When he didn’t take them, she finally met his gaze. He did not look pleased. His mouth was firm and unsmiling, his eyes hard behind his wireframe glasses.
“Next time I tell you to do something, you are to look at me the entire time. I want to see those gorgeous green eyes. Understood?”
She nodded.
“Good.” He extended his hand across the table top.
Knowing she couldn’t hide anything from him, she wordlessly handed her panties to him.
He accepted her black, barely there g-string. Running his thumb across the obviously damp crotch panel, his eyes burned into hers. Something about his expression—the hard yet gentle look in his eyes combined with that ever-present smirk—made her want to drop to her knees right there and pledge to do whatever wicked, outrageous thing he thought up. More than anything she wanted him to be happy with her.
“Thank you.” With another smirk, he gently laid her panties on the stark white linen of the table cloth.
Suddenly her barely there g-string didn’t look so barely there.
The glaring presence of her black underwear on the pure white tablecloth made her stomach knot. There was no doubt what was lying out there in the open for everyone to see.
“I’m proud of you, honey.”
His soft declaration brought her eyes back to him. He reclined against the banquet, his arm stretched out wide toward her. He was totally at ease and comfortable, like a pasha contentedly surveying his harem. Of course, it wasn’t his underwear lying out there in the open for everyone to see.
“A Pellegrino and a glass of the house white for the—” Their waiter returned to the table, his hands full of their drink order, but his eyes did not look up from the tablecloth. Her panties might as well have a big, red neon sign blinking over them.
“I believe I had the Pellegrino.” Sawyer’s voice broke the waiter’s spell.
With blushing cheeks, the twenty-something man placed their drinks on the table with no fanfare and beat a hasty retreat. No doubt to tell the entire staff what was going on in their dark corner of the restaurant.
“Did you and Adam ever play in public?”
Brought out of her horrified daze, she flushed at the subtle reminder of their potential audience. “No. He preferred to keep things in the bedroom. He was an extremely private guy. I don’t think anyone outside of our little group knew of his inclinations. And it was always a fully clothed, almost vanilla meet-up anytime we got together.” Her lips curved. “I don’t think anyone in my old kink circle would be willing to play in public. Especially in such a straight venue.”
Sawyer laughed. “To expanding horizons.” He raised his sparkling water in a toast.
“Expanding horizons.” She lifted her own glass, careful not to let her gaze fall on her panties. Everything inside of her wanted to snatch them back and hide them under the fall of the tablecloth.
And yet she didn’t. They sat there out in the open for anyone to see. She could’ve easily grabbed them. But she left them right where Sawyer had placed them—smack dab in the middle of the table.
A not-so-small part of her was pleased with her progress. A month ago she had been hiding away in her apartment, dodging every attempt by her family to set her up. Now look at her. It was almost like a coming-out party. Or a rebirth. She was finally starting to feel at home in her skin again and she had one person to thank for that.
She sipped her wine and surveyed the enigmatic man at her side. She knew more about the guy than most would on their second date. She had followed his blog and Twitter stream for years, reading every little detail about his kinky life he cared to share. And yet she didn’t know anything important. Where did he grow up? How many siblings did he have? How long was his last relationship? All those everyday mundane facts about him remained lurking in the dark. She had spilled her entire life story out to him last week, but she didn’t know the first thing about him really. It didn’t seem right.
“Who was your last relationship with?”
Sawyer’s head jerked up. “What?”
“You know so much about me and my history. What about you? Tell me something about the mysterious Sawyer.”
“I’m pretty sure I’m the one who gives the commands in this arrangement.”
She noticed his none-too-subtle avoidance of the word relationship. Honestly, it stung a bit. “It wasn’t a command. I—I, uh, thought it was more of a request.”
His thundercloud expression lessened somewhat. But his eyes still narrowed. “Good. So long as you know who wears the underpants around here.”
She burned at his word choice. How could she forget? She was the one sitting here with her bare thighs rubbing together. “Point taken. But come on. Tell me something about your dating life you haven’t shared with your Twitter followers. You know so much about me. Tell me something about you. How about your first girlfriend? Was she kinky, too?”
If it was possible, his expression grew even more distant. Icy fingers of dread spread from her stomach to cool the fire he’d started between her thighs. Her top was not happy. Was not happy with her. Panicked, she tried to think of something to say to calm the storm she had errantly brewed, when he spoke.
“Meghan was the captain of the cheerleading squad. She was bright and funny and totally innocent. She didn’t know the first thing about sex. Let alone the depraved things I love to do to my partners now. She was the best thing in my life until I fucked it up. The end.” His voice was flat, completely devoid of emotion.
Her heart lurched at his terse description of his first love. She wanted to say something—comfort him if at all possible—but she knew he wouldn’t let her. If she even tried, she had a feeling he’d push her even further away. She ached to help him somehow but was afraid to try.
“Now if the sharing portion of the evening is over, I’d like to get the program moving before our entrées arrive. I believe you’d find it...embarrassing if the waiter came back to the table too quickly.”
Her scalp prickled at his veiled threat, even as her pussy grew damp. What deviously delicious thing did Sawyer have planned for round two?
Chapter Ten
Sawyer considered excusing himself from the table so he could get his emotions under control. Christ, of all the questions she could ask, why did she ask that one? He didn’t want to think of Meghan. Of what his teenaged stupidity had done to the one perfect thing in his life. If only he hadn’t gotten drunk that night. He of all people should have known better. Didn’t he have the best example of what alcohol did to a weak man? Dear ol’ dad. What a guy.
He shook his head in a feeble attempt to clear the foul thoughts. He turned to the gorgeous woman at his side. She was by far a better distraction to save him from his ugly memories.
He palmed her face with his right hand and ran his thumb over her plump, delectable lips. Yes, she’d make a perfect distraction from his destructive emotions. Bending forward, he took her lips in a brutal kiss, letting her know who would rule in their battle. His tongue swept out and claimed her mouth, leading her in a little thrust and parry. Finally he pulled back slightly and nipped at her lower lip, not hard enough to cause her much pain but just hard enough to prove his point. And match the throbbing below his belt.
She jerked her head away and looked at him with wary eyes. He could see the apology hovering on her lips, but honestly that was the last thing he wanted to hear tonight. He was the bastard here, after all. But damned if either of them would be apologizing.
“Here, put these on.” With a smirk, he threw a pair of nipple clamps onto the table. Right on top of her discarded panties.
Her eyes darted back and forth between his face and the pile of debauchery on the table. Finally, with a tilt of her head she accepted his challenge and grabbed the clamps. She half stood as if she was going to leave the booth.
/> Her innocence amused his jaded soul. “Ah, poppet, haven’t you learned anything about me tonight? Put them on. Here. At the table.”
He could practically read the thoughts going through her head as she sat back down with a soft thump. Again? Jackass. No, wait, Kyla seemed to have a tendency to use child-friendly curses. Maybe she was calling him a son of a mad hatter or something equally ridiculous. Only this time she wouldn’t be able to hide her gorgeous body behind her clothes as she obeyed his command.
He couldn’t keep the Cheshire grin off his face. The only thing better than fucking was the mind fuck just before. He knew this end of the restaurant was empty since he’d booked all the tables. Plus their waiter was a close personal friend who wouldn’t mind any display he might stumble across. Although he’d been tipped to act as though he did. But Kyla didn’t know any of that. And the lighting made it difficult to see much beyond the end of their table.
He knew Kyla wasn’t quite ready for a public outing like the kind he was so fond of. But she was getting there. Just a few more not-too-gentle shoves. Of course, he’d have a fun time nudging her there. And even more fun playing with her for real in front of an audience.
With that stubborn tilt to her head, Kyla pushed the straps of her little black dress down her arms and revealed down south wasn’t the only place she was commando. Her small, pale breasts gleamed in the soft table light. Proving she wasn’t a total novice when it came to kinky toys, she went to work caressing her nipples to get them prepared for the clamps. She tugged on the tips, not using as much strength as he would have. Once her nipples had distended into hardened nubs, she efficiently attached the clamps, then faced him defiantly.
“May I put my top back on?” The bite in her tone had him hesitating.
It wouldn’t do for her to cop too much of an attitude this early. He’d let the eye roll earlier go, but even he had a limit on bratty behavior. He stared back at her with his best stern cop expression. Even as his cock pulsed at the sight of her clamped nipples and the challenge in her eyes. Shit, maybe they should get their food to go so he could get her home and wearing nothing but his ropes.
After a moment she bowed her head and said much softer, “May I put my top back on, sir?”
If it were possible, his cock got even harder. “Yes, you may.”
She tugged her dress back into place but no matter how she adjusted it, there was no denying the new lumps marring the fit of her dress. He couldn’t help but smirk at her obvious distress.
“That wasn’t so difficult now, was it?”
She glared at him in reply.
“Hey, you’re the one who wanted to play with the big, bad Sawyer. This is the kind of kinky fun my friends and I like. If you think this is bad, you should go hunt for a new top in a different crowd. I haven’t even taken the training wheels off yet.”
She tossed her hair back rebelliously. “I can handle anything you throw at me. Bring it.”
He swore under his breath. Just when he worried he had pushed her too far, she had to go and prove him wrong. It was sexy as hell. And dangerous. “Ah, honey. You should really know better than to dare a dominant. And I might have to prove it to you.”
* * *
Kyla gulped at Sawyer’s threat even as her pussy pulsed. Sheesh, there was something so hot when he used his toppy voice. She had to fight the urge to drop to her knees and beg to service him right there in the restaurant. She’d love nothing more than to feel him in her mouth, to feel his hands on the side of her head teaching her the rhythm he liked best. But she was half afraid he’d take her up on the offer, given his last threat. Make that half afraid and half unbelievably turned on. She wasn’t sure she was ready for full-on Sawyer sceneing quite yet.
But she was torn from her internal fantasy as their waiter appeared tableside with their order. His gaze darted between her black panties still displayed on top of the table and the odd bulges on the front of her dress. The tightness of the bodice clearly outlined her hardened nipples, complete with the shape of the clamps dangling beneath.
She shivered slightly as his staring made her even more aware of her wicked predicament. Her nipples rasped against the satiny fabric of her dress and caused her to shudder even more. Crap, if she wasn’t careful she’d get caught in an endless cycle until she came loudly without a care of who was watching.
“I believe those are our plates?” Sawyer’s droll question jerked the waiter from his fascinated gaping.
“Yes, sir. Here you go, sir. M-m-ma’am.” He set their plates down, careful to avoid the panties and any more obvious staring. After inquiring if drink refills were needed, he beat a hasty retreat.
She watched him leave and wondered if they would see him again.
“How was your day, darling?”
Her head swung around and she found Sawyer staring at her with that wicked twinkle in his eyes. Closing her eyes with a soft sigh, she took a deep breath. Well, as deep as her throbbing nipples would let her. Usually by now they would be bordering on numb, but the combination of her dress rubbing against her and the attention of both Sawyer and their waiter had her hovering at an orgasmic peak. It wouldn’t take much to tumble her over the edge. However, given the expression on Sawyer’s face when she opened her eyes, he was in no rush. She would have to tough it out and hope sometime, eventually, he’d give her what she’d wanted since the evening started.
“Fine, snookums. How was yours?” With an eye roll, she picked up her fork and dug in. The buttery scallop practically melted on her tongue. “Oh wow, this is delicious!”
“Glad you like it. Eat up. The sooner you’re done, the sooner my naughty plans can begin.”
Begin? What the heck had they been doing so far? That delightful fear and anticipation combination swept through her body. She loved that feeling. With a wiggle—that did interesting things to her clamped nipples—she saluted him with her fork. “Aye aye, captain.”
Sawyer snorted. “Brat. But really, tell me, how was your day?”
She rolled her shoulders, trying to get comfortable, but the tightness of her breasts was an unappeased ache that wouldn’t go away. Maybe talking about mundane things would help. “I don’t know. It was a typical Friday. We had a couple of balance beam classes. My sister, Whitney, had a run-in with one parent that didn’t end too well. They were two months overdue in payment. We’ve been trying to contact him for weeks, but he doesn’t return any calls and drops his daughter off at the curb so we couldn’t talk to him. Whit drew the short straw and had to wait in the parking lot to tell him we couldn’t let his daughter into the class until he was paid up. The guy started yelling, and his daughter was crying. It’s just so sad. I hate dealing with that side of the business.”
“And where were you when all this was going down?”
Kyla could feel her cheeks filling with heat. “Standing at the window with a phone in case I had to call the cops.”
Sawyer’s eyes narrowed. “Have you ever had to?”
“No, but it doesn’t hurt to be prepared.”
“Always be prepared.”
Her lips quirked as he repeated the Boy Scout motto. “How was your day?”
“Good. The kitchen cabinets came in yesterday, so I spent the day installing them. Won’t be much longer until I’m ready to put the place on the market and have to find another project-slash-place to live.”
Her fork stalled halfway to her mouth. “Wait, so when you sell this place, you’ll be homeless?”
Sawyer laughed. “Not if I find another project ASAP.”
“And that doesn’t worry you? Even a little bit?”
He gave a half shrug. “If I don’t find something right away, I have a few friends who wouldn’t mind putting me up for a few weeks. It’s happened before. Hell, when the housing market first crashed, I lived on a buddy’s couch for five mon
ths.”
“It doesn’t bother you to not have roots? A place that’s only yours?” She knew the man was commitment phobic, but holy crap! She couldn’t imagine living hundreds of miles away from family and then not having a home of her own. Even just a small apartment.
“Nah, I’ve always been a greener-pastures kind of guy. Plus this way I get to live in some pretty amazing houses. If only for a little while.”
She shook her head and looked down at her mostly clean plate. Different strokes, she guessed, but she couldn’t imagine such a nomadic lifestyle herself. She needed someplace that was undeniably home. Her sanctuary. This only underlined how cautious she had to be with him. If she wasn’t careful she could lose her heart to a man who was completely wrong for her. Not to mention someone who wouldn’t return her affection. He had implicitly told her what to expect from him. She’d be a fool to wish for more.
“So tell me about the cursing thing.”
Kyla was torn from her internal musing at Sawyer’s question. “Cursing thing?”
“Yeah. I don’t think I know anyone in the scene who doesn’t curse like a sailor, and I’ve never heard you say a single one.”
“Well, I do. I mean, my own version. Growing up, it was one of the worst things you could do in my house. I think my mom would have an aneurysm if I ever said ‘fuck.’ And now with my job I’m surrounded by kids for the majority of my working day. So my sister and I made an agreement not to swear in front of them. Not good for business.”
Sawyer chuckled. “So that’s where the son of a ditch digger comes from? You had me worried I was corrupting a good girl.”
Up In Knots Page 9
