Page 12 of Tie Me Down (The AfterGlow #1)

olivia

I flipped through the channels on the TV in our room, snuggled up tight against the pillow on the armrest in my plush AfterGlow robe, a bag of mini Mackintosh’s toffees in my lap.

I’d already devoured at least a third of them.

The sweet, caramel taste melted slowly on my tongue and put me at ease.

I stretched out my legs over Nico’s lap, and his hands instantly moved to my calves, massaging them as if it were his second nature.

Which I guessed it kind of was.

He wielded pleasure like a goddamn weapon.

Slicing it through my entire body, overwhelming me with it, making fireworks explode behind my eyelids with the use of his tongue—in more ways than one.

The way he spoke to me made my knees weak.

I may as well be a newborn deer trying to take its first steps whenever he was around.

There wasn’t much of a difference between me and the tiny creature.

It didn’t matter if we were going about our day, making love, or coming down from a long session like we were now. He was always striving for my happiness.

I found an old rerun of Nathan For You and set the remote down. Nothing like some dry and awkward comedy to settle me after the intensity of an evening like the one I’d just had.

“Is this the one where he gets smoke alarms classified as a musical instrument to help a business avoid tariffs?”

“Yes, it is,” I said over a laugh.

He shook his head. “So ridiculous.”

I shot him a pointed look.

“It’s good! But still ridiculous.”

“I know. It’s the best.”

He snagged my blanket from the back of the couch and threw it over me, making sure it was tucked around my toes. I sighed at the warmth and snuggled deeper into the couch.

“Do you need anything else?”

“Can you pass me my water bottle?” I asked.

No hesitation. He swiped it from the coffee table and placed it in my grasp before continuing his massage path up my legs with his practiced hands.

“I like that I can feel the indents of my ties,” he hummed, tracing a finger over the rope marks on my upper thigh underneath the blanket.

That was actually something I loved about shibari—the way the rope left its mark on a person.

Like love bites, almost. I wore them proudly underneath my clothing, like a secret superpower only Nico and I got to know about.

Well, Lilah and Charlie, too. I couldn’t bring myself not to show them when they’d asked.

No doubt they’d want to see some of these, too.

But what happened when I was in the ropes was only for us.

Though the way the girls were so open with their sexuality and sharing about their kinks was starting to rub off on me.

I kind of wanted to tell them about the masked man in my room tonight.

Maybe not all the sordid details, but definitely a bit of what happened.

They would understand. They wouldn’t judge me or think I was wrong in the head for wanting what I wanted.

Charlie regularly had sex with Rider in front of everyone watching from the voyeur room.

In fact, she was a huge draw to the club.

And Lilah? She’d been dating one of the owners of The AfterGlow for years.

He fucked her in every single room in the place—private and public—and even let other people have their way with her.

No, they wouldn’t look down on me for exploring a new inclination.

We all had our things. I was just figuring mine out a little slower than they were.

But I was new to this world, so it was no use working myself up over not being as open or experienced as them.

I was here, doing my thing, learning from professionals, and taking it at my own pace.

This was good. This place was good. My man was good.

Getting off on taking me apart, listening to me come over and over, leaving me with legs that barely worked after an evening with him.

He got off, too. That wasn’t a question.

He just preferred to make me into a puddle of a human being before indulging in his own ecstasy.

I laughed out loud, and he glanced at me. My body was so tired, so heavy, but so fulfilled. I couldn’t keep the smile off my face.

“What?” he asked.

I took a deep breath, savouring the moment. “I was just thinking about how I could easily do this with you every week.”

He was practically glowing. “If that’s what you want, it’s what I want.”

“Do you think we could sign up for Bridgette’s next class already?” I asked, toying with a stray strand of hair that had fallen in front of my face.

“Want me to ask her before we leave?” He turned to glance at the door. “If she’s still here, that is.”

“Would you? I want to check in with the girls before we go, anyway.”

“Divide and conquer?”

I turned the TV off, sitting up. “Let me pack my bag and then we can go. ”

He stood and grabbed his clothes from the side table, stretching his long arms above his head, pants and shirt dangling in the air. “Meet me by the elevators when you’re finished.”

Nodding, I said, “I won’t be long.”

“Take all the time you need.”