She watched his eyes darken. His gaze flickered to Khalid.
“Did you touch her?”
“She belongs to you,” Khalid said softly then. “I know the rules of The Club, Ian. Even those unspoken.”
Fire bit into her ni**les as Ian’s gaze flickered to them.
“Such games you play,” she said with a sigh. “I thought you were a bit more honest about your desires, Ian. Such whimsies do not become you.”
She frowned as she moved to the side to pass by him. He was there again, shifting to keep her in front in of him.
“I’ve wondered this evening,” he said, his hands reaching out to slide the shoulders of her jacket from her. “If you are as brave, as courageous in your desires as you appear to be. Are you, Courtney?”
“It would appear more so than you, Ian.” She shrugged the jacket off herself, allowing it to fall to the floor at her feet as he gripped her arms, less than gently, turning her quickly and half-carrying her into the living/receiving room he had vacated moments before.
* * * * *
Courtney had no idea what happed to Khalid. To be perfectly honest, at that moment, she really didn’t care. Others had no place in this first confrontation between her and Ian. No audience was needed in this first, subtle battle that would decide if she would become special to him, or merely the little girl who forced him to take her to his bed despite his best intentions.
He was fighting sheer habit, that she knew. His friendship with her father changed the rules for her, made taking her more difficult for him. She had to win this first confrontation, prove to him that she was more, that she was different from the others. It wasn’t his lifestyle that drew her to him, as it was with the other lovers who had sought him out. It was Ian, his touch, his heart, that drew her. The rest was merely a sweet little fringe benefit.
She twisted out of his grip inside the room, swinging around to face him as he stared at her with dark, glittering eyes.
“What now?” She propped her hands on her h*ps as she watched him, allowing a daring smile to shape her lips, a challenge, one that said she didn’t believe he would follow through with whatever wicked thoughts were racing through his mind. And they were wicked. She could see it in the heavy sensuality that tightened his expression, the way his eyes narrowed on her.
That look speared straight to her pu**y, causing the cream gathering in her vagina to ease slowly along the bare folds beyond.
“What do you think?” Ah yes, he was angry. She could see the anger pulsing inside him, mixing with the arousal, pushing his boundaries, testing his control.
She lifted her shoulder negligently. “I have no clue, Ian. Should I strip for you?” She spread her arms wide. “Or should I go to my knees for you? I’ve not truly researched the proper rules of a submissive, as it’s not the role I intend to really play, so perhaps you should tell me what is expected of me next.”
Her arms fell to her sides then as she stared back at him questioningly. Not that she expected much of a fair answer from him. If she knew anything about angry men, it was that they would cut their noses off to spite their faces. They were stubborn, arrogant, and more likely to deny the obvious than to admit to it. Such stubborn creatures, she sighed regretfully.
“You think being such a naughty little girl is cute, don’t you, Courtney.”
Oh shit. How had he picked on one of her favorite fantasies so damned fast? It was one that often left her wakening, damp with perspiration, her thighs quivering with the need for release, the cheeks of her ass clenching in remembered heat as she dreamed of his palm landing heavily on her rear.
“Am I being naughty, Ian?” The fingers of one hand moved to the small emerald ring piercing her navel as she played with it with studied laziness. “I thought I was quite well behaved. Of course, you always have the option of punishing me. Would you like to punish me?” She deliberately adopted a softer, more innocent tone as she allowed her eyes to widen in mock surprise. “Spank me,” she breathed seductively. “Spank me so good.”
His gaze glittered, wilder, hotter.
“You think you know me,” he growled then. “You think your soft little dreams are safe with me and this is all a game you can play. It’s not a game, Courtney. This isn’t a sexual taste for me, it’s a lifestyle, and what I demand of you will be nothing compared to what you think you know.”
“Have I acted as though I were playing a game?” She arched a brow mockingly. “I know more about you than you could ever believe, Ian. I’m very well aware of the fact that it isn’t a game.” Her heart and life were very serious matters to her. “My question is, are you?”
“Are you still a virgin?” It was a question she had expected.
“Only in your dreams.” Her gaze flicked to his fists as they clenched in the pockets of his slacks, stretching the material over the thick erection beneath. “Do you dream of that, Ian? Of taking my innocence? Of being the first? Had I known that, I wouldn’t have been so eager to rid myself of it.”
But she knew better. She knew Ian well enough, and had overheard her parents discussing him enough to know he would have never been comfortable taking her virginity. He would have regretted it, and she didn’t want that for him, or for herself.
“Never,” he snapped. “If I wanted a bloody virgin I could find one any day.”
“But not a bloody virgin named Courtney,” she reminded him sweetly. “You may have missed out on the shield of purity but there is still much you can teach me. Wouldn’t you like to instruct me, Ian?” She moved closer, deliberately teasing him, taunting him. “To teach me your pleasures? To leave me screaming in shock and desire? You may not be the first to touch me, but you will be the first to possess me, perhaps.”
He grabbed her shoulders, his grip snug, almost tight as he pushed her to the nearby chair before stepping away. The strength and dominance in the act was enough to weaken her knees. The implications of his weakening control had her blood singing in exhilaration.
“Bend over the chair,” he fairly snarled. “Before this goes any further, I’ll know for certain. Trust me, Courtney, you don’t want me to take you if you are.”
“Oh really, Ian…”
“Now!” The crack of his voice had her shuddering. Dominant, harsh, riding the edge of control. But not out of control. He was determined to hold part of himself back, to maintain a distance with her that she knew she would never survive.