by Calista Fox
Breaking the kiss, he said in his seductive tone, “Let’s take this into the bedroom.”
chapter 19
“Which one?” I asked.
With a mischievous grin, he swept me into his arms. “You like being naughty.”
“I do. With you.”
“Only me.”
“Only,” I assured him.
We bypassed the first room and continued down the hall toward the back of the house. I teased, “No playroom tonight?”
“I prefer you in my bed.”
“Mm, I like your bed, too.”
I nuzzled against the side of his neck and dropped kisses along his skin, up to his earlobe, which I flicked with my tongue before suckling it. “And I love everything you do to me.”
“I suspected you were feeling a bit more adventurous after the other night.”
“Which was incredible. As was the morning after. Yesterday in the—”
“I don’t want to talk about yesterday,” he said, his tone a bit gruff. “I have half a mind to not let you back on-property until I’ve resolved this situation.”
“Dane!”
“It’d be for your own good. And for my sanity.”
“I swear I won’t go anywhere without Amano from here on out. But I can’t do my job remotely.”
We entered Dane’s bedroom and he set me on my feet. “Then I have to work quickly.”
I stared at him, seeing the consternation in his eyes, wondering what the hell he planned to do—and why it sent an ominous sensation down my spine.
Taking my hand, he gave it a gentle tug, and we crossed to his California king. He reached for the zipper on my fitted yoga jacket and slid it down the track. He peeled off the garment and then lifted the hem of the tank top over my head. My shoes, socks, and pants followed as he piled my clothes on the bench that ran the width of the bed.
“Better,” he said, his tone returning to the seductive timbre that made my insides simmer.
His shirt hung open and I splayed my palms over his ridged abs. The delicious tickle along my clit caused the corners of my mouth to quiver into a small smile. The man was too gorgeous by far. I had the insane urge to lick and kiss every inch of him.
I moved my hands upward, to his shoulders, and pushed his shirt over them, then down his arms. He caught the material with one hand and tossed it onto the mounting heap.
Leaning in close, I inhaled the scent of him. So masculine and sexy, I would have been thrilled just to bask in his nearness—but, of course, he had other thoughts on his mind.
My smile widened when he guided me down onto the bed. His fingers trailed along my throat and then between my breasts. He whisked aside a lacy cup and his head dipped. His tongue swirled tantalizingly around my areola before paying my taut nipple the same attention.
I threaded a hand through his hair as he suckled deep. My spine arched, pressing my body against his. A moan escaped my parted lips.
Heat rushed through me and my eyelids fluttered closed, blocking out the dim lighting from a floor lamp in the far corner. The room was quiet, save for the snap of the fire and our shallow breaths.
Dane took my free hand in his, twining our fingers. He kissed mine, then left sensual touches with his lips along the inside of my wrist and forearm, to my biceps.
“I love how sweet you taste,” he whispered, his breath wispy against my skin. “And you’re so soft.” His mouth grazed my collarbone. “Yet strong. Even if you don’t realize how much.”
He kissed my throat, his tongue pressing against sensitive spots that made me writhe beneath him. His chest melded to mine. Our fingers were still entwined and my other hand was buried in his thick hair.
“Your nipples are so tight. And you’re wet for me, aren’t you, baby?”
“God, yes.” It was all I could do not to move slightly so he could settle between my legs and feel my dewy folds against his stomach. But I was too enthralled at the moment to move.
His mouth swept slowly down my neck, to my breasts. He kissed the inner swells, then drew my puckered nipple against his tongue.
He was going to torture me with his leisurely seduction.
He kissed the undersides of my breasts and then his lips skimmed down to my stomach, making my flesh ripple. His tongue grazed the dip of my waist and he whispered, “You want me inside you.”
“More than you know.”
His mouth slid lower and his teeth latched onto the strand of my thong, dragging the material to the top of my thigh. I instinctively shifted so he could do the same with the other side. He pulled the panties down just enough to uncover my sex, then blew a gentle breath over the moist skin.
My pussy clenched. And he hadn’t even touched me.
“Dane. God, you turn me on.”
My eyes were still shut, and I focused solely on the excitement he elicited, the anticipation that mounted. I felt the nearness of his lips, the taunting sensation of what was to come. He lingered so close, it was all I could do not to raise my hips to initiate the contact.
It was a wicked game. One he was a master at; I was the slave. A slave to the burning, the craving, the unwavering need.
I’d give up my soul just to feel his mouth on me.
I fought temptation, because he thrilled me with his sensual teasing.
With his tongue, he swirled lazy circles on my inner thigh. Pinched gingerly with his teeth.
“Dane,” I breathed. My fingers tightened around strands of his hair.
“Yeah, baby?” His voice was a mere rush of air against my sensitive skin.
I wanted to beg him to take me in this way that had been so unfamiliar and too intimate before I’d met him but that now was as critical to binding us together as him being inside me. Because I’d accepted the intimacy. The connection. The ecstasy that came with him pushing my boundaries.
“Don’t stop,” was all I said.
He let out a sexy sound and then went back to his beautiful torment. His lips inched closer and closer to where I wanted him the most. I felt the natural compulsion to rush it—the urgency raced through me. Conversely, the fire inside only raged brighter with anticipation. With the tender strokes and the gentle nipping. I couldn’t lie still, but I forced myself not to arch toward him, not to demand too much, when it was so erotic to let him do his slow-seduction thing. Which drove me crazy in the most exciting way.
Likely I didn’t beg him to go for his ultimate goal because I loved how his toying with me made his breath come in heavier pulls and made me beyond desperate for him.
It was intoxicating. Addictive. Another escalating high from which I didn’t want to come down.
When he finally, finally reached the apex of my legs, his mouth hovered. He inhaled deeply. I sucked in a breath.
“Fuck,” I said as I let the air out on a long sigh.
“Jesus, Ari. You’re going to come, aren’t you?”
“Yes.” I squeezed his hand that still held mine. “You know what I like.”
“Everything I do to you.”
“Exactly.”
I felt the heat intensify as he lowered his head that tiny bit and his tongue swept over my slick folds. A small cry tore from my lips. The tip of his tongue fluttered over my clit. Once again I fought the urge to thrash on the bed, though my hips bucked and my pulse shot through the roof.
“Oh, Christ. Dane. I—oh, God … I—” Fire raged through my veins.
I came hard, the deepest, darkest moan wrenching from low in my throat.
I was suspended in a weightless, motionless state for endless seconds. So mind-blowing. Absolutely breathtaking.
Thoughts didn’t exist in my head. Sensation reigned. Emotions swelled. I couldn’t remember what had happened the day before. I didn’t care what would happen tomorrow.
All that mattered was Dane—and the way he made me feel in those few glorious moments. The way I wanted to make him feel.
I had no idea how long it was before I returned to myself. But when I did, I s
till had a voracious need for him.
“Take everything off,” I said of his clothes and my lingerie. My chest rose and fell quickly and I was limp from a fantastic orgasm. But the intense desire to crawl all over him and bring him the sort of pleasure he brought me was unrelenting.
He whisked off my bra and panties. He undressed himself swiftly as I, his captive audience, watched with lust thrumming through me.
Dane was hard. Before he’d even settled on the bed again I rolled onto him and straddled his lap. He let out a sexy laugh.
“I like you so aggressive,” he said.
“It’s more of a desperate need than aggression.” As I eyed his hunky body and desire flashed through me, I added, “Actually, I have a better idea.”
I climbed off him and the bed. Dane’s brow dipped.
I backed toward the door and crooked a finger. He sat up and stood.
“Come with me,” I said.
His look turned lascivious, exciting me more.
“What are you up to?” he asked in his low, arousing tone.
When he closed in on me, I grabbed his hand. “Let’s get nasty.”
I continued out of the room and down the wide hall, walking backward as his gaze remained on me and he followed.
We reached the spare bedroom and I stepped inside, relinquishing his hand. The candles were still scattered about and I found the igniter to light some of them. Then I asked, “Where’s the satin sheet?”
He pulled the folded rich navy material from the nightstand drawer and snapped it open, covering the bed. “Freshly laundered.”
I scanned the ledge of the headboard and found the bottle of frankincense oil still there.
His gaze followed mine, and he said, “I told Rosa to leave this room be. I had the sheet dry-cleaned but left everything else as is. Well, except for the rose petals. I had to toss them.”
“I was mostly interested in the oil,” I told him with a coy smile.
Crossing the room to where he stood, I gave a gentle push against his pectoral ledge. He fell onto the mattress, taking me with him. I sat astride his midsection and reached for the bottle.
“My turn,” I said as I drizzled the lovely scented oil over his chest. I returned it to the table and ran my hands over his hard muscles and ripped abs. Across his shoulders and down to his bulging biceps, my fingers and palms sliding along his elbows to his forearms.
Clasping his wrists and raising them above his head, I rocked slightly against his ridged stomach.
“You know that makes me crazy,” he said in a tight voice.
I inhaled deeply and told him, “Every scent I ever want to breathe in again is right here in this room.” Exotic spice, orange, candles, and Dane.
I leaned into him, my breasts gliding against his slick chest, puckering my nipples. I nipped at his clenched jaw and whispered, “What if I just slid all over you?”
His eyes blazed. “You think you’re going to make me harder than I already am?”
“Ah, a challenge.” I winked. The satin sash was still attached to the floor post. I snatched it as it curled in the corner of the bed and tied Dane’s wrists. Then I leaned back, still straddling his torso.
My hands were slightly coated with the oil and I palmed my breasts, massaging them and pinching my nipples with my fingers and thumbs.
“Goddamn, Ari.” His gaze was fixed on me.
“Let’s see how you do when you’re the one who’s restrained.”
“You don’t really think I’ll just lie here and not touch you?”
“What choice do you have?”
He smirked. Tugged on the silk binding. It loosened. Shit. I should have known he was too strong for any knot I’d tie.
“Fine,” I said. “You’ll do it because I want you to.”
He didn’t dispute my logic.
Quite pleased with myself, I stroked his chest and leaned toward him, giving him my own searing kiss, thrusting my tongue into his mouth to take the lead and kiss him deeply, empowered by how strongly he reacted to me.
The sudden flash of dominance created a heady sensation and I tugged at the corners of his mouth with my lips.
Sitting back, I spared a glance at the sash he’d loosened even more, as though he really couldn’t resist touching me but held himself in check because I’d asked it of him.
I grinned triumphantly. “You really will give me whatever I want, won’t you?”
His look was a steady, intense one. “I’ve been saying that all along, haven’t I?”
My heart fluttered. My hands skated over his pecs, down to his abs. I peered at him under my lashes. “And if I want to drive you completely crazy, so that you have to have me instantly…?”
“Note that I’ve already freed myself from your ties. But I’m still playing your game.”
A wicked thrill chased through me.
With one hand, I continued to caress my breast. The other hand skimmed over the satin to wipe off the oil. Then I lifted off him, coming up on my knees. I rubbed my clit with two fingers in a slow, circular motion, the way I had that night in my office when he’d demanded it of me. When he’d watched me. When he’d gotten so hard, his cock had strained the fly of his pants.
I already felt his erection nudging against me from behind. I wanted to make him half out of his mind.
My gaze locked with his as I stroked in a measured pace that heightened my own arousal because of the way Dane stared so intently. The way he absorbed the full effect of what I did—and the impact it had on him.
“You know I want to do that for you,” he said in an edgy voice.
“That’s the point you made when you were on the phone with Ethan. If you can’t, you still want to watch.”
“I’m not on the phone.”
“But it makes you hot, right?”
His biceps tightened, as though he were just about ready to give up the pretense of me restraining him.
“It makes me want to flip you onto your back and fuck you hard,” he said. “The way you like it.”
The intensity of his expression, and his words, jolted me.
“Stop talking,” I said as I worked myself a little faster. “You’re not the one who’s supposed to be getting me off.”
“But you want me to get you off,” he challenged.
“Of course. But what I really want is for you to watch and get absolutely wild over the fact that it’s not you … at the moment.”
His gaze smoldered. “How long do you think you can last before you beg me, baby?”
I already knew the answer to that devious question. But I played the game. “How long do you think you can last before you rip through that sash and finish the job yourself?”
His hips jerked. His stomach rippled.
I snickered. Then I placed a hand on his shoulder, pinning him down. Leaning over him, I stared into his eyes and slipped two fingers inside my wet pussy. I pumped vigorously. He watched every expression that crossed my face. I alternated between rubbing my clit and stroking my inner walls. I could see he resisted the urge to take one of my nipples in his mouth, because he followed my rules.
I lifted my leg and planted my foot flat on the mattress next to his hip, not only spreading myself wider but also giving him a clear view of me pleasuring myself. I pushed my fingers deep inside and massaged quickly. My breath hitched. My eyes likely danced with excitement.
“You think you’re going to win?” he said in a husky voice.
“Yes.”
“Think again.”
He tore free of the sash, gripped my shoulders, and flipped me onto my back—as he’d said he wanted to do. His hard body was slippery against mine, the most tantalizing sensation. My hands roved his front and he felt magnificent under my fingertips as he let me explore his chest again.
Then he had a foil packet ripped open and a condom on before I could even process all the sparks shooting through me. Seconds later, he was thrusting deep and I came with a lustful cry and the sheer realizatio
n that I would never beat him at any challenge.
And that was okay.
* * *
I woke in the middle of the night. Alone.
It was an odd, empty feeling. Leaving me a bit cold when I’d so quickly become accustomed to Dane’s heat and presence. The way he wrapped himself around me and held on tight.
The oddity, I realized, came from the fact that I missed him lying next to me, missed him filling the space with his muscular body. I tossed off the covers and climbed out of bed. His bed, because he’d said that was where he liked me. I didn’t like that he’d slipped out on me.
Dressed in the pants he’d worn earlier, though he’d left the top button undone, Dane stood at the windows, staring out into the darkness. There were glowing embers in the hearth yet nothing for him to see outside but inky night.
I slipped on his shirt, capturing the smell of him again, and stole behind him. I circled my arms around his waist. “What are you doing?”
“Thinking.”
My hand moved up to his chest, the temptation too great. His hands covered mine, warm and strong.
“About what?”
“How I’m going to get my revenge.”
A chill ran down my spine. “Dane—”
“It’s nothing for you to worry about.”
I considered this. On the one hand, I didn’t like how menacing his words were—or the implication behind them. Once more, I was faced with the concern of how far Dane might go to protect what was his.
The other risky piece to the puzzle was that he deserved to fix this situation his way. The investors he’d cut out were trying to capitalize on his blood, sweat, and tears. I could fully understand how furious that would make him. And I honestly didn’t know enough about what was going on to judge.
So what I worried most about was how he would react—and how accepting I’d be of his wrath. Because I walked the tightrope with him, wanting him to get his revenge but fearing what sort of person it made me if I approved of whatever he did to resolve the situation.
But that wasn’t something I could reconcile just yet, so I said, “I support whatever you’re doing. I know it doesn’t really matter, but—”
“It does, Ari.” His hands squeezed mine and our gazes locked in the glass pane as I looked around his broad shoulder. “You have no idea how much.”
