“Mia, I apologize for bothering you at work, but I needed to ask you something. Have you moved?”
“No.” Shaking her head in confusion, she asked, “What are you doing here? I was supposed to be meeting someone.”
He gave her a sheepish look before admitting, “Yeah, Suzy. She recognized me when I was asking the front desk for your floor. She politely pulled me out here and asked me if I was ‘out of my damned mind. ’ I’m not sure what that means, but she assured me that you wouldn’t want to have this conversation in your office for everyone to eavesdrop on.” Dragging a hand through his hair, he added, “Shit, that woman is scary, isn’t she?”
Mia felt her heart race as she looked at him. God, he was a beautiful man. Hold onto your hormones, remember what happened. “I’ve got to get back to work.” As she turned to go, he grabbed her arm.
“Mia, wait.” She whirled back around, trying to channel all of the anger she had felt that night, but instead it was mostly just hurt now. “Please let me explain and apologize to you for what happened.”
“That’s not necessary,” she said quietly.
“Yes, it is. Please . . . just give me five minutes.” When she didn’t object, he took a deep breath and continued. “The woman you saw that night was Ashley. We dated when we were in school and have had casual . . . meetings randomly since then. I know you must think this is bullshit, but I never intended for things to go that far with her. We didn’t have sex, nor would we have. She left right after you did. I was intrigued by you. I still am. I had every intention of seeing where whatever this is between us would lead. You’re a beautiful, funny, intelligent, sexy woman and even though we haven’t known each other long, I’m completely captivated by everything about you. I’m sorry it took me a while pull my head out of my ass, as Margie says, and tell you how I feel. I’m so damn sorry for hurting you, baby.”
Mia shut her eyes and moisture gathered there. What she wouldn’t have given to hear that from him before that night. “I believe you,” she whispered, “but it’s too late. We had sex and I was hopeful that there was more between us. I just . . . can’t do it again.” Forcing a smile she was far from feeling, she continued, “Other than that one, er . . . issue . . . I really enjoyed our time together. We are just too different for anything more.”
He picked up a bouquet of wildflowers and a bag from the bench behind him that she hadn’t even noticed and said, “These reminded me of you. Don’t say no again. Take the day and think about it. I’ll call you tomorrow.” Before she could say anything further, he gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek and was gone.
She forced herself to go back to her office instead of running to her car and following him like she wanted to. It was over. Hell, it had never really even started. Just because he looked and smelled as good as ever wasn’t a reason to open herself to more heartache. She sat the flowers and the bag on the table behind her desk and buried herself in work for the rest of the day.
When someone knocked on her door late that afternoon, she almost fainted when Suzy stuck her head inside. “Mind if I come in for a minute?” She knew she looked like a fool with her mouth hanging open. Suzy settled in the seat across from the desk and said, “I’m sorry about doing that to you this morning. I recognized Seth from the restaurant. When I heard him ask for you, I pulled him to the side to be . . . nosy. The poor guy looked like he had it bad. He told me that he had screwed up and was here to talk to you about it so I suggested he do it somewhere a little more private. He wasn’t sure that you would come down if you knew it was him, so I sort of left that part out.”
Mia smiled, liking Suzy even more than she had imagined. “It’s okay. He apologized and that’s the end of the story.”
Looking at her curiously, Suzy asked, “So, you don’t plan to see him again?”
Shaking her head, Mia said, “No. I think I need to move on. We never really knew each other.”
Suzy gave her a shrewd look before standing. “Just make sure that’s what you want.” As she was leaving, she said, “Let’s do lunch soon.” With those words, she was gone and Mia was smiling despite Seth weighing heavily on her mind. It wasn’t every day you got a lunch invitation from your idol.
She logged off her computer and reached behind her to grab her handbag. When her fingers instead pulled up the bag that Seth had given her, she grimaced. God, she was sure it contained breakfast and she had left it sitting all day long. She peered inside out of curiosity and gasped at the contents. She jumped up and locked her door before emptying the bag onto her desk. Her shock finally wore off and she started laughing as she studied the contents: a pair of handcuffs, a black silk blindfold, and two small clips that she thought were nipple clamps. OH, MY! Seth had just proven her wrong. He might not know every detail about her, but he damn sure knew what turned her on. She threw everything back in the bag and had never been more grateful for the black thong she was wearing. Tonight she would return to the scene of the crime and face her fears. If Seth was as smart as she thought he was, he would be ready and waiting.
Seth paced the foyer of his penthouse looking at his watch again. Shit, why had he listened to his brother? Ash had assured him that to win Mia over, he had to appeal to her needs as a woman. Needs that she might not even be aware of having. Well, the flowers, which had been his idea, hadn’t brought her around so he had lost nothing by leaving her the bag. He liked to fuck hard, but he had never dabbled much in bondage. Where was she? He paced for another thirty minutes and had almost given up when he heard the chime of the arriving elevator. If Margie walked through that door, he would have to fire her because seeing him standing there in nothing but a black tie would be the end of their working relationship. He shuddered in relief when Mia stepped off wearing a long, dark jacket with black stiletto heels. His cock jumped to attention when she dropped her jacket to the floor leaving her in tiny, black panties with the handcuffs hanging off one wrist, the blindfold sitting around her neck, and, shit, her strawberry nipples held erect by the nipple clamps. “Fuck me,” he breathed.
“Oh, I intend to,” she purred. He had her pushed up against the foyer wall in the blink of an eye. “This doesn’t mean we’re dating.”
He ran a hand down her back, squeezing her ass. “Baby, if this is your idea of not dating, I’m freaking fine with it. Let’s not date about five times tonight.” Her giggle quickly turned into a moan when he removed one of the nipple clamps. He replaced it with his mouth and her body thrashed as the circulation returned to the area of her nipple. He lightly squeezed her other breast, causing the clamp to tighten. Mia moaned from the exquisite sensation of pleasure mixed with light undertones of pain. He felt his cock grow even harder and his desire greater. What had started as a gamble instigated by his brother to get Mia’s attention was fast turning into the hottest experience of his life. He slid his hand from her breast and trailed it down her arm until he reached the dangling handcuffs. He was intrigued with the possibilities they offered and quickly looked around for the perfect place to position Mia’s delectable body. When he spotted the wrought-iron stairway, he knew he had found the perfect place. Her eyes widened as she caught onto what he had in mind. He paused to give her time to call a halt if she wasn’t comfortable with the idea. Instead of balking though she stepped forward and held her wrists out, placing her trust in him. He pulled a cuff through the railing and snapped it around her other wrist. He then pulled the blindfold up, completely covering her eyes. “Okay?” he asked softly.
She wiggled her pert behind against him. “God, yes. Touch me, Seth.” She didn’t need to ask twice. He settled his body flush against hers. He was thankful for the added height that her heels gave her as his cock nudged against her rear. He felt the breath hitch in her chest and her heart race as he nudged her feet apart, opening her body to his seeking hand. With his front still pressed to her back, he reached around and stroked her closely cropped mound before slipping into her slick folds. She was so hot and wet that he wanted nothing more than to bury himself to the hilt without further delay. He settled for rubbing his cock in the fold of her ass while sinking one finger inside of her and circling her clit with his thumb. Her body jerked against his and he could feel her tighten and quiver as he added another finger to her tight passage. He quickened his pace and she rode his hand, seeming desperate for the sweet relief that he offered. As he felt her get close to the edge, he picked up the nipple clamp that he had placed on the stairs and attached it to the breast he had removed it from earlier. The sudden bite into her sensitive peak pushed her over the edge. “Ohhh, ahhh, Seth!”He couldn’t wait any longer. He grabbed the pants he had discarded earlier, pulling a condom from his billfold. Yeah, it might be juvenile but most men lived by the Boy Scout rule of always be prepared. He quickly sheathed himself and braced Mia’s hands against the lower side of the stairway, bending her further.
“Ready, baby?” Without waiting for an answer, he circled his cock in her juices for lubricant and then plunged inside her deeply. When he pulled out almost all of the way, she surprised him by jerking her hips back and impaling him again. She continued to meet him thrust for thrust and soon they were both racing toward completion. He felt himself hovering on the edge and he wanted Mia there with him. When he lowered his hand to tweak her clit, he felt her body start to shudder. “Now, baby!” With those words, she went over the edge and he followed closely behind. He supported her limp body as her strength deserted her. His head slumped against her shoulder, his cock still buried deep inside of her soft body.
He was still trying to recover when she turned as far as her cuffs would allow and kissed the corner of his mouth. “Baby?”
“Hmmm?”He murmured, completely content.
She shook her hands, clanking the metal against the railing. “Please tell me you know where the keys are to these.” When she felt his body shaking with laughter, she yelled, “Seth!”
Yeah, he didn’t know where in the hell the key was. His brain was too muddled. He was sure they could find some way to pass the time until it came to him. He had never been a man to waste an opportunity. If this was what “not dating” Mia was going to be like, he couldn’t wait to see what not being in a relationship with her would be.
Epilogue
What did you buy a man for your three-month anniversary? Her newly minted friend Suzy had suggested some Ben Wa Balls and a leather crop. Her cheeks flushed pink as she scrolled the online store for those items. She felt like it was more of a gift for her than for Seth, but Suzy had assured her that they would equally thrill him. There was no way that Mia was going into a store to purchase them, though. God, she hoped her elderly neighbor, Mrs. Cole, didn’t get her mail again when these packages arrived. She was almost sure that she opened her packages and glued them shut again before leaving them at her door. Mia never said anything though because she enjoyed providing the woman with some gossip.
The past few months had been some of the best of her life. Seth had become the friend, lover, and yeah, the boyfriend of her dreams. Their sex life was adventurous and earthshaking and, out of bed, she loved nothing better than spending time with him. They challenged each other on every level and even their downtime was exciting. Tonight they were having dinner with her parents. That was another thing going right in her life. Her relationship with her mother continued to grow and evolve and her father was desperately trying to adapt to his new wife. The woman he had initially fallen in love with was back in all of her glory, and Mia was surprised to see her father scrambling for footing for the first time in her life. In the end though she thought that the change in their relationship would be what kept them together instead of eventually pulling them apart.
The knock on her door had her quickly finishing her online purchase before shutting her computer down. She didn’t want Seth to see her surprise yet. She smoothed the skirt of the short, pink dress down and ran for the door as he knocked again. She threw it open and her heart kicked into high gear as it always did. God, she was in love with the man standing on the other side looking so damn handsome and sexy. Maybe it was all moving too fast, but she was helpless to stop the flow. She was firmly in the Seth Jackson gravitational field and she had no desire to escape. He pulled her close and she melted against his firm lips. When her mouth had been thoroughly plundered, he said, “Hey, baby. I missed you today.”
She smiled in return, admitting, “I missed you, too.” She gave him another quick kiss before turning to grab her bag. “Ready to go?”
He wiggled his brows saying, “I’d rather stay here and eat you for dinner.”
Neither of them noticed Mrs. Cole standing in her doorway across the hall. She rolled her eyes before giving them an indulgent smile. And, since she knew everything that happened in the building before anyone else, it likely would not come as a surprise to her that before the evening was over, Seth and Mia would say “I love you” for the first time.