Wicked (22 page)

much.

She desperately wanted to either leave, or join in, but her feet wouldn't move

in either direction.

Her gaze was glued to Peter's ass as he thrust fast and hard into Graham.

He hadn't come yet and the effort it took showed in his tense muscles. She

watched as he reached around to grip Graham's erection and give it a few

tugs. Her mouth watered. For a split second, she wanted to be on the floor

between Graham's legs, sucking on his cock while Peter fucked him.

She closed her eyes, savoring the image as the sounds of skin slapping skin

and male grunts and groans filled her head. A loud groan sounded and Lara

opened her eyes in time to see Graham's cock jerk and twitch as white come

shot from the tip and hit the counter. Peter's eyes slid shut and his buttocks

clenched on one last thrust. His mouth opened and a victorious shout filled

the room.

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Then he collapsed forward, his chest covering Graham's back, his arms

going around them. Lara saw his lips moving, but he couldn't hear the

murmured words. Suddenly she felt that she was intruding.

Quiet as she could, she pulled the door closed and tiptoed down the stairs.

Again, it wasn't the sex that had seemed so intimate to her, but the closeness

the boys shared afterward.

Her knees weakened and she sat down on the bottom step—hard.

If she couldn't handle even watching the two of them be so open and loving,

so intimate—how the hell was she ever going to have a real relationship with

Karl?

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30

A
ll day long Friday Karl waited for a response from Lara and got

nothing.

As he drove home, he couldn't stop himself from driving by her house. Her

car was there, but he didn't stop to go inside.
Create the need, then fill it.
The way to train a submissive.

He was creating her need for him by staying away. He would fill it, as soon as

she acknowledged it. What shocked him was how being away from her was

creating such a strong need in himself.

He knew himself pretty well. A person had to when they played in the BDSM

world the way he did. And that was the biggest truth he'd learned in the last

couple of days of soul searching. He would happily give up playing in The

Dungeon for her.

He was a Dom, and he would always be a Dom, but he didn't need the

polyamorous lifestyle. He didn't need multiple playmates, he didn't need the

title of Sir or Master. It did send a thrill through him every time Lara called him

Sir, more so than any other sub, but it was because he'd told her right from

the start that she didn't have to.

Which meant when she did it, it was natural.

Just like her submitting to him was natural.

Them, together, was natural.

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So why the hell hadn't she responded to his email?

Simone had said he'd just been skimming the surface with his play, and she

was right. He knew the physical techniques of what he was doing, he knew

the protocols and the etiquettes. But that stuff didn't matter when it came to

Lara.

She wasn't from the scene, she wasn't a trained submissive, or even

someone who came to him already well aware of her desire to submit. And

the more he thought about it, he was glad of that. He liked that her

submission was all-natural and that he was the only one who had ever

aroused it in her. It stirred a primitive need in him that only her willingness

could fill.

He pulled into the driveway of the nice old bungalow-style house he called

home. It was the one his parents had bought and lived in their whole

lives—He'd live in it his whole life, no matter how much money he made.

He'd renovated it a bit, upgraded some things and soundproofed it better, but

it was home. He could totally picture Lara in it too. She'd love what he'd done

to the kitchen.

She'd probably love the playroom he'd built in the basement too. Karl hadn't

missed the gleam in her eye when he'd been roping Jan, and he'd been

fantasizing about binding Lara. She'd love it, he just knew it.

If he could ever get her down there. Where the hell was she? Finally, just

before nine o'clock, he called her.

"Lara's phone."

Heat flashed through him. That was not Lara, that was a man. A dead man.

"Who is this?"

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"Who's this?"

"This is Karl. I'd like to speak with Lara please."

"Hi, Karl, this is Peter, Lara's friend. She's not here right now. Can I take a

message?"

A message? Oh, no, not this time. "Where is she? I'd prefer to speak with her

myself."

"She's not here, but I'll tell you where she went, after we have a quick talk."

Sounds of a short tussle and a very firm "Peter!" could be heard clearly, then a voice Karl instantly recognized came over the line. "Mr. Dawson, I'll be

happy to tell you where Lara is after you tell me what you did to her."

His heart skipped a beat. "What does that mean, Graham? What

happened?"

"You tell
me
. She was fine yesterday. Then today she completely avoided

us, and went out to hustle pool looking like she was going out to turn tricks.

Lara hasn't dressed that outrageously since she moved in here two years

ago. We've worked long and hard to build a friendship, and now she's on the

run emotionally."

"Damn it!" He'd been so careful to not scare her. "Where does she shoot pool?"

Graham named the pub where Karl had met her for drinks the night he'd told

her he was a Dom, and hung up quickly. He was done being careful.

* * *

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P
eter stared at Graham in amazement. "That was…"

Graham did a quick pirouette in the middle of the kitchen and took a bow.

"Ingenious? Brilliant? Inspired?"

"Evil," Peter said. Then he grinned. "And very inspired. But why?"

"I was there when they met, and I've seen them both almost every day since.

Yesterday he was a bear, today he was unbearable." He gave a dramatic

shudder. "Lara's crept up here and reached out more in the last few weeks

than the last two years, but at this rate…I'll be pregnant before she admits

she wants a happily-ever-after with him."

Peter gaped. "Pregnant?"

"Don't worry, big boy, it's just a metaphor. I'm not ready for kids." He swept through the doorway to the living room, practically dancing with glee. "Those

two are perfect for each other, but they have so many walls and head issues

that they're never gonna get past them until one of them stops tiptoeing

around and punches through the other's wall. We both know Lara's tough,

but she's no match for my boss."

Peter followed his lover, unable to take his eyes off of him. "Graham, come

sit with me."

Graham sashayed across the living room, grinning. "I wish I could see what

happens when he gets to the pub. Maybe we should go have a drink?"

Rolling his shoulders to release some tension, Peter sat on the edge of the

sofa. His stomach was tight and his pulse was racing. This was it…this was

the perfect time.

He reached out and snagged Graham's hand, pulling him down onto the sofa

beside him.

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"Graham, listen to me." He turned and cupped a hand around the back of

Graham's head, his fingers massaging his lover's soft skin. "Are you still

worried about me wanting Lara? Is that why you're so determined to get

them together all of a sudden?"

Graham's eyes flicked away and then back. "Maybe," he admitted softly.

"I only want you. I'm sorry that my remark about sometimes wanting a female

hit you so hard. I'm sorry I didn't understand what it would do to you. I'm sorry

that I even considered you might get a little hysterical and slash her tires. But

this has to stop.
You
are who I want. Stop worrying about her, or any other

woman okay?"

Graham nodded, but Peter still saw the doubt in his eyes. And he knew how

to get rid of it. He sucked in a deep breath and slid off the sofa and onto one

knee. With a trembling hand he held out the little blue jewelry box that had

been burning a hole in his pocket for the past month.

"Graham Nelson, will you marry me and spend the rest of your life with me,

and only me?"

"Oh my God!" Graham's hands fluttered about and Peter saw pure love and

happiness shine through his tears as he stared at the gold band in the box.

But he didn't reach for it.

Peter's heart stopped, then kick started again at triple the speed. He hadn't

answered. Why didn't he answer?

"Graham?"

Graham folded his hands primly in his lap and met Peter's gaze. "Before I

say yes, I need you to tell me, honestly and completely…"

"Anything," he breathed the word.

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"I want only you. Can you commit to the same thing?
Only
me? Don't lie to me, or yourself, about this, Peter. Is this just your way of making up for

thinking I was a crazy stalker?"

"No!" Graham's face went white and Peter scrambled to get everything out at once. "I mean, yes, only you! No, Graham, this isn't out of guilt. I bought this ring over a month ago. I just never got up the nerve to give it to you, and now

seemed like the perfect time. I'm never going to let you doubt me or my

commitment to you again."

"Ohhh," Visibly melting, Graham's lips parted, cheeks flushed and eyes

widened as he stared at Peter. Then he snatched the ring from Peter's

hands. "Then yes! Yes!"

Once the ring was on his hand, Graham launched himself off the sofa and on

top of Peter, taking them both to the floor. As Graham planted kisses all over

his face, Peter laughed, feeling lighthearted for the first time in way too long.

"I guess this means you don't want to go have a drink at the pub anymore?"

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31

K
arl strode into the pub, determined to find his little runaway and make

her face what was happening between them and acknowledge it. He spotted

her at the pool tables right away, and the breath rushed from his body. Those

black leather fuck-me boots accentuated her curvy calves and made the

length of bare thigh beneath her barely there tartan skirt all the more

enticing. Her upper body was completely covered, but only with a layer of

sheer material that hid nothing, including the shiny black PVC push-up bra

she wore.

PVC? His girl had a PVC bra that he'd never seen. That had to change.

He knew the instant she saw him coming. Her facial expression didn't

change, but her stance shifted and her shoulders went back. She thought

she was ready for him.

Stepping up, he put his name on the board to play the winner and went to

stand at the high table a few feet away. Close enough to see and hear

everything that happened at the table, but far enough away that she would

have to come to him.

"What can I get you to drink?"

Karl turned his gaze on the waitress and smiled. The pretty girl's eyes

widened, her cheeks flushed, and she tilted her head. "I'll have a beer,

please."

"I remember you," she smiled. "And I remember what brand." With a saucy 203

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wink she left to get his drink.

"Come on, baby, you can do better than that." Lara taunted the guy she was

playing with a teasing smile. "You said you were going to give me a run for

my money."

"The game's not over yet, sweetness. You have to bank the eight to win."

Karl saw her eye twitch at the endearment but she hid her distaste well. "Not

a problem," she said as she studied the table.

When she bent over to line up her shot, every man, punk, and stud in that

corner of the room saw the matching PVC thong she wore under her skirt.

"You okay?"

He cut his eyes to the waitress standing at his table, and she stepped back.

He realized he must not be hiding his emotions very well and made an effort

to smile. "Sure," he said pulling a bill from his wallet. "I'm great. Keep the change."

Sudden jeering and hooting laughter erupted and the waitress grinned.

"Sounds like Lara won another game. That girl's been cleaning house

tonight."

"You know her?" That surprised him.

"She comes in to shoot some pool every once and while. She usually wins."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Weren't you with her last time you were

here?"

He nodded. "I was, and I'll be taking her with me when I leave again tonight

too."

"I've heard that before," she laughed. "But Lara's not one to go where she's 204

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already been."

So his girl was scared of relationships, but she had them all over the place.

Graham and Peter obviously cared about her, the waitress knew her by

name, and she'd had the same job for almost five years. There was definitely

hope.

Lara avoided his gaze while the next guy racked the balls. She got ready to

start the next game, but her body language couldn't hide her awareness of

him. She talked and flirted with every person there, men and women alike,

except him.