Playing With Fire

by Alison Bliss

  I nodded in agreement. “Oh, I know! I did that, too, by experimenting on myself.”

  He rubbed a hand over his face as he contemplated what I’d said. “Did you just tell me you masturbated?”

  I lowered my gaze briefly, wondering if that was something he found repulsive. “I mean the things I read were sort of arousing, and I wasn’t sure about a few of the sexual maneuvers and all the endless variations, so I…well, yeah.”

  “Jesus.” Cowboy looked up at the ceiling with what possibly could’ve been exasperation. “What the hell is wrong with you women these days? I thought Emily said some derogatory things, but…” His gaze lowered onto me. “She has nothing on you.”

  “Actually, Emily was the one who suggested it.”

  “Oh, hell. Why am I not surprised?” He shook his head, then kicked off his boots. “That’s it. No more books or DVDs.” He pulled at his shirt until the buttons unsnapped and then he slid it from his shoulders and tossed it onto the couch next to me.

  “What are you doing?”

  “I’m doing you a favor. Don’t worry, I’m not going to touch you, and you can stop whenever you want, but the only way you’re going to learn about a man’s naked body is by seeing one in person. And I’ll be damned if I trust anyone else to do this with you.” He opened the button on his jeans and slid down the zipper. “Consider me your willing test subject.”

  My gaze dropped to the small line of hair running into his pants. His lack of underwear had my cheeks heating again. He tossed his hat onto the couch and then pushed his jeans down with one hard shove.

  I gasped and my hand flew to my chest. “Are you insane?”

  Without a word, he stripped off his jeans and socks, leaving him completely nude and wielding a very large, rock solid erection. I tried to keep my eyes on his face as he paraded through my living room in the buff and made his way through the open door to my bedroom.

  He was completely comfortable with himself as he crawled onto my bed and lay down, propping his head with my pillow. “You coming?” he asked.

  It was a disarming gesture, one that left me speechless. But I had to admit that he provoked my curiosity. Maybe it was the lunacy of the situation or the psychological thrill of doing something so sinful. Or maybe it was just the way he, with his tight muscular ass, had climbed onto my bed while he offered up his delicious body for exploration. In any case, he had issued me a challenge.

  I edged closer to the bedroom door, keeping my eyes on his. “Cowboy, I don’t think—”

  “That’s the problem right there. Stop thinking.”

  My gaze drifted downward. “Sort of hard to do when you aren’t wearing underwear…or anything else.”

  “I go commando all the time,” he said nonchalantly. “Not a big deal. Now come in here and take a good look. I promise to keep my hands to myself.”

  “I…I can’t.”

  He picked his head up to get a better look at me through the open doorway. “Anna, you said you wanted to learn, right? Just pretend this is an art class, and I’m your nude model.”

  With his spectacular chest, wide shoulders, and his other manly attributes, that wasn’t so hard to picture. But this wasn’t an art room filled with other artists all staring at the man on my bed. It was just me. Us, actually…in a terribly intimate setting. And if he was the one lying spread-eagled under the glaring, dome-shaped light in my bedroom, then why did I feel like I was the one who was exposed and vulnerable?

  “Yes, but…”

  A smile played on his lips as he leaned back and put his hands behind his head. “Reckon you have yourself a live study at your disposal.”

  To his credit, he was in excellent shape. And definitely willing. But I wasn’t entirely comfortable staring at his naked form spread gloriously across my sheets. Especially when he was visually excited. Then again, if he didn’t feel ashamed, why should I?

  I bit my lip, feeling painfully inhibited. “I can do anything I want?”

  “Darlin’, you have my permission to do whatever your little heart desires. Well, within reason. No crazy bondage shit, okay? I don’t like the idea of being trussed up like some rodeo calf. Now get over here.” He patted the spot next to him on the bed.

  I walked slowly into the room, keeping my gaze locked onto his, rather than his other male parts as I neared the bed. He smiled at me. “Sweetheart, it’s okay. Really.”

  “If I do this, I think my moral compass is going to go way off the mark.”

  He chuckled. “Nah. You’re overanalyzing it. Just look at it this way. If I’d have slept with you when I had the chance, you would’ve already done a lot more than this.”

  “True, but still…”

  Cowboy reached out and took my hand, pulling me down into a sitting position next to him. “Let me earn your trust, Anna. The bastard who hurt you didn’t deserve it, but I want to show you that I do. I’m not him, and I won’t hurt you. Ever.”

  “I know that. It’s just…well, I don’t know what to do.”

  He gave me a wink, then flattened my palm against his chest. “Start here,” he said, guiding my hand down to where his erection curved over his belly. “And work your way down…to this.”

  Holy hell.

  I jerked my hand back. “Um, maybe we should start a little slower.”

  “Suit yourself,” Cowboy said, laughing at my reaction.

  “If you’re trying to embarrass me, it’s working.”

  “Darlin’, I’m not trying to embarrass you. All I want is for you to feel more comfortable with me and less self-conscious about yourself. Trust me when I say that there’s nothing you can do here that’s wrong.” Cowboy rested his head back on the pillow and closed his eyes. “Just think of it as therapeutic massage,” he instructed.

  “Am I being graded for this, teacher?” I asked.

  He smiled. “Don’t worry. I’m grading on a curve.” Then he cracked one eye open to make sure I got his stupid joke. The humor helped ease the stress and humiliation coursing through my veins.

  I shifted closer, folding my knees beneath me. My hand reached back out to touch his stomach, but I hesitated.

  “Do you want me to talk about the weather or something to calm your nerves?”

  “No. Just…be quiet. And close your eyes. I can’t concentrate with you talking and looking at me.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” he said, wearing a huge grin.

  Most likely he was surprised I was actually going through with his ridiculous idea. Or maybe he thought I wouldn’t and that’s why he was so amused. But I’d never been able to inspect a man’s nude body—especially one as fully equipped as Cowboy’s—at my own leisure before. So, in the name of research… Okay, maybe that’s the excuse I’d used to convince myself.

  I lowered my hand gently onto his stomach. His muscles flinched under my unexpected touch. For a moment, I wondered if my hands were cold. Probably. I didn’t feel cold, but it would explain why my whole body was shaking. Then again, that could easily be my nerves jumping as my hand traveled over his well-defined abs.

  As I placed my other hand on him, I glanced down at his narrow waist and my gaze followed the muscle definition down the length of his nicely toned body. He was still fully aroused, which only made my skittishness return.

  My straying hands lingered in designated areas, a safe distance away from his… Nope. Not going there—yet. But even though I enjoyed the hardness of this fine male specimen under my hands, I was beginning to feel uninspired.

  I traveled a little farther south and checked his face for any signs of embarrassment or him wanting to turn back. Nothing. No blushing cheeks. No shocked, what-do-you-think-you’re-doing look. He just reclined with a tiny smirk curving the corner of his mouth while prominently displaying an erection the size of a torpedo.

  Obviously he knew I was avoiding his… Penis? Member? What the hell do you call those things? Oh, come on, Anna! Go for it already. You want to touch his…dick. Feeling weak at the thought, I shifted
my weight forward, leaning into his muscular thigh. “I’m going to…um, do something different now.”

  Cowboy’s grin widened, but his eyes stayed closed. “Whatever you say.”

  Stretching out my hand, I concentrated intensely on the descent of my fingertips until I reached my destination and curled my fingers around the base of his shaft. The moment I grasped him, Cowboy’s entire body stiffened and his penis twitched.

  I froze, not sure what happened. “Did I do something wrong?”

  “Not at all.” He groaned, then relaxed his body. “Just caught me a little off guard.”

  “I warned you first.”

  Cowboy chuckled. “That you did. But I didn’t realize you were just going to…er, grab the bull by the horns. I thought you’d ease into it a little more.”

  “So what I did wasn’t enjoyable?”

  “Anna, you’re holding my rock-hard dick in your hand. What part of any of this do you think I’m not enjoying?”

  I coughed to stifle the laughter bubbling in my throat. “Right.”

  “Now, stop second-guessing yourself and just do whatever you want.”

  Throwing caution and inhibition to the wind, I intuitively gave his swollen member a tight squeeze. He moaned under his breath, and the sound alone filled me with a renewed sense of confidence. It confirmed that I could elicit a response from him at will. A very positive one at that.

  I caressed him slowly in what I deemed a vaguely sensual manner—something I observed on the DVDs I’d watched. He lay quietly, eyes still closed, while I touched him intimately, calculating every robotic move I made. My touches became more fluid as my fingers traced over his thickness and I delighted myself in the bumps and ridges under the smooth, silky skin.

  “You’re so hard,” I said, then blushed a little as I realized I spoke out loud. “I mean, you have a lovely, um…” Damn. I still can’t say dick out loud.

  I found certain motions took him to a higher aroused state. Direct contact made him grow thicker and longer, which I hadn’t thought possible, while my hand pumping his shaft deepened the color of his helmet. Every moan, every grunt he released, hit me low and deep, sending ripples of pleasure cascading throughout my body. Then I tried this contract and release variation on him that I’d read about.

  A quiver ran through him and his eyes flew open, wild and burning with need and desire. “Don’t overdo it,” he managed to say, “or this demonstration won’t last very long.”

  I smiled sweetly at him, but a dirty little giggle left my lips. I couldn’t help it. I loved the look of immense pleasure in his eyes.

  At this point, I felt like an artist, harvesting my creativity and experimenting freely with his “materials.” And my eagerness to please didn’t want to lessen the severity of his symptoms. Nope, I wanted to magnify them, even though I knew his self-control would be tested.

  So I sloped my hand underneath him, investigating the underside. His stomach flattened as I cradled him, cupping his balls in my palm and savoring the different textures while kneading him gently. Then, in slow motion, I leaned forward and dropped my moistened lips over the tip of him, tasting him for the first time.

  A guttural moan left his lips. “Oh, Christ.”

  Then he groaned as I dragged my lips all the way down until his head hit the fleshy part of my throat. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched his hand fist my comforter. “Anna…you don’t…have to do that.”

  I pulled my head up, allowing my lips to linger just over him, and he sucked in a breath. “I want to,” I whispered and lowered my head again.

  My tongue swirled around the head, and my lips tightened around his shaft, working their way back down to the base of his penis. He breathed heavily and twisted his fingers into my hair. Judging by his hesitation, I could tell he was resisting the urge to thrust upward into my awaiting mouth. Damn, he’s really struggling…and I love it!

  Instead, he pulled me back firmly. “You have to stop. Now!”

  I blinked. “Was that okay?”

  “Darlin’, that was a hell of a lot better than just okay. Jesus. I have a strong desire to spank you right now. But I think I need to steer my thoughts to something pure for the time being or this little experiment of ours is going to end with an explosion.” He released a heavy sigh, then said, “Where the hell did you learn to do that, anyway?”

  It was a rhetorical question, and was obviously meant as a compliment, but I smiled proudly as I answered him. “I practiced.”

  Cowboy bolted upright and fire flashed in his eyes. “What? With who?”

  My grin widened at his reaction. “No one, silly. I practiced that move on a banana.”

  He blinked at me, but I didn’t miss the look of relief that washed over his face. “My God. The woman’s touching herself and giving a banana head,” he said to no one in particular. “Then she has the nerve to call me silly.” He shook his head in disbelief as he glared at me. “Got anything else in your bag of tricks I should know about?”

  “Can I show you?”

  He considered my question thoroughly before giving me a reluctant nod and lying down once again.

  I lowered my head and licked him again. He groaned and the sound came out as an abrupt, one-word warning. “Anna.”

  “Just wait,” I told him, wetting his tip with my tongue. “It gets better…well, so I’ve read.” My fingers slid slowly down the long ridge on the underside of him as I took him into my mouth once more and ravished him mercilessly.

  “Sweet Jesus, you’re killing me,” he said, putting his hand on the back of my neck.

  At first, I thought it was to impede my motion, but quickly realized he was steadying himself by anchoring his hand in my hair. A sense of satisfaction washed over me as he fought for control mostly because I wasn’t nearly done with him. Keeping firm continuous suction, I allowed my fingers to gradually move lower until they reached the sensitive spot between…

  “Holy mother of—” He paused to swallow hard, then touched the side of my face. “Anna, you have to…oh God… Stop!”

  At his insistence, I pulled back and poked out my bottom lip. “I don’t want to.”

  “But I need you to.” He sat up and ran a hand over his distraught face. “I never meant for it to go quite this far. If this continues, I’m not going to be able to keep my hands to myself like I promised.”

  I shook my head. “I…I never asked you to keep your hands to yourself. I want you to touch me. I mean, if you want to.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes.”

  “We don’t have to—”

  I put my finger to his lips. “Shhh.”

  He reached up and settled his hand around mine, kissing it, as he gripped my fingers tightly. “Anna, I’m not going to last long after—”

  Still sitting beside him, I leaned forward and pressed my mouth against his to shut him up. When I was sure he wasn’t going to say anything else, I released the hold I had on his lips and backed away. I untied the knot in my robe with trembling fingers, inviting him to touch me, but his hand grasped mine once more.

  He stared into my eyes, probably looking for reassurance that this was what I wanted. He must’ve seen whatever he was looking for because he slid the robe from my right shoulder. Cowboy took his time undressing me, kissing every inch he exposed, as small rumblings of pleasure vibrated from my throat. His lips nibbled at the subtle curves of my neck and shoulders as he dropped my robe to the floor.

  When my hands shot out to cover my marred skin, Cowboy grasped them and pushed them away. “Uh-uh. If we’re going to do this, then I get all of you. No hiding.” His gaze lowered onto my breasts and then trailed lower to where the large ropey scars covered my hips and thighs. He reached out and touched them, moving his hands over them slowly, as if he were measuring their length. “God, you’re beautiful,” he said, his green eyes darkening with lust.

  My legs trembled, but I didn’t know if it was from his slight touch or his words. No one had eve
r looked at me like that before. Like he wanted to devour me. And as his fingers feathered over my skin, moving upward, my nipples tightened. Cowboy idly rubbed his gentle hands over them. Then he lowered his mouth and curled his tongue around one, and a marvelous tingle ran through me. Like an electric buzz amplified by an incredible physical sensation.

  As his lips returned to mine, his hand skated lower, cupping me between my legs. I jolted as he drew his finger up my center. He stopped kissing me, but his mouth lingered near mine. His eyes were mad with desire, and his hot breath intermingled with mine. “Sweetheart, are you sure you want to do this?”

  “Hell, yes.”

  He smiled wide, pushed me backward onto the bed, and covered me with his body. “Good. Because it’s my turn to show you a few things.”

  Nibbling at my lips, Cowboy wiggled his finger into my soft, pliant folds. The whimpering sound that left my lips pleaded with him to give me more, and he obliged. Slowly and smoothly, he inserted his finger, penetrating me, and I gasped into his mouth.

  There was a sweet, slow buildup of pressure. My wetness increased as he played with me a bit more. Then he slid down my body, crouched between my legs, and gave me one of his famously sexy smirks. “Darlin’, I’m about to introduce you to your most favorite thing in the world from now on.”

  His face pressed between my thighs, and his tongue found my core. My heart beat faster at the new sensation, and I even tried to worm away from him. “Uh-uh. The best part is yet to come,” he said, chuckling at his play on words. “Let me finish you off.” Then he grasped my hips and buried his tongue further into me, pleasuring me once again.

  As he used an incredible lick, nibble, suck variation on my sensitive area, a tremendous amount of pressure formed, spreading warmth throughout my abdomen. Memories of being caught under a blazing wooden beam clouded my mind. But this time, it was as if I were burning from the inside out. My respiratory rate increased until I was full-on panting. I shuddered and bucked my hips wildly. Holy shit!

  Cowboy braced himself by gaining purchase with his feet on the floor as involuntary spasms wracked my body. My legs molded around his head, but he cracked them open and drove me up again.