Naughty Temptations

Chapter Two-1

Chapter Two

It felt like it took forever to get through the next few days. She saw Cindy and Ryan a couple of times in passing. On Thursday he was out in front working on planting a shrub as she got home from work. He came over long enough to tell her that he’d be taking Cindy to her mother Friday evening and asked if she’d be interested in going with him to a local arts festival Saturday afternoon and then on to dinner. She only hoped she didn’t sound too much like an infatuated teenager as she accepted the invitation.

The seconds from then to Saturday afternoon stretched out and took forever to pass. Lauren had to exercise all her self-discipline to be casual rather than super-excited when he finally rang her doorbell almost precisely on the dot of one.

He looked scrumptious in soft jeans that clung to long, muscular legs with a blue cashmere sweater over a lighter blue dress shirt. Lauren was glad she’d worn her best tunic sweater with black leggings and low-heeled, slip-on boots. The way he smiled as he looked at her repaid her for the effort she’d gone to with hair and make-up as well. It also told her that he was making an effort to put aside whatever other concerns or issues he had to be sure they both enjoyed the day.

The weather was sunny and crisp, a little warmer than usual for mid-October but still cool enough to warrant the sweaters. It proved to be a perfect day in almost every way. They had to walk a bit after he parked near the festival grounds, but they talked about where they grew up on the way. Once there, they enjoyed a variety of musical acts and discovered their tastes were similar. Rows of booths featured the works of artists and craftspeople of all sorts. They admired most of it.

After a while they held hands as they went from one attraction to the next. They stopped at a glass-blower’s booth that held an array of beautiful creations, from tiny, exquisite butterflies, to a large and graceful swan. They spent almost fifteen minutes watching the artist demonstrate how he made crystal balls and little cups. He then crafted a tiny, gorgeously detailed glass rose in shades of red and pink. Lauren was both surprised and delighted when Ryan bought it from him and gave it to her.

As twilight faded into darkness, when their feet couldn’t handle anymore, they went onto a restaurant that had drawn rave reviews. Lauren had never been there before. The food and atmosphere lived up to the praise, but the company and conversation were even better than she could have dared imagine.

They got back to his place about ten. When he parked in his driveway, before they got out, he asked, “Would you like to come in for a nightcap?” The words sounded strained. She couldn’t tell whether he really wanted her to accept or not. But he continued, “I have a bottle of a special cognac I’ve been saving. If you’re too tired, though, I’ll walk you back to your door.”

“Cognac sounds wonderful, but only if you’re not too tired.”

Maybe he heard her hesitation and understood it reflected his seeming reluctance because he leaned back in the seat, resting his head against the headrest. “Lauren, I’m sorry if I sounded less than enthusiastic about inviting you in. It’s not the truth. It’s far from the truth. I want you to join me so badly I can’t…find the words. But of course there are issues.” He sighed and smacked a hand against the steering wheel. “There are problems and complications so…extraordinary you’d probably think I’m insane. I’m a mess, I’m afraid. If you do join me, I can’t make any promises, any commitments.”

“It’s kind of early in the relationship to talk about commitments,” she said. “It’s more about discovering each other and—hopefully—enjoying the process.”

“But that’s just it. I don’t really have the right to.”

Her heart clenched. “Are you still married to Cindy’s mother? Or someone else?”

In the light from a nearby street light she could see his lips twist into a grimace. He barked a short, sharp laugh that held little real amusement. “No. I’m not married. To Cindy’s mother or anyone else. It might’ve been easier.” He turned toward her. “If we continue, someday I’ll tell you about it. But not today. I’d rather have some time with you before you hear how completely insane I am. I have entanglements but not that kind.”

“Then let’s go get some cognac.”

He got out, came around the car to open her door, and escorted her into his condo. “It always seems sort of empty when Cindy’s not here. Too quiet.”

“I’m sure.” She followed him into the kitchen and waited while he found the bottle and glasses and poured out a generous measure for each of them.

He handed her the glass, then held his out to clink against it. “To voyages into the unknown.”

The toast surprised and mystified her a bit, but she tapped his glass and took a small sip. She’d tasted cognac a few times before so the burn didn’t shock her. The deep, smooth, smoky flavor delighted her tongue and her slightly chilled body appreciated the warmth that spread through her when she swallowed it.

They proceeded to the lounge, where he lit the gas fire and sat next to her on the sofa facing it. As they sipped he said, “I know you teach at the community college, but I don’t know what your field is.”

“Computers,” she answered. “I teach certification classes for office software and network setup and security.”

“Very necessary skills these days. You enjoy it?”

She shrugged. “Pretty much. It’s a challenge staying on top of a field that changes so fast and so drastically, but that’s part of why I like it.”

“Did you always want to work with computers?”

“Not really. I’ve always been pretty geeky and there were always lots of computers around when I was a kid. I was comfortable with them, but growing up I thought I wanted to be a doctor. Until I discovered I was queasy about blood.”

He grinned. “And now a more personal question. Why is someone as beautiful as you not married or claimed?”

She hesitated, taking another sip of the liqueur. “You’re not the only one with complications. And, no, I’m not married, engaged, or committed either. Now. I was engaged a year or so ago. But he… Anyway, it’s over and I’m free.”

He stared at her for a moment as if sifting through her words for the hidden meanings. They were there, too, and maybe he had a clue because he grimaced and shifted the conversation. “I wanted to be a police officer when I was growing up. Until I spent some time with a couple of them and realized how unglamorous most of the job was. So instead I went to law school after college and got a business degree at the same time.”

“You put in some serious time with the books to get two degrees,” she said.

“In grad school. As an undergrad, I majored more in partying and vacations. Barely squeaked by my first couple of years.” His lips twisted in an ironic curl. “My mom died at the end of my junior year and then my dad went a year later. But they knew I planned to try for an MBA and they set aside enough money for me to pay for it. So even though they were gone, I couldn’t betray their faith in me. I buckled down and loaded up on courses to get the JD and MBA in four years.”

“I’m impressed.”

He raised an eyebrow. “You must’ve done some serious book time yourself. What does it take to teach computer classes at the college level?”

“An undergraduate degree in psychology, although I think any degree would do fine, then a Masters in Information Technology including classes for various software certifications.”

“You’re the prettiest computer geek I’ve met.”

Lauren felt a blush rising. “You can’t have met that many, then.”

“Enough.”

The cognac relaxed her and seemed to have a similar effect on Ryan. Some of the grim reserve that had lurked just behind his pleasant expression all day had dissipated. When he drew her closer to wrap his arm around her, she didn’t resist. Then he leaned over to kiss her. Firm, warm lips brushed over hers, nipped and pressed until she opened up and let his tongue in. Heat rushed through her body as he invaded the hot depths of her mouth, stroking and exploring.

She groaned deep in her throat. He brushed his hands down her sides and then worked them under her sweater. Everywhere he touched seemed to erupt in separate fires that burned into her core and ignited a blaze of need. Her breath came out in a series of sobs as his fingers roved her sides and pushed up her bra to reach her breasts.

He squeezed lightly and she froze as memories assaulted her. Dan squeezing her n*****s so hard she yelled. Putting on n****e clamps so tight she begged him to take them off, even used her safe word because the pain was so unbearable.

Ryan must’ve felt the change in her. He let go and backed away. “You’re not ready for this.” He made the words more question than statement.

“No. Yes. I mean I want this. It’s not… It’s not you. I had a memory. A flashback. And it was bad. But I want this. Want you. Truly.”

“Then we need to talk about it.” He refilled their glasses and handed one to her. “Have a sip. Can you tell me what that was?”

“Remember how you said your past was complicated? I guess mine is too. And you probably won’t want anything to do with me when you hear…”

“Let’s don’t make assumptions about how I’ll react.” He watched her steadily and some of the harshness was back in his expression.

“All right.” She took another sip of cognac. “This is hard. I started dating Dan a few years ago and we hit it off in a lot of ways. We had fun together and we liked to do a lot of the same things. Sexually…we did a lot of experimenting with various things. We discovered we both liked a bit of spice, a bit of kink, in our relations. We played games, things like the servant or the master and slave, things where he’d tie me up and blindfold me and sometimes he’d spank me. It sounds sleazy, I know, but really it wasn’t...mostly.”

Her voice broke as tears threatened and she had to stop for a moment. She couldn’t read his expression, which hadn’t changed noticeably. He might be appalled and hiding it. What came next was worse.

“After a while,” she continued once the cognac had soothed her rough throat, “he started pushing me farther and farther, doing things I wasn’t always comfortable with. I went along because I loved him and I wanted to make him happy. But the spankings got harder, which I could mostly handle, but he began to squeeze my breasts really hard and put on n****e clamps that were so tight I couldn’t stand it.”

She stopped for a breath.

“Did you have a safe word?” Ryan asked.

Something that had been tensed up inside her gut began to curl and unwind. “We did. But after a while he’d sometimes ignore it and tell me I could take more and I should do it for him. Even that I went along with, telling myself I was doing it because I loved him and it was part of his mastery. But then one night, he had a knife and he cut me with it. Nothing big, just a couple of small nicks, but…it terrified me. He ignored the safe word again and scared me half to death. When he finished, I told him that was it. We were done.” She took a deep breath. “I moved out and gave him back the ring. He apologized several times, told me it wouldn’t happen again, but I didn’t believe him. The trust was gone. At least he finally accepted it and let me go.”

Ryan set his glass down hard on the table. “He was an i***t. An asshole. Submission is a tremendous gift. One to be treasured and treated carefully, not abused.”

“You sound like you know about this stuff.” She tried to keep it from sounding like an accusation.

“I do.”

“You know what maybe scares me the most? I still want it. Not him. Not Dan. But with someone else. Even though I know how dangerous it is. I still secretly—well, maybe not so secretly now—I still want that in my relationship. A bit of it anyway. Just not as extreme as he wanted it.”