Good Karma

by Donya Lynne

  She bit her lip and nodded.

  “Does one sound more interesting than the other?”

  She thought about it for a moment then shook her head. “Not really.”

  Mark grinned as if making a mental note. “Well, we’ll just have to help you figure that out, won’t we?”

  Gulp.

  “I guess.” She grabbed the next card. It certainly was getting warm in here, especially with her foot still pressed to his erection. After reading the card to herself, this next question wasn’t going to cool things off, either. “On a scale of one to ten, how sensitive are your…uh…your nipples?” The words caught in her throat, and she coughed before reading the second half of the question. “How would you like me to…um…touch them?” She slowly lifted her gaze.

  He looked like a wolf ready to devour her.

  “My nipples are pretty sensitive, so I’ll say about an eight or nine.” His voice had grown deeper. “I like when a woman touches them or licks them. Or bites them.” He cleared his throat and shifted on the couch, making her foot rub down the hard length of him. “And you have sexy teeth.”

  “Sexy teeth?”

  He nodded. “Oh yes. Very sexy. I want you to do naughty things to me with your teeth. No drawing blood or anything like that, but…”

  She felt light-headed. “No, of course not.”

  “It’s just that…” He licked his lips. “I like the idea of your mouth on me, Karma.”

  And she liked the idea of his on her.

  Mark waited a moment before grabbing the next card from the deck. The corner of his mouth ticked upward. Oh boy, this was going to be a good one. She could just tell.

  “Describe exactly what it feels like when you orgasm.”

  Thud!

  “Um, well…” She exhaled heavily through pursed lips, making her cheeks puff out.

  Mark set down the card and casually sat back, waiting for her answer, a patient smile on his face.

  “Okay, so…” Her fingers twisted in her lap. “You already know I’ve never had an orgasm during…um…sex.”

  “From what you’ve told me, I assumed that was the case. But you have had an orgasm, haven’t you?”

  If she said yes, she would be admitting to masturbation, and something about that felt too personal.

  “Karma,” he said, his voice lilting as he rocked himself against her foot. “Do you give yourself pleasure?”

  “Oh hell,” she said, huffing as she rolled her eyes. “Fine. Yes. Yes I do. God, this is so embarrassing.”

  “And…what does it feel like?”

  She set her jaw and slapped her hands on her thighs. “Good, okay? It feels good.”

  He threw his head back and laughed so hard his whole body shook. “Fine, I’ll take that. But…” He held up his index finger as if making a point. “An orgasm you give yourself rarely feels as good as one someone else gives you, and almost never as good as one you have during sex.”

  “Oh, and you know this how?” She plucked the next card off the pile. “Oh wait, let me guess. Lots of practice, right?”

  His single dimple creased his cheek. “Something like that, yes. But I’ve also read a lot on the subject.” His eyebrows shot up as if he’d had a Eureka moment. “As a matter of fact, I’m going to build you a reading list. I have a few books in mind that I think you’ll enjoy.”

  She lowered her face into her left hand and groaned. “I feel like Luke Skywalker being trained in how to use The Force.”

  Mark burst into laughter again. “Are you calling me Yoda?”

  She had to admit, it was pretty funny. “No. You’re better looking than Yoda.”

  “I certainly hope so.” He pointed to her card. “Okay, ask me.”

  She read the card. Her heart performed another perfect swan dive into the pit of her stomach, and she glanced warily at him.

  “Go ahead,” he said. “I can already tell this one’s good.”

  He had no idea.

  “Okay, um…” She looked back down. Here goes. “Take me to a place in the house where we haven’t had sex.” Her gaze flicked nervously to his before she continued. “Kiss me…and then whisper what you would do to me if we were to…get it on there.” She lowered the card to her lap and kept her head down.

  Mark waited a moment then lifted her foot from between his legs, leaned toward her, and reached for her hand. Without looking at him, she took it. As he moved into the middle of the couch, he tugged her onto his lap and situated her so that she faced him. Her legs straddled his thighs.

  Her heart beat like a wild drum in her chest.

  “Come here,” he whispered, caressing her cheek in such a way that drew her face to his. His lips found hers and held them in a static kiss. He didn’t move, and neither did she. All that mattered was the simple, chaste connection and the way a thousand tiny starbursts exploded throughout her body. His kiss seemed so innocent, and yet it sent shards of erotic desire into her blood.

  He broke away, but held her close. “Since we haven’t had sex, yet, I choose here.” He patted the couch. “And as for what I would do to you here, I would make you stand in front of me, where I would slip my hands up your skirt and pull off your panties. I would invite you onto my lap and whisper how sexy you are…” He bent around and kissed her earlobe. “You’re very sexy.”

  A shiver raced down her spine.

  His lips skimmed down her jaw to her chin. “I would kiss your neck.” And he did, letting his tongue sneak out to lick a fiery trail from one side to the other.

  Karma felt like she was in a vicious state of sensory overload. She was practically panting.

  “And I wouldn’t stop making love to you until you came.” His breath washed over the skin of her neck, and his lips closed over her shoulder as he licked her. “Your first orgasm with a man inside you,” he said a moment later when he met her gaze again.

  As badly as she needed oxygen, she could hardly breathe.

  “Oh,” she whispered breathlessly. Apparently she could barely speak, too.

  His gaze dropped to her mouth, and a heartbeat later, their lips meshed again, this time with more force. A quiet groan broke from deep in his chest.

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and shoulders. No way was she letting this moment go. All night, they had talked about sex. Visions of him in various states of undress had taunted her throughout their game, and she had felt his magnificence against the sole of her foot for at least ten minutes. They had fallen under the very spell the game was designed to cast, because they were unraveling into lust faster than a stripper takes off her clothes.

  “Bite my lip,” he muttered against her mouth. “Let yourself go.”

  She thought she had been letting go, but clearly he knew her better than she knew herself, because the moment he told her to let go, she found a fifth gear she hadn’t thought possible. Her tongue danced with his, and he groaned low and loud, and when she did as he asked and took his bottom lip between her teeth, he practically growled, and his fingers curled into claws on her back, pulling her closer.

  “That’s my girl,” he said when she released his lip. Then he assaulted her mouth again, nipping her lip as if to show her the pleasure she had just given him. And it was pleasurable. Being bitten, even if only lightly, knocked her good side clear out of the picture, leaving only the vixen she had discovered in Chicago.

  Passion rose in her blood, turning her into someone else. She was no longer sweet, shy, good Karma. She was lusty, sultry, bad Karma. A woman lost to her desires, driven by erotic need, who wanted to experience pleasure only a man could give. That only Mark could give.

  He pulled away, and she opened her eyes to find him grinning at her, his gaze hooded.

  “What?” she said, breathless.

  His left eyebrow twitched. “You’re pulling my hair.”

  She glanced up and found that her hands had curled into fists, and tufts of his dark brown hair poked out between her fingers. She quickly opened her hands and
let go.

  Of course, this made Mark laugh. “I wasn’t complaining. Remember, I like when a woman pulls my hair.”

  “Uh, yes…” She sheepishly looked away. “I got a bit carried away.”

  He pulled her down so that her forehead rested against his. “I know. And I liked it. A lot.”

  For a long moment, nothing was said as Mark ran his palms slowly up and down her back. “I want to be the first man to show you what you’ve been missing, Karma,” he said softly. “I want to succeed where others have failed.”

  Her bashful side made a subtle reappearance, and she curled in on herself. “Why?”

  He caressed her cheek. “For one, I think you deserve to know what a really good orgasm feels like, don’t you?”

  When he put it that way, how could she say no?

  His fingertips brushed back her hair. “Second of all, I’m a man. And, like most men, I’m proud and have a big ego. I’m not afraid to admit it. And when I make a woman feel good…when I give her such intense pleasure that she screams my name as she’s falling into the most unbelievable orgasm she’s ever had, I take great pride in that.” He hesitated and narrowed his eyes. “Especially when I know she’s never felt anything like that before.” He paused to let his words sink in.

  Karma’s entire body heated. They had most definitely sunk in.

  Who says egomania is a bad thing?

  Mark shifted against the couch, and she felt his erection press against her. “To know that I awakened that part of a woman gives me tremendous satisfaction, Karma. It’s the best ego boost in the world.” His gaze danced back and forth between her eyes. “So, the most direct answer to your question is that I want to feel you fall apart and come undone under my touch.” He took a shaky breath and closed his palm over her cheek. “My God, but just the thought of that…to see you, head thrown back, that heart-shaped mouth open as you cry out…” He rubbed his thumb over her bottom lip. “Let’s just say the idea turns me on very much.”

  The idea turned her on, too, as in way on.

  “There’s something undeniably sexy about you, Karma,” he said. “You intrigue me, and I want the pleasure of discovering you, and of helping you discover yourself if you’ll let me. Will you? Let me?”

  As the air in the room froze and her heart beat in a wild rhythm, hope and anxious anticipation broke over Mark’s expression. His intense stare never wavered.

  The most lascivious aspect of their pending affair pressed solidly against the apex of her body, and she had to force herself not to rotate her hips. How would he feel inside her? What would it feel like to finally have an orgasm—a real orgasm—during intercourse? Mark promised to answer all those questions and more.

  What he was offering was more than she ever could have imagined. He was handsome, charming, intelligent, and confident in his abilities. He was the kind of man women dream of. And he wanted to be with her. Her!

  If you want to change some things in your life, you need to change some things in your life.

  “Yes,” she whispered. “Yes, I’ll let you.”

  She bit her lip and a shudder danced up her spine as he smiled.

  Mark had to be a magician, because only a magician could have made her behave the way she had tonight.

  This was going to be good. So very, very good. She didn’t regret her decision to wear that gold brooch to work today one bit. Not one damn bit.

  Chapter 19

  Talking to your best friend is sometimes all the therapy you need.

  -Author Unknown

  On Wednesday, Mark flew with Don to Pennsylvania to meet with a couple of leasing companies about warehouse space. At lunchtime, Lisa cornered Karma, and there had been no way she could keep all the wonderful, sexy details of the night before to herself.

  “Oh girl, I am so jealous,” Lisa said over their bowls of lobster bisque. “You are going to have so much fun, and when he’s through with you,” Lisa snapped her fingers, “you will be a whole new woman. I just know it.”

  “We’ll see.” Karma couldn’t deny that Mark made her feel things she had never felt and do things she’d never done. But would that really translate to a whole new her? Or would she fall back into her old ways once Mark was gone?

  “This isn’t a permanent relationship, you know.”

  “What do you mean?” Lisa scraped the last bite of soup from her bowl.

  “Well, when his work here is done and he goes back to Chicago, that’s it. No more relationship.”

  “He told you that?”

  “He said he’s not a long-term kind of guy.” She raised her shoulders in a small, quick motion as she dipped a chunk of bread in her bowl. “But,” she held up an index finger, “he said that while we’re together, there won’t be anyone else. Even though he’s not into long-term relationships, he’s very committed. He won’t see anyone else and doesn’t want me to, either.”

  “Well, that’s good,” Lisa said. “At least you know he won’t screw you over.”

  “Exactly.” Karma liked that everything was laid out up-front. There was no pressure to behave a certain way so she didn’t chase him away. No wondering whether or not he was seeing someone on the side, no fear of being hurt. She knew what this was and what it wasn’t, which alleviated a lot of oppressive mental weight.

  She pushed her empty bowl aside.

  “So, the two of you will have a good time while he’s here.” Lisa sipped her drink. “You’ll have a good time, he’ll show you what you’ve been missing…” A mischievous smile played over her mouth. “And he’ll give you the best four to six sexual months of your life.”

  “Lisa! Sshh!” Karma gasped and quickly looked around to make sure no one had overheard.

  Lisa giggled. “Oh, hush. Nobody heard me.” She leaned over the table and whispered excitedly, “But, oh my God, Karma! Mark is the hottest guy ever, and he wants you. And not only does he want you, but he wants to make you feel things you’ve never felt before.” She giggled again. “This is so freaking awesome!”

  Lisa sounded almost as excited as Karma felt. “I know. Maybe you should pinch me to make sure I’m not actually dreaming.”

  “Oh, you’re not dreaming, sister. But you’d better make sure you don’t forget your best friend here. I expect all the juicy details, so don’t even think about holding out on me.” She hunched against the table and snickered.

  After spilling the rest of the details of her Tuesday night, she and Lisa returned to the office. To the bleak dreariness that was her world with Mark out of town.

  Thursday wasn’t much better. Uneventful, if not slightly torturous. She had gotten used to Mark’s presence, and the space felt a little empty without him there.

  After returning on a late flight Thursday, he was back in the office on Friday morning.

  As she worked on Don’s expense report, she glanced toward the closed conference room. Mark was in another meeting. This time with Don and the director of sales. But then, that came with his job. He had a lot of meetings and sat in on a lot of conference calls.

  “How’s your boyfriend today?”

  Karma’s head snapped around, and a cold chill swept down her spine as Jolene slinked up to her desk. “W-what?”

  “Your boyfriend? Mark?” Jo sneered and gestured toward the closed conference room.

  For a second, Karma thought Jolene had found out about her and Mark, and that sinking feeling of pure terror—the one you get after watching the original Amityville Horror and hear a noise like footsteps but it’s really your heart beating in fear—doused her gut.

  Then she saw the snarky, cat-claw look in Jolene’s eyes. Ever since Mark had shunned Jolene last Friday when she invited him for drinks, Jo had become downright mean. Not only had she begun making snide comments to her in passing, but she also stopped by Karma’s desk and snapped about one sales report or another on a regular basis.

  Same ol’ Jo. Just like in school, only older.

  The best thing Karma could do was pla
y Jo off, even though her bullying was mentally exhausting. “Ha ha,” she said flatly. “Funny, Jo.”

  “You know you like him.” Jo’s perfectly shaped eyebrow spiked over her eye, as if she was daring her to deny her feelings.

  “No, I don’t.” Karma didn’t like lying and instantly cringed on the inside. It felt like Jo could see right through her, just like back in junior high.

  “Sure you don’t. But you are his little coffee fetcher.” Jo’s taunting knew no bounds. She leaned forward and rested her arms on Karma’s counter. The gesture mashed her boobs together and showed off cleavage ample enough to make a Kardashian jealous. It was as if Jolene was purposely flaunting her impressive bust in a show of supremacy over Karma’s smaller one. As if bust size translated to seniority. “I see how you get his coffee every morning. You’re trying to get his attention, aren’t you?” Her words uncoiled like a scorpion’s tail, full of sting.

  Karma shriveled under the onslaught. “No, I’m not. I’m just—”

  “Don’t waste your time.” Jo’s crystal blue gaze snaked over her. “He would never be interested in someone like you, anyway. You’re too…plain.” She smiled sweetly as if what she’d said was meant to be a compliment instead of a slap in the face. “Someone like Troy is more your speed. You should set your sights on him. I hear he’s available.”

  Troy worked in IT and wore what looked like seventies retro plaid button downs every day, and his hair always looked like it needed to be washed. He was a nice guy, but awkwardly quiet and not at all attractive. Jolene’s comments were meant to be cruel—to both her and Troy—and Karma felt bad for him.

  “That’s not nice, Jo,” Karma said meekly, looking away.

  “Whatever.” Jolene pushed off the counter, tossed her hair off her shoulders, and crossed both arms over her chest. She huffed and turned up her nose. “I really don’t care.” She waved her manicured hand dismissively. “But that’s not why I’m here.”

  That’s exactly why you’re here.

  “I need the reports from last quarter.” She refolded her arms and tapped her index finger impatiently against her skinny biceps. No “please.” No “when you have a minute.” Just, “I need them.” As if she expected Karma to stop everything this instant and get them.