Chapter 30
30
A fter almost getting caught with a hard on by Bella in the library, Leslie went for another swim, this time choosing a white bikini. Her mischievous smile when she came out wearing it was a clear challenge: Alex had told her she couldn’t go skinny dipping, that her body was for him to see and no one less, and yet her little loophole indicated she wasn’t above flaunting her independence in his face. Alex just smiled and enjoyed the view, filing her defiance in the back of his mind. He’d enjoy punishing her for it in a way that would make her scream with pleasure.
After her swim, they went for a walk then headed upstairs. She’d flipped through some magazines that Rosa had brought them, but he could tell she was beginning to feel a bit of cabin fever. It had only been two days since they’d went to that sex club together, but in that time, he knew she was itching to speak with her family about everything that had happened.
A late evening storm had rolled in over the sea and the air in Alex and Leslie’s suite crackled with electricity. Alex could smell rain even though not a single drop had fallen on the suite's balcony. Leslie stood at the window, still wearing his jacket, which he’d give her when they went for their walk given she was still wearing her bikini top with shorts and the air had already started to cool.
Alex rifled through his black duffel bag, which was filled with not only the clothes and toiletries that they procured before leaving New York, but several things he’d brought to pass the time since he had no idea how long they’d be here. After he retrieved what he wanted, he dropped the pack of cards on the table, and the sound made Leslie turn just as he'd predicted.
“Let’s play poker,” he said.
"Poker?" she asked. Then she smiled. “Only if it’s strip poker.”
Alex grinned. They were on the same wavelength, just not on the same channel. “You read my mind.”
Alex was amazed at how easy it was for Leslie to turn him on. And seemingly without her even trying. Or knowing. But just the sweetness of her voice and the quick little spark of lust in her eyes had been enough.
"Why not push things a little further?" he asked, tipping the cards from the box. As he ran his thumb along the stack, he said, "Win a hand, you get to add a sexual favor to the list of what we’ll explore tonight.”
Her eyebrows rose in surprised delight. “And if I lose?”
“You have to give up a secret.”
Now she frowned. “What kind of secret?”
“A sexual fantasy.”
She laughed. “We already talked fantasies at the sex club, remember? Besides, winner gets a favor, loser reveals a fantasy. Don’t those lead to the same thing?”
“Not at all. The winner definitely gets what they want tonight, the loser might get it, be it tonight or in the future.”
“Ah, so the winner enjoys the anticipation, while the loser walks away with questions: if and when. Subtle torture.”
“Exactly. Are you in?”
When he’d had the idea for the game, he'd wanted to give Leslie a little bit of fun to keep her mind off her restlessness or darker things. Now the sexual tension in the room was off the charts.
Was her heart racing as fast as his was? Did she feel like this moment was as dangerous as he did?
He couldn't seem to help himself when it came to Leslie. It was all fun and games, and he could try to convince himself it was all he wanted from her. But then she gave him a look that caught him off guard or spoke in a voice that stabbed right through him and he knew that it wasn't enough. And it never would be. Not with Leslie.
“Oh, I’m in.” Leslie threw the jacket he'd lent her earlier for the evening chill onto the back of the couch and stepped up to the table in her bikini top and shorts.
Picking up the deck, she looked at him with determination in her eyes and asked, "Are you dealing? Or am I?"
A minute later, they were seated across from each other at the table.
Leslie looked doubtfully at his folded hand. Did she have any idea how adorable she looked when she squinted her eyes like that? Alex struggled not to smile.
"Did you let me win?" Leslie asked.
Alex pressed two fingers against his losing cards. "Do you want me to show you?"
Leslie hesitated. “No, I trust you.”
“Good. What favor do you want added to the list?”
She again hesitated, then said, "Make my nipples hard with only your mouth."
Alex wanted to call her a little minx. A devil. An angel. Instead he just smiled and “officially” wrote her request down on the piece of paper he’d grabbed.
"You want to know my secret? My fantasy?" he asked.
“Of course.”
He picked up the deck and shuffled the cards as he said, "I'd definitely like to see you in that ball gag again."
She laughed. “That’s not really a secret, but I’ll give you a pass this time.”
Alex won the next hand.
"I want you to give me a lap dance for the length of a song.”
She winced. "I'm not a very good dancer.”
"Something tells me you'll do just fine, baby."
"Thanks for the faith. Here’s my secret. I’d like you to handcuff me. Tie me up. Restrain me in any way you’d like.”
Alex bit back a groan. He had an erection that was so hard it was painful. “Maybe that’s good for now,” Alex said.
But when he started to collect the cards, Leslie placed her hand over his and said, “Don’t you fucking dare, Alex. You started this. We’re playing at least ten hands."
She lost the next hand.
Just as he was about to speak, she said, “Don’t hold back again, Alex.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re supposed to reveal a sexual fantasy you want from me, and you chose a lap dance? Come on.”
“But that’s definitely a fantasy of mine, Leslie. I wasn’t holding back.”
She studied him then said, “Okay. I believe you. But this time, reveal something you want, maybe something that involves your body and my mouth this time?”
He narrowed his eyes at her, about to chastise her that he’d won the hand and could reveal any secret fantasy he wanted. Instead, he figured why not? “I want you to suck my balls.”
She looked surprised. “Not your cock?”
He smiled evilly. “Part of my fantasy is getting off on torturing you a little, baby girl.”
She looked confused for a moment before realization dawned. “Teasing me with what I want without letting me have it yet?”
“Teasing us both. Sometimes subtle torture isn’t just for the loser but for the winner, too.”
At that, she flushed then swallowed hard. “Got it.”
When Leslie won next, she said, “I want you to slap my face with your dick while you hold my wrists together above my head.”
Fuuuck, Alex thought. That escalated fast and it only got worse (or better, depending on how one characterized it) from there.
Alex wrote it down the winner list.
It now read:
Make Leslie’s nipples hard with just Alex’s mouth
Leslie gives Alex a lap dance for the full length of a song
Leslie sucks Alex’s balls
Alex slaps Leslie’s face with his dick while he pins her wrists together above her head
They were both breathless as he dealt out the next hand. Sexual tension was heavy around them. Leslie's nipples were hard, his cock was hard. He’d bet all the money he had that her pussy was weeping, begging for his tongue.
He was so distracted he bet on a terrible hand. And lost.
He picked up the pen again, ready to write down whatever Leslie said.
“I want you to flog me."
Leslie noticed the change almost immediately in Alex's demeanor. Without moving or speaking, she sensed his withdrawal.
Why? After what they’d seen and done at the sex club and since then, he couldn’t be shocked. He was supposed to be treating her like an equal, like an adult. Now she was feeling self-conscious, like she was suddenly in the room with her brother’s protective best friend rather than a man who wanted her.
Finally, Alex said, "You're not ready for that. Not tonight."
Leslie resisted the urge to cross her arms over her chest. She knew she would look petulant and she wanted to avoid any association with her and the word “child” in Alex's mind. He gave her a fixed look. Like the matter was decided. Like the parent had said no. And no means no.
"Oh really?”
“Yes. Really.”
“And you get to decide when I’m ready for sexual favors?”
“In this case, yes.”
She frowned, confused once again that after everything they’d discussed, this would be such a sticking point for him.
Then realization dawned. Along with it came disappointment. Shame. Even anger.
“Of course,” she said. “You know about my dad. How he used to hit me.”
Alex’s jaw clenched and then he nodded. “I do.”
It made sense. He was Branden’s best friend. He was also their family’s security specialist. He would know everything there was to know about them when it came to potential threats. She understood, but she still hated that he knew. Leslie didn't want Alex drawing those images of her in his head: Leslie the little girl, Leslie the victim, Leslie the poor thing that needed a gentle touch.
She wanted to go back to just minutes ago when the air in the suite had been sweet and heavy with their arousal. When Alex was pushing her instead of reigning her in. She wanted him to look at her the way he had when he said he wanted her to suck his balls. Not the way he was looking at her now. Like she'd gotten too close to the edge of a cliff and he had to pull her back.
"I’ve worked through my issues with my dad. I know it’s never alright to make light of abuse, but believe me, it could have been far worse. The idea of being spanked or yes, even flogged, during sex doesn’t scare me, Alex. I like it when I've seen it in porn," she said. "And at the club."
And other times.
Alex didn’t know it because she hadn’t told him, but she’d seen her neighbor’s dom flogging her. It was summer and even though it was late the color of the sky was still an almost royal blue against the yellow of their window. The black straps crisscrossing the woman's body... the shimmer on her chin from the ball gag... the elegant curve of her bound neck as she arched back in rapture when the flogger landed...
It had startled Leslie. But not for long. The man wasn't hurting the woman the way her father hurt her. This man was hurting the woman for her pleasure. She was in charge.
She’d fantasized about Alex doing that to her for a long time. But now the memory felt dirty. He'd made her feel wrong .