A Little Harmless Lie 4 (12 page)

“I take it you like to cook?” she asked.

She hadn’t stepped into the kitchen and he smiled. He had a feeling that Dee wasn’t much of a chef. He took her hand and led her in.

“I love to cook.” He pulled out a chair at the breakfast bar. “I know you know a little bit about me.”

She nodded. “Of course people talk. It’s natural since you’re the boss. They don’t know as much as I know now. As you said, you came from nothing.”

He chuckled as he pulled out the ingredients for dinner. “I came from less than nothing.”

He put the container of sea scallops on the counter and pulled a pot off the rack to fill with water for the pasta. Setting it on the burner, he turned the gas on and looked at her. Again, a sense of rightness stole over him. In his kitchen, at this moment, with this woman.

He leaned over and brushed his mouth against hers. A small taste and his body was yearning for more. He had to use a large amount of control to push it aside.

“What was that for?” she asked.

“For a while,” he teased.

He smiled when she frowned at him. Turnabout was fair play in his humble opinion. The woman was already driving him beyond sanity. He pulled out the pasta and he felt the weight of her gaze again. It was one thing he had learned these past few weeks. Dee was a cautious woman, one that weighed every option before coming to a decision. He set the box on the counter and glanced over at her.

“Do you need some help?” she asked.

“Sure. Why don’t you start on the salad?”

Dee took one more bite of the seared scallops and closed her eyes in appreciation. Damn if the man didn’t know how to cook. Granted, it wasn’t anything hard to do. A few scallops with garlic, pasta and roasted asparagus, but it had been so long since someone had cooked for her. The simple delight of having another person take time for her, make her a meal, it was a little too wonderful to ignore.

She opened her eyes as she swallowed.

“I take it you liked the scallops?”

She offered him a smile. “Considering I’m trying to control myself enough not to lick the plate, I would say that is a yes.”

He smiled as he sipped his water. She’d had one small glass of wine, but switched to water like Micah. She knew from experience that he didn’t drink much. She had never seen him get drunk, never heard of him losing control like that. Of course, he always seemed to be able to master his emotions. There was no way he would allow himself to drink too much. It should comfort her since her oldest brother had been well on his way to being a drunk when she’d run— and a mean drunk at that. But there was a tiny part of her that was afraid of a man like Micah. A man with that much self- restraint should make any woman scared.

She smiled. “Odd that you seem to know some of my favorite foods.”

He said nothing.

“So, been spying on me?”

He laughed as he stood and took both their plates. “No. Your friend Keisha was happy to help in my date plans.”

She could feel a flush of heat fill her face. “Trying to win the pool.”

“What?”

“Nothing.” She watched him as he cut a generous portion of the cheesecake. He returned to the table and slid into the chair beside her with one plate and a seductive smile. She didn’t know which tempted her more, the man or the cake.

“You’re not going to have any?” she asked.

He nodded. “We’ll share.” He cut off a piece.

And then his gaze followed the fork as he moved it to her lips. He didn’t mean to feed her, did he?

“Open up.”

Well, crap. Fear and arousal twisted through her. She didn’t want this. It was almost too... intimate. This was all about proving she wasn’t for him, but no matter what, he kept slinking past her defenses.

She shook her head.

“You want some, you better open up.”

She frowned as butterflies fluttered in her tummy.

“I told you, some things are better when someone does them for you.”

The way his voice rolled over those words, she knew the meaning behind them. She would have to be an idiot not to understand. She wanted to refuse. Being fed by a man was... a little bit too much for her to take. He slid the fork along her bottom lip. The scent of the graham cracker crust and the sweetness of the cake filled her head. She raised her gaze to his. His attention was on her mouth.

“Open up, baby. You won’t regret it.”

Yearning for the cake, for the man in front of her, had her head spinning. Never in all her twenty- seven years had she wanted someone so much. He hadn’t really tried to seduce her, and she was ready to jump up on the table and offer her body to him. But she kept all this inside, locked away, because it was better that he never know what was going on in her head. A man like Micah Ross might be good, but he definitely would use it against her to get her into bed.

“Dee.”

Her name snapped out. Not loudly, not enough to scare her. But enough to let her know that he was not happy with her. She should take exception to his tone, the way it bit out from between his teeth. Instead, she found herself wanting to please him as her nipples hardened. She opened her mouth and he slipped the dreamy dessert between her lips. The sweetness exploded over her tongue. God, it had been a long time since she’d had good cheesecake. She could pay for the good stuff. She had the money to spend on air- shipped cheesecake. But she knew she would eat the whole damn cake by herself. She opened her eyes to find Micah watching her, his face flush, his gaze intent on her mouth. The air between them thickened. Everything in her tightened, her hormones dancing.

She swallowed the bite. Before she could say anything, he had another bite for her. He held it in front of her mouth.

“Aren’t you going to have any?”

He shook his head, said nothing. She got the feeling he was holding on to an invisible thread of control. From watching her eat cheesecake?

She wanted to refuse him, wanted to tell him one bite was enough. But... she couldn’t. As she opened her mouth, she gave in to the delightful treat. Damn, the airiness was just like New York, just the right amount of sugar, the crust substantial, but not overwhelming the cake itself.

She had barely swallowed the second bite when he had another at her mouth. She took it this time without hesitation, closing her eyes and humming. The fork clattered on the plate. It was the only warning she got. She opened her eyes to find Micah reaching for her, pulling her out of her chair and onto his lap.

He crashed his mouth down onto hers, his tongue sweeping in and taking immediate possession. Like every time he kissed her, it set off an explosion within her. She didn’t resist, couldn’t. As her head spun, she slipped her hands through the silky strands of his hair, and tried to move closer. Her breasts ached, her nipples painfully hard. She turned in his lap to press her chest against his, trying her best to gain some relief.

He groaned and tightened his hold. The sound of it came from deep within him as if he were in pain. It touched something in her, had her heart beating so hard she was amazed she didn’t pass out.

She slipped her tongue against his and his hands convulsed on her waist. Damn this felt good, right. Nothing had ever felt this right before. In all her times with men, before and after the incident, she had held herself back, made sure she didn’t lose her head. But this time, this one time, she didn’t want to stop. She wanted it to keep going— needed to feel his body on hers, in hers. She shifted in his lap and felt his erection. It should be a sign to run, to not get in deep with this man. But she wanted him. Wanted everything he could offer her, take from her. Nothing in her life had ever been so important. She wanted him. Now.

He apparently knew what she was thinking and pulled back. Without a word, he lifted her in his arms as if she weighed nothing and carried her through his house. Her body was still humming with need, still begging for relief. She knew where he was going, and she should stop him. But the need he had built up wouldn’t allow her. She needed this more, seriously more than she’d wanted anything else in her life. That should scare her. It did a bit. As he turned down the hall that led to the back of the house, to his bedroom, her mind started doing somersaults.

He paused at the doorway. She peeked up at him. He drew in a long, and what sounded painful, breath. Then he turned his head and his dark gaze clashed with hers.

“Dee?”

She knew what the question meant, what he asking. It was on the tip of her tongue to say no. It would be better if she just walked— ran— out of the house. But she saw the flush of arousal on his cheeks, recognized the lust in his eyes. For a man not used to denying himself, he was asking permission. And she knew what it meant if she said yes. He would be in control, the one calling the shots in bed.

His jaw flexed. Just that little movement told her how much power she had over him. She had a feeling if she had been another woman, he could have easily seduced her into bed. But with her, a woman who had never really been with a man, he waited... gave her the choice.

It wasn’t something big, nothing that would normally make another woman’s heart melt, but the fact that he would wait, that he would give her that choice and not try and roll over her, tightened her chest. Her life had been a myriad of choices made for her, situations that she couldn’t control, and although he planned on controlling their love making, he let her know with that one word, just her name, that it was her choice.

She wanted to say so much, wanted to tell him just what it meant to her. She was sure he had no idea, but instead, she held the words inside her and allowed her lips to curve.

“Yes.”

Chapter Eight

Micah wanted to shout with triumph, but he thought that might be pushing it. Dee was still skittish, even if she had agreed. He wanted to do nothing to upset her and lose his chance. Just getting her into his house tonight had been a major victory. Now having her in his bedroom... well, that was the gold medal and Nobel Peace Prize wrapped up into one big trophy.

Even though he felt like running to the bed, he forced himself to walk, slowly. He could feel her nerves. They were easy to see. He knew she wanted this as much as he did. Damn, no, wait, it was probably worse on his side. He had initiated a lot of subs, but he had never in all his thirty- five years had a virgin. He’d never had the pleasure of introducing a woman to the ecstasy she could have, she would remember every time she took another man to bed.

A growl threatened to erupt from his chest at the thought of another man touching her. He didn’t want that, couldn’t even think of that. It had never been an issue with him before, but he couldn’t deny the possessive feelings now surging through him. He wanted to be the only man to touch her. Ever.

He brushed that feeling aside, and laid her on his bed. Again, he had this sense of rightness, a feeling that this was exactly where she belonged. Forever.

He moved away from that thought. For the first time ever, he saw her looking nervous. She always put on such a brave face, and he hated to see it. Mainly because she would hate it. The fact that he wanted more than anything to please her, to make her happy, wasn’t a new feeling for him. Women were to be treasured, loved. But the bone- deep need to make her happy, that her happiness was somehow entwined with his, was a little too scary to contemplate.

She glanced around, looking surprised.

“Where’s the dungeon?” she asked, her voice threaded with nerves and a bit of amusement.

He chuckled. “I have a secret room for that.”

He pulled open the nightstand drawer and pulled out the red blindfold he’d bought earlier that day. She watched him, her big blue eyes solemn, more serious than he had ever seen her.

“I bought this for you today. The moment I saw it, I knew it was for you.” He slid the silky fabric through his fingertips. “Like I said, sensual, no- frills sexuality.”

“I’m not sure that’s something I would like.”

He heard the fear there, understood it. It was a little thing, the only thing he would ask of her tonight. He would have stopped if he hadn’t heard the arousal threaded in her tone. She wanted to give over to the power, wanted to let him be the one in charge. Knowing that, having his suspicions confirmed, sent a jolt of lust spinning so fast through his blood he almost groaned. The fabric of his pants was rough against his erection and every move he made heightened the friction.

He slipped onto the bed next to her and couldn’t fight the smile when he heard her breath catch. After so many months thinking she wasn’t aware of him, it was balm to his battered ego to know that she was in fact very aware of him.

“You understand why I would do this to you? Put the blindfold on?”

“To be in control.”

This was going to be harder than he thought it would be. He could all but see her closing off to him. He knew it shamed her that she wanted him in control. She craved it. Her responses to him had proven that. But a tough woman like her might see it as a weakness to be ashamed of.

“No. Well, partially. But another aspect of it is allowing you to feel, taste, touch... all the senses but your sight. It will heighten your pleasure.”

She didn’t look completely convinced. In fact, with the wary look she was offering him, she was probably just seconds from crossing her arms over that very delectable chest of hers.

“There is always a way to call a stop to it. You need to come up with a safe word, one that tells me that I’ve gone too far.”

She threaded her fuller bottom lip between her teeth. He wanted nothing more than to lean forward and kiss her into submission. With another woman, especially a sub who knew what was going on, he would do it. But he knew this was important. She had to make this decision without his interference. Of course, if she decided against it, he might change his mind.

“Dee?”

She looked at the slip of fabric and nodded.

“First though, you need a safe word.”

She drew in a deep breath. “Hawaii.” The word was said with such reverence it made him smile.

He leaned forward. “Remember, if at any time you feel like it’s too much, that you are being pushed over an edge that scares you, use that word. It is very important that you understand that.”