Liv whimpered a little when she touched her other breast much as she had the first. She wanted to close her eyes, but, at the same time, she was soothed by the look on Trey's face, encouraged by his attention and the fact that he continued to find her arousing.
She snaked a hand down her belly and hesitated. Knowing she was wet and ready didn't give her more confidence, it made her more shy. She could do this. She wanted to do it, without pretending that she was alone.
The first touch on her pussy was tentative. Trey nodded and she touched herself more surely. Her clit was hard and protruding, ultra-sensitive when she rubbed it. A small moan escaped her and she closed her eyes briefly as sensation climbed higher.
When she opened her eyes again, Trey was still watching. A bead of pre-cum glistened on his prick. She wanted to lick him, taste him. She rubbed her clit, drawing moisture from further between her legs to lubricate her fingers.
"I want you, Liv," he said again, his voice little more than a rumble.
There was nothing she could say. Her heart soared as high as the growing urgency in her belly. Almost there, but could she let go and trust Trey?
"Come here, darlin'."
She wasn't sure what he had in mind, but she moved her hands away from her warm body and stepped toward him. His cock was ready for her as she was ready for it.
"Straddle me. I promised to fuck you."
Promised? Was this a debt payment and nothing else? "If you don't want to, Trey…"
He stopped stroking and patted his thighs, smiling. "Of course I want to. I want to see if you feel as good as you taste."
Her cheeks were warm and her pussy was eager. She climbed onto the chair and knelt over his hips and thighs. His chest was hard beneath her hands as she paused over him. “You’re clean, right?”
“Military,” he pointed out. “You?”
“Clean as can be.”
Satisfied with the necessary exchange, she levered herself onto his erection. He guided her down with his hands on her hips.
"Ah, yeah." His voice was low and sexy.
She wanted to feel his skin under her hands, and tugged on the snap buttons of his shirt. He shrugged out of it and tossed it on the floor near her towels. Every inch of him, his broad shoulders and firm chest, his brown nipples and the rippled plane of his stomach, was luxurious under her fingers. Her pussy twitched with eagerness.
She sighed with pleasure as her body gloved him, expanding to take him in. It had been so long since she'd felt the fullness, and she couldn't remember ever feeling this close to someone, sharing something instead of just being a party to it.
Once she was seated on him, she began to rock. Savoring the sensations, each one a tiny peak of desire, she slid over him. As she gained speed and rhythm, he moved his hands from her hips to her breasts, kneading them, teasing and tweaking her nipples. She heard her gasp and soft cry of pleasure almost before she knew she'd made the sounds.
Faster and faster she advanced and retreated. His face tightened, lips a line of tension, and jaw rigid as he came closer.
She wanted to come, she was ready for it, teetering on the precipice. Teetering. Teetering.
"I can't," she told him, frustration making her voice a high warble.
"Yeah, you can, Liv. You can. I'm here with you. I think you're beautiful and sexy. I want you."
"Oh God, Trey. It feels so good."
"Trust me, angel." He swatted her behind as she rocked up, then again.
The sting and itch beleaguered her. Each smack fired new nerve endings and reminded her of similar moments with Trey. Her pussy twitched and gripped him, and squeezed around him each time his hand connected. The spanks were the catalyst.
"More," she said, her voice more pleading than she intended.
He reached between them and pulled his belt free. The pause made her anxious. She was impatient as he wrapped the leather around his hand, leaving a doubled length loose. The first strike on her already hot rear was harsh. It made her jump and she nearly lost her seat on him, but oh the reverberation of the pain through her body was so sweet. He did it several more times, each one loud and solid. Her ass was on fire. The sensation was overwhelming.
She pressed down hard on him and ground her hips, and suddenly, she was falling through space, nerve endings registering pleasure like the sparks from a sparkler. She called out his name.
Trey held her hips steady and arched up into her, groaning as he filled the reservoir that was her sex.
Panting, she fell upon his chest, still engaged but tired and replete. She'd done it. She'd shared herself. She was not ugly. Trey wanted her.
His voice was low and gravelly as he petted her hair. "Good girl. Thank you."
"I love it when you spank me, Trey. I don't know why, but I guess it doesn't matter why."
* * *
Trey had his own theory about why she needed the spanking, but at the moment, he was more focused on getting her to trust him. He cuddled her tightly. "You need to learn not to fight yourself so hard, li'l girl."
She nodded against him, her cheek caressing his firm shoulder. Holding her there in his arms was pure pleasure. She was soft and smooth, limp with satisfaction like a rag doll. He twirled her damp hair on a finger and enjoyed its texture.
For a woman who was successful at her career, she was sure lacking in self-confidence. There was more to it than her figure, too, if her denial of being hungry was any indicator. Was she anorexic? Bulemic? Her curves suggested that she wasn't, and she didn't seem to eat—or not eat—in an abnormal way. He had to ponder her a little longer.
In the meantime, he didn't want to spank her into submission; he wanted to give her an opportunity to pay a penance for her inner guilty feelings, and then she could move on. And, truth to tell, he liked spanking her quite a bit. He couldn't claim to be doing it only because she needed it. He liked order and good behavior, but the feel of her hot, red behind under his palm was extremely sexy. The sound of flesh clapping sharply always made him hard and ready.
She shifted in his arms, reaching up to touch his face. Her fingers brushing his cheeks made a scratchy sound against his evening beard.
Trey nuzzled her hand and kissed her palm. He realized that she'd washed off her orange blossom perfume, and he longed to smell it again. It would mix with the musky scent of sex in the room. He swelled with lust, but there was a time and place for everything. "I need to get back to the party, angel."
Liv sighed. "You're a popular guy."
"Not particularly. I do have responsibilities, though."
"I understand. I don't want to be in the way."
He frowned. There was that confidence issue again. "You're not in the way, Liv. In fact, you ought to come back with me. I haven't had nearly enough of an opportunity to show you off."
"Is that why you invited me? So you could show off a model?"
Her thigh was smooth under his hand as he stroked it. "What do you think?"
"I think I don't know."
"You still don't trust me." He hadn't meant to say it aloud, but it was irritating enough for him to do so without thinking.
"I didn't say that."
"You didn't have to say that." He shifted in the chair, uncomfortable and wanting to get away. He didn't know what more he could do to reassure her that he liked her for herself, round and comfortable, and charming and intelligent. He didn't give a flying fuck what her job was or if she gained or lost a pound. He had to think about it. Maybe they didn't belong together. Maybe the whole relationship idea was bad to begin with. What business did he have starting up something as though it might last through another tour in Afghanistan? It was stupid of him.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
He coaxed her off his lap and sighed when she went for a t-shirt in her suitcase. "No need to be sorry, darlin'. I'm sure you have your reasons. I need to go." He pulled on his shirt, tucked it in, and fastened his pants and belt.
"Will you be back?"
He looke
d at her hard. What did he see? A young woman stumbling through a long stretch of cow pasture. His heart went out to her. Maybe he could help her. But not without her trust.
"Is that what you want, Liv?"
She bit her lower lip and Trey's cock took interest. It was annoying and made his temper rise another notch.
"Yes."
It seemed like she was trying to work on the trust issue. She was making an effort. But, as much as he wanted to be her knight in shining armor, he was hurt by her mistrust. What had he done to deserve that? It was better to think on it and give them both a chance to regroup.
"I don't think it's a good idea. We can talk tomorrow. I'll come out to the shoot."
He watched her eyes fill with tears, even while her shoulders squared. "Don't trouble yourself."
He ground his teeth together. "Okay." The door was only three feet away but her voice halted him as he touched the doorknob.
"Wait, Trey. I'm sorry. I'm being a bitch." She took a few steps toward him. "I hope you do come by the shoot tomorrow. We can talk."
She'd given him something to work with. "Okay. Goodnight, Liv."
Her softly spoken response was muffled by the sound of the door closing behind him.
* * *
After a second night of crying herself to sleep, Liv was drained when her alarm clock went off. She felt as though she hadn't slept at all. To top it off, her cellphone began to ring while she was in the middle of washing her face. She hurried to towel off and then answer it. Checking the caller ID, she knew it was going to be an unpleasant conversation.
"Hi, Amanda. How are you?"
"Liv. I'm up to my ears in shit. What the fuck have you been doing?"
"The usual stuff." She wanted to deny the whole photographed spanking incident, but she was pretty sure that Amanda wouldn't let her.
"Bullshit. I got a call yesterday from some turd who said he had a compromising picture of you with some guy in Sonora. He claimed that it was a clear shot of you being bare-butt spanked."
"Oh."
"'Oh?' That's all you have to say?"
"Well, it would be a lie to deny it."
"Why the hell didn't you call me right away? Did you think I should have to find out from some low-life instead?"
It hadn't been fair of her to leave Amanda such a shock. "I'm sorry. I was upset and didn't think. We tried to get the photo back but couldn't catch the guy."
"We? Who's 'we'?"
She could hear the other woman breathing out a puff of cigarette smoke.
"Trey Journey. He's the guy in the photo with me. Um…spanking me."
"This is so unlike you, Liv."
Liv nodded, then spoke. "Yes, I know. Things got sort of weird and then the photographer snuck up."
"Why were you in a public place?"
"Does it matter? I was and that's all."
"Fine. Look, he's demanding $50,000 for the rights to the photo. I think we should pay him."
"We? Who's 'we'?" Liv echoed. "You mean me, don't you? I should pay him."
"You can afford it."
"Maybe. But it's the principle of the thing. I don't like being blackmailed."
"Oh come on, Liv. Get off your high horse. Give the asshole the money and move on. I drew up a contract; all we need is the cash."
It was tempting, but it wasn't her decision wholly. Trey was involved, too. He had a right to vote on the disposition of the photo. "Wait. How long do we have?"
"He said 48 hours. And you didn't return my call yesterday, so there's only 24 hours left."
"Okay. Let me think about it. I need to talk to Trey."
"Who is this guy? What does it matter what he says? It's your career!"
"It matters, that's all. And it's the right thing to do. It involves his career as well."
"What is he, a stud in x-rated movies? 'Cause to anyone else, this is going to be a liability they'll want to get rid of a.s.a.p."
Liv sighed. Amanda was probably right. But she could just imagine Trey's reaction if she put out $50,000 on his behalf without any kind of discussion. "I have to do it this way, Amanda."
"Okay, sure. Don't expect me to mop up the mess if the photo gets published."
"Have you seen it?"
"He emailed me a copy, the shit-head. It's you."
"We have twenty-four hours, right?"
"Yeah."
"I'll call you tonight."
"While I have you on the phone, there's a new project I'd like to discuss with you."
Liv sat down in the bed, impatient to get to work and, hopefully, see Trey, but ready to discuss business if she had to. Life had to roll on, even if she was unhappy.
* * *
Trey mopped up his egg yolk with a buttered corn muffin and slurped down some coffee. He had to get busy helping Ace clear out some of the equipment from the old house. The rest of the BDSM Boot Camp was more instructional and social. The party was their lead-off event. Quite a few people came to the party who were otherwise not going to attend the rest of the week's activities.
The morning's planned events were low-key, owing to the possible hangovers of the attendees. It gave Trey and Ace a chance to make some conference space and for the cleaning crew to do their job as well.
Ace was getting into his truck when Trey walked outside. "Give me a ride, bro?"
"Sure," Ace said. "I know you left your truck at the old house last night."
"Yeah. I had enough liquor that I didn't want to drive, and I thought the walk would do me good."
They got into Ace's vehicle and slammed the doors shut. "Did it?"
"Not really." He thought about that. "Kinda."
The truck revved to life and Ace backed away from the house. "Liv has you twisted in knots, doesn't she?"
"She's got her issues."
"Don't we all."
"Yeah, well. I haven't quite decided how involved in her issues I want to become."
"Pretty outside isn't necessarily pretty inside."
"She's pretty inside, too, but has some problems with trust. And there's somethin’ screwy about her relationship to food. She might have an eatin’ disorder."
"She's not rail skinny. How could that be if she had a problem like that?"
"I dunno. I can't figure it out."
"Do you want to? Figure it out, I mean."
They parked in front of the old house. "She's got baggage, Ace, but I think I'm fallin' for her."
Ace pulled the key out of the ignition, but didn't open the door. He gave Trey a thoughtful look. "What about your worries about deployment?"
"They seem less important at the moment."
Ace nodded. "Don't let your dick tell you what to do."
"I'm not. That's the least of it."
The door hinge squeaked a little as Ace got out. Trey met him around the front of the truck. The air was cooler today, and clouds were accumulating.
"I'm sure you can handle it, Trey."
"Thanks. I'm gonna try."
* * *
Chapter 7
By five o'clock, Trey hadn't come by yet and Liv worried that he wasn't going to show up at all. She didn't know if she should go find him so that she could discuss the blackmail attempt with him, or handle it on her own. If she dealt with it by herself, she would be kissing any hope of a relationship with Trey goodbye. But with his no-show during the shoot today, that might be the case anyway.
Indecision made her fretful. Gabriella bounced over with a big smile. "That was a good session, Liv. I love what you did with your hands."
"Thanks." She didn't want a conversation, she wanted peace so she could think over her situation and make a plan.
"So…Trey's not here today?"
"Why would he be?"
Gabriella rolled her eyes dramatically. "To see you, silly. He practically drools when he is near you."
So his interest was apparent to others. Why couldn't Liv accept it and build on it? Why did she have to question his motives so often? "I think you're overs
tating it, Gabby."
"Fine. Are you saying you're not interested in him? 'Cause if you're not, I sure am."
It would kill Liv to watch him and Gabriella together. Raindrops began to fall on the tent overhead and Liv thought they were the perfect counterpoint to her mood. "He's a little old for you, don't you think?"
"Is he? How old is that?"
"About 29 or 30, I think." Liv took a bottle of water, trying to appear nonchalant though her insides were knotted up like burl wood.
"Ten years older. That's not so much. Anyway, I don't care. I think he's a hunk."
Yes, he was a hunk. He was tall and gorgeous, intelligent, and had a sexy Texas drawl that was like honey in Liv's ears. "Don't you think he ought to decide what he wants for himself?"
Gabriella laughed. "I have my wiles."
Trey's truck pulled up, startling them both. They watched him saunter over, his boots crunching on the pebbles and gravel of the parking area. He tipped his hat. "Ladies."
"Hi, handsome," Gabriella said, an invitation in the twinkle of her eyes.
Liv wanted to slap her, and the feeling was very unwelcome. She turned to Trey and smiled. "Hi, Trey."
He grinned. "Do you have a minute, Liv?" He turned to Gabriella. "Would you excuse us, darlin'?"
Liv bristled at the use of that term of affection for anyone but herself. She tamped it down. She was just edgy.
"Sure, Trey. Come over and let's chat when you're done with Liv."
Liv thought the younger woman said "done" like she meant permanently done. Nevertheless, she smiled politely and said something noncommittal to Gabriella as she walked away. Then she turned to Trey. "I'm glad you came by. There's something urgent we need to discuss."
His look of concern was endearing. "I'm sorry I'm so late. There was a trail ride this afternoon, and that takes a lot of settin’ up and puttin’ away."
She sighed, trying futilely to calm her nerves. Time was running out. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say that you had some sort of obligation to be here. I realize you're busy, and…well, after last night, I wasn't sure you'd come at all."
The rain pounded now, and the big drops found their way into the tent from its open sides. Trey took her arm and steered her toward the center of the cover, where they were more out of the wet. "To be honest, angel, I wasn't sure I should."
Liv's Journey Page 8