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Story: Her Valiant Heart

Clearing his throat, he said, “Yes, sir.”
“Great. Don’t let me see this shit stain again.”
“No, sir.”
And that was that. I was free. Anticipation shimmered through me as I left the security room and headed for the back corner.
CHAPTER18
Esme
Time never drags as much as when you’re sitting in a dimly lit office, waiting for someone to come back so you can convince them to fuck you. A few minutes after Wolfe left, someone brought me an antipasto platter and a glass of coke. Although I’d eaten before I left Esperance, I hoped that I’d need a lot of stamina tonight, so I ate the whole plate.
Pulling Wolfe’s jacket closer, not because I was cold, but because it was still warm from his body and smelled so good, I wandered over to the windows. Looking down on the club, the crowd, the show, from up here was kinda cool. Weird, of course, but cool. As I watched, two lengths of long, flowing material fell from the ceiling, unraveling until they almost reached the stage, far below.
Movement just above me caught my eye and I gasped. There were dancers, all the way up here, on the metal catwalks. A man and a woman, now lit by a spotlight, drawing the attention of the crowd below. He was shirtless, well built, with dark wavy hair. His skin-tight pants were a deep aubergine. The woman was maybe a bit taller than me, with a lean, well-toned physique. Her dark hair was pulled back in a plait, and her shorts were just as tight and just as purple as her partners. She wore a matching tube top that just barely covered her boobs.
The guy pulled the woman to him, pressed a hard kiss to her lips and then let her go, stepping off the ramp, seemingly into thin air. He’d dropped maybe two feet before catching the silky material with one hand and wrapping it around his wrist. He gestured for the woman to join him and I waited, heart in my throat, for her to jump from the ramp. Catching her easily with one hand, he swung her back and forth before throwing her towards the other ribbon. The crowd gasped in awe as she flew, caught the ribbon easily, and twisted it around her ankle. Then she fell backwards, suspended twenty feet above the stage, with only the silk wrapped around her ankle to stop her from falling.
The couple swung towards each other, kissing in mid-air and as the man went to pull her closer, she laughed, pushing him away. They swung back and forth like this for a while, running their hands over each other as soon as they were close enough, kissing and teasing each other. It was like foreplay; I realized. The next time she got close enough, the man reached around and undid her top at the back. Her breasts spilled free, and she acted surprised, trying to cover them up. The crowd went crazy, cheering and calling out.
The next time they swung closer, he slid his arm around her waist and bent his head, taking her nipple in his mouth. Even from here, I could see the pleasure that shot through her and although she must have been expecting it, she nearly lost her grip on the ribbon. When he raised his head, she gripped his hair, crushing her lips to his.
Somehow, without breaking the kiss, he wrapped the ribbons around his ankles and up his legs to mid-thigh. This way, he could fall back into a mid-air sitting position, which then meant his partner could straddle him.
As soon as she had her legs wrapped around him, the cheering increased. But she wasn’t acting anymore. She was kissing him furiously, pushing her breasts against his bare chest, crossing her ankles so she had enough leverage to grind her hips against him.
He held her weight easily, one hand holding the ribbon in a tight fist, the other supporting her back. The music became more tempered and soft, breathy moans filtered over the music as she thrust her hips, dry humping him, her head back, his dark head at her breasts. The DJ turned the music all the way down, so that her very vocal orgasm rang out over the crowd, who were watching in silence now, utterly spellbound. When she was done, her chest heaving and her head falling forward on his shoulder, the lights switched off, plunging them into darkness for twenty seconds. When the lights came back on, they were gone and so were the ribbons.
I smiled to myself. There was one thing you could say about Wolfe Rivers; he sure knew how to put on a show.
Now that it was finished, though, I was at a loose end. And I had no idea how much longer I would be waiting here. Picking up my glass of coke, I strolled the length of the office towards the boxes stacked in the shadows against the far wall.
Ohh, hello, what do we have here? There was a really big box leaning against the wall and from the picture, I could see it was the X that I’d seen in the Cavern. I tamped down on the sudden heat that bloomed in my belly and moved on. Ah, and I’d seen these in use. Cheeky of Wolfe to unpack a sex swing and bolt it to his office roof, though. Sipping my coke, I reached out and felt the strap. It was so weird to see it like this, without a body filling it. Just random straps and hooks dangling from the ceiling. Like, how are you meant to even get into them when they’re hanging like this?
Always one to encourage a bit of intellectual curiosity, I put my coke on the floor and placed both hands on the top straps, running my eyes over the contraption. So those were like handcuffs, and these were handles to hold on to. Yep, I’d seen that. And then here was a strap to brace the back on, and this is where the butt went. It seemed wild that it could take the weight of a whole body, actually, since there really wasn’t very much material here. Wanting to test it, I gripped the top straps in tight fists and tugged as hard as I could. Holy cow, it didn’t even strain the bolt in the ceiling.
Ah, and I see here, you can expand the width of the butt…hammock? Looked quite comfy, actually. Turning and backing in, I lowered myself until my butt was cradled in the sling. Yeah, very comfortable! Expensive, too, by the feel of this material. Getting a little experimental, I reached up, wrapped my fingers around the handles and leaned back a little, raising my feet off the floor an inch. Jeez, if it weren’t for the obvious sex connotations, you’d sit in this to watch tv. It had to be ergonomic, too, with all this support.
Dangling right in front of the handle were the ankle, or leg, cuffs. Bracing my abs and thanking whoever for all the years of YouTube yoga classes, I cautiously raised my leg and slipped my foot through the cuff. It was thick and spongy, encasing my ankle really easily. And look, you could widen it or tighten it depending on how far up the leg you wanted it. Amazing. I stretched my leg a little, leaning back a bit more, keen to see how secure it felt when I let the strap take a bit of weight.
I’d been so engrossed in trying to figure out how the swing worked I hadn’t heard Wolfe come in until he said, “Esme?”
With a horrified gasp, I tried to lurch to my feet, totally forgetting I was bound. The sudden change in balance tipped me out of the swing and I might have shrieked as I fell towards the ground, bracing for the impact. It didn’t quite come, though. It would have been better for my dignity if I’d hit the floor, but no such luck. I was practically hanging upside down, my cuffed leg pointing up to the ceiling, my other leg flailing for balance. There was nothing for me to grab onto to pull myself upright. I gave up trying and half slumped on the floor in a puddle of embarrassment.
The overhead lights came on, which, you know, wasn’t so great for my dignity, and the sound of footsteps on the thin carpet reached my ears. I squeezed my eyes shut, not wanting to consider for even a moment how I must look. The footsteps stopped right nearby and, amusement dripping through his words like treacle, Wolfe drawled, “How’re doing down there?”
Fuck. I opened one eye to see him standing about a foot away, his hands in his pockets, his shirt sleeves rolled up to mid forearm. Immaculate and hotter than sin. While I was lying with my legs in the air and my Walmart panties on full display. “A little help, if you don’t mind?”
His deep chuckle hit me square in the belly. “Oh, but I do mind. I’m quite enjoying the view, to be honest.”
“Fuck you.”
He was laughing outright now, his eyes dancing. But he stepped forward, bent and slipped his arm around my waist, undid the cuff and pulled me to my feet in one smooth, coordinated movement. Show off.
Straightening my dress and pushing my hair back from my forehead, I said primly, “Thank you.”
His eyes still alight with amusement, he reached out and flicked my nose with the tip of his finger. “It’s ridiculous how adorable you are.”