The round of laughter that followed seemed to relax Eva a fraction. Sheila’s comeback relaxed her a bit more, and within a few minutes, the four were back to talking and joking as they had before the unveiling.
Drew was glad for the enforced slow pace of the photo shoot, which required him to stop every few minutes while Sheila took pictures of each step during the process. The more artistic shots would come at the end, when the binding was complete; these photos, however, were meant to be instructional. It made the whole thing more impersonal, more clinical, and the friendly mood in the room certainly lent itself to a platonic approach.
None of that changed the fact, though, that Drew was wildly turned-on from the moment he looped the first coil of soft black nylon braid around Eva’s slim, taut body. It wouldn’t have been so bad if it weren’t clear from the start that Eva was feeling it too. Her eyes were half closed, her lips parted, while a gentle flush once again warmed her face and chest. Not the embarrassed red of a few minutes earlier, but a soft glow that accompanied the rush of blood to engorged nipples.
“Not too tight,” Danny murmured at one point when Drew was close to finishing the binding. “Not during the instructional stuff, anyway. If she’s okay with it, you can make it snugger for the shots we do after that.”
Drew realized it was the first thing anyone had said in a while except for brief instructions from Sheila about when to stop so she could take pictures. He had been too wrapped up in wrapping Eva up, too involved in the pressure of the rope and his fingers against her skin. Lost in the way her silken flesh gave under the restraint, and in the wholly enraptured expression she wore. As though she was mesmerized. Which is why Danny spoke to me, not to Eva, Drew thought. She was in no state to converse.
Eva was in deep subspace, drugged by the rope. Danny and Sheila had noticed it before Drew, obviously. Or rather, Drew had noticed but lacked their objectivity since he was a willing participant. Perhaps even the culprit.
“Evie?” he asked as Sheila angled for another set of shots once the binding was complete. “You doing okay, sweetheart?”
She blinked slowly, pupils wide, and nodded. A sleepy smile crossed her lips, and Drew suddenly wanted to kiss her more than anything he had ever wanted in his life. He sneaked a finger up to her lips instead, his breath catching when she closed her eyes and opened her mouth a fraction to flick her tongue against his fingertip.
“Hey, hey, enough of that!” Sheila smacked Drew’s hand away. “You can do that on your own time, Casanova. This is business right now. Evie, c’mon. Sit up straight. Pull your arms away from your sides just a little. Drew, get out of the shot.”
Her abrupt, no-nonsense tone helped Drew snap out of it, and pulled Eva mostly back into the land of the living.
He went to the little fridge where Sheila kept water and sodas, pulled out a can of cola and brought it back to hand to Eva once Sheila finished. Then he took himself off to the bathroom, where a few seconds with his head under a briskly cold faucet helped restore him to his senses enough to brave returning to the room.
Eva was holding the cold can of soda to the back of her neck, and she shot him a mortified look when he walked back in and threw himself on the couch. Shelia was busy untying the ropes, which made Drew vaguely jealous. Not only because he wanted to spend more time touching Eva, but because he was proprietary about his handiwork. He had to admit, though, it was probably wisest for them all to take a break.
“So…” He grinned at the group, all friendly innocence. “Who’s buying lunch?”
* * * * *
The afternoon was worse, in many respects.
For one thing, the binding was more time-consuming, a very complex and decorative weaving that secured Eva’s arms behind her back. She had the body stocking back on, which helped some from Drew’s perspective. Unfortunately, now she was on her guard and couldn’t relax. The ropes chafed, the knots hit uncomfortable pressure points, her stance was stiff and awkward.
Drew was close enough to realize she was also still turned-on. She was obviously trying to deny it, though, trying to keep from letting herself go. The situation was making her anxious and irritable.
Drew knew some people responded strongly and instantly to bondage, particularly ropes, in the way that most people only reacted to intense foreplay. He’d seen something like it in clubs a few times, but only in people he knew were experienced submissives.
Eva’s response, though, was as surprising as it was remarkable.
“She’s a total rope slut,” was Sheila’s pithy assessment.
“Yeah, it’s pretty extreme,” Danny agreed, clearly not minding the development in the slightest. “But it makes sense. I always thought she protested too much.”