“Bedroom fun.” Liam smirked, crossing his arms. Jaz was an enthusiastic and generous lover, and they were yet to find a room they couldn’t turn into a playground of pleasure. Discovering new ways of turning her on was one of his greatest sexual pleasures, and he knew she’d enjoyed the paces he’d put her through thus far. But while he liked the erotic spankings Jaz’s body roused to so deliciously, he’d never doled out true pain. Not with her, not with any partner beside a couple of masochists who’d asked him to indulge their fantasy.
His smirk faded, his face growing serious. This wasn’t the time for jests or misunderstandings. “What exactly were you told?” he asked. “You can keep the who to yourself, but without knowing what it is I’m supposedly holding myself back from, I can hardly provide perspective.”
This time, Jaz didn’t look away. “When we were at the Shadow Cove, someone told me that you enjoy enforcing some of the harsher rules. That you’ve left scars. That isn’t something—”
“I did what?” Liam’s eyes flashed, his skin heating with sudden fury. “I ask you again, who the hell told you that?”
“Which part of ‘I’m not breaking a confidence’ do you find confusing?” Jaz fired back.
He grunted, accepting the blow, then spoke through clenched teeth. “I despise real hurt, Jaz. And I sure as hell wouldn’t injure someone on purpose. Though I’m itching to make an exception for whoever told you that. Goddamn it.” He shook his head. No wonder their one and only trip to Shadow Cove had done an about-face halfway through. “Why didn’t you say anything before?”
She shrugged, and Liam could see her pulse hammering at the side of her neck. “It didn’t come up. But when I saw the ring, and the real forever… What if you need things I can’t give you? What happens then?”
Liam closed his hands on her hips. “Damn it, Sprite, just watching you bend over your climbing charts gets me so hard, I’ve had to invest in looser jeans. In fact, I’ve half a mind to relieve you of yours now, bend you over that ATV seat, and demonstrate my enjoyment with utter thoroughness.”
The heat coming off Jaz doubled.
Liam slid his hands up her body until his palms rested on either side of her face. Of her hopeful, worried eyes. Whatever the faulty, vindictive source of her information, he could see that she needed more than words to believe in their compatibility. And more than just another tumble—on an ATV or otherwise. Jaz needed proof. And there was only one way that Liam could think of making that happen.
Except he didn’t particularly like it. But he’d been a fool to think that he could—or should—sweep that part of himself into the darkness. Whatever they decided to do going forward, he needed to show himself to Jaz as much as he asked her to show herself to him.
“There’s only one way to get this settled,” Liam told her. “And that’s at Shadow Cove. Ground zero. I think it’s time we explore the mysteries about my pleasures—and yours—that we never fully sorted out. If you trust me enough to come.”
“I trust you with my life,” Jaz said.
Leaning forward, Liam pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I know, Sprite. But tonight, we find out whether you trust me with your pleasure.”
45
Jaz
Walking into Shadow Cove this time was different. Scarier. More intimate. It started with the way Liam’s hand splayed between Jaz’s shoulder blades as he guided her inside, his presence a steady living force beside her. He wasn’t bringing her for a show-and-tell. They were coming here to learn each other’s truths.
Without the shield of that distant curiosity, every sound and call of pleasure now prickled over Jaz’s skin. Suddenly, she wasn’t sure she was worried about what she might discover about Liam, but rather of what she might learn about herself. What they both might learn.
Solana was at the front desk again, the widening of her eyes when she saw Jaz and Liam entering together as good as a confession. The girl avoided Jaz’s gaze as she checked them both in and stood aside to let them pass into the main room. When Jaz threw a quick glance over her shoulder, she found Solana watching her with a sour expression.
Capturing the woman’s gaze, Jaz gave her a pitiful shake of the head. I’ve figured you out. And you are a sad excuse for a human.
Solena flinched. Good. Message received.
Before Jaz could dwell further on the lying receptionist, however, they were in the main room, dim lights and upbeat music filling the space. It was near 11:00 p.m., and the Cove bustled with patrons in various states of undress and clever attire, much of which made Jaz’s barely ass-covering black dress look positively modest. The dress was a last-minute present from Liam, who insisted on watching her get into it.
By the time she was done squirming into the fabric, they had nearly scrapped the rest of their evening plans.
Now, as they stood at the edge of the space, Liam’s hand slid down along her spine to rest on the curve of her backside. Jaz shifted her weight. The feeling of Liam’s firm, callused palm was already making her sex clench, and they hadn’t taken a dozen steps inside yet. Drawing in a calming breath, Jaz took in the evening. The gentle murmur of conversation, the distinct sounds of sex and slaps of flesh rose and fell with the music. On the left side of the room, a woman with impressive acrobatics was taking full advantage of a stripper pole. Despite the admiring audience, the woman appeared to be bending and dancing and climbing for her own private enjoyment.
Meanwhile, a hot wax demonstration was taking place on the center stage, while a couple along the right wall made use of a spanking bench. The woman lying across it made mewling sounds of protest as her partner heated her bare upturned backside, but—despite the yelps—Jaz noticed the woman’s ass rising eagerly to meet each spank.
Jaz looked away, hating how the way just watching that scene made moisture slither into her panties.
“See something you like?” Liam murmured into her ear, which made Jaz’s face turn furnace hot. Of course he noticed. He always noticed. “I would enjoy doing that to you. And if you vex me a bit, I might add a little something between those cheeks to help focus your attention.” Just in case she hadn’t understood what cheeks he was referring to, Liam lifted the back of Jaz’s dress to slide his hand into her panties and along the curve of her ass.
And then left it there.
Jaz’s breath caught. Liam had threatened anal play in the bedroom, but Jaz thought she’d gotten him off the scent with feigned denial of interest. Apparently, her acting hadn’t been nearly as convincing as she’d thought, and today, he wasn’t pulling punches in voicing truths aloud.
“Good evening.”
Jaz jumped as Dior materialized through the crowd, adjusting his suit as he nodded a greeting to them both. She waited for Liam to draw back his hand, but he kept it right where it was.
“I’m pleased to see you’re back,” Dior continued, as if nothing out of the ordinary was happening. “Is there anything you need?”
“No, thank you,” Jaz answered breathlessly.
Liam squeezed her ass. “Actually, I wouldn’t mind borrowing that riding crop of yours, if you don’t mind. If you and Tiffany aren’t using it just now.”