Get a grip, Girl. Keep your cool.
But she was very far from cool. Her body was exploding with heat. Her heart thumped so hard she could hear the blood rushing in her ears.
Nick stopped kissing her long enough to pick her up and stare into her eyes. His eyes were smoky with lust and passion and something else...need.
He held her to him and carried her to the couch. Abbey had enough of her wits still with her to shake her head and whisper, "The bed."
He changed direction and carried her to the bedroom, all the while his eyes never leaving hers. There was pain in them —pain mixed with desire —and it tore at Abbey's heart when she recognized it.
This was going to be harder than she thought.
He kissed her again as he laid her gently on the bed. Then his body covered hers, pinning her to the mattress. His weight felt good, reassuring.
She pushed his shirt off his shoulders and he pulled his arms free of the sleeves. She let the shirt drop to the floor then concentrated on his pants. He stood, took them off together with his shorts, then gently pulled her from the bed to stand against his naked body.
"I want to look at you, Abbey. I want to see your body."
She nodded and he reached behind her to undo the zip that started at her lower back and ended just below her bottom. The dress fell away and revealed her dressed only in a black thong.
Nick swallowed as he took a step back and let his eyes travel the length of her body. Somehow it didn't feel crude when he looked at her that way. His gaze was admiring, like a man studying a work of art. There was nothing threatening or vulgar about it.
Abbey stood, arms calmly at her sides, and let him drink her in. It was going to be his last time.
He took a step toward her and bent to kiss a nipple. It peaked immediately and drew a deep sigh from Abbey. His thumb and forefinger played with the other, twisting gently until a spasm shot through her.
He continued nibbling at her ni**les while his hands moved downwards, gently feeling every inch of bare skin between breast and the triangle of dark curls. She quivered before he even reached the spot that sent hot rushes through her. He rubbed and the quivering intensified. Her fingers gripped into the muscles in his shoulders and she arched herself into him, bringing her into contact with his hard erection.
He jerked away. "Not yet," he breathed.
Damn it. She wanted him badly. Inside her.
Abbey tried to get him to move to the bed but he wouldn't budge. As his fingers and tongue increased their speed she could feel herself approaching the edge. She was on the brink when he pushed her gently back on the bed and entered her with one quick thrust and a grunt.
She closed her eyes and relished the rush of tingles and heat that swamped her, enjoying the way he felt inside her —hard and big. Filling her. Nick shifted his weight. He knelt on the bed on top of her, and moved her legs so the calves rested on his shoulders, her toes pointing toward the ceiling. He thrust again, and Abbey's eyes sprang open as she gasped.
The new angle made him feel even bigger, longer. He reached a place she didn't know existed, unleashing a tide of waves crashing through her body. She felt like she was burning as masses of tingles ignited her, brought her to the edge and over it.
Her eyes locked with Nick's as she cried out. They were black and glazed with need and desire. She gripped his shoulders with her fingers as shudders took over her body. Nick threw back his head, his muscles twitched and tensed, and he let out a roar as he flowed into her.
Exhausted, they lay together on the bed in a damp tangle of limbs and sheets. Nick kissed the top of Abbey's head and pulled her into his chest, mumbling something that she couldn't make out. Abbey put her right leg between his knees, the movement an automatic one that she was only barely aware of.
Moments later Nick was asleep in her arms and she was telling herself she would activate her plan after she had a nap.
***
Nick awoke with a headache and stiff limbs. He moved his arms to feel for Abbey, sweet Abbey who'd come to him finally. But they wouldn't budge.
Nick groaned and slowly opened his eyes. He was on his bed in the hotel suite and Abbey was standing at the foot of the bed. Naked. He tried to move again to reach her, but couldn't.
That's when he realized he was tied to the bed. A sock bound each of his wrists and the pillow cases tied his feet. The bed was a four poster. He was naked and spread-eagled.
"Abbey! Abbey, what are you doing?" He tried to get up again, struggling with the bonds, but fell back into the pillows.
His first instinct was to panic, but that quickly passed when he realized Abbey wasn't a dangerous woman, just a pissed off one. She'd made love to him only hours before, so she couldn't be too angry either.
Could she?
She glared at him, hands on hips. The sight of her, naked and in control sent a thrill through him. He glanced down at his stirring cock. Abbey noticed too and smiled. She came round to the side of the bed.
"Abbey, what's going on? Let me go, and we'll talk about this."
She shook her head. "I'm sorry, but it's the only way I could stop you from touching me."
"Why don't you want me to touch you?"
"Because when you do I lose control."
Nick couldn't help smiling at that. He knew the feeling. "So?"
"So, I do want to talk to you, but I don't want you to touch me, and I know you will. And I know I’ll respond. This is the only way I can say what I want to say without interruptions."
"You're lying." Nick could tell there was something else. He could see it in the wicked glint in her eyes. "You're going to tease me to death aren't you?"
Abbey laughed. "No. I'm not going to tease you—"
"You already are, just by standing there naked."
She frowned and picked her thong off the floor. She stepped into it. Nick watched, mesmerized, as the tiny piece of fabric swept over her smooth legs and her soft thighs, and settled over her dark triangle to hide her most secret place from him.
"Stay like that," he said. "If you stay like that I don't mind being tied up, honestly."
Abbey's mouth twitched, but she was already pulling her dress on.
Nick's breathing became shallow. So this wasn't about sex. She really didn't want to tease him. That was a problem. What did she have in mind? He struggled with the bonds again but they didn't budge. He let out a low growl.
"This isn't funny anymore, Abbey. Untie me."
Her eyes narrowed. "You lied to me. You treated me like a piece of meat."
For the first time, Nick noticed that Abbey's lips had turned almost white and her face glowed with a pink flush. She was angry. No, she was fuming.