A_Taste_of_Decadence_ARE

by Blake_Harte_Quinn_Ryan_Rylon

  After letting her roam, he began to reciprocate. First by stroking her hair, running his fingers through the mussed tresses. Then he drew swirls along her spine, humming as he reached the swell of her ass.

  “What happens once there’s a connection?” The huskiness of her murmur surprised her.

  “Then it’s time to go farther underground. The entrance to Downstairs is at the other end of this room. See the gold railing over there?” He gestured with his tumbler.

  When she followed the line, she noticed an ornate balustrade at the top of a wide marble staircase. Every once in a while, a couple—or more—would drift down it and disappear. Less frequently, probably since the night was young, someone would emerge. Their sleepy, satisfied smiles told her all she needed to know.

  “Most people refer to it as stooping to your level.” He chuckled.

  “That’s terrible.” She buried her face in the crook of his neck for an instant. Long enough to breathe deep, getting drunk on him.

  “Much more of that and we’ll be breaking the no-sex-on-the-Underground-floor rule.” Chase swiped her empty glass from her hand. He set it, along with his, on a side table then asked her to dance.

  The music seemed to change from song to song, the mix as eclectic as the gathering gyrating to its beat. She knew this one. The Wanted’s “Glad You Came” seemed appropriate.

  “So are you?” Chase stared into her eyes as he tucked her to his chest and began to rock. During the faster sections, the graceful swing of his hips advertised just how much rhythm he had, and that he knew how to put his body to good use.

  “Hmm?” She blinked, starting to lose herself in the place, the moment, and the man.

  “Happy to be here?” Before permitting her to respond, he stacked the deck way in his favor by leaning closer and pressing his mouth to hers. His kiss was like him—intense yet subtle. Sophisticated. Delicious.

  Invigorating.

  For the first time since she’d bought Lane Technology’s largest competitor almost a year ago, she felt truly alive. Adrenaline rushed through her system as he seduced her lips with his. And still they swayed to the more sedate section of the hit. The brush of his tongue had her sighing. He took advantage of the opportunity to insinuate himself more completely.

  If the smell of him had been nice, the taste of him…

  Linley rose onto her tiptoes. It was rare for her to meet a man tall enough to require the gesture. He made her feel feminine as she sealed them together more completely. She devoured him as if she hadn’t had an amazing meal less than two hours ago. The flavor of desire satisfied her far more than the decadent chocolate dessert she’d enjoyed at L’Etoile.

  “I’ll take that as a yes,” he whispered against her lips when he ended the exchange. “Me too, by the way.”

  Lost in their renewed dance, she didn’t notice he’d edged her toward the rear of the ballroom until the path Downstairs appeared near her feet. The crowd sang the refrain. While they did, Chase stepped onto the first wide tread. He crooked his fingers and waited for her to join him.

  “I…” She hesitated. “I’m not sure.”

  “Come take a peek. We won’t go in just yet. There’s a lounge of sorts at the bottom. Sometimes people wait for a prearranged partner or take a break there. Plus, it’s where the restrooms are. Refreshments are available for those who are playing especially hard, to get their energy back. We can talk more, away from the music.” He didn’t grab for her. Instead, he waited. Patient. Understanding.

  Linley swallowed hard.

  “Give it a few minutes. If you’re uncomfortable, we’ll leave.” His soft smile encouraged her. “No pressure, love.”

  “If you’re not a salesman, you’re missing out on a big opportunity.” She shook her head although she grinned. The heel of her shoe clicked on the stone when she joined him.

  “I’ve been told I can be…persuasive.” His fingers curled around her arm, keeping her balanced as they descended together. “Go slow. Look at the murals.”

  She sighed, doing as he suggested. The beautiful artwork reminded her of a sordid version of a historic opera house. Cherubs hovered over couples, blessing them with all sorts of naughty inspiration. Exotic, beautiful people—too proportional to have been painted from imagination—entangled themselves in amorous embraces of all sorts.

  “See how those two are watching the couple by the stream?” Chase pointed out a particular section of the painting.

  “Yes.” She followed the direction of his long finger.

  “It’s not just a pretty thing, Linley.” He paused, tipping her face toward his and stealing another brief kiss. “Think of it sort of like a menu.”

  “Oh!” She leaned forward, her head swiveling at the variety of delights.

  “So many things to choose from?” She didn’t mean to gasp out loud.

  “Only limited by your imagination really.” He spread his hands out. “A little farther and you can see one of my favorites.”

  “Show me.” Curious about his desires, she followed him to a landing in the middle of the run of stairs.

  “This part.” He angled his chin toward a vignette highlighted by a halogen spotlight. The artist had paid a lot of attention to detail in this section of the lascivious landscape. Clearly it had been a passion of his or hers as well.

  A pale woman stretched out on a bed of wildflowers, her hair cascading behind her like a waterfall of silk. Vines wrapped around her wrists and ankles. They held her snug to the lush meadow, open for her lover, who crawled between her legs. An impressive erection made it clear he’d enjoy the feast laid out before him.

  “Does it look good to you, Linley?” When had he come so close behind her?

  Chase’s breath washed over the curve of her neck. His hands wrapped around her waist. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t help but squirm in his hold.

  “I wouldn’t turn it down.” The catch in her sassy retort highlighted her false ennui.

  The clear ring of his laugh echoed off the vaulted ceiling of the way Downstairs. “Of course not. I’ve spent a hell of a lot of time practicing my technique. I promise satisfaction is guaranteed. Both of ours.”

  As they proceeded, scenes flashed before her eyes. Delights she’d never imagined along with some she’d dreamed of plenty. Sex in every position imaginable. Play with toys. Sex as a spectator sport. Even a sketch of a woman taking her partner in her ass.

  “Not that.” She pointed. “Not tonight. Or maybe ever.”

  “Your call, love.” Chase kissed her cheek. “I could make you like it, but I respect your boundaries.”

  The closer they came to the curtain looming before them, the more daring the depictions got. Several made her uncomfortable. For sure, she was a lightweight. At least to start. What would the Basement have been like?

  Too much for her. She was sure she’d made the right choice.

  Maybe that’s what Henry had meant earlier. Just…pick your pleasures wisely, he’d cautioned.

  With Chase studying her while she deliberated, she knew the time had come to decide again. What did she want this night to be like?

  “You know, I meant what I said earlier.” Her date paused, becoming serious. The chivalrous side of him turned her on even more than some of the drawings. “I’m not the kind of man who insists on limiting my relationships to the confines of the club. It’s just that this environment is more expedient most of the time. Real life circumstances can make it difficult to find what you need on the outside. Skipping this is still an option. If you’d prefer something more traditional—private—I’d be glad to escort you home. I hope you’ll invite me in, but you don’t even have to go that far. If you’re not ready, we can try this some other time. I can already tell you’re worth waiting for, love.”

  Linley couldn’t stop her gaze from ping-ponging between Chase’s sincere smile and the fragments of silhouettes that peeped from between the crack in the rich velvet curtain before her. Soft moans and deep male
grunts of pleasure drifted from the other side of the barrier.

  It might as well have been a different world from the one she’d lived in her whole life.

  Was that good? Or bad?

  “Which would you prefer, Linley?” Chase tucked an errant curl behind her ear. “Do you want to stay here? Or shall I take you home?”

  If Linley said Home click here or search for 3A - Happiest At Home.

  If Linley said Downstairs click here or search for 3B - Stay Downstairs.

  4B - A Pinch Of Spice

  “That combo is one of my specialties, love.” Chase smirked. He tugged the knot of his tie, loosening it until he could slip the silk free. He dragged the end of the material across the tops of her breasts, teasing and tempting her all at the same time.

  She wriggled a little beneath both the barest brush of softness and the intensity of his regard. “How about hurrying? Is that one of your strengths?”

  He laughed as she’d intended. “Not so much. I like to savor my pleasures.”

  “Damn it.” She giggled. The sense of humor they shared acted as insulation against the intensity they also generated.

  “Let’s get that dress off you.” He lifted the hem an inch or two. “How’s that for a start?”

  “The right direction.” Linley would have torn it off in a second flat if he’d allowed it. Instead he held her down with a palm on her sternum. The sides of her breasts hugged his hand.

  “I’ve got this.” He kissed her, but didn’t linger. They both knew they’d fall into endless explorations if he let them. While part of her wouldn’t have objected to an epic make-out session, the majority of her mind and body called out for more.

  She planted her feet on the mattress and lifted her ass, unconcerned about the peep show she gave him between her spread thighs.

  “So pretty.” He caressed the inside of her knee up her leg. “I can see the lace of your panties from here.”

  “Hurry. You can probably admire the details better when they’re flung on the floor. If you really care to.” She grinned. He made it easy to ask for what she wanted without artifice or social pleasantries.

  “Pass. The best part is catching a glimpse in the shadows and knowing soon I’ll be beneath them.” He teased higher on her leg, his lips following the path of his hand. “I can smell you from here.”

  A whimper escaped when he burrowed along the edge of her hem.

  “Okay,” he chuckled. “I’m speeding it up. But next time, after you’re more relaxed, we’re going to take this slow. Really, really slow.”

  “Deal.” The effort to pronounce that single word with her brain addled felt tougher than delivering an entire press release when she uttered it. “Get busy.”

  “Bossy, huh?” He fisted his fingers in the dress and yanked. The material easily rose above her breasts. It gathered there, ringing her torso just below her collarbones. Completely on display, she constricted in on herself a bit.

  A man as handsome and charming as him had to have been with oodles of beautiful women. How would she stack up? It’d been a long damn time since she had reason to doubt herself. She shouldn’t have bothered this time.

  “Hell.” Chase laid reverent strokes along her mostly flat stomach. “You’re flawless. I’m glad you’re new to Underground. Selfish but…I like having you to myself.”

  “Same goes.” She smiled up at him. “At least for tonight, you’re mine.”

  His smile pressed to hers before he began to manipulate her lips and tongue with his. Meanwhile his hands roamed over her bare skin, making her wish she could do the same to him. The firmness of his muscles beneath his clothes tempted her to start ripping and worry about his buttons later. Much later.

  Linley didn’t have to hope for long.

  They broke apart, both struggling to draw in a deep breath.

  When Chase separated them, he finished stripping her dress from her arms. Drawing the fabric over her head, he fanned her hair out on the pillow. She could tell the rumpled mess turned him on by the growing bulge in his slacks.

  Before she could reach for him, he’d tugged his shirttails from his trousers and destroyed the garment himself. Hopefully it could be repaired. It had fit him perfectly, hugging his broad shoulders, which tapered to his trim waist in an inverted triangle of ridges and valleys that had her drooling.

  Next he unbuckled his belt and yanked the leather from around his hips. He ditched it on the floor beside the bed, where he stood to shuck his pants before she could finish taking in the striking lines of his form. And when he paused, modeling his gray boxer briefs, she silently begged him to shove them off, revealing what looked to be some pretty impressive equipment.

  “Ladies first.” He caught her wide-eyed stare and grinned.

  “You don’t want the honors?” Linley decided to fight fire with fire. She fondled herself, first cupping her breasts in her hands, enhancing her cleavage by exaggerating the support of her bra. Then she rubbed down her abdomen to lay one hand over her pussy.

  The mewl that burst from her throat surprised them both.

  And pressed Chase into action.

  He growled as he stalked nearer and divested her of the scrap of black lace protecting her mound before she could blink. Next he wedged his hand beneath her and flicked the clasp of her bra open faster than she could have done it herself. Clearly an expert, he peeled the lingerie from her shoulders. He lifted it from her chest as if it were the lid of a box housing an expensive present.

  He scanned her naked body from her pink-painted toenails to the waves at the end of her hair. Just when she thought he’d explode in a flurry of seductive motions, ramping their interlude up to the next level, he surprised her by backing off.

  “Would you mind if I lit some of those candles?” The flick of his chin toward her mantle and the side tables helped her understand despite the fog in her brain.

  “Of course not. Go ahead. There are matches in the dish beside the pillars.”

  Linley watched him stalk from cluster to cluster of the pretty votives, jars, and sticks. She adored candles of every variety.

  Flame caught as soon as he touched the head to the striker. She could sympathize with the poor bit of tinder. He’d set her ablaze with as little effort. When he’d finished ringing them in the warm yellow glow of flickering light, he extinguished the overhead lamp and returned to their nest.

  “Need some dim lighting to hide the imperfections?” The bit of disappointment winging through her didn’t improve her mood. How could he have the ability to hurt her after just a few hours? Why did his opinion matter? She couldn’t say, but it did.

  Chase blinked at her. Then understanding dawned across his face with a grimace. “Are you kidding me, love?”

  She reached for him but he’d already abandoned the bed, and her, once more.

  “Does this look like I’m struggling to get in the game?” He shoved his thumbs beneath the waistband of his briefs then maneuvered the elastic over his bulging cock.

  “Um.” Something more coherent refused to come to mind. “Nope.”

  “Damn straight.” His nostrils flared as he gave the long, thick erection a few strokes from root to tip. “More like I needed a time-out to collect myself. Pouncing on you and ravaging you like a Neanderthal isn’t exactly my style. That’s more Ryder’s thing, if that’s what you were hoping for.”

  “No, no. Sorry.” She snorted when he rolled his eyes. “My mistake.”

  “I’m not opposed to convincing you of how much I like what I see.” Lowering himself onto the bed again, he tucked himself into her open arms and descended until they were pressed together from head to toe—skin on skin.

  Linley gasped.

  He took the opportunity to kiss her, this time with more hunger than he’d allowed free rein before. The heavy shaft of his cock rested on her belly. If only he were inside her instead, she might be able to work off some of the pressure driving her mad.

  “I think I need to teach you a les
son, love.” He speared his fingers into her hair, fisting a handful of waves that he used to angle her head as he pleased. “About just how lovely I think you are.”

  “Does it involve you fucking me?” Her wistful tone had them sharing a laugh again. “I’m a quick learner if it does.”

  “Eventually.” Chase delighted in her needy fidgeting beneath him. About the time she figured out how to position herself to rub against his corded thigh and grant herself a measure of release, he shifted. “No cheating. Bad girl.”

  Before she could object, he’d retreated. His hands spanned her waist as he flipped her over. Lying on her stomach, her face turned so that her cheek rested on the high-quality linens, she wriggled, knowing her ass was prominently displayed for him.

  Still, she didn’t expect the crack of his palm meeting her rounded flesh. The sound more than the corresponding sting made her flinch. And when the brief spark of pain fizzled into something warm and very pleasant, she sighed.

  “You like that?” He had to be able to tell when she spread her legs for him, hoping to gain some relief for herself.

  The rubbing of his finger over her slit from behind proved he hadn’t missed the glistening arousal there. “Mmm.”

  “Say it.” This time his directive didn’t brook any argument.

  Except that her overwhelming horniness made it hard to think. “What?”

  “Tell me you know how gorgeous you are. That you can see how desperately I need you. That the slap of my palm on your ass makes you hotter than you could have imagined before tonight.” Without pausing, he tortured her until she complied.

  “Yes, yes, yes.” She rocked her body back and forth as she uttered the word he teased from her. “Now, please, fuck me.”

  “Not sure you understand quite yet.” Chase tsked at her. His grasp on her waist returned. But this time he didn’t rotate her as she imagined he would. Instead he lifted, forcing her to bury her knees in the mattress to stay upright.