Monroe, Marla - Hot and Bothered (Siren Publishing Classic)

by Monroe, Marla

  She poured some in each glass, and they took the wine into the living room. Savanna kicked off her shoes and curled up on the sofa. Karen sat on the opposite end in the same position. This was their normal routine before Karen had moved in with Ben. She had missed it but was happy for her friend. Now they were back to the way things used to be. Only now she had a man friend, and Karen was without.

  “How has the spa been lately?” Karen asked.

  “Business as usual. Once we got past the busted pipe, everything went back to how it was. Oh, Rhonda is getting married. She announced it Tuesday. I’m a little worried she might quit. Her fiancé had been making noises about her staying home.”

  “Oh, that would suck. Next to Irene, she's one of the ones you depend on.”

  “Yeah, it’s hard to find good help in the service industry. With the sensitive nature of what we do, I can’t just hire anyone. I have to trust they will keep what they know and hear to themselves. My customers expect discretion.”

  “Yeah, I would hate for it to get out that I go Brazilian with my waxing.” Karen took a sip of her wine and then set the glass on the coffee table.

  “Savanna, do you think I have any kind of chance at getting Ben back? I miss him so much.” There were tears in her eyes now.

  “Aw, Karen, honey. I don’t know, but I think you should try. You’re in love with him, aren’t you?”

  “Yeah. I’ve been fooling myself. I thought being married would mean I was getting old. What am I going to do if he won’t give me a chance?”

  “Don’t think like that right now. Think positive and call him. Better yet, go see him.” Savanna handed Karen a tissue from the end table.

  “I screwed up. It scared me, though, to think about settling down. I should have tried harder to talk with him about it. Instead, I panicked and acted stupid.” Karen dabbed at her eyes.

  “It’s like that song says. Don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone,” Karen said.

  “Well, don’t count it a lost cause till you’ve tried to get him back, okay?”

  “I guess not,” she said.

  “Why don’t you come out with us Saturday night? It will take your mind off things.”

  “Thanks, but I think I might try going by and talking to him instead. No reason to put it off. I mean, the longer I wait, the harder it’s going to be.” Karen picked up her wine and took another sip.

  “You’re probably right,” she said.

  “So, tell me more about hunky.” Karen grinned at her.

  “Hmm, well, he’s sexy as hell. I’ve already told you everything there is to tell. Oh, he seems to be a fan of getting kinky, though.” Savanna sipped her wine.

  “Oh, do tell. You will have to tell me all about it afterward. I’m a big lover of kink.”

  “Don’t I know it? You embarrassed the crap out of me talking about you and Ben.”

  “Aw, come on. You were eating up every word.” Karen’s smile faded, and Savanna knew she was thinking about Ben again.

  “I’m beginning to worry, though.”

  This got Karen’s attention. “What about?”

  “He’s getting really personal. Wanting to know about my family and stuff like that.”

  “What’s wrong with that? I mean you’ve been dating for awhile now. It’s just natural to talk about things like that.” Karen appeared perplexed.

  “I just don’t want to get that serious.”

  “Why not? He sounds like the perfect man. Sexy, good in bed, cleans and cooks. What more could you possibly want?” Karen asked.

  “A steady job,” she responded.

  “What do you mean?”

  “He seems to only work when he wants to. You know how I am. I believe in working and having stability. He doesn’t have any stability.”

  “So you’re what, using him as a boy toy?”

  “Um, yeah. I guess so,” Savanna said.

  “Does he know how you feel about his not having a steady job?” she asked.

  “I haven’t discussed it with him. I mean why bring it up when we are doing fine like we are.”

  “Only you’re not. He’s getting serious, and you don’t want to because you don’t like his work ethic.”

  “That sounds so cold the way you put it. I like him as a person and a lover. I just don’t think he’s relationship material in the long run,” Savanna said.

  “Honey, you need to talk with him about it. It’s not fair to string him along if you’re not interested in anything long term.” Karen drained the last of her wine and set the glass on the coffee table.

  “I think we’ve had this conversation before, only you were telling me this instead of the other way around.” Karen reached over and squeezed Savanna’s hand.

  “I know.”

  “Talk to him. Don’t put it off. You’ll end up like me. Believe me, you don’t want to be in my shoes. It sucks. I better go. We both need to get some sleep, and neither one of us has eaten yet.” Karen stood up.

  “Hey, you can eat here. I have leftover spaghetti. There’s plenty.” Savanna followed her friend to the door.

  “Naw, I better get home. I’ll talk to you later.”

  “Okay. Good luck with Ben. You better call me in the morning. I’ll call you if you don’t.”

  “I’ll call. I won’t make it early, though. I have a feeling you and Dustin will be late getting to sleep tomorrow.” She grinned, and Savanna shut the door behind her.

  * * * *

  Saturday morning, Savanna got up early for her on a weekend. She normally took the weekends off but decided to go in for a change and have a spa treatment herself. It hadn’t been that long since the last one, but she wanted to look and feel her best. She could check on things while she was there. The spa staff was just opening up when Savanna arrived. Irene didn’t look surprised at all.

  “Figured you would show up today. Want your usual?”

  Savanna laughed. “You know me too well. Yep. I want to be fresh and feel special for my night out.”

  “I’ll take care of you after I get Mrs. Crowder started on her mud facial. I can work back and forth between you.”

  “Thanks, Irene. You’re the best,” Savanna said.

  “Just remember that at Christmastime.” Irene disappeared into one of the rooms to prepare for her first customer of the day.

  She sat down in one of the chairs behind the desk where Rhonda was setting up the schedule.

  “Have you two set a date yet?” She was referring to their getting married.

  “Not yet. We’re waiting to find out when his mom can come down for the wedding. She lives in Minnesota.”

  “Well, let me know as soon as you decide. I want to be sure I have the work schedule set up for when you’re going to be gone.”

  “Don’t worry. I’ll tell you as soon as I know. I know it won’t be before Christmas,” Rhonda said.

  “Oh. That is a ways off. The way you were gushing the other day, I was worried it would be in the next couple of months.” Savanna was relieved she still had time to plan.

  “Hey, Savanna, I’m ready for you. Mrs. Crowder isn’t here yet, so let’s get you started.”

  Savanna enjoyed her treatments that morning. By the time she was finished, she felt like a new woman. Now for a new outfit—something a little risqué. Dustin insinuated he might get a little kinky, so she wanted to dress the part and get him all turned on. She knew from experience that it would make it that much better if they teased all night. She planned to do her share of it, too.

  She settled on a little red dress that barely covered her ass. She would wear her red matching underwear and garters. If that didn’t get him all hot, nothing would. Since the dress didn’t adequately cover her for the cool weather, she would wear her leather coat. Too bad she couldn’t answer the door in it and keep him guessing on what she had under it. She grinned. Well, maybe she could. There was no reason they couldn’t leave as soon as he arrived. She liked that idea, a lot.

  Sinc
e they weren’t going out to eat beforehand, she decided on an early dinner. She settled on a quiche and fruit plate at the deli down the street from the spa. It would be filling but light enough not to make her feel stuffed. She would have to watch how much she drank, though. She didn’t want to get too drunk to enjoy later. She definitely wanted to remember every little detail.

  Savanna was dressed and waiting in her coat a good twenty minutes before time for Dustin to arrive. Yes, she was excited. Face it, girl, I’m getting attached to him. I need to back off some, or I’m going to get into trouble. Right then, though, she didn’t much care. She couldn’t wait to see his expression when she took off the coat.

  Ten minutes before time for him to arrive, someone knocked on the door. Savanna hoped it wouldn’t be her landlord, or anyone else, for that matter. She checked the peephole and grinned. It was Dustin. She threw open the door and met his smile with one of her own.

  “Hey. I’m ready. Let’s go.”

  “Whoa. I brought you something.” Dustin pulled a small box about five inches by five inches out of his jacket pocket.

  Her face fell. Not a gift. There wasn’t room in her plans for gifts from her boy toy. She tried to keep the worry off her face and took a step back into the apartment. He didn’t seem to notice her lack of enthusiasm. He handed her the gift. She forced a smile and held it up to her ear. She shook it, but it didn’t make a noise. She hesitated but knew she had to open it.

  “Go on, open it,” Dustin said. He shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans and rocked back on his heels. He was proud of himself, she realized.

  The box was wrapped in blue paper a little lopsided, so he had to have wrapped it himself. That made her feel a little better. It meant whatever it was hadn’t come from an expensive store. She licked her lips and proceeded to slide her finger under the tape to lift it off.

  “Come on. Don’t try and save the paper. I didn’t do such a good job of wrapping it, as you can tell. Tear it open.”

  “I’m opening it. Hold your horses.”

  She finally got the paper off. Nothing was left but to pull off the top to see what was inside. She drew in a deep breath and prayed. Then she slipped off the top and looked inside and breathed a sigh of relief. She laughed and pulled out a pair of lined handcuffs. Dustin grinned, obviously pleased with himself.

  “So, you game to try them out later?” he asked, lifting his eyebrows.

  “Hmm, I’m game if you are.” Savanna twirled it on her finger.

  “Okay, time to go.” Dustin opened the door.

  “Wait, let me put these in the bedroom.” She ran and dropped them in the middle of the bed and grinned to herself. Yep, they were going to have fun tonight.

  She locked the door behind them and followed Dustin to the truck. He opened the door for her and helped her into the car. She had to be careful not to flash him with the leather coat. Boy, was he going to be surprised.

  They drove to the club holding hands. She had to slap his hand a couple of times when he tried to pull up the coat to peek.

  “Stop that. You’ll see when we get there.”

  “I don’t want to wait. You got to open up your present before we left. Why can’t I just take a little peek?” he asked, frowning.

  “Because I said so.”

  He shook his head and didn’t say anything else. She grinned. He was pouting like a little boy.

  They parked a block from the club. It looked like it was going to be packed tonight, she decided. That meant they probably wouldn’t be able to hold on to a table. Well, she planned to dance a lot anyway. She wondered if they would close the place down or leave early. She made a bet with herself and decided he wouldn’t be able to wait past midnight to get her home and into those handcuffs. She wasn’t sure she could wait much longer herself.

  They stood in line for about five minutes, and when it came their turn, she was worried they would be turned down, with the place being full. They managed to get in, though. When they stopped at the coat check desk, Savanna smiled up at Dustin and slowly unbuttoned her coat. She made a show of slowly sliding it off her body before handing it to the lady and receiving her stub. She wasn’t disappointed. By his expression, he was ready to leave right then.

  Chapter Nine

  Dustin twirled her around to get a good look at her. The little red dress covered everything…almost anyway. He had a peek of garters, red. He would bet she had on a red bra and panty set, knowing her. The night was looking hot.

  “Damn, if I had known what you had under your coat, we would never have left your apartment,” he said.

  “So, you like it?” Savanna asked.

  “Hell yes!”

  She laughed and pulled him toward the dance floor. He followed with a smile on his face. Yep, they were going to have fun tonight, especially when he got those handcuffs on her. She pulled him on the dance floor and started dancing around him. He laughed and joined her. It didn’t take long for her to have several men vying for her attention. Dustin figured he would have trouble all night with her dressed like that. He grabbed her around the waist and urged her off the floor.

  “I can tell that I’m going to have to keep a close eye on you tonight,” he yelled in her ear.

  “Hey, you’re getting your share of followers, too.” She pointedly looked over his shoulder and nodded. “See?”

  She was right. There were several women milling around near them giving him silent invitations. He had what he wanted right there next to him. They could set their sights on some of the men eyeing Savanna.

  He managed to find a chair next to an empty table. He sat down and pulled her onto his lap. The music bounced all around them. A waitress leaned over to take their drink order.

  “I’ll have a beer. What about you, Savanna?”

  “Whiskey sour for me.”

  The waitress nodded and left to take some more orders before she headed back to the bar to fill them. Savanna wiggled on his lap and then leaned back to whisper in his ear.

  “I can feel your cock against my ass.” She pressed down suggestively.

  “Keep that up and we won’t stick around for the drinks.”

  “Now, now. I want to dance all night. We can’t leave yet.” She squeezed his leg.

  Dustin drew in a deep breath and resigned himself to a night of teasing. That was okay. He would have his revenge later. If he had anything to say about it, they wouldn’t make it past midnight. Two could play at her game. He smiled and ran a hand around her waist to rest just below her breasts. He nudged them. She moved. He groaned.

  The waitress returned with their drinks, and Savanna had to stand up so he could reach his money. Once he had paid for their drinks, he found Savanna sitting in the chair sipping hers.

  “You look pretty comfortable there.” He took a swallow of his beer.

  “Not as lumpy as your lap was.” She batted her eyelashes at him.

  “Tease.” He adjusted his stance to accommodate his lump.

  It wasn’t long before Savanna was ready for the dance floor again. He found that, despite the crowd of people, he was enjoying himself. He wouldn’t call what they did dancing, though. It was more like stand and bump. He changed his mind on that when Savanna suddenly turned her back to him and bumped back and then ground her ass into him. Make that bump and grind. He played right along and pushed back.

  They danced awhile then found a deserted table or lounge chair and rested for awhile. The entire time, Savanna teased him with hints of what she was wearing under the dress or what she wanted to do with her mouth. His cock throbbed with the need for release. She would catch him looking at her and run her tongue along her bottom lip and smile at him. Yeah, she would pay once he got her home.

  They had been on the dance floor through two songs when he tried once more.

  “Are you ready to go?” he asked, trying to be heard over the music.

  She pouted at him. “I’m not ready yet. Just a little while longer.”

  “Jus
t remember, you don’t want me to be too worn out to play when we get back to your apartment.”

  “I’m sure you’re up for the challenge.” She dropped her gaze to his crotch.

  His cock stirred as a result. Yeah, he was up for the job. He just wasn’t sure if he could wait to get her there. Someone grabbed her around the waist then turned her around to dance with him. She looked panicked. Dustin immediately pushed past the guy and pulled her into his arms.

  “Hey, back off. I was dancing with her.” The man made a move to grab her arm.

  Dustin shoved her behind him and stood his ground. The other man took a step toward him like he was going to do something, but someone behind him grabbed his arm.

  “Hey, Sam. She’s with him. Don’t start something and get us thrown out.”

  Dustin felt Savanna clinching his shirt behind him. The other man made a visible effort to calm down, and he backed off. He shrugged and turned back to where his friends were standing. Most of the people around them had stopped dancing to see what was going to happen. Now that the show was over, they went back to dancing. He took Savanna’s arm and steered her toward the far wall.

  “You okay? He didn’t hurt you when he grabbed you, did he?”

  “No, I’m fine. It just scared me. I wasn’t expecting it.” Her voice had a breathy quality to it.

  Dustin decided it was time to go. His watch said it was nearly midnight, and enough alcohol had flowed by now to make some of the guys a little brave. He didn’t think Savanna and her little red dress should be around when everyone hit their over-the-limit beer.

  “Time to go, Cinderella. It’s almost midnight, and I hate to think what that little dress might turn into,” he said and cleared a path toward the door with her close behind him. They stopped for her coat, and he helped her put it on.

  Once they were outside the noisy building, he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her up for a kiss. She returned the kiss, and he could taste the whiskey in her mouth. He licked her then gave her one final kiss before letting her down.

  “Okay, you two. Move it somewhere else.” The bouncer at the door waved them off.