by Candi Wall
A petite Chinese woman in a sleek black dress was especially pushy when it came to her designs, and for the first time, Liz noticed a hint of anger in Ian’s gaze. When the woman would have pushed more, Liz jumped in and asked the woman for details on her decision to use bright colors. Ian shot her a grateful glance and it felt like an hour before Liz freed herself from her new best friend, Daiyu. She had a funny feeling Daiyu’s interest in her was purely for the link to Ian, but at least she felt like she’d helped him.
At one point she found herself in a group of six people, all of them talking over her head about colors and fashion accessories that she’d never even heard of. She had no idea where Ian was, and she needed a break.
Excusing herself from the group, she went in search of the bathroom. Sex, drinks and time were taking their toll, but more, she just needed a second to freshen up and take a deep breath.
The crowd was thicker than earlier, and she quickly learned manners weren’t going to get her anywhere. Pushing through the throng wasn’t overly effective either, and she closed her eyes as the crush of bodies became a bit overwhelming. She breathed in slow, forcing her heart rate to slow down.
A strong hand grasped her upper arm and she jumped, turning to find the man in green from the gala, holding her arm. What was his name? Marciano?
He smiled easily. “You look ready to fall over.” He nodded toward his hand on her arm and eased his hold fractionally. “May I help?”
“I’d like to freshen up.”
He guided them through the crowd.
“You’re the designer who made my dress?”
He nodded.
“It is beautiful.”
“It would have been striking in a deep cerulean. The dead eyes around us like dead colors, so I play along.” He glanced back and scrunched his nose. Then he smiled just as suddenly. “But you have saved the day. You make it look gorgeous. I thank you for that. You may save me from Ian’s bite.”
He wasn’t what Liz would describe as handsome. He was kind of plain, and angular, with nearly black hair and flat brown eyes. But he had a great smile and she didn’t get any heebie-jeebie vibes from him. “What do you mean?”
“All ears listen when Ian talks.” He shrugged and stopped near the door to the bathrooms. “It is my hope he does not shred me in his critique now that he has seen you in my creation.”
Liz balked. “Ian wouldn’t do that to a friend.”
Marciano chuckled and grasped her hand in his. Pressing a kiss to her wrist, he smiled. “Ian is a friend to no one. He knows all and will speak to many, but at the end of the day, no one is safe from his opinion.”
He walked away before she could defend Ian, and since her bladder was going to explode, she hurried into the bathroom. A few minutes later she emerged feeling refreshed and ready to tackle the rest of the evening. Cain approached her and handed her a glass of ice water. She drank most of it before shooting him a grateful look. “Kinda crazy in here.”
He nodded. “Ian asked me to find you. He’s ready to leave.”
Liz nodded and accepted the arm Cain offered. “Already? I don’t feel like we’ve been here very long.”
“Almost two hours,” Cain replied. “Ian isn’t crazy about the people attending tonight, so we’re lucky. You look like you’re ready to drop.”
Liz wasn’t going to fight it. Give her pajamas and a bed and she’d be unconscious in two seconds. Cain maneuvered them through the crowd without any issue, and Liz smiled when she saw Ian at the door. He didn’t have his scarf, and she felt the heat crawl up her neck when she remembered why he’d ditched it. The heat in his gaze was intoxicating. When he opened his arms, she slid easily into his embrace.
He pressed a kiss to her forehead and nodded to Cain. Refocusing on her, he smiled. “I’m ready if you are.”
“Absolutely.” She looked back at the club. “What about your scarf?”
He laughed, guiding her out the door into the cold night air. “I have plenty.”
The limo pulled up to the curb and she climbed in. Ian followed, tucking her close. She glanced at the digital clock over the privacy window. “Is it really two in the morning?”
“We’ll be at the hotel in ten minutes.” He tipped her chin up so he could brush a kiss over her lips. It was soft and sweet, and she melded into the touch. “I’ll have you in bed in no time.”
Liz sucked in a breath. She didn’t doubt him. The fatigue she’d experienced was zapped by a naughty surge of adrenaline. Her mind decided not to play nice with his statement, and all she could do was imagine the ways he planned to have her in bed.
Chapter Seven
Ian watched as Elizabeth spoke with Arjun Narine, one of the most sought-after photographers in the fashion industry. He was a handsome man Ian had had the pleasure of taking to bed on several occasions before Jimmy. He waved to Arjun, and Elizabeth hooked her arm through the other man’s and pulled him toward where Ian stood.
Ian had enjoyed her social metamorphosis. She’d started out shy and reserved; now she was grabbing celebrities and pulling them around. She’d loved Berlin and most of the German attractions they’d been able to take in during their crazy dates, but as far as he could tell, she loved Delhi the best. She raved about the food, the culture, even the open market Cain had taken her to while Ian worked on his critiques of Milan, Tokyo and Berlin. She was a dynamo in bed, and he’d actually had to get her out of the room so he could keep his hands off her long enough to work.
Tonight she was especially excited by the designs they’d seen by Navya Parikh, India’s most promising up-and-coming designer whom Elizabeth couldn’t say enough good things about. Ian was impressed with her quick grasp on what he was looking for and her innate sense of style. But what Elizabeth didn’t see was Navya’s underdeveloped confidence. He saw the designer’s potential as well. It just wasn’t there yet. She’d be a force in the industry if she took some risks and believed in herself. For now, she’d get an honest review instead of the starred review he had a feeling he’d write in a few years.
Knowing Elizabeth would probably read his review wouldn’t stop him from being honest, but he cringed. She was all softness and kindness and he wondered how she’d take his harsh opinions.
He shouldn’t worry about it. Hell, he’d never gone soft. His honest reviews had made him who he was today. Still… Seeing her reactions… She made him see his world again as someone else would see it. Maybe as he’d first seen it. She reminded him of what he’d lost over the years. Excitement. Meaning. Pride. When had he lost them?
Ian schooled his reactions as Elizabeth and Arjun approached.
Arjun smiled and hugged him close. “It is good to see you.”
“You as well, my friend.” Ian pulled Elizabeth to his side. “I see you’ve met my travel companion?”
“A delight,” Arjun said, his eyes appreciative. “She is a beauty and her accent intoxicating. I am happy to see you spending time with someone new.”
“Thank you.” Uncomfortable with the personal topic, Ian refocused the conversation. “How is your sister? Last time we spoke she was receiving chemo treatments.”
“I thought you would hear…” Arjun’s face crumpled. “She died three months ago.”
“I’m sorry.” Ian felt his friend’s loss to his marrow. She’d been an amazing, positive woman.
“She fought to the end.” Arjun shrugged then. “It has been a hard time.”
Elizabeth touched his arm. “I’m sorry too.”
He smiled down at her. “You are very kind since you did not know her. I will see you at dinner tonight.” Shaking Ian’s hand, he seemed to regroup. “I look forward to catching up with you.”
Ian returned the clasp. “Same here.”
His fingers lingered on Ian’s long enough for Elizabeth to notice. When Arjun walked away, she looped her arm through his a
nd followed him as he led them toward the door. “Are we leaving?” she asked.
“Yes.” Ian tried to focus, but all he could think about was the past he’d shared with Arjun, the way Elizabeth looked at the younger man and the lingering touch Arjun had given, letting him know there was an open invite for rekindling their relations. “I’ve set up a private viewing with Navya.”
“Really?” Her arm tightened on his and she squealed. “Why? We haven’t done this before.”
“I knew you liked her work, and I see a lot of potential in her.” It wasn’t the entire truth. Any other day, any other designer, he’d give his review and call it good. Knowing Elizabeth thought so highly of the woman made it hard to write what he felt he needed to write. And so he’d set up the viewing to see if more of her potential would be seen in her other designs. “But I need to see more before I can give an honest review.”
Elizabeth smiled and climbed into the limousine. When he followed, she pressed him back onto his seat and straddled his hips. She’d become much less reserved in the last two weeks, but there was something different in her touch today. Something wicked in her smile.
She started unbuttoning his shirt, and he stalled her hands. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing.” She leaned in and kissed him lightly. “I just want you.”
“Right now?”
She nodded.
“In the limo?”
She nodded again and pulled her hands free to finish unbuttoning his shirt. Sliding down his thighs, she popped the button on his pants free. There was no preamble, she had his cock in her hot little hands in seconds. Glancing up at him while she stroked him, she purred. “Are you trying to tell me you don’t want to?”
“Hell no,” he answered. “I’m just wondering what’s got you so wound up.”
What got her hot and ready really didn’t matter, he just wanted to hear her say it. Wanted her to scream her needs and not be afraid to ask. They’d been in his world for a while, and the last thing he wanted was to change her in any way. He’d fallen for her simple, open ways, and it was important to him to return her home with a few fun experiences but in the same mindset as he’d found her. The only thing he wanted different was to know she’d say what she wanted, when she wanted it.
He hooked a finger under her chin and forced her to look at him. “What caused this?”
“I’ll tell you in a minute.”
With that cryptic statement, she eased her hands away from his and surrounded him with her mouth.
Ian slammed his head back against the seat. Fuck. They’d shared plenty in the last few weeks, but every time her mouth closed over his cock, he was ready to come. “Christ, Elizabeth. You kill me.”
She purred, taking him deeper. She was good at giving head now that she’d mastered her nervousness. Really good. She had a hell of a suck, and she could take him deep. He arched his hips off the seat and pushed his pants down farther so she could touch all of him. She’d quickly learned that his balls were super sensitive, and she was always willing to give them the attention they needed.
As much as he wanted to just enjoy what she was doing, he wasn’t about to let her sidetrack him completely. Gripping his hands in her hair, he pulled her back until her lips barely brushed the tip of his cock. “I asked you a question.”
“Did you?” Her gaze screamed make me answer.
“Yes.”
“Hmmmm,” she teased, flicking her tongue out to lick the tip. “I think it might have been the way you and Arjun looked at each other.” Another flick of her tongue. “Were you lovers?”
He nodded, watching as her hand came up to pump his cock. “A few times.”
“That’s what I thought.” She reached up and loosened his grasp on her hair. Taking him into her mouth again until he moaned, she sucked her way back up. “And it’s all I could think about, New York.”
“What were you thinking?” His balls tightened, and he shifted, needing to get himself under control before he lost it.
She stroked him, her eyes on his cock. “I was wondering what you did to each other. What it would be like to watch, or join.”
His cock swelled in her hands and a pearl of pre-come pulsed free. “Is that what you want?”
She shrugged, rubbing the natural lube around his tip with her thumb before sliding her mouth down over him, pumping, moaning around him until he grasped the seats and dug his fingers into the soft leather. After a long, torturous moment, she popped off him like she was sucking a fucking lollipop. “Tell me what you do to each other. I need info. You know me.”
He did. She was all about details. Problem was, he didn’t know if he could give her the details she was looking for without losing it. “We do everything you and I do but with different parts.”
She smiled and licked him from balls to tip. “You talk, I suck. You stop, I stop.”
Damn, he loved this dominating side of her. “We kiss, we touch.”
She sighed and took him into her mouth again, revving her throat in an encouraging purr like a goddamn cat.
“I like the fucking more than I like to be fucked.” The little rumbly sounds in her throat vibrated on the head of his cock and he gripped her shoulder, silently begging her to stay there, taking him deep, the feel of her tongue sliding up and down the underside of his erection incredible.
Suddenly she stopped, her gaze hooded with desire. “Tell me more.”
Dropping his head back against the seat, he gave over. She was honest and simple, and sweet, but she was also stubborn. When her curiosity was piqued she was a bulldog. Good quality for a reporter. “Arjun liked getting more than doing, so it worked out well. I’d always have to lube him up, because he was so tight.”
She started sucking again, faster and with long strokes as he spoke.
“He liked it when I’d grip his throat and jerk him off while I fucked him. It was hot and I’d always blow my load in him.”
She sucked him hard but kept pumping him with her hand. Her eyebrows scrunched as she stared up at him, her mouth parted and moist. “Wait. How did you do that? From behind, or were you face to face? I can’t imagine it without the details.”
She immediately went back to sucking and he swallowed hard. He was close. “Usually, I’d hook his legs over my shoulder. He’d get off, coming all over my chest and stomach. The second his ass tightened on his orgasm, I’d lose it.”
The image in his head and the hot pumps of her mouth undid him. He grabbed her. “I’m close.”
She ignored him, pumping and sucking until the release sizzled in his balls and erupted. He cried out, “Here it comes.”
But she didn’t stop. She didn’t swallow, just caved her mouth around him, but it didn’t matter. He came in her mouth and she fucking blew his mind. Spit or swallow, she was amazing. He was lost, his cock purging so hard Ian slumped against the seat like a limp noodle.
Handing her a paper towel from the side compartment, Ian shifted and grabbed a couple for himself. He fixed his pants and pulled her back up into the seat next to him. “You’re too good to be true.”
After a long moment, she smiled. “It’s going to take some time before I can do that, well not the blow job, but the finish part…”
“Swallowing?” he filled in.
She shuddered. “Yeah, that. Honestly, I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to. Giving you head is hot because you get all wound up. I like it when you can’t control yourself, because you’re always so self-contained. When you lose it and get off, it’s super hot. I’ve never wanted to swallow, but with you, it’s like a final measure. Still, I just can’t make myself do it.”
“Me neither,” he admitted. “It’s all salt and hot slime.”
“Ick.” She scrunched her nose. “Good to know I’m not the only one with issues.” Her eyes widened comically. “Wait. You—give your male lovers hea
d?”
“Of course.” He could almost see her brain firing off the mental image. “You’ve come a long way in a short time, Elizabeth.”
And he realized he was stating a fact. She’d opened up, taken his crazy life by the balls, and made it a fun place for herself and a slightly altered place for him. For the first time in a long time, he was enjoying the crazy ride that was his life. The stuffy designers didn’t bother him anymore. He walked away from each new Fashion Week destination ready for the next. Seeing Elizabeth’s amazement, shock, interest in what he was all about reminded him of how he’d felt in earlier years, before nothing fazed him and the world was a bright new place to discover.
She shrugged and started searching the cabinets. “I need water.”
“Lower compartment.”
After a moment she produced a bottle and drank half before she slumped back with a sigh. “Okay, that’s better. Now, where were we?”
Ian reached for the water and when she handed it over, he took a long drink. The way she’d reacted to his interactions with Arjun, and her curiosity, made him think she had more interest in two men as lovers than he’d previously considered.
With Elizabeth, it was easy. Whatever she wanted, desired, or needed, he’d happily give if he could just keep her feel-good vibe close by. Handing the water bottle back, he watched her closely. “So I was thinking. Arjun is attractive. You were wound up to no end thinking about what we did together. You and I are lovers; Arjun and I have been lovers before. Is he a person you’d like to add to our bed?”
Chapter Eight
“Wait.” Liz gripped the bottle tight and tried to come up with a calm, reserved response that didn’t include the words “yes, pretty please”. Damn it. Why did her mama’s voice always pop up in moments when the last thing she wanted to think about was being a lady? “Answering that question would depend on exactly what you mean.”
