WrappedAroundYourFinger (6 page)

“I have to confess something… I kind of made all of these
horrible assumptions about you.”

“What kind of assumptions?” His eyes held a gleam of
amusement.

Indie groaned and looked at the floor. “Um…I thought you
were a pretentious, arrogant show-off.”

He laughed.

“I know, I know. Look at me, who am I to judge, right?
Well…I’m sorry. You couldn’t be further from who I thought you were.”

“Mmm, do I feel a compliment coming my way? Go on, go on.”

“You’re just completely unexpected and I like that you keep
surprising me, that’s all.” She shrugged.

“Ah, you like surprises, good to know. I have to admit the
fugu
was a bit flashy. I’ll tell you a little secret. It wasn’t the big moment I
thought it would be.”

“You’re kidding right?” She watched as he pared down the
fingers of the root, leaving the longest still intact, then began to shape it.

“No, I’m not. I was young and arrogant when I decided to
conquer that mountain. I’d wanted to make a name for myself. It’s an expensive,
exotic fish that has a huge mystique because it’s toxic. I fought to bring it
to the States for what? To feed wealthy people who get off on being able to boast
that they dared to eat deadly blowfish? I’d say pretentious fits. So in a
sense, your assumptions were spot on.” He continued to carve the long root
until it was smooth and tapered.

She’d never seen ginger prepared that way before
.

“I spend a lot of time around models. Trust me, I know
arrogant and pretentious when I see it and you are neither of those things.
Color me curious, what’s with the ginger?”

His lips curled in a devilish little smile. “Have you heard
of figging?”

“Excuse me?”

“You’ve worked with fresh ginger before. I’m sure you are
aware that it can be rather…warming.”

She nodded.

“Do you like anal play?”

Okay, now she was worried. “Um, what does that have to do
with the ginger?”

“Answer the question, Indie.”

“Yes Sir, I like anal play.” And just like that they’d gone
from normal conversation to Dominant and submissive.

“I’m going to give you a small taste of what will happen
later tonight so that you know what to expect,” he told her as he sliced a
small, thin piece off the root. “Spread your legs.”

She hesitated. Ginger was a potent spice and the juices from
it had the potential to burn if you, say, rubbed your eyes or put it somewhere
really
sensitive.

He stood in front of her and placed his hands on the
counter, caging her in. His gaze held hers for a breath. “You have to trust me,
Indie. I’m not going to push you beyond what you’re capable of handling. Now
open your legs.”

She suddenly felt silly for being afraid. It was only a tiny
piece of ginger, not a burning hot coal. Okay, trust. She spread her thighs
apart, exposing her pussy.

“That’s my girl,” he said, placing the small sliver between
her folds and directly on her clit. “I want you to close your legs and hold it
there for a bit. If it gets to be too much, just tell me.”

“Okay.” The piece of ginger was cold at first then the skin
around it began to tingle. Warmth flared to life and spread from her clit down.
The feeling was unlike anything she’d ever experienced. It was sort of like
those warming lubes that sex shops sold, but that comparison wasn’t quite
right. This was more potent, vivid. The heat grew, building steadily. Indie’s
breathing increased as the burning did. She shifted a little and wow, it
intensified quite—

“So what were we talking about?” Banner asked.

Indie blew out a breath. “What?” She couldn’t concentrate
with all this warmth…heat. It was hot…and God, she was fucking horny all of the
sudden.

Banner rinsed the carved root, which looked remarkably
phallic, and put it in the freezer. He planned to put that root in her ass?
Holy shit. That would be—

“Warm yet?” he asked her with a hitch of one eyebrow.

“Yes,” she groaned as she watched him turn and pull a
container from the fridge. He set it on the counter and approached her.

“Open,” he commanded and she automatically obeyed, spreading
her thighs. He removed the little piece of ginger and popped it in his mouth.
“Nice and spicy,” he said, giving her a wicked grin. Good Lord the man was
trying to drive her crazy.

The heat had abated some, but the throbbing in her clit had
not. She squirmed on the counter. She
really
wanted to come right now.

“All in good time, my girl. All in good time. Are you
hungry?”

“Oh I have a voracious appetite.” She knew he wouldn’t miss
her double entendre.

“I’m betting on it.”

Chapter Five

It was a beautiful evening. Too beautiful to spend it
indoors so Banner had set them up to have a casual dinner on the back deck
while she’d made a phone call to check in with Aimee. He was glad she had
someone she trusted enough to be open with about something like this. It was
rare to find that outside the lifestyle. Aimee must be a hell of a friend.

It was sunset. He was seated on one of the plush,
all-weather sofas. Indie sat naked on a huge throw pillow at his feet. Life was
good.

“Aimee says hello.”

“Did you tell her what a sadistic pervert I am?”

She burst out laughing. “No. But I did say that your
creative use of food isn’t limited to what we’re eating. That was all I told
her. She’ll be foaming at the mouth for details tomorrow.”

“You were supposed to say,
no, honey you’re not a
sadistic pervert
,” he teased.

“That actually remains to be seen, but lucky for you I like
sadistic perverts.”

“You might come to regret those words later.”

“Promises, promises.”

She shifted from her spot between his legs and opened her
mouth to accept the grilled prawn he offered her. She not so subtly licked his
fingers as she took it from him. He almost groaned aloud. He knew feeding her
would be nothing short of an erotic experience. How long would he last before
he picked her up and carried her into his bedroom? At this rate, not long. His
cock had been rock hard all damn day as the image of her coming replayed over
and over in his head.

“Mmm, that’s really good, Banner.”

“Glad you like it. The recipe is simple—”

“Wait, don’t tell me,” she said as she licked her lips, a
look of concentration straining her pretty features. “Garlic, lime, cilantro…a
bit of cayenne, and…soy?”

“Very good. My girl has an impressive palate.”

Her grin was all teeth and dimples. “Why thank you.”

He dangled a prawn in front of her and she eagerly took a
bite, nipping his fingers with her teeth this time. They sat there in
comfortable silence as he fed her bits of seafood and spears of grilled
asparagus, all of which she ate with relish. He loved that she wasn’t afraid to
eat. He loved that her boldness had grown as she’d become more at ease around
him. And he loved watching her unfold before his eyes. “Can I have some wine
please?” she asked.

He grabbed the glass of chardonnay from the table next to
them and held it to her lips. Tilting it back, he gave her a sip. Taking care
of her in this way—giving her wine, feeding her, sharing conversation while she
looked up at him—had been exactly what he never knew he’d wanted. Something
warm and content settled into his chest. He couldn’t already be falling for
her, could he?

“Oh I could really get used to this,” Indie said, leaning
back against him.

“You took the words right out of my mouth.”

A pained, anxious expression flashed across her features for
a mere second and then it was gone. Well, she hadn’t looked as if he’d
threatened to kidnap her this time. That was an improvement.

“So tell me, now that you’ve done what you set out to do
with your career, what’s next for Banner Faust?”

“This is all hush, hush—would ruin my reputation for being
arrogant and pretentious—but I decided to donate the profits from Craving for
Death to a local autism charity. One of our staff has a son who was diagnosed
this year and it’s been a rough road for his family. It felt like the right
thing to do.”

“Why didn’t you advertise that for the event? It would have
been great publicity for you.”

“It had more than enough allure to be profitable on its own.
Our sales were higher last night than they’ve ever been. Honestly, I wanted to
do something meaningful for once and making it about me just didn’t seem
right.”

“See, there you go proving me wrong again. I’ll keep quiet
about your closet altruism, but,” she arched a brow at him, “it’ll cost you.”

“I don’t think you’re in any position to make demands,” he
murmured, reaching down and caressing her breast.

“Oh, you’re going to make the demands then?” she asked with
a flirtatious smirk.

“Yes, and right now I’m going to demand that you unzip my
pants and take out my cock.”

He watched her eyes sober then darken with lust.

She did as he ordered, slowly undoing his fly then pulling
his boxer briefs down over his fully erect cock.

“Touch me, Indie.”

She wrapped a firm hand around his cock.

“Light…slow. I like to be teased.”

With the tips of her fingers, she caressed his shaft just as
he’d ordered. She brushed the crown with her thumb then drew light circles just
below the ridge on the sensitive underside. She looked as though she were
studying every ridge, vein and curve of his anatomy. Damn, it was incredibly
sexy. A small drop of pre-come formed at the tip. Indie looked up at him with
questioning eyes.

“Use your tongue,” he ordered.

Her tongue darted out and licked the little bead away. He
sucked in a quick breath as she swirled her tongue around the head. Some women
plowed on, rough, fast and abrasive, but not Indie. She licked him as if she
were savoring a decadent piece of candy. The gentle, delicate way she handled
him made him a little bit crazy, which was exactly what he wanted. Agonizing
anticipation made for the best orgasms.

When she suddenly took the entire shaft to the root, he
moaned, feeling himself hit the back of her throat. She held him there for a
moment before she began to suck him in and out, going from base to tip at a
slow, torturous pace. She showed no signs of gagging, or stopping for that
matter. His balls tightened and goddamn, he was almost ready to come.

“Stop,” he barked out the order.

She froze with his cock at the back of her throat and looked
up at him. She was a fucking sight with her lips still wrapped around him. It
was nearly enough to push him over the edge. Fuck, he needed to get it under
control. He wasn’t going to orgasm after only a few minutes of head as if he
were some horny teenager.

He took a deep breath and when he was sure the danger of
climax had passed, he grabbed a handful of her hair at her nape and gently
forced her to release him. He pulled her up to meet his lips in a bruising,
hungry kiss. She kissed him back just as hard, shoving her tongue into his mouth,
matching him with her own desire.

“You…are bad girl,” he whispered against her mouth. He stood
and gently helped her to her feet. He tucked his dick back into his briefs and
zipped his pants then picked her up, cradling her to his chest.

She squealed in protest. “Oh you don’t have to carry me. I’m
not that light.”

“Shut up, Indie. One derogatory word about that gorgeous
body of yours and I’m going to take it as a personal insult since I think
you’re fucking perfect.”

She slipped her arms around his neck and sighed almost as if
she didn’t believe a word he’d just said. He couldn’t quite figure it out. She
was a model and seemed comfortable, even confident, in her own skin. That
dickhead ex-boyfriend of hers must have done a serious number on her self-esteem.
Hopefully he would get what was coming to him.

Indie knew she wasn’t perfect, but hearing Banner say he
thought she was, more than once now, should have made her smile. Instead it
made her wary. Why couldn’t she just live in the moment? She desperately wanted
to trust and believe him, but it was damn hard when she was terrified he would
work his way into her heart only to break it. Like Matt had.

“Stop thinking so much,” he told her as he carried her
through the house and into his bedroom.

“Spank me, Banner,” she blurted out.

He set her down and studied her for a long moment. “I won’t
go easy on you. Make sure it’s really what you want.”

“Please?” Her need made her voice sound thready.

“I have to get something from the freezer. When I return I
want you to tell me why you think you need to be spanked.” He turned and left
her sitting on the edge of the bed in disbelief.

Inwardly she groaned. How the hell was she supposed to tell
him? She’d agreed to be open with him, but she hadn’t thought she would have to
be
this
open,
this
naked. He wanted to strip away all her
defenses. He wouldn’t let her hide from him.

She felt her eyes widen as he came through the door. He held
the carved ginger. Her heart beat like a hummingbird in her chest.
That
was going in her ass. Had he planned to plug her then spank her? The thought
thrilled and unnerved her.

He stood before her and waited.

“Okay,” she sighed. “I need it…because you’re right. I over
think everything and for once I just…why is this so hard?” She rubbed her hands
over her face.

“Revealing parts of yourself you’ve never showed to anyone
is never easy. I need to know what you’re looking to get out of this before we
begin. If I’d thought you just wanted kinky sex, I wouldn’t have asked. But I
think what you’re looking for goes beyond a slap and tickle. Doesn’t it?”

What he’d said was true. Very true. It was scary how well he
saw her. Her need to explore submission went much deeper than the thrill of
taboo sex. Finally giving voice to her secret desires should have sent her into
a panic. It didn’t. Instead she was relieved.