The Innocent (The Protege #2)

by Gow, Kailin

  Price paraded Serena around the room making brief introductions.

  “And this is Stanley Hudgens.” Price said.

  Serena extended her hand to the older and much dignified man. “Nice to meet you.”

  “He’s one of my favorite directors and I’m thrilled he decided to come.” He vigorously shook the older man’s hand. “I absolutely loved your last film. Very thought provoking, and the aerial shots were spectacular.”

  “Thank you. I did have a great crew.”

  “You're far too modest.”

  “I heard this was going to be a big night,” Mr. Hudgens said with a paternal pat on Price’s shoulder. “I’m happy to be here.”

  As the hour wore on, people gradually found their seats and awaited their meal.

  “Hungry?” Price whispered in her ear.

  She nodded as he led her to a table with a grand view of the harbor and the last remnants of the setting sun. “This is spectacular, Price. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the harbor quite like this.”

  “I wouldn’t accept anything less.”

  A waiter set a small platter of bite size appetizers on the table and nodded as he retreated.

  “These should hold you over until dinner is served.” Price picked up a thin crisp topped with a smoked oyster. “Here, how do like these?” He slipped the oyster into her mouth and ran his finger over her lips as she chewed.

  “I think I got my fingers dirty just for you,” he whispered.

  “Let me show my appreciation,” she purred dutifully. She held his hand and selected his index finger. With her smoldering gaze locked on Price, she licked the length of the digit and gently wrapped her lips around the tip before taking the entire finger into her mouth. She repeated the process with every finger, sucking every digit clean.

  Price chose another appetizer and clumsily stuffed it in his mouth. As juice trickled down his chin, he gazed at her, his eyes demanding and hungry. She leaned into him and wiped a drop off with her finger. With suggestive, slow motions, she passed her finger over her mouth then slowly pressed it through her pouting lips.

  “Good?”

  “It’s delicious.” She leaned closer and licked his smooth chin up to the corner of his mouth.

  His lips remained unresponsive as she began again, licking up to the other corner of his mouth. He groaned and closed his eyes as she swept her tongue across his lips. Only when she snaked her tongue in to truly taste him did he respond. He slipped his hand into the tight bodice of her strapless gown, and trailed his finger through the valley of her breasts.

  Aware of the crowd around them, Serena instinctively tensed. She knew of his exhibitionist tendencies, but had always had trouble complying, especially in front of such a large and prestigious gathering.

  “Come,” Price said as he grabbed their glasses of champagne and stood. “I’ve had a special meal prepared just for you.” He led her to a large private dining room.

  Four of the five tables were elegantly set with fine china, crystal stemware and shining flatware placed atop napkins of the finest linen. The table in the center of them all was simply set with one long white tablecloth and several rolls of hot washcloths.

  “I’m hungry,” Price grunted. He wrapped his hands around her waist and sat her atop the table in the middle.

  Serena quickly understood that she was to be the main course on his special menu and lay back on the table.

  “Now, that’s a table set for a king.” He slipped off one Louboutin and slowly ran his finger from her toes up to her knee and onward to her thigh. “This gown is exquisite,” he grumbled as he reached the top of the draped slit. With hardened fingers, he passed over the bodice of her gown and set his hand between her breasts.

  His gaze suddenly left her and he smiled. “Dinner is served.”

  Serena followed the direction of his gaze and saw three handsome young waiters come in with platters of sushi. Standing side by side, they awaited instruction.

  “Please,” Price said as he waved the men in. “Allow me the pleasure of watching you set my lovely table.”

  Two of the young men blushed while the other hungrily licked his lips. They approached the table and began placing various morsels on the table around her.

  “I want to eat them off her,” Price commanded. “Not around her.”

  With nervous fingers, one of the blushing young men set a sushi on her bare shoulder. He then hesitated as he held a piece over the bodice of her dress. Price nodded, granting permission to soil the elegant gown. The bolder young man set a series of morsels up her bare thigh. With every piece he set down, his heated fingers brushed her skin in a tantalizing manner. When he reached the top of her slip, he fingered the fabric of her gown a moment then daringly pulled it aside, exposing more of her thigh. The young man licked his lips while his fascinated gaze took in every additional inch of flesh. When he reached her hips, he seemed surprised by the lack of panties and his gaze quickly shifted to the crux of her thighs.

  Serena shot a questioning glance at Price. Though he had a possessive streak and was easily given to fits of jealousy, he also had a voyeuristic side that enjoyed toying and teasing other men with the possibilities.

  His eyes riveted on the bold young man, Price seemed to enjoy the man’s fascination with Serena’s luscious body. His eyes widened with curiosity as the brash waiter pulled Serena’s draped skirt apart, exposing all she held private. He set a long, narrow piece of sushi just above her clitoris, and Serena let out an involuntary sigh as his finger lingered on the nub of nerves a moment.

  “Excellent,” Price muttered with hunger. “I think I can take it from here.”

  The bold young man, obviously hungering for more, hesitated a moment before making his retreat with the others.

  “Now,” Price said. “Let me feast on you, my lovely dish.” At her ankle, he slurped up a small piece of sushi and quickly moved up her thigh. When he reached the strategically placed sushi on her clitoris, he lapped it up with a wide and exquisite sweep of his tongue.

  The quick and titillating touch left Serena grasping the table cloth around her, but Price refused her the right to an expedient orgasm. He walked around the table and picked a sushi off her shoulder. Holding the piece between his teeth, he came to her and with teasing motions he passed it over her lips, urging her to open her mouth, only to pull the morsel away. On his third pass over her lips, he allowed her a bite of the sushi.

  “Garcon!” Price called to the waiters. “I’m still hungry. And bring out a pair of sheers and more champagne.”

  The three young men reappeared with new platters and a magnum of champagne.

  “Lovely as it is, her gown is a hindrance. I want to eat sushi off her skin, not off silk.” Price filled his glass and quickly emptied it, then filled it again and drizzled it into Serena’s mouth.

  “What are you waiting for,” he called to the young men when he saw they hadn’t moved.

  Silence reigned for an eternal moment as they looked at one another in confusion.

  “I didn’t ask for those sheers for nothing,” Price barked. He grabbed the sheers off a platter and handed them to the youngest and most flustered young man.

  Shooting a questioning gaze at Serena, he swallowed deep enough for her to hear it where she lay. With the sheers in hand he came to her side while his eyes darted in every direction. He fingered the delicate fabric of her gown and met her gaze, silently seeking permission with his innocent and naïve eyes.

  Though she loved the gown and had hoped to wear it again, she could not contradict Price’s demand. She nodded and smiled her encouragement. Unsure where to start, the young man wielded the blades about. He brought the scissors to the top of her dress, hesitated, then went around to the slit up her skirt.

  Serena closed her eyes as she felt the cold metal of the scissors on her thigh and heard the first snip of her luxurious gown.

  “Go slow,” Price growled from deep in his throat.

  Inch by i
nch he cut his way up her gown.

  “Pull the dress apart as you go,” Price said.

  Lying perfectly still, Serena glanced at Price as her body was slowly exposed.

  When the young man reached her bodice, he hesitated then aligned the scissors between her breasts and quickly snipped through the remaining fabric. With a great huff of relief, he set the sheers on the table and backed away.

  “Now set the table in a way I can truly enjoy.”

  As the young men dressed her in sushi, Price shrugged off his jacket and loosened his tie. A large bulge already filled his slacks and his eyes were dark with arousal. “That’s enough.”

  The waiters left and Price came to stand beside her. He trailed a finger around the sushi set atop her breast. Beneath the cold, raw fish, her nipple stood erect and ready.

  Staring hungrily at her, he let his slacks fall to the floor. Gloriously sexy, he leaned closer and wrapped his mouth around the sushi. As he bit down, he also nibbled her nipple. “Good,” he mumbled with his mouth full. “But I think it needs a little something.” He reached out to the nearby table and picked up a bottle of soy sauce and drizzled the dark liquid across her chest and down to her thighs

  After licking off a trail of sauce from her ankle to her thigh, he climbed onto the table and tapped his erection into the soy sauce that’d pooled around her navel. “Want a taste?” he said as he crawled up to direct his hardness over her mouth.

  The salty, black drippings fell in and around her mouth.

  “Wash it off,” he ordered.

  She snaked out her tongue and licked the underside of his hardened shaft, then shifted up on her elbows to take his full erection into her mouth. Her eyes closed as she diligently cleaned him off, she was aware of movement in the dining room. She assumed it was the waiters, returning to fill their glasses or platters, but the hushed voices that made their way around the room couldn’t belong to the young men she’d seen. They were older, more refined… hornier.

  Increasingly excited and aroused, Price rocked his hips, jamming his large hard on to the back of her throat. Just as she thought he was about to explode in her face, he back away and looked down at her.

  Serena opened her eyes and dared a brief glance around the room. Several men she’d met earlier sat at the tables around them, their eyes taking in every inch of her body and every movement she made.

  Price pressed his finger to her chin and firmly brought her gaze to him. “Never mind them.” He pried her thighs apart, and knelt between her legs as he grabbed her ankles and lifted her legs straight up in the air.

  More exposed than she’d ever been, her body was flushed with embarrassment and excitement. She heard a few groans and sighs from the men at the tables and once again glanced their way.

  “I’m here,” Price said as he set her ankles on either side of his neck and once again directed her gaze to him. “They’re just a bunch of old stiffs who are married to cold, blue-haired ladies. They only wish they could…” Taking a firm grip of her hips, he raised her off the table and with a proud and victorious smile, rammed his enormous hard on deep into the sweet velvety folds of flesh that hungered for him.

  No matter how strange and awkward the situation, he always managed to ignite a flame that begged to be extinguished. Putting the strange men out of her thoughts, she responded to his every movement, meeting him with every thrust.

  He pounded heavily into her, grunting and growling his complete possession of her. She watched the euphoria spread over his face as his oncoming orgasm seized him. Quickly gaining control, he stopped his thrust and opened his mocking eyes to look out at the men who watched him with open envy.

  Chuckling deep in his throat, he set Serena’s legs down on the table, grabbed her by the waist and turned her face down. With a firm hand under her belly, he pulled her up on all fours, and slapped her ass before plunging his erection deep inside her again.

  This time she faced the men who watched so intently. Their eyes were glued to her breasts as Price pulled her up onto her knees, and pressed her back to his chest. He greedily grabbed both breasts, pinching her nipples while he slowly rocked inside her.

  As his breathing became loud and labored, he thrust harder and deeper, his cries of ecstasy joined by Serena’s as her orgasm built up to a dizzying height. Just as her orgasm prepared to take over her, she heard the distant buzz of a bell. Through the blissful fog of erotic pleasure, she realized it was her phone announcing the arrival of a text.

  Sebastian, she instantly thought. Her heart filled with immeasurable pain just as her body succumbed to the most primal pleasure.

  With a final, deep thrust, Price spilled his orgasm into her, wrapped his arms around her waist and grunted, “Show’s over, boys.”

  ***

  The moment Price left the private dining room, Serena shrugged on his tuxedo jacket and hurried to find her purse. With anxious and fidgeting fingers she pulled out her phone and checked her texts. Just as she’d thought; she’d received a text from Sebastian. As she read his request to see her, her heart pounded with excited anticipation, and as she went on to read his desire to explain everything about Willow, she knew in her heart she wanted to hear him out. She needed to know the truth about their relationship. She’d begun to think he’d forgotten all about her. It had been days since their last meeting and she longed to see him again.

  She looked back at the table that had served to make a spectacle of the sex fiend she could be under Price’s guidance. As much as she enjoyed the wild sex Price offered her, in her heart, there was only Sebastian.

  Chapter 7

  After missing several days of classes, Price finally granted Serena permission to return to school. Though he’d refused to openly admit he was jealous of Sebastian, he’d come up with every conceivable excuse to keep her away from school and her professor. When he’d given her permission that morning, she hadn’t questioned him, and had silently thanked whatever was responsible for his change of heart.

  As she entered Sebastian’s class, she was eager to hear what he’d have to say and hoped to have a moment to speak with him alone. She took a seat at the front of the class as the room quickly filled up.

  The minutes ticked by and soon every seat was taken. Only Sebastian was missing.

  Serena knew him to be a disciplined professor who was never late to class, and as the minutes continued to tick by, Serena began to worry. When the door opened once again, she immediately turned her attention to the new arrival, hoping with all her heart to see Sebastian. She was disappointed. She quickly recognized the new arrival as her former adviser.

  “Hello, class.” He set his thin briefcase on the desk. “I’m Mr. Elkins, Mr. Elroy Elkins, and today…” He flicked his briefcase open. “We’ll be dissecting the sonata.”

  “What happened to Mr. Sorensen?” an eager student asked.

  “Oh, yes, right. I guess I’m an unexpected surprise, aren’t I?” He pulled a handkerchief from his breast pocket and wiped his brow. “Well, I do hope I won't be too much of a disappointment. I’m not a world renowned composer like Sebastian, but I will do my best.” He pushed his glasses up his nose.

  “But what happened to Mr. Sorensen? Where is he?” the student persisted.

  “Right. Right. Lucky Mr. Sorensen has been asked to give a few classes at the University of Southern California. I guess he’s in such high demand that he has to stretch himself pretty thin.”

  Serena’s heart sank. USC? What could Sebastian possibly be doing at USC?

  “When will he be back?” another student asked.

  Serena dreaded the answer.

  Mr. Elkins fidgeted and looked at the agenda in his briefcase. “I’m not really sure, but I was asked if my calendar was clear for the next few weeks.”

  The students simultaneously let out a soft groan and Serena blinked a tear away.

  “As it turns out, I am free for the next little while, so… Well, hopefully I’ll grow on you.”

  The
class remained silent.

  “I’ll do my best to fill in and teach you everything as Mr. Sorensen would have,” Mr. Elkins went on as he pulled out the day’s lesson. “So, who can tell me what makes a sonata.”

  The class was decidedly unenthusiastic about the lesson.

  “I’ll give you a hint… it has…”

  Serena felt sorry for her old advisor, and tried to spark the class to life. She answered him and in turn asked a few questions to get the ball rolling. Soon the students got on board and Mr. Elkins was able to give his lackluster lesson.

  Poor Mr. Elkins, Serena thought. No matter how hard he tried, he just didn’t have the charm and charisma Sebastian had, nor did he have his passion for music. While Serena tried to concentrate on every word Mr. Elkins said, she found herself repeatedly questioning this strange change of teaching assignments.

  Sebastian had never mentioned the possibility of teaching elsewhere and she couldn’t help but wonder why he’d accepted this assignment so far away. Surely he had the choice to go where he wanted to. A man with his reputation could have his pick of assignments.

  Was he avoiding her?

  No, he’d specifically asked to see her. It didn’t make sense. As the hour passed she reviewed her last encounters with him. He’d shown his desire for her. He’d told her how much he longed for her. And that last, quick text… it had to mean something.

  Chapter 8

  By the time class let out, Serena was convinced something was wrong. Sebastian would never willingly change school, not without talking to her about it. He would never deliberately set out to avoid her. Rushing through the halls with the hundreds of other students, she checked her watch, and wondered if she’d have time to go to USC before Sebastian left for the day.

  She had to see him; had to talk to him.

  Newly invigorated, she pushed through the main door and walked out into the bright afternoon sun, but her plans to meet up with Sebastian were quickly dashed as reality met her head on.