Page 17

“I will,” I squeaked, doing everything in my power to keep my hands still at my sides. He took one last long look at me before he turned on his heel and walked out the door. He left it open.

With a sigh, I leaned my head back against the porcelain behind me, sinking a bit deeper into the water. The flickering candlelight danced off the ceiling above me. I decided it was quite unexpectedly beautiful.

This whole thing, him drawing me a bath after a long day at the office, the candles, the wine, kissing me, undressing me, bathing me… it felt romantic in a way that was forbidden.

That didn’t stop me from wanting it all the same.

I placed my glass down on the edge of the tub and sank down as far as I could until my chin went just beneath the surface.

My entire body felt hot, and it wasn’t from just the water.

Eventually, I pushed myself back up when my stomach rumbled.

I reached for a piece of meat and cheese, rolling the bite together and popping it into my mouth.

I chewed thoughtfully, thinking over what I should do next.

I took a sip of wine, swirled it in the glass and watched it drip down the sides.

Whatever this relationship was or may eventually be, I didn’t want to turn away from it.

It was strange and unknown, but it didn’t feel like it was the wrong thing to do.

Ryker was sweet, thoughtful, and caring, and it was hard to understand what exactly New Englandia was protecting me from.

His belt maybe? Sure, that had hurt like crazy, but what he’d done after had made every painful stroke more than worth it.

And there was something about the pain itself, pain at his hands, that excited me in a way I couldn’t put into words.

Eventually, I settled on not thinking about it any further.

As much as I wanted to keep turning the situation over in my head, I didn’t know what Ryker really wanted or what his intentions were.

The whole thing was a mystery to me, and it didn’t feel like I was in charge of any of it.

I didn’t know if this was heading somewhere, or if it would turn out to be nothing more than a casual fling that I would look fondly back on one day in the future.

I settled down in the bath water, enjoying the food and drink and the delightfully warm embrace of the water. The scent of vanilla and lavender filling the air was heavenly and I let it envelope me.

I heard his footsteps on the hardwood in the hall as he approached and lazily turned my head when he entered the room, smiling softly.

“Are you enjoying yourself?”

“I am,” I replied languidly.

“Good. Now take my hand and stand up for me,” he instructed gently.

For the briefest of moments, I considered not doing what he said, but I thought better of it.

When he held out his arm, I took his fingers in mine.

He pulled me up to my feet without a sound and I cried out quietly in pointless embarrassment as the bubbles dripped down my body, revealing me slowly, once more, to his gaze.

He took a long moment to enjoy the sight of me before his powerful hands cupped my breasts. Gently, he traced his thumbs over my erect nipples, causing a shiver of desire to race down to my core and settle directly on top of my clit.

He held my gaze as he reached to the side and poured a liberal amount of body wash onto a cloth.

With practiced confidence, he began to wash me, slowly and steadily.

His efforts were thorough, and I couldn’t help but enjoy the way the plush fabric caressed my skin.

Everywhere he touched burned with desire, causing the constant pulsing in my clit to grow into a veritable firestorm swirling throughout my whole body.

He spent a long time on my breasts and between my legs, but that wasn’t what made me blush the most.

He pressed that soapy washcloth between my bottom cheeks as I stood there clutching at his chest. His touch there, again, shocked me, especially when it passed over my asshole.

I hated that a part of me liked it and that made my shame that much worse.

As if he knew what I was thinking, he took his time, drawing out those moments for as long as possible. I hid my face, not wanting him to see how mortified I was that he was touching me in such an indecent place. I especially didn’t want him to see that it aroused me.

When he was finished, I released a long breath. He said nothing, which seemed to be more disconcerting than I’d expected it to be.

“Back down in the water,” he instructed.

He offered me a hand as I lowered myself this time.

He reached to the side for a pitcher I hadn’t noticed, filled it with clean, warm water and used it to wet my hair again.

Then he picked up the bottle of conditioner and squirted some in his palm.

He reached for my hair, gradually working the conditioner into each strand.

I relaxed for a few long minutes. Ryker fed me bites of food as my hair soaked up the conditioner.

I sipped the wine and when it was time to rinse off, he helped me to stand, naked before him once more.

Filling the pitcher with fresh warm clean water, he poured it over my hair and body, rinsing me completely clean.

I shivered when he stopped.

“Come now. Time to get out,” he said. I took his hand when he offered it, but he swept my dripping wet body up in his arms and out of the tub.

He didn’t care about getting himself wet.

He placed me down on the plush rug in the center of the room before he wrapped me up in one of my thick towels and dried me off, head to toe.

Securing the towel around me, he then instructed me to brush my teeth while he watched.

I practically squirmed with nervousness over his minute attention.

Just as I began to turn to walk out, he picked me straight up off the floor and carried me into my bedroom while I quietly protested every step.

He sat me down on the bed and grabbed my hairbrush off my dresser.

Sitting behind me with his tree-trunk legs capturing me in between, my ass against his crotch, he brushed my hair until there wasn’t a single knot left behind.

I shivered a little, both from the chill on my still-damp skin and my discomfort in this vulnerable position.

I felt so utterly under his command, and it was causing an odd buzzing in my nether regions.

“Under the covers,” he directed when he was done, sliding around me and off the bed.

“Wait,” I blurted out. He stopped and looked quizzically back in my direction.

I pressed my thighs together, uncertain of what to do or say to get him to initiate something like he had the other night.

I wasn’t sure what our journey together would be like, if we’d have any time alone or if the security team would be watching us for the entire journey.

I didn’t really want to think about it anymore. Mainly, I wanted to come, and I wanted his hands to make it happen.

There was nothing but a towel separating my naked body from him. With a hard swallow, I untucked the one end from underneath my arm and pulled it open. He raised an eyebrow, and I had to turn my gaze away, too mortified to say anything and too proud to stop.

Trying to remain brave, I pulled the towel away from my body and laid it beside me on the bed.

“Spread your legs,” he commanded, and the rumbling sound of his voice burned through me. He glanced down, his gaze purposefully lingering on the sight of my pussy. When he glanced back at me, I could see a ravenous hunger burning in his grey-blue eyes.

“I’m going to need to take care of that very, very wet little pussy, aren’t I?” he asked. My thighs trembled. Instinctually, they closed a bit before I remembered to keep them open. He grinned a little at the sight of my struggle.

I didn’t answer and he cocked his head, waiting. I chewed my lip and nodded, but the expression on his face told me that it wasn’t enough.

“Yes, sir,” I finally whispered, embarrassed and ashamed and incredibly aroused to be so willfully on display like this.

“Lie back on the pillows. Keep your legs spread for me.”

My breath caught in the back of my throat. To be honest, I didn’t really know what I had expected, but it definitely wasn’t this.

“I can spank that pussy red before I send you to bed; is that what you need, little girl?” he threatened, and my heart pounded frantically in my chest for a long moment before I shook my head.

“No, sir,” I blurted out, nervous that he would decide to do that rather than make me come.

With a rising sense of self-preservation, I crawled backwards onto the bed.

He made no move to lift the covers, so I didn’t either.

My fingers brushed against the pillows behind me, and I lay back slowly and spread my thighs once more.

He moved to the end of the bed, practically feasting on the sight of my naked body lying before him.

I couldn’t deny that I liked the way it felt.

I stared helplessly at his immense figure, so very tall, his shoulders broad and muscular, and those huge, rough hands opening and closing.

That, along with his glittering eyes and the lengthening bulge in his pants were the only signs he gave me that he was affected by my display.

Looking at him, I had the odd thought that everything I could ever need was contained in this beautiful, brutal man.

His aura was one of raw power and it drew me in like a thirsty horse to water. I chewed the inside of my cheek, watching anxiously as he leaned over the bed and stared right down at my soaking wet pussy.

When he climbed onto the bed, my heart leapt into my throat. Before I knew what to do, he was leaning over me with his hands to either side of my waist, his stormy blue eyes staring directly into mine.

“You’re so beautiful like this, wet, afraid, and needy for me,” he mused, and my body heated with shameful arousal.