Chapter Twenty
TWENTY
Maggie had her own chance to reconsider on the T ride back, but she didn’t do any actual reconsidering at all.
Instead, she remained focused on the warmth of Blake’s hand in hers, the soft touch of his fingertips on her skin, the way her lips tingled from his kiss.
Her brain was still flipping back and forth between Blake her roommate and the mysterious Scarlet Pimpernel, trying to reconcile the two disparate identities into one man.
The condo felt the same, yet different when they stepped inside.
Blake closed the door firmly behind them, the slide of the deadbolt loud in the quiet.
She’d left a light on, as she always did, the soft glow illuminating the space and all its shadows, and her anticipation ratcheted up another notch.
It wasn’t quite anxiety, but her heart raced and her breath wouldn’t settle, thoughts tumbling over each other.
If this didn’t work, how was she supposed to live with him? What if it all fell apart?
When she turned to face him, Blake was closer than she’d expected. Had his eyes always been this dark?
“Are we being ridiculous?” Maggie’s voice came out too loud in the quiet room.
“Maybe,” he murmured. “Do you mean about something in particular?”
She rolled her eyes. “I know—” she began, and her voice broke, so she breathed out and started again. “I know we’ve got chemistry.”
“We did Saturday night.” She could see the hunger in his eyes.
“But—but Rose, and the Pimpernel.” She swallowed. She wasn’t sure she could put it into words. “I don’t know if I’m that person, in real life. I don’t know if that—I mean, what if it’s just on the phone?”
Impossibly quick, Blake’s hand came up and slid into her hair, closing into a fist that sent sharp needles of pleasure-pain through her body.
Her words and breath vanished in a single squeak.
Oh, fuck. Her mind went fuzzy, all thoughts fading into a vague notion of yes, this, and she moaned, fingernails biting into her palms.
“Does this make you wet?” he asked, voice low and husky and rough, hand still firm in her hair, and she had never heard Blake sound like that before.
“Yes.” She could only whisper, too overcome for words.
With his free hand, he brushed his thumb across her lower lip. “And do you like it?”
Maggie tried to nod, couldn’t move her head, and a noise slipped out that was more of a whimper. “Yes.”
He exhaled in a half laugh and released her hair. “Then I think we’re OK, sweetheart.”
Sweetheart. She surged forward to kiss him.
God, she needed to get her mouth on him, lust burning through her along with something deeper, more tender and vulnerable that she wasn’t quite ready to examine.
His lips parted under hers. She needed to be closer and ran her hands down to his waistband, his hips twitching when she finally pressed against his erection through his pants.
“Hey now.” He smiled against her mouth, his hand catching her by the wrist. “Getting ahead of yourself?”
“I want you.” She tried to pull away, but he held her tight.
“Do you want to take this slow?” His voice was almost steady, a small tremor in the end. “Or do you want me to take you apart?”
“Fuck.” She was nearly panting. “Take me apart. I’m done fooling around.”
“You know I know your kinks.” He twisted her hand around behind her back. “How does that make you feel?”
Maggie licked her lips. “Wet.”
“Fuck,” he groaned.
“I like when you swear.” She grinned up at him, to which he grabbed her other wrist and pinned it behind her with the first.
“I told you I do. You just didn’t believe me.” He leaned in to suck at her earlobe, and her legs went wobbly. When she pulled her wrists, he held her pinned there. “Tell me to stop anytime.” He kissed her, catching her bottom lip between his teeth for a moment. “I’ll stop if you ask.”
She chased after his kiss, but he smiled and pulled away.
“Your room or mine?”
She returned his smile at that. They’d already done this in her room. “Let’s go to yours this time.”
“Mmm, good.” He nuzzled at her jaw. “I have all my favorite toys in there.”
“What?” she asked, but he was already pulling her inside.
He drew the blinds as she closed the door behind them. Then he turned on his bedside lamp, casting a soft glow. “I want to see you.” He stepped away from her and looked her up and down. “All of you. Take off your clothes.”
Undressing via command felt different and delicious. She first unzipped her long boots and set them by the bureau, then tugged her sweater dress over her head. She peeled back layers until she stood before him in only her lacy bra and panties.
His eyes drank her in. “When I saw you in these earlier,” he said quietly, “I hoped I’d get to see them again.”
Maggie smiled. “You want to see what’s under them?” She removed the rest.
Blake groaned at the sight of her naked body. “You’re incredible,” he murmured, voice quiet but clear in the stillness of the room. “God, I’ve been thinking so much about you.” He closed that small distance between them. “Legs apart, sweetheart,” he said. “Hands behind your back.”
“Oh.” Her word came out like a gasp, and she swayed.
“That OK?” He stroked her cheek with a finger.
Maggie nodded.
He made a soft “Mmm” noise and kissed her. “Then obey.”
She couldn’t hold back a moan, widening her stance, moving her hands behind her back.
“Good girl,” he practically purred, and the noise went straight to her clit.
“I don’t know what you’re doing to me.” She was panting and he’d barely touched her.
“Driving you wild, I hope.” He stepped back to really look at her. This position pushed her breasts forward, and she couldn’t hide. She had to let him watch her, and god, that was doing something to her. He began to undress.
Although they’d just slept together a few days ago, she felt like she was seeing him for the first time with each inch of skin he revealed. He stripped down to snug-fitting boxer briefs outlining his beautiful cock, then removed that last piece of clothing.
She saw him, then: not only Blake, but also the Scarlet Pimpernel; the man who wove delicious stories about her darkest fantasies, who teased her about tying her up until she couldn’t move, who made her edge until she couldn’t think straight.
She’d been living with him this whole time and never known, and now that she knew, she wanted all of it.
“Are you going to tie me up?” she asked.
He tilted his head. “Do you want that?”
Maggie bit her lip. “I don’t know.”
He stepped into her space, and his proximity made her breathe faster. “We could see if you like it,” he whispered, so close his words brushed against her mouth.
Maggie stared into his eyes, their depths dark and commanding, yet still kind. “Yes,” she breathed.
“You don’t even know how perfect you are.” He cupped her face and kissed her long and deep, then broke the kiss to rest his forehead against hers. “Come sit on the bed.”
He pulled back the duvet and sheets, folding them neatly at the foot of the bed. Maggie climbed up and sat in the middle. She’d been standing in this room barely a few hours ago, wondering what the future held. She didn’t expect to be back in it this soon, but damn, she was happy to be here.
Blake pulled a small footlocker from his closet and opened it.
“Holy fuck.” Maggie stared into a crate of ropes, floggers, and all kinds of implements she didn’t recognize, all organized in neat rows. “You know how to use all that?”
“I do, yes.”
“Is there a binder for this, too?”
Blake laughed. “I could make one if you wanted.” He pulled out a bundle of soft-looking black rope. “I thought we’d try something simple and see what you think.”
Maggie nodded. “OK.”
“Do you trust me?” he asked.
“Of course.”
He smiled. “Cross your hands in front of you.”
She watched as he bound her hands, encircling each wrist before tying them together. He moved deftly, like he’d done this a hundred times before. He left the rope ends trailing. “How does that feel?”
She tried to pull her hands free and couldn’t, and a jolt of arousal ran through her. “Good.” What an understatement.
“Good,” he repeated. He placed a hand in the middle of her chest and pushed her back onto the bed.
She laughed in surprise, until he tugged her bound hands up over her head, stretching them taut, and her laugh became a strangled gasp as he tied them in place.
In moments, she was bound to his bed. “This explains the type of headboard you chose.” She attempted to sound flippant, but it came out breathy.
Blake smiled. “You all right, there? Still having fun?”
Maggie nodded, body pulsing with need.
Blake stretched out next to her and brushed her hair back from her face. “I love this,” he whispered, propping himself up on one elbow to look down at her. Then he reached between her legs to circle her clit.
Maggie’s eyes slammed shut, pleasure exploding through her. It was the first time he’d touched her there tonight and she was already on fire. She couldn’t move, and that made it even better.
“You’re so wet,” he whispered. “You like knowing you can’t get away?”
“Yes,” she moaned, that moan turning into a cry when he bent and sucked her nipple into his mouth.
He was rougher than he’d been the other night, pulling hard, leaving her tingling when he stretched across her to the other side.
The whole time, his fingers kept rubbing her clit, steady and perfect.
God, he could make her come in no time, her willpower sliding away as her orgasm built.
“You know I’m not going to let you come yet, right?”
Maggie’s eyes flashed open, meeting his. He was still rubbing her clit with that maddening precision. “Shit.”
Blake laughed. “We spent weeks unpacking your kinks, and you think I don’t know how much you love this?” He leaned over and kissed her, slow and steady. “I want to take my time with you.”
“You should—take your time later,” Maggie said, taking a breath in the middle. Her hips rocked against his hand.