Instead, Destiny’s tough-guy boyfriend dropped into the seat beside him and shut the door. “You poor bastard.” His grin was patronizing as hell.
Ryan eyed him and said nothing.
“Destiny says you sit out here every night waiting for Crystal.”
“So what?” It was enough that she knew he was there.
“And you deliver coffee and flowers every morning.”
“And your point is?”
“Smother people much?”
“Considering Crystal won’t give me the time of day, I think I’ve been patient and restrained.”
“Your strategy sucks.”
Jesus, the guy was blunt. And pissing him off. He debated the wisdom of taking a shot at a guy who had tattoos down to the wrist on each arm, a ring in his eyebrow, a half-dozen studs in his ear, and an air about him that told Ryan he would enjoy a fight. Worth it?
Yes, but not in the Cayman. Too restrictive.
Ryan turned to face him head-on, but the guy held up a hand. “Simmer down, frat boy. I’m trying to help you.”
“Then you better say something helpful pretty fucking fast or I’m going to kick your condescending ass out of this car and up and down the street.” Anything would be better than waiting outside Come Again every day for two weeks and getting his ass whipped without exchanging a word or a blow.
The guy laughed. “Since you asked so nicely, don’t mind if I do. Crystal is an empath. She senses emotions. I don’t consider myself particularly sensitive, but you’re giving off so much heat, even I can feel it. I’m not sure why I give a shit, but if you want to get anywhere with Crystal, you better dial it back, buddy. She’s used to blocking people, and I guarantee the harder you beat on her door, the tighter she’s going to lock it. Give it a rest, man. Maybe even get out of town for a while. She needs a break.”
“How come you know so much about Crystal?” Ryan asked, suspicion making him angrier.
“Because she spends every night at my bar, trying not to talk about you.”
“Really?” The word popped out before he could censor his hope. “Where is this bar?”
“I’m not going to tell you until you agree to control your damn emotions. You’ll sign a waiver at the door, but I don’t want any trouble.”
“A waiver? Seriously? What kind of bar is it?”
“Hang on, let me get my girl and I’ll tell you over dinner. You’re buying and I’m driving your car.” He said it like it was an order, but he waited for Ryan to agree to his demand and the gleam in his eyes let him in on the joke. Ryan had a feeling he knew what kind of a bar the man owned. The leather and tattoos, the shaved head and piercings, Destiny’s dreadlocks and fierce attitude began to make sense. He ducked his head in a curt nod. “It’s a deal.”
The guy held out his hand. “Johnny Delcorral.”
“Ryan Anderson.”
They shook hands, and Johnny climbed out of the car.
Ryan felt a wry smile twist his lips. Now he was getting somewhere.
Crystal glanced over her shoulder and saw Destiny entering the bar, followed by Johnny. She swiveled back around and sipped her drink, waiting for them to make their way across the room to her. “About time,” she said as Johnny finally ducked under the gate and Destiny dropped onto a stool next to her. She’d been at Downtown waiting for them for an hour already.
She glanced over as someone sat on her other side.
Ryan gave her a tight-edged smile.
Her heart lurched and began racing. “What are you doing here?” she asked.
“Stepping it up a notch.”
She frowned, trying to figure out what was different about him. He was wearing the same dark gray suit he’d been wearing this morning when he dropped off her coffee and a black orchid that looked like a baby vampire bat. The note said still waiting. So many flowers had arrived over the last week and a half that the shop was beginning to look like a rain forest, shelves stashed with unexpected bursts of outrageous color and spare beauty. Since she hated to waste good coffee and the double hit of caffeine had been giving her a headache, she’d stopped her customary visit to Tim Hortons every morning.
Wait…that was it. Ryan wasn’t giving her a headache. In fact, he wasn’t giving off any surface emotions at all. Were his morning visits and the flowers around the shop acting as desensitization therapy? Was she getting used to him?
He reached out to run his finger along the shoulder strap of her dress, dipping to trace a path across her cleavage. Her nipples peaked under the warm metal mesh of the dress and she had to concentrate to keep her breathing even and light. She couldn’t do anything about the fast beat of her heart, and by the way his finger paused to tap the telltale pulse at her throat, she knew she wasn’t fooling him. Nope, she wasn’t getting used to him physically, at least.
“You said no more meddling,” she accused Destiny.
“Wasn’t me,” Destiny retorted. She leveled a finger at Johnny. “It was him.”
Johnny shrugged. “He’s a natural. I hate to waste good raw material.”
Natural? A natural what? His three-piece suit didn’t exactly scream deviant. Crystal watched Ryan’s eyes linger on the sub corner then travel to the tables, where the Dominants and kinksters were gearing up for Saturday night. Some of them were members Upstairs and would take their play up to Johnny’s private club. Others would pick a partner and head out for the night or hang out in the bar. What did Ryan think of her world?
A slow grin lit his face. “You said there’s an upstairs?”
Johnny nodded. “Members-only, but I’ll let Destiny take you up if you’re interested. It’s orgy night. Can you handle that, frat boy?”
“Sure,” Ryan said easily, not seeming to take offense at the casual insult. “But it would be nice to have a guided tour. Can Crystal come too?” At Johnny’s curt nod, he turned to her. “That’s what you’re into, right? Orgies? You did say you could take on a frat house and a sorority. I wouldn’t mind giving that a try.”
Her heart beat a slow thunder in her ears as he threw down the gauntlet. She felt cold, nearly frozen, even when Destiny took her hand and squeezed it. “He’s awfully cocky for someone wearing so many clothes,” she whispered. “Let’s take him Upstairs, strip him down and make him put his money where his mouth is.”
The sexy go-for-broke dynamic of orgy night always reminded Crystal of how out of control and lonely she had been that night in the frat house and how ashamed she had been afterwards—but Destiny didn’t know anything about her past. What would happen if she put herself in the middle of another orgy? Panic? Arousal?
They were all looking to her, waiting for her answer.
She felt a trickle of cold sweat run down the underside of her arm. Could she handle the surging emotions of the crowd long enough to finally convince Ryan he was wasting his time? Not only handle it, but participate? She shivered.
Ryan put his arm around her shoulders, drawing her into the warmth of his body. She looked up at him, growing colder. The last time she had been in a room full of sexual energy, she had ached for him. This time she would have him, but it was too late. Too much had changed and she needed to get her life back on track. Maybe this was the way to do it.
She forced herself to stand up and give Ryan a slow smile. “Sounds like a good time to me.”
Ryan stifled a sigh of relief. He had been afraid she’d run again. Instead she led the way across the bar. He hoped that meant he was doing a good job keeping his emotions to himself. It wasn’t easy, though. During his morning stops at Come Again, they had the counter between them. There was nothing keeping them apart now except air and clothes, and her dress was made out of woven chains that rippled provocatively over her body. He wanted to run his hands over her curves and see if the dress was cool, or warm from her body heat. Curiosity was driving him crazy, but he forced himself to remain calm and in control. Control was the key, as Johnny had explained over dinner. Ryan was willing to master the finer point
s of BDSM etiquette later, if that was something Crystal enjoyed. For now, it was enough to know that she might let him near her if he was, as Destiny had put it, a good boy.
He followed the women down a short hallway and watched Destiny draw a key out of the pocket of her leather skirt. She unlocked a door and they continued up a staircase. Ryan heard music and felt a bass line reverberating in the walls and under his feet. There was another door at the top of the stairs. Destiny held it open and motioned them through.
He was half-hard from watching Crystal climb the stairs in front of him, and when the room came into focus, he sucked in a quick breath. He heard Destiny laugh, and when he looked over at her, she already had her hand tangled in the long blond hair of a mostly naked man, forcing him to his knees in front of her.
“I thought she was with Johnny,” he said, surprised.
A tense smile lifted Crystal’s lips. “Apparently, there’s love…and then there’s recreation.”
He glanced back at Destiny and found her looking at him. Be good, she mouthed. He rolled his eyes. Control, right.
He turned his attention to Crystal, wondering why she wasn’t diving into the middle of the naked pile of bodies writhing on the sectional couch. Or the leather chaise lounges. Or the table. This was where she had spent the last two weeks? There was nothing about her expression or body language that made him believe she wanted to join the crowd. She wasn’t even looking at anybody. Still, if she hung out in the leather bar downstairs, or up here in this crazy sex club, she must be into it. For her, he’d give it a try.
“C’mon.” He took her hand and discovered it was cold. He rubbed warmth into her fingers with both his palms and pulled her toward the couch. She followed slowly, allowing him to position her between his thighs as he sat on the arm of the couch, just at the edge of the fray.
She shivered as he cupped her breasts through her slinky dress. The metal was warm, he discovered. God, he loved the weight of her breasts in his hands. He reached for the thin shoulder straps and slid them down, baring her nipples. He sat, looking but not touching, reminding himself to stay in control. Crystal needed him in control.
He lifted his gaze to her face. Her eyes were shut and there was a light sheen of sweat on her face, far more than arousal could explain. Cautiously, he grasped her tight waist, then explored the tense muscles of her buttocks and thighs. He ran his hands over the icy skin of her arms, stopping to hold her hands in both of his.
“Crystal?” he asked. “Are you all right?”
Eyes shut, she nodded, but he didn’t believe her. Why was she lying? She was far from all right. He didn’t know how he had expected her to behave in the middle of an orgy, but it wasn’t like this.
He squeezed her hands. “Open your eyes.”
Her eyes blinked open, wide and unfocused. She was breathing in short, shallow pants. Her eyelids fluttered and she swayed. Quickly, he switched places with her on the couch, forcing her head between her knees. He kneeled on the floor in front of her. “Breathe with me,” he said softly, inhaling and exhaling in steady breaths.
She continued to gasp.
“Breathe,” he commanded, embracing her. “You can do it. Just focus on me.”
He held her close, stroking her hair and murmuring words of reassurance. Gradually, her breathing slowed to an even rhythm. When he was pretty sure she could sit up without passing out, he shifted to sit next to her on the couch and pulled her into his lap. He ignored the brush of bare bodies and tightened his arms around her. “What was all that about?”
She looked up at him, dark eyes filled with uncertainty. Her breasts were still bare and her dress had ridden up to the top of her thighs. He brushed a kiss across her forehead and settled the straps of her dress back on her shoulders. As Johnny had suggested at dinner, he imagined a force field between him and Crystal, separating their emotions. A sob broke from her throat and two fat tears ran down her face. She buried her face in his chest and clung.
“That’s it—we’re getting out of here.” He shifted his grip to balance her weight and pushed to his feet, carrying her. When he reached the door, he found Destiny blocking it.
“Too much for her?” she asked.
“I don’t know, but she’s not having a good time. We’re leaving.”
Destiny’s eyes narrowed and he returned her glare. “Open the damn door. You have my word that I will not do anything to hurt her, and I will take her wherever she wants to go.”
Destiny didn’t budge. “Don’t make me go through you,” he growled.
“It’s okay.” Crystal’s broken whisper made him clutch her tighter.
Destiny eased back and opened the door. “This is your last chance, buddy.”
“Noted.” He stepped past her.
Crystal kept her face buried in Ryan’s neck, glad when Johnny and Mac let them leave without asking any questions. Ryan set her on her feet to unlock the car, keeping one arm around her waist. “I’m all right now,” she said, as he helped her into the car and buckled her seatbelt.
He pulled out of the parking lot and drove, heading for the river.
She said nothing, although she wondered why he wasn’t heading for his hotel or asking her where she lived. He reached over to take her hand and held it in his lap. His fingers were warm as he caressed her hand, making her sigh.
“Sorry about that,” she said.
“Not a problem.”
He didn’t seem inclined to say more, so she went back to her thoughts, edging closer to something she felt but didn’t understand. Upstairs, she had completely locked up, unable to think or move. The desires of the crowd had called to her, making her emotions rise, a terrifying swell of lust mixed with loneliness. She wanted nothing more than to reach out to Ryan—but she was afraid.
A sick feeling shifted in her stomach. She hadn’t been channeling his feelings. His emotions hadn’t scared her. She had been fighting her own desire to take him in, to trust him, to let go of her barriers, the barriers that kept her whole, safe and sane…and alone.
“You sure you’re all right?” he asked when she sighed again.
“Yeah, just thinking.”
A few minutes later, they pulled into a driveway.
“Where are we?” she asked.
“I rented a house. It seemed silly to spend more than a couple nights in a hotel.” He pressed a button to open the garage door. He parked and turned off the motor, but he didn’t get out of the car. Instead, he turned to her. “Give me a chance, Crystal.”
Emotion throbbed beneath the words and she followed it, lifting her hand to stroke his cheek. The desire, anger and loneliness were still there, but she felt resistance. Was he learning to block her? Is that why he felt different tonight? She pushed deeper—and found something more heartbreaking than loneliness.
A hope that matched her own. “You scare me to death,” she whispered, with a soft, helpless laugh.
He leaned to brush her lips with his. “I’m not trying to scare you,” he said. “I just want to be close to you. I need to be near you, and I’ll take you on any terms you choose.” He rained soft kisses over her face. “Spend another night with me, Crystal.”
Another night. Oh, yes, she wanted to stay with him. She yearned for him. She couldn’t keep him on the outside and it was pointless to run or hide, as the last few weeks had proved. She couldn’t hide from herself, and he wouldn’t leave her alone. Eventually he’d leave—she had no illusions about that. But she’d run out of ideas to hasten the process. He didn’t scare easily, and it was becoming impossible to ignore him.
Her heart began to thud as she considered another option—the truth. He’d run like hell if she told him exactly how much he had meant to her. Yes, the truth was a much better weapon than her lies. It would drive him away far more effectively than any circumstance she could contrive. And if it didn’t? Doubt made her head spin again.
She’d left a message on her Get In Touch voicemail saying she was on vacation, but she could
n’t vacation indefinitely. She needed to get back to work. Buzz might be building because of her inaccessibility, but that wouldn’t last forever. The only call she had answered this week was Darla’s, and she was so grateful Darla was willing to give her another chance. If Ryan wasn’t gone by then…
She’d tried—and failed—to reach past the tangle of her own emotions several times during the past two weeks. Each time she opened her heart enough to feel, she got caught in a web of confusion. She needed Ryan to leave her alone, and if the truth was the only way to make it happen, so be it.
She unbuckled her seatbelt. “Let’s go in the house and get comfortable.”
His eyes gleamed. “Does comfortable mean naked?”
“That too,” she said.
Chapter Ten
Ryan handed her a glass of wine and sat next to her on the couch. The house had been a real find, fully furnished, just the right size and right on the Niagara River. He’d immediately felt at home and hoped the owners were considering his offer to buy it, especially now that he saw Crystal gazing around the room with frank approval.
She leaned closer to him and took his hand. It was the first time she had willingly touched him since they had spent the night together, and it made his heart slam in his chest. Was she finally going to open up to him?
She took a sip of her wine and set the glass on the coffee table. He did the same, watching her. She seemed different, on edge, yet also in her element. The play of her fingers in his was deliberately arousing and he waited to see what she would do next. A slow, sensual smile curved her lips and he didn’t resist when she pulled him down for a kiss. Control, he reminded himself.
Her mouth opened and her tongue sought his, inviting him to play. He closed his eyes and let her set the pace, focusing entirely on the brush of her lips, the touch of her tongue and the rhythm of her warm breath. An unhurried sense of expectancy built between them, and he enjoyed that too. He wasn’t in a rush. They had all night.
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