These were things I wasn’t ready to admit, so I shifted to a safer topic. “Can I tell you a secret? It’s something I’ve never admitted to another person.”

  “What’s that?” he asked.

  “That night, when I slapped you,” I reached forward to stroke his cheek. “I was turned on when you threatened to spank me in front of all those people.”

  “Don’t tell me my sweet Piper is an exhibitionist.” Based on his rough voice, the idea turned him on, too.

  “Not really,” I replied. “It was the potent combination of anger and adrenaline making me think that would be a good idea. I’m sure I wouldn’t enjoy anything that extreme, but I’ve touched myself to that fantasy more than once.”

  “Are you trying to distract me with sex?” he asked.

  “Is it working?” was my response.

  Austin opened his mouth to respond, but no words came out. He closed it and allowed his gaze to move to my mouth. The lust was still evident in his eyes, but I also saw his struggle. Austin wanted me. He wanted to take me back to my room and indulge in the fantasy he’d described. At the same time, he wanted to discuss our feelings—a subject I was determined to avoid.

  Austin took a step back, his heated gaze remaining on me. “Show me your bedroom.”

  I nodded and walked past him, feeling his gaze on me every step of the way. When we reached my room, Austin’s attention shifted to my four-poster bed.

  “I don’t suppose you have any rope, do you?” he rasped out when he turned toward me.

  “In my toy drawer. It’s the bottom one in my nightstand.” If my bed had this effect on Austin, I couldn’t wait to see how he reacted to what was in my toy drawer, or his reaction when he found out I had a second toy drawer.

  Chapter 44

  Austin

  A toy drawer. I was definitely intrigued. Piper’s bed had my already hard dick pulsing in my jeans. There were probably people who bought beds like this for reasons other than bondage, but I imagined Piper wasn’t one of them.

  Opening the drawer, I nearly swallowed my tongue. Piper’s toy drawer was the stuff of every guy’s fantasies—my fantasies, at least. I couldn’t wait to try out everything in there. It could take me months to exhaust the many possibilities. This time, I needed three items. When I tossed them on the bed, Piper’s eyes widened.

  “Undress and lie down on the bed,” I ordered.

  There was only a brief hesitation before Piper began stripping for me. I use the word stripping because she wasn’t merely undressing. Her hips swayed as she slowly removed each item of clothing.

  “Very nice,” I praised when she finally slid her panties down her hips. I grabbed the pillow and moved it so she’d be lying diagonally on the bed. I wanted her wrists tied together. “On your back with your hands above your head.”

  “Like this?” Piper asked as she settled onto the bed, arching her back with her hands above her head. The pose pushed her gorgeous breasts out. She knew what she was doing.

  “You are a very naughty girl.” I was grinning when I made that statement.

  “I heard that’s what you like,” she teased.

  “You heard right,” I replied as I knelt on the bed and grabbed the first item I’d removed from the drawer. The rope had come as a surprise. Even when she’d told me to check the drawer, I hadn’t expected to find rope—fuzzy handcuffs or nylon cuffs with Velcro, but not rope.

  Leaning forward, I secured Piper’s wrists together and then attached the rope to the headboard, deciding to leave her legs free. Moving back, I enjoyed the view. Few things were hotter than a gorgeous woman tied to a bed. Her eyes locked with my hand as I reached for the second item. I slipped the blindfold on her before climbing off the bed to strip down to my boxers. The whole time, my eyes remained locked on Piper as she squirmed on the bed.

  Fuck me! She was beautiful. That she’d allowed me to tie her to a bed said a lot. When I’d suggested it, I hadn’t been sure she’d agree. Even after I’d found the rope in her drawer, I’d worried she wasn’t ready to take this step. Bondage involved trust. She might not be ready to admit it to herself, but Piper trusted me.

  My eyes landed briefly on the third item I’d taken from Piper’s drawer, but I wasn’t ready to use that yet. Situati
ng myself between her legs, I leaned forward to swirl my tongue around her nipple, satisfied when she moaned and arched to bring her breast closer to my mouth. I’d been dreaming of feasting on her gorgeous breasts. I spent several minutes teasing her nipples, changing pressure and speed as I suckled and licked the hard peaks, occasionally biting down gently.

  “You have no idea how many times I’ve fantasized about having you like this,” I admitted as I pinched one nipple and rolled it gently. Her lips parted on a moan. Her look of total abandon was a huge turn-on. I reveled in the way she completely gave herself to me. “You are an addiction.”

  “Addictions are bad,” was her weak protest as I kissed my way down her belly.

  “Not one this sweet,” I insisted. My tongue skimmed across her clit.

  Piper rewarded my efforts with a loud moan, her hips lifting. I knew what she wanted, but I wasn’t ready to give it to her. I wanted her to crave my touch as much as I craved hers. Starting at the bottom of her thigh, my tongue glided up until I was close to her pussy before I moved to her other thigh. When I reached her pussy again, I slid my tongue inside of her, moving it around to savor her sweetness before kissing my way up her body.

  “See how good you taste,” I murmured, claiming her mouth. Her legs wrapped around my hips, and she moved against me.

  If I didn’t stop kissing her soon, the game would be over before I was ready. I was losing control, something I wasn’t accustomed to, yet something that always seemed to happen with Piper. Tearing my mouth from hers, I managed to get her to release her grip on my hips so I could settle back on my knees between her legs.

  “Please, Austin,” she begged. “I need you in me.”

  Oh, how I loved hearing those words. They were just what I needed to remind me of my goal. I wanted her more desperate before I finally drove her over the edge. Only then, would I allow myself my own release.

  “Not yet,” I rasped out, deciding it was time for a little help.

  Chapter 45

  Piper

  Not yet? He had to be kidding. Austin was driving me out of my mind. There was no denying his skill with rope impressed me. I’d learned to love rope during a brief affair with a bondage enthusiast, but I’d found most men couldn’t tie a good knot, no matter how much they bragged about their Boy Scout days. Being an Eagle Scout didn’t mean you were destined to be a rope top.