"Have you forgotten what they say about STDs? When you sleep with someone you not only sleep with that person, you sleep with every person that person has ever slept with, and so on."
"A bit too indiscriminate for your tastes?"
"Just a bit."
"But doesn't the thought of being with a man who has spent years developing those skills tempt you just a little?"
They could just as easily be talking about him and he knew it. She wanted to deny the clever challenge and change the subject; still, she found the conversation stimulating. She'd never openly discussed sex with a man. Elliot had not only been her first lover, he had been her only lover, and he approached sex with a clinical efficiency that left her unimpressed.
"That's two different questions," she pointed out. "Being with a man who has mastered the art of pleasing a woman and being with Anthony Depalma are two very different propositions. Besides, having countless lovers doesn't guarantee that you're a spectacular lover."
"I agree. But learning to gain more from giving pleasure than from receiving pleasure does."
Like black velvet caressing her entire body, the subtle promise in his words made her insides quiver. "I wouldn't know." She glanced away, suddenly understanding the meaning of temptation. "I'm not going to sleep with you, Trevor. This conversation is pointless."
"It's only pointless if you've lost interested in the topic."
"What exactly is the topic?" Her intense reaction to the risqu� conversation frightened her. Her life was orderly, routine. She was never impulsive or reckless. Trevor called to a dark side of her nature she seldom acknowledged.
"Sexual fantasies." He leaned forward and whispered the phrase.
"You want to talk about sexual fantasies?" She glanced around guiltily. No one was paying any attention to them. "I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours?"
"What kept you watching at the party?"
Heat radiated out from her pussy and pressing her thighs together only intensified the ache. "At first I was shocked to find them there."
"At first?" He coaxed. "Then what?"
"I thought they were beautiful. Selena is the personification of a Barbie doll and the man was..."
"Was it just their physical perfection? Or was it something more?"
He seemed to know the answers, but hearing her admit her thoughts and feelings was somehow giving him pleasure. "They were so carried away in what they were doing that nothing else mattered. They didn't care if they were seen. They didn't care what anyone thought. I couldn't imagine ... or maybe I was trying to imagine."
"Have you ever been tied up?" he asked with a smile.
She laughed. The idea of Elliot ever being adventurous was ridiculous. "No. Have you?"
"Yes." The smoldering heat in his gaze convinced her he was serious. "Have you ever wanted to be?"
She was definitely uncomfortable now. Velvet had suppressed her sexuality for so long she'd nearly forgotten what it felt like. Elliot expected her to be docile and cooperative. Intimacy had never been a priority in his life. There had been a time, long ago, when she'd allowed herself to imagine what it would be like to indulge her passion until she could hardly walk. But that had been long before she'd found out what sex was really like.
Trevor's throaty chuckle drew her attention back to the present. "I can't picture you with Elliot. He's uptight and boring and you're ... beautiful and exciting."
"I'm not going to sleep with you," she said again, her voice unsteady. She was no longer sure who she was trying to convince.
"I don't want to sleep with you. I just want to touch you."
A nervous little laugh escaped her. "Like you did the other night? I can't believe I let you do that."
"I want to do what we both wanted the other night. You let me touch you. What I really wanted was taste."
Shaken by the erotic promise in his gaze, she reached for her purse. "I don't think so."
His hand covered hers. "I bet I can guess your most common sexual fantasy. If I describe it correctly, you have to be honest enough to admit that I'm right."
"And if you're wrong?" she challenged.
"Oh, admitting that I'm right isn't the bet. If I'm right you offer me dessert."
"Just ... dessert? Just the tasting part?" Her heart lurched into her throat and her abdomen tightened. "And if you're wrong?"
"That's up to you. What do you want from me?"
"Nothing," she said with a taunting smile.
"Okay. If I'm wrong we end the evening and go our separate ways, but if I'm right, you let me touch you with my hands and my mouth anywhere I want, for as long as I want."
Time paused. They stared at each other silently and the rest of the room fell away. Her blood pounded through her veins and her heart beat painfully. She needed to break the tension, to disrupt the current effortlessly sweeping her along. "Here, in the restaurant?"
"No, in the back seat of my car."
For a split second she imagined what it would be like to put herself in his hands, literally. Then she wondered what he would do if she just snatched up her purse and left. The game seemed harmless enough. All she really had to do was reject whatever he described. "What makes you think you know me so well?"
"I don't need to know you. I know Elliot."
The confidence in his tone made anger tumble through Velvet. "Fine. What is my most common fantasy?"
"The setting isn't really important. Your lover could be a pirate or a cop or a sultan, but he would know exactly what he wanted from you and how to get it--whether you were ready to admit you wanted him or not."
He paused for a moment as if to allow her mind to create the scene. Velvet stared into his brilliant hazel eyes and felt her entire body flush. Her imagination fell in sync with his captivating voice.
"Let's use trusty Captain Jack. He's given up his share of the booty to claim you as his prize. It's his whole crew or him. You really have no choice. He doesn't want to hurt you, so he ties you to his bed. You're frightened, but deep inside you want to be overwhelmed. You want him to sense the need beyond your apprehension. You want him to abandon himself completely to his lust for you."
Directed by his softly spoken narrative, the image in her mind became more detailed, more vivid. She was bound hand and foot to a bed and the man arching over her naked body had burning hazel eyes. She could feel his hands move across her flesh. Her breasts swelled, her nipples tightened and her pussy clenched hungrily. Damn him! She licked her lips and expelled a shuddering breath.
"He'd touch you in places you've never been touched. He'd slip his fingers inside you. First two, then three. And he'd feast on your quivering body, watching your face as you come. You'd feel things you'd never imagined. You'd surrender unconditionally, but only if you knew you could trust him."
She allowed the unsettling image to fade. Sensations echoed, leaving her empty and wanting. "That's every woman's fantasy. It has nothing to do with me."
"That's not true. Some women can only enjoy passion when they're in control. Some would rather be the teacher. Some aren't satisfied with surrendering control; they want to be dominated. That's not what you want." He tossed his napkin onto the tabletop and leaned toward her again, his voice dropping to just above a whisper. "You longed for Elliot to be aggressive. You wanted him to shock you with the intensity of his desire, but he was gentle and composed. You needed him to want you so badly that he'd fuck you against the pool house wall regardless of who might be watching. But it was never like that, was it? I bet he never even broke a sweat while he made love to you. Did he ever make you come? Did he even vary from the missionary position?"
"I've lost interest in the topic!" She grabbed her purse and walked from the restaurant as quickly as she could without making a scene. Her heart pounded and her stomach knotted. He couldn't know how accurately he'd described the last eleven years. He couldn't know!
Tears blinded her; still, she managed to find her car. Her hand shook and her keys slipped from her awkward grasp.
Trevor caught them before they hit the pavement. She watched his dexterous movements in her peripheral vision. His hand closed around the keys and then his arm closed around her waist. She could feel his body heat against her back. He brushed her hair away from the nape of her neck and pressed his open mouth against her sensitive skin. The slow, wet stroke of his tongue dragged a gasp from Velvet. Her body refused to remember that she had no intention of sleeping with him.
)
