CHAPTER EIGHT
Ava
When Lucas only stared at me and didn’t answer, I had to summon up the courage to ask outright. “Will you help me create a BDSM outfit? Do you know anything about them?”
When he still didn’t answer and his eyes kind of glazed over, for some reason my eyes were drawn down to his crotch. He had a giant bulge in the front of his pants.
I ripped my eyes away and immediately locked gazes with him, feeling the way the sitting duck must’ve felt when it was, um… sitting. Or about to be ravaged by the much more dominant male duck.
His hand shot up into his hair, and he combed his fingers through it, mussing it and changing his neat appearance to frazzled.
I’d made Mr. Got-it-together frazzled.
“Sorry.” He grimaced, and his gaze darted around the room. “You can’t really ask a guy for that kind of thing without a reaction.”
“Oh. Sorry.” The worst thing happened then, a snicker came out of my mouth, and I clamped my hand over it.
“Apology accepted. By one of us.”
That drew my attention to his other member, which hadn’t changed. I gulped and laughed nervously. Was I ever going to be cool enough to play this game?
“Start with the “Hunger Games” look, minus a few yards of leather.” Lucas turned away and gave a half laugh, half sigh. “Uncle Harv sure does know how to get right down to it.”
“Yeah, definitely, but didn’t you want to get right down to it?” At the heated look he gave me, I turned my attention back to the pad and started scribbling, then quickly changed the subject. “You watch a lot of movies?”
He flipped quickly through the titles scrolling across the TV. “I used to, but that’s a date kind of thing, and I don’t date.” He froze as if he’d revealed something he hadn’t meant to.
By the look on his face, I knew I’d completely turned him on with my request for help with the outfit. I’d kind of meant to. His expression had been a funny mix of bewilderment and strained concealment. He was hiding something, and I couldn’t help but want to know what. And now the “I don’t date” confession. Why would a man as obviously desirable not date?
“You don’t date? Why would you not date?” At the closed off look that immediately came over his face, I threw it in reverse. “Never mind. It’s none of my business. I don’t really either. Too busy.”
Lucas put his hands on his hips, drawing my attention back to his crotch. “We have to get to know each other if we’re going to win. So, there are things you should know about me.”
I had a feeling I didn’t want to know the things he was talking about.
I didn’t know much about him, just that he wanted to be head of his uncle’s company. Mr. Huffman had explained it all in my interview before I was chosen. He’d said to bring only my photo ID, cellphone, and my sense of adventure to the chalet. He also said I could back out anytime I wanted, at any point in the game. Mr. Huffman had sensed my uneasiness and vowed that if there was anything that made me too uncomfortable, I only had to say the word and it would be over, no questions asked.
There was the money to consider, but I was way out of my league, I knew. Maybe I should just walk before I had to spend the night with a strange man.
My heart twisted a little. Obviously, that part of me didn’t want to go.
The thing I couldn’t put my finger on about him suddenly stood out in his hard jaw and careful movements. The man had an iron restraint. Which was sexy as hell. Excitement made my fingertips tingle, and I wanted to know anything he would share about himself.
I made up my mind right then to stay. I needed this, needed to develop some of the steel that must have helped make this man successful.
I nodded in response to his statement. We did need to know more about each other. Then why did my heart decide to start pounding?
He opened his mouth, presumably to bare his heart, and my phone rang. Dammit.
It was Sylvia. She always sensed the worst times to call. I snatched it up, shot Lucas a quick, “‘Scuse me,” and slipped out the sliding glass door onto the balcony. Where it was freezing.
“Hi, Sylvia.”
“Hey there, million-dollar baby. How’s it going?”
“It’s going. I can’t talk long, we’re, um… getting to know each other.” I glanced back into the room to see Lucas begin to pace, running one hand through his hair again.
“Ooooh. Don’t let me interrupt that.”
“We’re just talking. And I’m designing some of my clothes for the competition.”
“Really! That’s awesome. What are you designing?”
I told her about them, including the kinky one. “You have to help me. I have no idea what to design. I barely know what one looks like.”
Sylvia laughed. “I wish I could be there to witness your naivety be stripped away. Woman, why do you think they gave you that challenge?”
“Because there’s some kinky stuff I’m going to have to do that I’ve mentally blocked out?”
“Yes, but they probably gave you the challenge with him there to make you work together, to navigate speedbumps together. If you’re going to win the millions, you’ve got to be willing to jump in with your BDSM boots on, Ava.”
“Oh, god, you’re probably right. I bet they’ve orchestrated every last detail of this thing.”
“Damn straight.”
“Okay, game face on. I’m going back in… and will design a BDSM outfit with the help of sexy billionaire boy.”
“Is he as sexy as in the pictures?”
I looked back over my shoulder. He couldn’t see me watching him from out here in the dark, so I let my eyes wander over his slender yet strong form, his chiseled jaw, the eyes that flashed from ice to heat in an instant. It felt like a hand reached down into my chest, wrapped around my heart and pulled, yanking me in his direction. “Sexier. Much sexier.” He peered through the glass from the other side of the room. “Gotta go.”
After I got off the phone and shivered my way back inside and into the heat of the room and Lucas, I had a bit of Sylvia-induced confidence.
Aside from the glimpses I’d seen on the website, I really had no idea what a BDSM outfit might look like, but I had a pretty good imagination that didn’t take me to a very nice place. However, for a hundred grand, I’d design anything.
But wait. I was designing it for me. To wear. I’d be wearing a BDSM outfit? I’d been so caught up in Lucas’s reaction that it really hadn’t clicked. Holy mother of all that is made of whips and chains.
Millions, I told myself, this could be worth millions. Ten million, to be exact. This was a game, and I had to get my head firmly in it. I’d design a nice, not nasty outfit. Could this type of outfit be not nasty? My eyes flicked to Lucas.
Also in the envelope about my clothing challenge was an article on BDSM, which had pictures that didn’t impress me. But they would act as a good opener. I grabbed the envelope and waved it in the air at Lucas with a nonchalance and comfort neither of us had achieved yet. “Do you have a sec?” I was building a bridge.
“I apparently have lots of seconds.” His voice bordered on sarcasm.
“I’m really am struggling to create the BDSM outfit.”
Lucas crossed the room with quick, easy strides, his face lit up. “What do you want to know?”
“I don’t know anything about that type of thing. It would really help if you could describe it, like what’s the actual purpose of wearing it?” I was playing dumb, to an extent. I’d seen a few videos but had been more focused on the tools being used than the slight bit of clothing worn.
“You don’t know anything about the subject?”
“Not much, but it’d probably be best for you to start at the beginning.” His eyes were getting that hot gleam in them again, and I wanted to see what came next.
He looked down at the floor for a moment, and when he raised his head again, he’d obviously tapped into his iron will and locked down whatever it was he was locking down with a steel trap. “BDSM actually comes from three different acronyms sort of smashed together. B&D stands for bondage and discipline. D/s stands for dominance and submission. S&M stands for sadism and masochism.”
Well, I learned something new today. “Okay. That’s cool, except for the sadism part, that is.”
He grinned, and the movement of his face caused something deep in my belly to stir. “They mean different things to different couples. In our case,” his eyes flared hot again, “I would be the Dominant and you the submissive. The clothes one chooses to wear should give pleasure to both.”
My mouth went dry. Clothes. Pleasure. He was speaking my language now. “So, I can assume that I’ll be wearing said clothes with you in a bondage slash discipline minus sadism scenario.”
His meltingly gray eyes pierced straight into my being. “You can count on that.” Then he began talking fast, walking half circles around the bed like a wolf circling his prey. For a second, I could see why Little Red Riding Hood nearly fell prey to the Big Bad Wolf. He was probably very convincing. And sexy. “The texture of the fabric and the placement of that material is meant to cause a heightened sense of arousal in the wearer, while also giving pleasure to the Dominant. Most often, the submissive will wear things that exposes her erogenous zones or lashes across them so any move the wearer makes sends shocks of sensation through her system.”
He motioned me to the couch next to the patio door, and I moved there with my sketch pad. He pulled the pad halfway onto his thigh and held the corner nearest me so that his fist rested on my thigh. My “erogenous zone” noticed and immediately melted into wet heat.
“What did you mean when you said you didn’t date. You don’t date at all?”
He bit his lip. God that was sexy. I wanted to bite it too. Down, Ava.
“So,” he cleared his throat, completely ignoring my question, “in designing an outfit for yourself, you’ll have to make allowance for implements, such as rings for leashes.”
I couldn’t believe the casual manner in which the word leash rolled off his tongue.
“Oh, you’re hilarious. A leash,” I said with a sarcastic bite in my tone and gave a half snort.
“What’s funny about a leash?” He blinked his long eyelashes at me, playing at innocence. But in his lap, his thick, steely erection straining his zipper told another story.
Seeing his cock struggling to break free had my insides clenching. He obviously was very turned on by the lifestyle. I didn’t know what to think about that, or my response to him for that matter.
I shifted in my chair and refocused on the blank spot on my sketch pad. “Right. Nothing is funny about a leash, except the fact that you think I might let you lead me around on one. I’m not going to be dragged around like a pet like you’re playing Dungeons and Dragons.” I crossed my arms over my breasts.
“As the submissive, you only have to do what the Dom wants up to the point you can’t handle it. There’ll be a safe word you will use to signal when you’ve reached that point.” He took a deep breath, and there was a sound in his chest that reminded me of a groan. “I do, however, hope you let me push you past your comfort zone sometimes. I think you will like it exceedingly well.” He leaned closer to me, his head coming in like he was going to kiss me.
The air between us sparked. Millions. Had to concentrate on millions.
He breathed, “I just want to—”
“Don’t,” I whispered, wondering if the audio from the cameras in the rest of the suite could pick up our voices in here.
His lips curled. “I have more restraint than that, and we both have a lot riding on this competition. I was just imagining…” He tilted his head even closer until his lips were maybe three inches from mine. His warm breath caressed my face, and I breathed it in, causing a twisting feeling in my chest. “Imagining what it would be like to taste your lips. To pull you up against my body. Sink my teeth into that delicious looking full lower lip and make you moan.”
I whimpered. His eyes were nearly black, his pupils covering up all the grayish-blue. “Oh, god. Stop. Can anyone hear us? I mean, I know there are no cameras in here, but what about the other cameras? Could there be listening devices?”
“I don’t think Unc will try to get ahold of anything in the bedroom. It wouldn’t be advantageous, even in his world, to broadcast bedroom scenarios of the new CEO.”
I swallowed hard and nodded. He was being so reasonable, and it was obvious he liked the kinkier lifestyle. That made me wonder if it wasn’t as crazy as I thought, if maybe it was actually pleasurable.
I decided to play on his side of the fence. “Are you sure I’m going to be the submissive? You never know, your uncle might turn things around.”
Lucas looked up from the pad with an evil grin. “That’s never gonna happen.”
“Oh…” I halfway held back a gasp, my eyes widening at the realization that I was, in fact, going to be his submissive. The idea was scary — and exciting and erotic — so I put it away for later. I’d find a way to hold my ground. I always did.
“The BDSM-wear does need to have loops for other things. Metal rings. One at the neck, one at the waist, and I’d sure like one… between your legs.” He sounded like an overgrown kid with a Christmas list. My breath caught in my throat.
“Yes to the neck, no to everything else. My clothes, my design.” I placed my hand on my hip, letting him know I wasn’t afraid to defy him.
“Fine, but you can’t wear underclothes with the outfit. A leather strap should go across your ass to the front, and it’s essential to add leather bands for grabbing hold at the waist. Also, your breasts should be fully exposed.”
My mouth dropped open at his controlling attitude. No way, buddy. “Okay, I’m done with your input. I have an idea of what I’m doing now.” I ignored him and put pencil to pad, inspired by what not to create.
“You’re not gonna put any of those things on there, are you?” He was almost sulking next to me now. “How are we going to win this competition if we bypass things like this?”
“We’ll win it, but without a leather thong going up my twat.” I winked. “Unless you wear one too, Romeo.” I laughed and added the final touches to my work then held the design close to my chest. I knew what I had to do to win. “I’ll let you see what it is on one condition.”
He perked up with interest, but said, “It’s probably a nun outfit, just in leather.”
I gasped and hit him with the pad, and he grasped the edges, pulling it from my fingers.
I thought at first he did it to avoid my condition, but he held it to his chest without looking at it. “What’s the condition?”
His world scared me, yet was fascinating as well. I’d bring my own flavor to this, and whether we won or lost, I’d keep my dignity. But I’d have to give in too. “Will you push me? I want to know more, but I’m afraid, and if I chicken out we’ll both lose. I just… I don’t want you to hurt me. So would you push me and do the stuff that’ll hurt really fast?”
His entire countenance changed, like he’d melted then turned into a hard as stone Greek god statue. “Ava, part of the attraction is the pain, the way it amps up the pleasure. I’ll show you in a way that will push you to the next level on your own terms. And I promise not to hurt you. Ever.”
I gave him a slow smile because it was all I could manage.
He looked down at the sketch. I’d created a tailored, long leather coat that only fastened at the breast. For underneath, I’d drawn a velvet bustier with large clasps that were easily undone. They fully covered the nipple area yet offered up a lot of bust to anyone’s view. The bottoms were a pair of matching tap pants that left just enough to the imagination. I’d given the man his leather choker with a ring, and opted for Sanskrit writing on the lapels of the jacket using the symbols that meant “sacred” and “goddess.”
He stared at the design for a moment, then looked at me. “It’s BDSM light.” He said it as if he were a teacher giving my work a grade.
“Exactly. Is there such a thing?”
“Yes. What do these symbols mean?”
I explained, then unconsciously licked my bottom lip. When I looked up, he was staring at the place my tongue had been.
“Fuck, this is going to be a long night.” He stood and then flopped onto the bed.
“Don’t you want to see the rest of my creations?” I tried not to sound disappointed.
“On you. I want to see the rest on you. Rather, honestly, I want to see them off of you.” He looked at me and clenched his jaw, which for some reason sent bolts of electricity through me. “Come on over here.” He tapped the pillow beside him.
“You want me there?” I nearly squeaked. “I have to turn this in by midnight.”
“You have ten minutes. Go turn it in. We need to get some sleep. Somehow.” He stared up through the skylight. “No telling what Unc has in store for us tomorrow.”
I put the finishing touches on the last drawing and decided that since he would be pushing me to who knows what limits, it was my opportunity to do the same to him. “I’ve got to get dressed for bed,” I announced.
He groaned under his breath. “No, you’ve got to get undressed, so I can at least look at you.”
“That’s not going to help…” I looked pointedly at his crotch, “your situation there. But you’ll be happy to know the nightwear they gave me is barely-there nightwear, so you’ll be seeing plenty.”
“Score one for Lucas.” He raised a playful fist in the air.
I laughed and sauntered into the foyer to meet the guide from before, my hips doing an extra sway of their own accord.
Once I handed the drawings over, I realized that left us alone… for the whole long night.