by Box Set
He covered her hand with his. “You first.”
She took a deep breath. That was a fair request. “I have a friend who’s into humiliation play. I scream at him in Klingon until he creams in his pants.”
Quinn’s mouth dropped open. “Okay, you win.”
She shoved his shoulder. “Jerk.”
He grabbed her hand and kissed her knuckles. “No, I’ll still share. Now I need to, wow.” He tugged her hand to his crotch. Heat bloomed across her chest as she realized he was getting hard.
“It’s not exactly my kink,” she whispered.
“I just think it’s hot that you’d do it.” He frowned. “Although I don’t know how I feel about you doing it again.”
Yeah. There was that. “I might not. He’s just a friend. Come on, tell me your thing.”
“I like threesomes.” Now it was her turn to frown, the edge of jealousy unexpected, and he laughed. “This sharing thing is a double-edged sword.”
“No kidding.”
“You want me to stop?”
She shook her head. No.
“I guess I should say, I’ve liked threesomes—and moresomes—in the past. If you ask me what’s the kinkiest thing I’ve done that I’ve enjoyed, it would be that. At Christmas I went to Vegas with some of my buddies and had a couple of nights with a couple there. First night was watching them, second night they invited me to join them. That was hot. But they’re not in an open relationship in general, that was a bucket list kind of thing. And that’s really what I liked the most about it. It was hot and dirty, but it was also about wish fulfillment.”
“A kinky fairy godfather.”
He gave a slight nod. “Yeah. Maybe. The other things on my list…they weren’t necessarily the hottest things I wanted, but they made other people happy. I learned some impact play to be helpful at clubs, that kind of thing. I can wield a cat o’ nine tails with confidence, but using it doesn’t turn me on unless it turns on the bottom who’s requested it.”
The temptation was huge to dig into that. Find out if he actually called himself a service top. Because he wasn’t a bottom, not naturally. Not even a switch. And the thing was…it didn’t matter to her. But he did. She wanted to know what was in his head and his heart, so she could be a better partner to him, even if it was just for a few more days. She pushed up onto her knees. “Have you ever thought about that as maybe your kink? A service fetish, or just selflessness in general? It’s a pretty consistent theme.”
He laughed. “I think it’s more about a guilt-complex rooted in my upbringing rather than anything to do with kink.”
“You haven’t talked about your family at all.”
“No, I haven’t.” He gave her a bland look. “How about that?”
“Quinn!”
He laughed and pulled her close, his mouth hovering right above hers. “Let’s save those secrets for our next deep and meaningful chat, okay?”
Who was she to argue with the man who sent zinging bolts of electricity through her body with a simple kiss, and a promise of future sharing that, ergo, required at least something of a future together? Even if it’s just a few days. Maybe if she kept telling herself that, she’d keep it all in perspective. She nodded, brushing his lips with hers. “Deal.”
That conversation never strayed far from her thoughts. How service wasn’t his kink, but something else, and she couldn’t shake the idea that maybe something else—family stuff, personal history—had held him back from exploring everything he might want.
And giving Quinn what he wanted? That could be Leah’s kink, one hundred percent.
She just didn’t know how to bring it up.
Luckily Quinn ended up doing just that for her, the next afternoon, when he turned her question around on her. “What’s the kinkiest thing you haven’t done yet, but might want to?”
He was sitting on her bed, leaning back against the headboard. She’d been puttering around as he flicked through the TV channels and played with her vibrator.
She stopped what she was doing and crawled onto the blanket to kneel in front of him.
“More wish fulfillment?” She almost answered him, too, but this was her chance to focus on him. “You first.”
He sank his teeth into his lower lip and groaned. “No fair.”
“Totally fair, in fact.” She reached for him, meaning to just give him a hug, but he pulled her into his lap and she straddled him, eager to show him with her body just how open she was to hearing anything he might say. “And it could be anything, right? Total fantasy. No judgment.”
“Yeah.” He hummed under his breath for a second, then took a deep breath. “I’vealwayswantedtolickupacreampie.”
She laughed gently. “No clue what you just said.” She kissed his cheek for good measure. “Try again,” she whispered.
“Cream pie,” he muttered, his hold on her tightening as he shoved the words quietly into the space between them.
“Oh.” She shivered as a wave of heat rolled over her. “That’s hot.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. In theory. I’ve never…well, you know. The whole can-never-be-too-careful thing.”
“Same. I’ve never been with a woman without condoms. And I wasn’t saying I wanted to do that to you.”
Except his cock branded him a liar. A hard, throbbing liar. Her breath caught in her throat. She leaned and licked her way into his mouth. He pushed back, nipping and sucking as she climbed into him, consuming and being consumed until their breath was one and hungry, impatient lust throbbed in every cell of her body. “I want you to do that,” she gasped. “Not now. But I want you. Somehow, we need more than this week.”
“Tell me your thing.” He caught her hand and tugged her fingers to his mouth. His gaze slid over her like molten lava as he caressed her fingertips with his lips. “And let’s promise each other we’ll make each other’s fantasies come true. A month from now, we’ll meet up somewhere with test results and whatever else we need.”
“Why do you think my secret desires require supplies?”
“Just leaving the options wide open, babe. Come on, tell me.”
Now it was her turn to be suddenly shy. And that made sense. She was about to tell Quinn she wanted him to attack her. “I don’t need any supplies. Just a skilled combatant that I trust implicitly.”
He nuzzled against her. “Tell me more.”
“An immersive scene, set up in advance. I get attacked, and assaulted, then turn the tables.”
He didn’t say anything and she held her breath.
“I know it’s huge and not something just to randomly suggest, but—”
“We’ll have to plan it.” He tangled his hands in her hair as he cupped the back of her head, moving her to where he could look her in the eye. “Lots of phone calls. Texts. Regular contact. Think you can handle that?”
She swallowed hard. That was more than meeting up again sometime. That was…an ongoing thing. “So we’d talk.”
“Stay in touch. Maybe have phone sex to make up for being on opposite ends of the west coast.”
“Maybe.”
He frowned. “What, maybe?”
“I don’t know. This is a week away from reality. We shouldn’t be making promises or anything. This could all just end when we land back in the US.”
“Do you want this to end?”
She suddenly wanted to shove something in his mouth. Tie his hands behind his back and suck him off until he came down her throat. But that would only buy her another hour. Three if they had a post-sex nap.
Quinn wasn’t going to be distracted from this question, and deep down, she wanted to answer it—even if the full answer would probably cement the end of their little fling. “No,” she finally admitted. “I wish it didn’t need to end. But we don’t…I don’t do relationships. The truth is, I’m a pretty shitty girlfriend. I want…well, you know what I want. I like to be in control, and I’ve got a lot of rules. That doesn’t translate well outside of the be
droom.”
“It hasn’t in the past, you mean. It’s translated just fine this week.”
She narrowed her eyes. “This week is the exception, because I knew up front that it would just be sex. Don’t do that re-framing thing on me. I’m not some young troop that needs to have their point of view re-adjusted.”
He cocked one eyebrow. “No…not a young troop. But it’s been my experience that senior NCOs can sometimes get stuck in routines that aren’t ideal.”
“Do not jargon me.” She pointed her finger at him. “Come on. Get naked or get your sandals on. We can either fuck or go for a swim.”
“I want to talk.”
She jumped up. “Well, I don’t.”
“Fine.” He gave her a slow up and down. “Let’s have sex. But let me top for real.” He lowered his voice to just above a whisper. “Give yourself over to me, Leah. Let go of that tight hold on control.”
Chapter Ten
Give up control.
The idea would have sent her screaming before this week. But the thought of losing Quinn over being too rigid about how to have sex made her feel ill.
He rolled her onto her back and kissed her neck. “Just hold on to the headboard. I don’t ever want to tie you up against your will or anything like that. But I want you to give me this. I want you to give up the control, just for a little bit. Because you can, with me. You know I’m never going to hurt you. You can command me to stop at any moment, and I will. I’ll drop to my knees and bow my head for you.
“But it’s not in my nature not to be in charge from time to time. And if we’re going to do this, then we need to try out everything. Test everything. And rule out what doesn’t work…for both of us. Between us. But you don’t know that this doesn’t work for us until we try it.”
“Okay.”
“And if it’s not your—”
“I said okay.” She reached for the hem of her tank top, then paused. “Can I strip?”
The look on his face was pure pleasure, like she’d given him a castle or a pony or whatever boys dreamed of when they were little. Maybe a giant slingshot or an endless mud puddle. That made it worth her while to quash the worry bugs in her gut. He grinned. “Yes, please.”
She wiggled out of her clothes, then stretched out naked.
“Is this weird?” He caressed her collar bone, then her breasts, stroking his fingertips around the sensitive flesh in lazy, leisurely circles that raised a wake of goosebumps.
“Not weird. Nice.”
“Nice! The horror.” He rolled his eyes before leaning over to pull her nipple into his mouth. Wet, hot suction was better than nice.
“Yes,” she breathed. “More of that.”
“I should get you worked up and then make you wait to come,” he muttered. “I still haven’t gotten over that.”
“That was hot!” she protested.
He laughed against her skin. “It was. But that’s not what I want to do to you today.” He reared up and pulled off his t-shirt, then rolled it up. “I want to blindfold you.”
“Okay.” Her pulse raced, but only with excitement.
His shirt was soft and smelled like him as he settled it over her eyes. Her eyelids fluttered in reflexive protest, but as soon as it was tied off behind her head, he cupped her cheek in his hand and kissed her.
And then nothing else mattered but Quinn.
She held on to the headboard as he sank into her mouth, an achingly loving kiss that seemed endless and all-encompassing. The blindfold disoriented her, because she couldn’t see him and guess what his next move would be, so each touch was another layer of pleasure that lingered after he moved on. When he squeezed her breasts, she felt it even as he stroked down her waist to grip her hips. When he grazed her nipples on the way back up to circle her neck with his fingers, the phantom tease kept them hard. And he always returned. Up and down her body he touched her, and she quickly stopped trying to guess where he would touch next.
The answer was surely everywhere, over and over again.
By the time he touched her sex, she was wet and ready for him. He still made her come on his fingers before fitting them together and thrusting slowly inside her.
She cried out for him, and he kissed his name off her lips. She clung to him and he whispered promises that seemed too good to be true, but felt completely right none the less.
He loved her with his entire body, his entire being, until she shattered again. And even as she drifted on the post-orgasmic bliss, he was urging her to do it again.
Three orgasms later, Quinn’s phone alarm sounded as they were climbing out of the shower. He swore under his breath. “I have to go. There’s a rehearsal dinner tonight.”
She tossed him a towel. “Come by once it’s done?”
He nodded, then stopped and gave her a slow, searching look. “Come with me.”
“No.” She snatched a towel for herself and left the bathroom.
He followed. “Yes. And come with me to the wedding.”
“As your date?” She needed more clothes for this conversation.
He watched her with an amused smile on his face. He pulled on clothes, too, but his movements were leisurely. “As my girlfriend. As the woman I want to sail around the world with.”
“You want to what?” She stared at him.
“At some point, I want to sail around the world with you, Leah.” A wide grin split across his face. “Doesn’t that sound awesome?”
It really did. Nervous excitement fluttered in her chest. “What are you doing?”
“Making plans.”
“Oh my God.”
“First, I introduce you to my brother. He looks just like me, except without the tattoos. And then we drink a lot of wine and dance and celebrate two people getting hitched.”
“Two people I don’t know.”
“Minor detail.”
“And what comes next?”
He crossed the room and took her in his arms. “Whatever you want.”
“Sailing around the world.”
“That will have to wait until I’ve got some time off work.”
“This is crazy. I need to figure out what I'm doing about school.”
“San Diego has world-class universities.”
She swallowed hard. “We don’t even know each other.”
“I think we do. More than most people do. But what else do you want to know?”
“I don’t share well.”
“I know, you’re a cover hog.”
“That’s not what I mean. These plans…are they exclusive plans? Just you and me, nobody else?”
He froze. “Babe. There isn’t anyone else. And if I play my cards right, there won’t be anyone else, ever again. From the second I laid eyes on you, you were it for me.”
“That could be the bikini magic.”
He shook his head. “I’m not talking about on the beach. I’m talking about that bar off-base. That pale pink t-shirt you were wearing. I do like you in pink. It’s definitely your color.”
“You remember my shirt?”
He brushed his mouth against hers. “And the way your ass looked in those jeans, too, but I thought that was best kept to myself.”
“Never.”
“You were prettiest little spitfire I’d ever seen. I wanted you to take me home and ride me hard that night.”
“I wanted that, too.”
“We were meant to find each other again. I don’t care if that’s sappy to say.”
Tears pricked behind her eyes. “It’s not sappy. It’s the kind of sweet I…I…I never thought I’d have.”
“No crying, babe. Not until the wedding tomorrow.”
“I don’t cry at weddings.”
“There was a lot you didn’t do before you met me.”
Wasn’t that the truth. She looped her arms around his neck. “Okay, then, Parry. Better pack tissues, because I’ll be your plus-one.”
“For the wedding?”
“Yep.”
&
nbsp; “And the sailing trip.”
“Yep.”
“And school?”
“Tell me more about San Diego…”
Chapter Eleven
Five weeks later
Leah carefully backed her car with the rented U-Haul trailer into an extra-long parking spot and wiped her hands on her jeans. She had no reason to be nervous, but there it was again. A tremor in her belly.
By the time she’d gotten the trailer loaded and hit the road, it had been mid-afternoon, and she’d made good time to Portland. It would be a long day tomorrow. The plan was to drive to San Francisco, but she hadn’t made a hotel reservation like she had today.
Tonight was the last night of her neatly planned life. Tomorrow was the first day of…whatever came next.
Okay, so she had some reason to be nervous.
She grabbed her backpack full of valuables, double-checked the padlocks on the trailer, and headed around the hotel to the front entrance.
“Do you need two room keys?” the clerk asked as he swiped her credit card.
“Just one, thanks.”
“Are you staying in Portland long?”
“Just for the night.”
He gave her a quick grin as he printed out her receipt. “Too bad. Sign at the bottom, initial that you understand the room is non-smoking…and here’s your card. You’re on the second floor, end of the hall. Breakfast starts at six tomorrow.”
“Thanks.” She grabbed the key card and headed down the hall. She skipped the elevator and curved past the indoor pool, heading for the stairs at the end of the hall.
It wasn’t that busy. There was a family herding their kids toward the pool, and a guy having a private conversation on a phone up ahead, his back to her. That reminded her that she forgot to ask the guy at the desk about who delivered food in around here, but she could call down from the room.
She pushed through the heavy door into the stairwell, then took the stairs two at a time. When she hit the second floor, she heard the door below push open again.
Footsteps on the stairs, heavy and slow, made her heart race.
She pulled the door to the second floor open and hurried toward her room. Card at the ready, she slid it into the lock.
