Bejeweled and Bedeviled (6 page)

Her moan grew louder when he ran his middle finger between
her damp folds, rode it back and forth through the wealth of moisture several
times, then dragged his finger back through her cream-slick labia and up over
her sensitized clit. When he rasped his fingernail against her unguarded nub, she
gasped and pulled away.

He palmed her crotch and jerked her back.

Thrown off balance, Kayden threw her hands up and caught
hold of his shoulders, bringing them nose-to-nose.

“Pull away from me again and we’ll be getting around to that
spanking a lot sooner than I’d hoped. Though I wouldn’t suggest it. Your ass
will be dealing with enough tonight without adding the burn from punishment.”

If there had been any doubt as to what he intended, that
cryptic statement obliterated it. After tonight, the only thing her ass would
be a virgin to was Hunter’s masterful cock. Not that she was complaining. She
was ready for that. If not physically, mentally. But she was hoping for a
little front action as well and she wasn’t thinking of the artificial kind.
Sure, he said he liked to take it slow, but after having made up her mind to
enter into this wholeheartedly, Kayden was more than ready to get the
proverbial ball rolling. Dare she make her feelings known? Was that even
allowed? There were some things her research was vague on. Oh to hell with it.

Drawing a deep breath, she looked him in the eyes.
“Permission to ask something?”

He nodded. “Granted.”

“I’d like to step up the learning process.”

His only reaction was an intense study of her face. As
silent seconds ticked by, Kayden began to worry.

“What exactly do you mean by
stepping up
?”

“Before you leave tonight, I’d like you to make lo—” She
shook her head.
No that’s not what this is about
. “I’d like you to…fuck
me.”

“You would, would you?”

The glint of devilment in his eyes made Kayden’s heart race
and her toes curl into the deeply piled, beige fibers beneath her feet. Damn,
the man was sexy. Her libido made a beeline for the top of the Richter scale at
the thought of being claimed by this enigmatic Dom. Hell, if he, with all his
experience, didn’t know how to turn a woman on, where did that leave the rest
of the male population? Probably in Earth’s sub-basement.

“If I grant your request, what will I get in return?”

“Anything you want.”

“Anything?” One dark brown eyebrow spiked, accentuating the
sparkle in his golden eyes. “Hmmm, right answer. Brave, but do you really mean
it?”

“Yes.”

“We’ll see.”

Kayden didn’t even try to stop the small, throaty mew that
bubbled up when he crooked his finger and pushed it inside her. It found its
way easily into her wet and ready depths. So did the second finger. He was a
tall man with big hands, Kayden was looking forward to a third. Instead he
withdrew, stepped back.

Swamped by frustration, it took a moment to realize what was
dangling in front of her face. The thong. A spiral of excitement rapidly
replaced the disappointment. Taking the minuscule scrap of fabric, she slipped
it on and, without waiting to be asked, got down on hands and knees.

“Legs wider,” he said, giving no indication he’d been
pleased by her voluntary obedience.

She didn’t need the prompting of his hand halfway up her
inner thigh to spread them, but she welcomed the warmth and comfort of his
solid touch.

The wider stance caused the straps of the thong to dig
deeper between her swollen lips, the beads an added pressure wherever they
touched. Kayden fought a needy whimper. She was just giving herself a silent
pat on the back when Hunter slowly slid his hand up between her legs, running
his finger over the two beads wedged between her juice drenched folds and
pushed in slightly.

She moaned and moved into the touch. The next thing she felt
was his hand landing hotly onto her ass.

Kayden sucked back a protest and resumed the correct
position.

“Good girl. Disobey again and you’ll be unwrapping your next
present sooner than planned.”

Ninety-nine point nine percent sure what the
present
was, and not in any particular hurry to test her perceived psychic abilities,
Kayden vowed to hold her pose no matter what. Trouble was, she had a sneaky
feeling Hunter wasn’t going to make it easy for her.

“Then again, maybe a visual reminder will help,” he murmured
next to her ear.

The stream of breath that delivered the soft, sensual threat
triggered an array of goose bumps that started at the back of her neck to fan
out over the rest of her heated flesh.

Then he was gone, along with the heat his big muscular body
generated. Kayden mourned its loss. A girl who burrowed deep under the covers
at the first sign of a snowflake and dreaded the long Chicago winters, she knew
Hunter would make the perfect bedmate. Although the sultry summer nights might
pose a problem. An image of a spacious, air-conditioned room, drenched in soft,
early morning light came to mind. Their naked limbs entwined on a large bed.

Problem solved.

It was easy to picture a long string of lazy Sunday
mornings, waking up next to him. A smile took up residence on her lips. For all
of two seconds.

What would possess her to entertain the idea of a future
with a man she barely knew, and who barely knew her? Overwhelmed by an onset of
unease, she cringed. Was it possible Hunter could be the one man who might know
her much too well? Dare she—

A package appeared on the floor in front of her.

Happy to be yanked from her disturbing thoughts, Kayden
focused tenaciously on the mental lifeline the familiarly wrapped gift
provided.

The next thing to come into view was a pair of black-clad
legs, followed quickly by a panty-wetting set of muscular thighs when he
hunkered down in front of her.

Lust
.
Sex
. Two additional and very welcomed
distractions.

“Look at me.”

Hunter’s soft command cut short her admiration of the way
his black dress pants strained at the seams, but didn’t prevent her from
checking out the enticing bulge nestled in his crotch.
Good grief, the man
could pack the space behind a zipper like there was no tomorrow
.

Dragging her gaze up to his, she was greeted by a heated
gleam of awareness.

“You’ll have more of my cock than you can handle before too
long.”

He didn’t know her as well as he assumed if he thought that.
She suppressed a smile.

He cupped her chin. “That little glint in your beautiful
blue eyes tells me you doubt my words.”

Curse the too sexy devil. Could he read minds as well as
bodies? She’d have to be more diligent in hiding her emotions.

He pressed his thumb to her bottom lip, tugged gently and
then released. “Believe me, sweetheart, when I tell you that before I’m through
with you, you won’t know which you want more—for me to stop…or continue. I
didn’t gain my reputation because of my mastery over a female’s body alone. You
might want to keep that in mind. I only come when I’m damn good and ready. I’ll
make you orgasm a dozen times before I find sweet release in your body.”

A dozen! Seeing no downside, her pussy swelled in anticipation,
but the skipped heartbeat was due wholly to the challenge. Kayden made sure
those were her only reactions. He wasn’t the only one with a reputation to
uphold. Hers was twofold. She never made the same mistake twice—unless it
suited some purpose—and she always accomplished what she set out to do. And
making him lose control just skyrocketed to the top of that list. First step to
accomplishing that goal was learning all his rules before she could break them
and implement a few of her own.

He released her chin and took the lid off the box. “I hadn’t
planned on giving you this so soon, but after your positive reaction to the
introductory spanking session in your office, I changed my mind.”

Kayden stared at the flogger. Though no great surprise, her
reaction to it was. Both her breathing and heart rate went into overdrive. She
might have mistaken the reaction for fear, if not for the mounting desire she
felt deep in the pit her stomach. A feeling that intensified when Hunter picked
up the flogger. Innocuous curled on its bed of snowy satin, it looked ten times
more threatening stretched across his large, open palms.

“How do you like the handle?”

Kayden tore her wary gaze from the long, soft leather
tentacles at the business end. Handle? Her body jerked and her eyes widened.
Easily nine inches of solid onyx with two rings of staggered diamonds around
its wide circumference and a single row lengthwise along the top, it was
obviously a dildo. And she was pretty damn sure the gems’ placement wasn’t to
assure his grip. Nor was the flare at the base a hand guard. But like the other
toys, it was made to be held in place by the openings provided by the
adjustable beads on her thong.

Swallowing to clear the large lump in her throat, she
whipped her gaze up to his. He couldn’t mean for her to carry that around
inside…

One look into his unyielding, fiery eyes said he did.

From his pocket, he extracted and pressed a button. The
leather tentacles retracted. Another press and they lengthened. “Adjustable for
whatever length of skirt you’re wearing. If you’re wearing one,” he added on a
devious purr.

How fucking considerate of him
! Well hell, she did
say she’d let him do
anything
.

“It didn’t seem cost-effective not to make it a
multi-purpose punishment tool.”

Had she not feared a test run of his new gadget, she’d have
snidely told him that even with two purposes it was an extravagant investment,
considering their temporary relationship. Was he a major stockholder in a
friggin’ diamond mine?

She hadn’t realized she’d voiced the question until he
smiled. “Not a stockholder. Part owner. My family owns one.” His smile
widening, he hit another button on the remote. A low hum reached her ears. There
was no doubting what kind of punishment that meant.

Determined not to give him the satisfaction of a reaction,
she bit the inside of her cheek. She was quickly discovering that researching
the BDMS lifestyle was a far cry from the actuality.

He laid the flogger out full length, placing the handle in
the box, trailing the loose ends slowly through his hand to spill over the side
of the box onto the carpet. Almost a loving gesture, like stroking his hand
along the silky length of a woman’s hair.

If he were trying to put her at ease, he was falling way
short of the mark. She knew damn well, placed in his powerful, capable hand,
the only affection she’d experience was the biting kiss of leather against her
tenderized flesh. Given her penchant for rebellion, there’d be no skipping a
formal introduction to the damn flogger—before she and Hunter parted company,
she added belatedly.

He tucked the remote in his pocket and stood. “If the mood
to disobey becomes unbearable, feel free to run with it.” He winked and moved
around to her feet.

She closed her eyes and suppressed a groan.

The intimate stroke of his hand across her ass turned it
into a silent whimper.

“Normally, I would hold off initiating a new sub to this
form of pleasure. But after one look at your lovely ass, I knew I couldn’t deny
myself its use for very long. We’ll start small and work our way up,” he palmed
and squeezed her cheeks, “as soon as you tell me you’re ready.”

Why was he asking? Wasn’t it supposed to be that she just
showed up—naked—and he made all the decisions? Where was all that guilt-free
psycho-babble she’d read about? She scrunched her eyes. Took a quick shallow
breath. Somehow she knew Hunter didn’t operate that way. Because when it came
right down to it, that scenario was a deception. An easy way out. Ultimately,
every choice, conscious or subconscious, had to be hers. The ultimate one, to
gift him with her unconditional submission. Only then would Hunter take full
control.

Since she had no major hang-ups about what he was asking of
her, she had no problem consenting. She’d heard too many of her girlfriends say
how wonderful it felt to have a man’s long, thick cock up their ass not to. She
just hadn’t found the right man to share the intimate experience with…until
now. The man who was patiently awaiting her answer.

She drew a calming breath and let it out gradually. “I’m
ready.”

“Would you like a drink of water first?”

Her heart tripped at the unexpected consideration. “I’m
fine. Thank you for asking.”

“Don’t sound so surprised.” The long, gentle stroke of his
hand down her back warmed her insides. “Your comfort and pleasure are of the
utmost importance to me. Secondary only to my own. The only time that will not
apply is when you are being punished. Then it will be your
discomfort
that takes precedence.”

He knelt behind her, his thick thighs forcing hers even
farther apart.

Her earlier bravado aside, Kayden locked her elbows in
preparation of the embarrassment she anticipated. Was shocked when it never
materialized. Totally vulnerable to his gaze and touch, she felt sexy, wanton
and more alive than she’d felt in years. Hit with a sudden charge of sexual
expectation, her legs and arms trembled. Before they failed her altogether, she
was bracketed between Hunter’s steely arm and wide solid chest. She melted into
the warmth. Cool met hot. She shivered. God, the man exuded enough body heat to
melt the polar ice cap.

“Take a slow, deep breath,” he said, obviously misconstruing
her reactions as he relaxed his hold. “It’s only natural to be a little
nervous.”

“I’m not…nervous…I’m—”

“Excited? Turned on?”

“Yes.”

He gave her an encouraging squeeze. “Not half as much as you
soon will be.”