by Candi Wall
“You’ll take in, and understand, more than you realize. It’s kind of crazy, but in a few days you’ll see you’ve picked up a ton of information.” He sat forward and poured two glasses of champagne from a prepared bar nestled between them and the opposite-facing seats. Passing her one, he held his up in toast. “To you, for keeping the vultures at bay with your demure smile, open honesty and the way you stunned in Marciano’s dress. Earthy tones, by the way. He caved.”
“Got it.” She sipped the smooth champagne slowly. She’d had several drinks at the gala, and she wanted to be in decent shape when they arrived at the next party. “So what am I in for next?”
He smiled and settled back again. “Sex. Drugs. More sex.”
“Sounds wonderful, excluding the drugs.”
Ian nodded, stretching his long legs out in front of him. In a sharp contrast to the elegant tuxedo he’d worn the night she’d met him, tonight he had a rakish thing going on. He’d bucked the traditional tux and dressed in a burgundy silk shirt and dark charcoal slacks. She’d never been much for scarves, but he’d pulled off the multishaded gray one draped around his neck without a hitch. The only thing she couldn’t imagine him in was a burned-out pair of jeans and hay-scented flannel, though she had a funny feeling he’d look good in those as well.
“Whatever you want.” He pointed toward the front of the limo. “Cain is up there. He’s been with us all night. Nothing happens while Cain is on duty. This is your opportunity to let go and experience the world any way you want. If I’m not at your side, he will be.”
The limo sliced through the city, turning past ancient-looking buildings that definitely had a romance-of-the-ages thing about them. She felt like she was literally in another world, and she settled into her seat. Everything about Milan was fascinating and different. The waterways cutting through different sections of the city were amazing, and she wished the weather were warmer so she could convince Ian to take her for a tour. “So is Cain an actual bodyguard?”
A dark cloud drifted over Ian’s eyes before he shook it away. “Old money comes with its drawbacks. Cain keeps me safe when I don’t feel like watching out for what’s around me. He’s a great friend as well.”
She didn’t know what to make of that answer, but asking for more information seemed rude. Instead, she returned her attention to their surroundings. They passed a huge church, and she turned to take in the massive, marble-paneled structure. It was imposingly beautiful, lit up to blazing so it couldn’t be missed. “What’s that?”
“The Milan Cathedral,” he answered. “Duomo di Milano. It’s amazing. You can almost feel the ghosts of history whispering in your ear, even if you don’t believe in them. I’ll take you to see it if I can find some time in our busy schedule.”
“Don’t worry about me. You’re here for work.” She shot him a smile, hoping he understood that she felt this trip was all about him, his work and what he needed to do. Seeing the amazing city from a car window was enough for her. “I’m here by pure luck. I’ll take what I can get.”
When she went back to watching the scenery, Ian swallowed hard. She was amazing. He was used to pampered, spoiled bitches and dickhead upstarts whose only concerns were getting in good with Ian Malcolm and using his golden-ticket status to seal their entrance into the fashion world. Elizabeth’s reactions were a stark contrast. She was soft and accommodating, staring wide-eyed at the incredible history around them. Her enjoyment of Milan woke his own passion for the city, and he found himself launching into a tourism monologue that would have put any guide to shame. As stupid as he knew he must sound, he couldn’t stop.
She showed no signs of disinterest though. Actually, quite the opposite. She sat forward and pointed like a two-year-old, her excitement and cute little what’s that? queries making him want her more every minute. When the limo pulled to a slow stop, he cursed. He didn’t want their moment to end.
She turned to look at him. “Where are we?”
Ian gritted his teeth. Elizabeth was an interesting mix of innocent and sexy. All he wanted was to take her away from Milan’s erotic underworld of sex and drugs and show her its beauty. In sharp contrast, he wanted to see her in his element. He wanted to see her eyes light with interest by what she was going to witness in their darker, freer side of Fashion Week.
“This is Sotto Copertura. Under Cover would be the American translation.” He waited for the driver to open the door and pulled her out into the chill night air. “Nothing is off limits here, so let me know if you need to go at any point. If we get separated, Cain will be nearby if you need him.”
She stumbled, her gaze concerned. “Wait. What is that supposed to mean?”
Hurrying her to the door before any press could catch them, he blew out a slow breath. Pulling her close, he kissed her. “I’m expected to be here. It’s part of my public persona. I have to make rounds, schmooze, talk the talk. It’s possible we’ll end up in different directions. The things you see tonight might be a bit—over your experience level. It’s free in here. Really free. If at any point, you feel like it’s too much, just let me or Cain know.”
Her eyes were as wide as saucers. “You’re scaring me.”
He shook his head and tried to make himself relax. Making sure she was prepared was all that mattered. “Don’t be. When the stress of Fashion Week takes over, people need a way to unwind. They do so here. No one is going to make you do anything you don’t want to do, but you’ll see a lot. I just want you to know that you don’t have to stay if you don’t want to.”
To his surprise, she straightened her shoulders. “I’m game.”
He nodded and let Cain lead the way. They didn’t have to wait for the bouncers to check for his name. One of the benefits of celebrity status was people being paid to know his face. The club swallowed them in its dark, pulsing atmosphere. Bodies crushed close, perfume and arousal thickened the air.
Watching Elizabeth react was better than any relief he’d ever experienced before. Here, he could be free, but now that he had her on his arm, the way she saw his world was all that mattered.
People danced, their bodies pressed close in an intimate sway. More lined the bar and corners, heated, touching, their inhibitions gone in the dark, sheltered surroundings that begged for freedom and pleasure.
Elizabeth stared wide-eyed, her lips parted.
Scooting her in front of him, Ian pushed them through the crowd until he found a spot near the bar. “Do you want a drink?” he hollered over the music.
“Sure.” Her gaze sliced through the crowd again. “Whatever you’re having.”
Ian ordered two glasses of the house wine and turned back to her. “So? What do you think?”
She met his gaze, her eyes a deep blue. “There are two guys. Over there. They’re nearly, well, close to…”
Ian glanced in the direction she indicated. Sure enough, two men in a dark corner were in pre-ground-and-pound mode. He leaned in close. “That’s pretty much the norm. Too much for you?”
She smiled then, a really sexy, out-of-her-norm smile. Her cheeks were flushed, and she turned back to watch the men for a long moment. “Actually, I think it’s kinda hot.”
Chapter Six
Ian crushed her close, needing to feel her body. “I think you have fantasies I need to know about.”
“What do you mean?”
Her expression was so open, he didn’t have the heart to tease her. She wasn’t being coy or manipulative. She just found the atmosphere erotic. Still, guy-on-guy wasn’t as socially accepted. For the couple in the corner to turn her on, she had to have some hidden forbiddens he knew he had to uncover. The tough part would be not scaring her off of the subject. He’d have to ease into it. “Some people find two guys hot, some people find it offensive. More so than two women. Ever considered two guys?”
“Considered them what?” Her eyebrows arched. “Together? Sure.
You do realize I’ve lived with hot cowboys my entire life. I know some men are into men, I’ve just never seen it.”
The bartender brought their drinks and he handed her one. “Never?” Christ. What kind of rock did she live under? “Not even porn?”
“Nope. Though I always wondered what it would be like to be with two men.” She sipped at her wine, studying the club and its patrons. “When you live a simple life, things like this seem beyond your reach. Even so, I think every woman alive thinks about how much pleasure she could get from two or more men.”
Ian shifted back onto his barstool to hide the hard-on her words were creating. Everything about her made him hot and ready, but having her talk about two to three cocks giving her what she needed was torture. Taking a deep breath, he leaned in to whisper in her ear. “Is that what you’d like to experience?”
Her eyes went from wide-eyed country girl to hot in two seconds. “I-I don’t know.”
Ian wasn’t letting her off that easy. Yes, she was honest, but she was also in the moment. If he’d learned anything about people, it was that they were most honest when it came to what they wanted sexually when the option presented itself. He wasn’t about to let her hide from that.
“Don’t overthink it.” Pulling her between his legs, he met her gaze head-on. “Don’t. I know this is a lot to take in, and I know you feel a bit out of your element.”
“A bit,” she scoffed. “Sexy at home was a cowboy singing love songs outside a window. This is… This is intense. It’s erotic and taboo, and exciting.”
“And it’s real.” Easing his hands down her back, he kept her close. “Anything you want is yours while we’re together. This deal isn’t just for me. It’s beneficial both ways. If there are fantasies that live inside your head, I want to know about them. Sex, fucking, lovemaking all have their place. It’s up to us to decide when they happen.”
She eased into his hold, her breaths choppy. “I don’t know if I’m ready.”
“That I understand.” He nodded and slid his hand through the slit of her dress to caress her thigh. “I also understand that you’re turned on. I’ll take care of it any way you want.”
When she just stared at him, her gaze sultry and uncertain, he pressed, “I can fuck you right here, or we can go back to our hotel.”
Her breath caught and she bit her lip. There was something incredibly exciting about introducing her to the baser, animalistic edge of his world. Meeting her gaze, he leaned in to whisper, “All I can wonder is how wet you are trying to imagine what you could experience tonight.”
Her arms went around his shoulders and she shivered. “Like what? I have a funny feeling my brain isn’t conjuring anything close to the options available.”
“The guy three tables down is eyeing you like a piece of meat he wants to devour, and he’s not averse to me as a side dish,” he pointed out. “There’s also a woman in a silver dress near the dance floor who can’t take her eyes off of us.”
“You think they want us?”
“Look at them, and you tell me.” He waited until she located the people he’d pointed out and nipped at her ear. His hand had drifted up to her ass cheek before he realized it, and he groaned against her neck. “Like I said. Anything you want. I also know several men and women with clean bills of health if you want to experiment. They could watch, or participate, or you could watch.”
Her breathing was staggered, cheeks flushed. “Tell me what it’s like.”
“Being with more than one person?”
“Yes.” She shifted her hips, pushing closer between his legs as she sipped at her wine. “And what it’s like to be with the same sex.”
“In detail?”
She nodded, her eyes half-mast, cheeks flushed with arousal.
Ian pulled in a deep breath. His world had been old hat, and boring, until Elizabeth joined in the mix. Now he was seeing it through her virgin eyes. What had become mundane suddenly held new promise. Grabbing her arm, he led her through the club until he found an empty table near the rear, shadowed enough to hide them from easy discovery. Sitting down, he set his wine on the table and pulled her onto his lap. Shifting her so she straddled him while facing away, he smoothed his fingers up the inside of her thighs.
She tried to close them, but he held her open, breathing over her neck, “Don’t. No one can see us. Knowing what to expect is hard to describe,” he continued. “Tell me the scenario. Are you talking two men taking care of you at once?”
She nodded mutely.
He shifted his touch higher, keeping the drape of her dress covering her body and what his hands were doing. “Imagine everything you’re feeling right now, then double it. Two mouths, fighting for a taste of your tits. Four hands wanting to touch where I’m touching now, jumbling to find your hot, wet pussy. If you have two men who know what they are doing, they’ll share. One will tongue your breasts while the other eats you. You might come first, because they’ll need you nice and wet.”
He drifted his fingers over the damp material of her thong, enjoying her breathy gasps. Sliding beneath, he eased his finger between her folds. Finding her clit was easy, and he concentrated on her reactions.
“When they have you wet and ready, one will slide between your legs and fuck you. The other might want to fuck your mouth, or if they’re really good, one will lube up and fuck your ass.”
Her entire body shuddered and she clutched his wrist, guiding his hand faster, her head slamming back against his shoulder. Her eyes were closed, her brows furrowed. “You’ve done it?”
“Oh, yeah.” His cock was going to explode. “There’s something really hot about going bag deep on a hot pussy when there’s a cock up her ass too. The guys’ balls slap together, and you can feel the strokes of the other cock through the flimsy wall of skin separating them. If you’re really hot, both cocks can be inside your pussy at the same time. But the best way for most women seems to be one cock, one tongue.”
She was wild now, her hips rocking so her ass stroked his erection in the same rhythm of his finger over her clit. Shifting her forward a bit, but keeping her back pressed to his chest, he grabbed his wallet. Nibbling at her ear, he handed it to her and whispered, “I’m going to fuck you right here. Get a condom out.”
She did, her hands trembling. He undid his pants and pushed the front open. Sliding the condom over himself, he sat up a bit and shifted her until he was able to bunch her dress enough to reveal her ass. Settling her back on his lap, he fixed the front of her dress again to make sure she was covered.
She shifted over his cock several times and groaned.
“Whenever you want to take it,” he encouraged. “As soon as you do, I’ll tell you more.”
Three teasing strokes were all he got before she shifted upward enough to take him into her. She was hot and tight, and he gritted his teeth. This was going to be a test of wills between his brain and his cock. Grasping her hips, he pulled her down until she was fully seated, his cock deep inside her. “This is how it would feel, only there would be someone else in front of you, parting your thighs, rough hands holding you open while his tongue licked at your clit.”
He brushed his finger over her quickly a few times to give her a taste. “If we were on a bed, I’d get you on all fours and have you straddle his face so I could fuck you hard while he ate you. We’d take turns touching your tits.” He slid out slowly and pumped up into her hard.
“Ian.” She breathed his name out on a shattered breath.
He knew what she wanted. She was close. Until they could get back to the hotel, her pleasure would have to be enough. His own could wait. Biting her earlobe, he slid one hand around her throat with light pressure and used his other hand to work her clit. In seconds he felt her tighten, her body going rigid, her pussy tightening sinfully around him before she shuddered in his arms. It was a long, agonizing minute before she slumped bac
k against him.
Closing her legs, she turned slightly to meet his gaze. “You, Ian Malcolm, are a bad influence.”
He had to laugh at that. “And you, Elizabeth, are one hot woman. I think we’re going to have a wonderful month together.”
“A month of this?” Liz couldn’t imagine it. She was weak from what he’d just made her imagine and what he’d done to her body. “I don’t think I’ll survive.”
He pulled from her body and resituated so they were still hidden. “You’re so responsive, it might be a very naughty month.”
He took his scarf off and used it to clean them both. She stood when he pushed her up. They’d been hidden pretty well, but anyone who looked close enough probably could have figured out what they were doing. When he pulled her to his side again, she whispered, “Do you think anyone saw us?”
“Little late to worry about that.” He hooked an arm around her waist possessively. “If they did, it wasn’t the first or the last time they’ll see a couple doing the same tonight. We were tame by some standards. Give it an hour. You’ll think we had a family picnic in comparison.”
Ian guided her through the crowd and she followed mechanically. She wasn’t sure how she was supposed to focus, or talk, when her head and body were still buzzing from what they’d just done. She’d never add notes from tonight in her article.
Ian had no such qualms. He stopped and talked every ten steps, his smile easy, his charm in full throttle. No one mentioned their moment in the corner, but a few commented on how attentive he was to the beauty on his arm. Ian introduced her to tons of people, just like at the gala, but she couldn’t remember all the names and titles thrown her way.
As they continued to make rounds, she found a familiar theme creeping into the conversation at every turn. No one came right out and asked what he thought, but there were innumerable hints and leads trying to get Ian to reveal his opinion on this year’s designers.
