He’d moved back enough to see her eyes. “Sure?” He didn’t know why he asked; it didn’t matter. He was keeping her.
She nodded again, wordless in her complete abandonment of reason.
“I need a yes from you. You know that, right? No more arguments. Nothing but yeses.”
“Yes, Rafe.” Grave, quietly intent. A tiny nod to confirm.
“Thank you.” An approving smile. “That’s what I like to hear.” He lifted his hand from the back of her neck and slid it down her back, over the twined ropes and cool stickiness of his come, slipping his damp fingers between her legs, stroking her parted pussy gently, a caress—a gesture of ownership. “Is this mine?”
She shouldn’t immediately burn with desire. She should have more pride. Even the shame was decadently arousing. She whimpered, as though giving voice to her sordid disbelief, and when she tried to stifle the sound, he gently slid a finger inside.
“You want my dick inside you, don’t you?”
She wouldn’t look at him.
He nipped at the tender flesh of her shoulder. “Do you think you deserve to come?” She didn’t answer, but he saw the flush rising on her face. “Come on, tiger.” He kissed the angle of her face. “Talk to me.”
“Not if you’re still just playing.”
He suppressed his smile. His princess of the universe sounded like a child who’d missed out on a trip to the amusement park. “I’m not, I’m dead serious.” He touched his tongue to her cheek where he’d marked her. “How many times do you want to come? Once?”
Her pale eyelids rose faintly.
“Twice?”
Holding his gaze, she nodded.
“Now?”
She shot him a fast glance.
He made sure his smile would pass judgment at the pearly gates.
“Okay,” she said.
He unfastened the quick release knots, one after another, unwrapping her body tenderly between kisses. Taking special care when lifting away the clit knot, gently massaging her stomach and thighs until a little sigh escaped her lips.
Having been kept on the edge of ecstasy so long, once the pressure of the ropes was taken away, she was in limbo, sensually aware but drifting back from a state of constant arousal, content to simply absorb the calm.
He carried her into his bathroom, walked into his shower room, sat down on one of the benches with Nicole on his lap, hit the wall panel controls, and turned on all the shower heads to warm up the room.
“You okay?” She was almost too still, her eyes shut. He brushed her hair away from her face, kissed her cheek. “Look at me, pussycat.” Had he pushed her too hard? “Hey, sweets,” he said softly, “I’m beginning to worry.”
Her smile appeared before she opened her eyes. “Good. You should.”
He started breathing again. His darling bitch was back. “I am, truly. Just because I have no limits doesn’t mean you don’t. I should have known better. Sorry.” He grinned. “Tie me up if you want.”
She sat up a little straighter. “Really?”
His grin widened. “Maybe—although the phrase when hell freezes over is lighting up my brain. We could flip for it.”
“That’s all right,” she said, grinning back. “It looks like way too much work anyway. You know me—keep it simple.” She lifted her brows. “So anytime. I believe you said two.”
“Only two?”
“Hey, Contini, the mood you’ve been in, I’ll take the two and then we can talk about more. A bird in the hand, et cetera.”
“Let me wash my come off you first.”
She gave him a disgusted look. “About that,” she said peevishly.
“Yeah, I know. Won’t happen again.”
“And?”
He saw one of those schoolteacher looks given to misbehaving students. “My sincere apologies, tiger. That probably wasn’t the best idea in the world. Although, if we’re comparing bad ideas, I’ll take an apology for: I’ll be taking the next flight out.”
“You pissed me off.”
“Duh. That’s why we’re in the shower.” As she scowled, he quickly put his hand over her mouth. “Let’s not go another ten rounds okay? Sit back, enjoy your spa attendant, and once I have you all clean and sweet smelling, you’ll get your happy endings.”
“Okay.”
He always liked how she could turn on a dime. Weigh the pros and cons, go with the good stuff—don’t mess around. “Here, get comfortable.” He lifted her so she was straddling his thighs.
She smiled. “Planning ahead?”
“You bet. Now shut your eyes. Shampoo first.”