Chapter 43

Piper

As we walked up to my front door, I was so turned on, my legs were practically shaking. Waiting until I could say I was Austin’s girlfriend might be a good idea, but I didn’t want to wait. I wanted Austin, and he clearly felt the same desperate need.

Spinning me to face him, he kissed me. His mouth moved hungrily against mine, and I instinctively reached out to clutch his shirt and pull him closer. With his tongue stroking mine and his hard body trapping me against the door, I was impossibly aroused. My hands slipped under his shirt to glide along the hard planes of his body.

Austin groaned as he took the keys from my hand and reached around behind me to unlock the door. One hand went to my lower back as he opened the door and guided me into the house. He kicked the door shut and immediately spun me so my back was against the door. His hands moved up the sides of my body before pushing my hands above my head and pinning them there. When he broke our kiss, his lips trailed along my jaw until they were close to my ear. He bit down gently on my earlobe, causing a tremor of desire to move through me.

“Austin,” I breathed out.

“I’ve missed you, Button,” he murmured. “Tell me you want me.”

“That seems obvious,” I replied with a strained laugh.

“Say it,” he commanded.

“I want you,” I uttered. “So very much.”

Austin’s lips moved to my neck as I squirmed and struggled to free my wrists. Though I reveled in Austin’s dominance, I was dying to touch him.

“I need to touch you,” I pleaded.

“Not yet,” he rasped out. “We’re going to play a game.”

“What kind of game,” I asked on a moan. It was hard following the conversation while he was sucking lightly at the pulse on my neck.

“Submission,” he whispered close to my ear. “You’re going to turn your mind off and let me give you pleasure. You’re going to surrender your pleasure to me. When you behave, I’ll reward you.”

I had to bite back a whimper. “What happens if I don’t behave?” I asked in a strained voice.

“You’ll behave,” he replied with a cocky grin. “We both know you want me to reward you. What do you say?”

“I—” My voice caught on the words. It should be a simple answer. Austin’s suggestion turned me on. I liked men who were dominant in bed. I’d played games like this before, but this was Austin. Was I ready to let him take charge? Was I ready to let my guard down this much? Austin was asking about more than an erotic game, he was asking me to trust him.

Austin’s hands left my wrists to cradle my face. His eyes locked with mine as one of his thumbs brushed against my lower lip. “I’m not going hurt you, baby.”

“I know,” I assured him, or maybe I was assuring myself.

His lips hovered above mine as he spoke. “I almost feel like I need to give you a safe word.”

“A safe word?” I asked a little nervously, not sure I was ready for anything that might involve a safe word.

“Not for the physical stuff,” he replied much too seriously. His lips brushed against mine before he continued. “It seems you need a safe word for the emotional stuff.”

“We were talking about kinky sex, not emotions,” I argued, even knowing he was right. I wasn’t afraid of giving him control of my body so much as my heart. I was afraid of completely letting my guard down with Austin. These were things I wasn’t ready to admit, so I shifted to a safer topic. “Can I tell you a secret? It’s something I’ve never admitted to another person.”

“What’s that?” he asked.

“That night, when I slapped you,” I reached forward to stroke his cheek. “I was turned on when you threatened to spank me in front of all those people.”

“Don’t tell me my sweet Piper is an exhibitionist.” Based on his rough voice, the idea turned him on, too.

“Not really,” I replied. “It was the potent combination of anger and adrenaline making me think that would be a good idea. I’m sure I wouldn’t enjoy anything that extreme, but I’ve touched myself to that fantasy more than once.”

“Are you trying to distract me with sex?” he asked.

“Is it working?” was my response.

Austin opened his mouth to respond, but no words came out. He closed it and allowed his gaze to move to my mouth. The lust was still evident in his eyes, but I also saw his struggle. Austin wanted me. He wanted to take me back to my room and indulge in the fantasy he’d described. At the same time, he wanted to discuss our feelings—a subject I was determined to avoid.

Austin took a step back, his heated gaze remaining on me. “Show me your bedroom.”

I nodded and walked past him, feeling his gaze on me every step of the way. When we reached my room, Austin’s attention shifted to my four-poster bed.

“I don’t suppose you have any rope, do you?” he rasped out when he turned toward me.

“In my toy drawer. It’s the bottom one in my nightstand.” If my bed had this effect on Austin, I couldn’t wait to see how he reacted to what was in my toy drawer, or his reaction when he found out I had a second toy drawer.