They both laughed at her heated blush, and Bryan turned the offer down. After the domme left, he leaned in and kept his voice low as he said, “Remember, little flame, I’m here to help you experience anything or anyone you want. Would you like to go play with Mistress Rebecca?”
Tanwen cast a glance at the tall domme’s back as she strolled through the crowd. “I don’t think I’m ready for that yet, at all. Besides, I feel…safe with you.” She obediently opened her mouth as he placed a tiny bit of mashed potatoes inside.
His smile at her words washed over her like sunshine, and she had to stop herself from sighing like a silly girl. “I won’t say I’m disappointed with that, but I want you to have the experiences you’ve been craving.” His kissable lips curved into a wicked grin. “Come to the zoo with me in the morning.”
She laughed and didn’t pull away when he curled his fingers into hers. He had strong, capable hands, and she relished how dainty he made her feel. “A visit to the zoo? Isn’t that rather…vanilla?”
“For a regular zoo, it is. I’m talking about the VR zoo Sodom has set up for our club tomorrow morning.” He gave her a teasing grin. “I used to think doing one of those simulations would be a waste of time, but after sharing this afternoon with you, I can’t wait to do it again.” He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “I guess it all depends on who you’re playing with, just like anything else in life. The right partner makes everything more exciting.”
She looked at their fingers twined together, confused by her feelings. On one hand, she was very flattered that he wanted to spend more time with her, but on the other hand, she found herself just as eager to be with him. That thought disconcerted her. She was supposed to be sampling lots of different men, even if that idea didn’t have the appeal it had when she’d boarded her plane earlier today. “There wasn’t anything about it on my itinerary. I don’t think I’m invited.”
“I want you there with me. I want to watch your pretty cheeks turn pink as you see something that at once embarrasses and arouses you. I want you to trust me to push your limits, to take you beyond what your safe little world has insisted is right and proper.”
She was trapped by his gaze as surely as a mouse looking into the eyes of a snake. Her entire mind seemed to shut down until the only thing that mattered was him. “Okay.”
“Excellent. Let me make some arrangements.” He ran his knuckles down her cheek and over her neck, warming her skin and making her want to purr. “When you go to bed tonight, I want you to think about me, how it felt to have my hands on your ass, the way you bent to my will in such a graceful manner. However, you are forbidden to orgasm until we meet at the zoo. Understood?”
The wicked words he spoke in his deep voice indeed made her want to slip her hand beneath her skirt and soothe the ache he’d been building during dinner, but how dare he tell her she couldn’t orgasm in the privacy of her own room. She’d do whatever she dang well pleased. Some of her thoughts must have shown on her face, because the lines around his eyes crinkled as he gave her a tight smile.
“Promise me, little flame. You are a woman of your word, and I trust you to keep it.”
A waiter leaned down to set a plate of strawberry cheesecake in front of them, but Bryan didn’t break his hold on her. If anything, he forced the waiter to move around them, as if he were a rock and the rest of humanity a stream that had to flow past him or dash themselves to bits on his unbreakable surface. She didn’t know what that made her, because she wanted to please him, wanted to make him happy. His praise filled her with a joy that could easily become addictive. Wanting more of it, she quickly nodded. “Yes, Sir. You have my word.”
“Your word about what, Tanwen?”
She swallowed and lowered her voice, leaning into him as she glanced around to make sure no one was listening. “My word that I won’t…that I won’t have my orgasm until I see you again.”
“Thank you,” he said with a small smile and tapped her nose. “Off with you now. As much as I’d like to join you tonight, I think it’s best if I give you some time to process everything that’s happened to you today. You’ve had a long day, and I can see the weariness in your eyes. Your welfare is of the utmost importance to me. Never forget that.” The tender smile he gave her melted her bones like sugar candy left out in the rain. “I want to know when I see you tomorrow that you’re there because you want to be and not just because of a decision you made in the heat of the moment.”
“Yes, Sir.” She moved to stand, but he beat her to it, pulling out her chair and offering her a hand. She paused and looked up at him, studying his face before slipping his hand into hers and letting him help her stand. For as deliciously kinky as he was in his sexual tastes, he never failed to treat her like a lady. It made her feel cherished, feminine, and protected. She gave in to a sudden urge and lifted onto her tiptoes and placed a gentle kiss on his lips. His rumble of pleasure vibrated through her body and seemed to settle in her clit, making it throb with the beat of her heart.
He pulled back and studied her with such an intense expression that she couldn’t hold his gaze and looked at her feet instead. “Why did you feel the need to kiss me?”
She flushed, finding it next to impossible to put her feelings into words without sounding silly. “I-I guess I just wanted to let you know I appreciate that you’re a gentleman.”
He laughed and hauled her to his chest, placing a sound kiss on her forehead and a pinch on her ass before releasing her. She squirmed away from him and looked at him through narrowed eyes. “I take that back. You’re a cad, Sir.”
Laughter still glimmered in his eyes, but he stepped close, invading her space and making her look up at him. “You’re lucky you remembered to add the ‘Sir’ onto that, or I’d be tempted to throw that pretty dress over your head, bend you against this table, and spank your ass until it was as red as the strawberries on the cheesecake.” His hips pressed into hers, and the sensation of his erection pushing into her belly made her body tighten with need. “Then I’d spread your legs and mash those strawberries into your undoubtedly creamy pussy and eat my dessert.”
A tremor passed through her as she battled between burning embarrassment at the mental image he painted and the urge to toss her own skirts over her head. Before she could decide what to do, he spun her around with a smack on her ass. “You are temptation itself. Off with you before I decide the only experience you need tonight is how many ways you can worship my cock.”
With his words burning in her ears and the imprint of his hand heating her bottom, she stumbled between the tables toward the exit. Every step pressed her thighs against her wet panties and aching pussy. The rasp of her dress over her nipples only added to her torment. Worst of all, she could feel his eyes on her as she made her way through the crowd. Sure enough, when she reached the door, she looked back and found him watching her. Their gazes met, and desire flooded her, more potent than anything she had felt since she was a teenager.
Unnerved, she darted out the door and leaned against the outer wall, staring up at the tastefully recessed lighting in the ceiling. Once the doors of the ballroom closed behind her, the relative quiet of the hallway far off the main foyer rang in her ears. Her thoughts spun through her head like the pages of a flip book, little snapshots of conversations and images blurring through her mind in a confusing jumble. Bryan feeding her; Bryan laughing at something Master Greg said; Bryan watching her as if she were the most fascinating thing he’d ever seen.