The Barter System (4 page)

“Would you let me tie you
up?  I’m just curious,” she asked him. 

“You know what?  I think I
would.  It’s weird, and don’t take offense, but you’re so much more normal than
I thought you’d be.  You seem so honest and, well, sweet.”  Riya laughed, not
sure if that was the reaction she needed from her subjects. 

They finished their drinks
and Sean came back with a refill when he asked, “So, how long do I get to keep
you?”  He looked at her with interest.  “I’ve got a lot of activities planned. 
I don’t want to waste a moment.  My mother wants to meet you.” 

At her gasp, he chuckled,
“No worries, Riya.  I go up to Rock Springs every couple of weeks to check on
her now that my dad is gone and she’d already heard about the project from my
younger brother, or The Traitor, as I like to call him.  I filled her in on the
basics and she was amazed at your ingenuity.”  He smiled sardonically, “She was
the original flower child and judges no one.  I think she may even be a little
jealous she never thought of the idea.  I told her I would mention it but I
wasn’t making any promises.”

Riya was surprised.  In all
honestly, for all the noble conversations they’d had, she figured they’d spend
most of their time inside, either working on her part of the bargain or his. 
“I’m not worried about meeting your mom, Sean.  It actually might add another
element to my research.  I’m just concerned you went to so much trouble.  I
didn’t expect anything.”

He laughed, “You wouldn’t. 
You are so young in person.  Twelve years age difference never seemed as much
as it does right now.  Though I admit my thoughts have gone native with
everything I want to do to you physically, I’m not eighteen anymore.  You’re a
guest and I’ll be treating you with dignity and respect.”  He sipped his
daiquiri and set it on the small table before adding, “Though I can’t promise
not to be male, I will struggle to be a well-behaved male.”

Riya placed her drink next
to his and leaned across the narrow space between them.  Her hair blew across
her face and over Sean’s forearm.  His quick intake of breath told her he was
more physically aware of her than he wanted to admit.  The knowledge pleased her. 

Their agreement was built on
the assumption of give and take.  She would get her research; he could have,
well, whatever he wanted.  If he’d taken her at the front door, she would have
been surprised but not offended.  A deal was a deal, after all. 

She reached up to place a
palm along his face.  “I appreciate that, Sean.  You’re more than I expected,
too.”  She leaned closer and placed her lips against his. 

His response was immediate
but controlled.  He leaned into the kiss but allowed her to lead.  She tasted
his lips delicately.  There was slight stubble on his jaw, though she was sure
he’d shaved earlier.  She rubbed her cheek against it.  She nuzzled his ear,
ran her lips along his throat, and inhaled deeply where his collarbone stood
pronounced against his shirt. 

He was utterly still and
after a few moments, she pulled back and met his gaze.  The raw need she saw
there was like nothing she’d experienced before.  No matter what, this was a
man not a boy.  “Why aren’t you moving?”

There was a tightening
around his eyes and mouth, “The truth?  I’m afraid to move, Riya.  You smell
fantastic, you look fantastic, and I don’t want to screw this up or scare the
shit out of you.”  His blunt honesty was refreshing.

“Thank you.  Now you can
stop worrying.  I’d like to satisfy your curiosity and get the initial
awkwardness of ‘what sex together will be like’ out of the way.  Then we can
talk and go wherever you want.  I don’t want the wondering to overshadow our
time together.  Truthfully, I’m just as curious as you are.  What do you say?”

He paused for just a moment
before swinging his legs between the chairs and scooping her into his lap. 
“Done.”

Chapter
Three

Riya didn’t have time to
breathe.  She didn’t have time to think.  All she could do was feel.  And
everything felt unbelievable.  She’d gone without this for so long and it had
never felt remotely like this.

Sean’s lips raked lightly
across hers before trailing down her throat.  She dropped her head back to have
his lips on more of her skin, the light breeze welcome against her overheated
skin.  His hands kneaded along her back, up and down, testing the feel of her. 
One hand moved behind her knees and he lifted her with little effort, carrying
her into the house to his bedroom.  

He allowed her to stand long
enough to pull his blue comforter back from the bed, laying her on the cool
sheets as he slipped off her sandals.  Kicking off his own sandals, she smiled
as he lay down beside her.  Warm hands moved to caress her sides, pausing at
the hem of her shirt and glancing at her, seeking permission which was quickly
granted, before pulling it carefully over her head.  One finger traced along
the waistband of her skirt. 

Riya’s skin was already
flushing with desire.  She felt it so Sean must see it.  He flipped open the
button, slid down the zipper, and pushed it down her legs with the flat of his
palm leaving an anxious warmth along the tops of her thighs.  He slowed down,
taking in the appearance of her in nothing but a white lace bra and panties. 

When he came back to lie
beside her, he rested his head on his hand as he moved two fingers over her
shoulders, her neck, her chest, her stomach, and her hip before reversing
direction and doing it again. 

She reached to pull his shirt
over his head, taking stock of very well defined shoulders, arms, and chest. 
Cut but not bulging.  There was the tiniest bit of hair on his chest.  She
tugged at his shorts and he lifted so she could push them away, leaving boxer
briefs taught over narrow hips and well-muscled thighs. 

She tested the feel and
texture of Sean’s upper body and he returned to kissing her.  The kiss was much
deeper this time, more demanding.  There was a slight flutter in Riya’s stomach
that she almost took for fear or nervousness until she recognized the foreign
emotion as excitement and embraced it.

Her fingers dug into his
shoulders, pulling him tightly against her.  Sean came willingly and wrapped
her waist in the vice of his arms as he devoured her lips and tongue.  Teeth
nipped at her lips, then his tongue followed over to soothe.  The time and
attention to detail he showed in his kisses, lazily exploring her lips and
mouth, made her breathless. 

She wasn’t completely
inexperienced, but obviously Sean had learned a lot in his extra twelve years
about taking care of a woman sexually.  His mouth tasted like the pineapple
from their drink and a faint trace of alcohol that was pleasant.  He moved to
her neck and shoulders, paying close attention to every inch of skin along the
way with gentle open-mouthed kisses. 

A warm, slightly rough
tongue skimmed along her collarbone, raising goose bumps along her arms and
causing a small moan to escape her.  Over the tops of her breasts and the
hollow between them.  More kisses to her flat stomach and around her belly
button before dipping inside.  Gradually working his way down her body,
learning her, noting what pleased her. 

Sean braced his knees on
either side of her hips and pulled her into a sitting position, reaching behind
her to unclasp her bra.  He lowered her back to the bed as he pulled it away. 

He looked at her with
appreciation, cupping the taut mounds in his palms, saying roughly, “I can’t
imagine you ruining these beautiful breasts with any damn surgery.” 

He bent to take a pebbled
nipple in his mouth, sealing her to the top of his mouth as he laved the
underside with his tongue.  He released her with a gentle scrape of his teeth. 
She moved her hands to the back of his neck, wanting to keep him close to her. 
He took the other nipple in his mouth, kneading the other damp tip between his
thumb and forefinger.  Her body arched to meet him of its’ own accord and she
could tell it pleased him.       

Her hands never stopped
moving over him, exploring what she could reach.  She wondered at his patience,
his restraint.  She was ready for him, wet for him, more quickly than she’d
known her body to be in the past.  She wanted him now.  Right now. 

Sean’s fingers began making
lazy circles over the lacy triangle of her panties.  Rational thought fled,
restraint a thing of the past.  Grinding into his hand, trying to get more
contact, whimpering at her failure to do so.

The presence of his hand
left her and caused her eyes, which she hadn’t realized had drifted closed, to
pop open in disappointment.  There was a knowing smile on his face as he
stripped her panties slowly and provocatively from her, raising his eyebrows
when he found her pussy bare.  “Very nice, Riya.  Very edgy.  Damn.”

Two thumbs in the waistband
of his briefs and they were gone.  It was Riya’s turn for appreciation.  “Well,
Sean, I concur.  Damn.”  He was completely erect and bigger than either of the
men she’d been with, long with a healthy width.  She was shocked to realize her
mouth was watering.

He stretched out again and
slid his hands between her swollen breasts, over each one, and kneaded them for
good measure.  As his palms traveled over her taut abs, he raked his nails over
the skin, causing her thighs to clench together automatically. 

“You’re a very tactile
person, Riya.  Your body broadcasts exactly what you like and I like that very
much,” he whispered.  “For instance, your eyes are half closed, but very bright
now.  Your skin is flushed, light areas of pale pink over your pretty tan. 
Your nipples are so hard, like baby strawberries, only better tasting.  Your
arms and legs are covered in goose bumps.  And of course, you are very wet…very
ready.” 

She was ready to come just
from him talking like this.  “Sean, I…”  Did that husky whisper belong to her?

“Yes, Riya?  Tell me what
you need, baby.  I’m only interested in your pleasure.”  She was writhing
against him as his fingers traced her hip bone, across her low abdomen, to the
other hip bone.  “Hmm, or perhaps I should guess.”  He trailed his hand over
the outer lips of her pussy, barely skimming them.  She bucked toward him.  “Oh
yes, I believe I may be on the right track here.” 

He scooted further down the
bed.  “I’m going to get a closer look,” he said in an impersonation of an
Australian wildlife journalist observing lions in the desert.  “Here we have
the elusive jungle cat, Riya.  She is a fierce creature, determined to rule the
desert on her terms.  Let’s see if we can approach without attack.”  Despite
her body’s tension, Riya laughed breathlessly.

He nudged her thighs apart
and settled himself between them.  His fingers traced from her knees, up her
inner thigh, and along her pelvis bone.  Then he dragged two fingers from the
top of her mound slowly to the entrance of her pussy.  All teasing disappeared,

“Oh, Riya, you are so wet,
baby.”  He used his fingers to separate her and bent his mouth to her clit. 
“And delicious. 
Fuck.
” 

He settled in to lick, suck,
lap, and nibble while gently slipping two fingers into her pussy, stroking
steadily.  Her entire back was off the bed, fists in the sheets as she moaned
his name.  The only sound she could hear was the pounding of her heart and the
moans she couldn’t control.  He’d bring her up and withdraw, taking her to the
edge again and again. 

Only when she growled in
frustration the third time did he curl his fingers inside her, scraping his blunted
fingertips against her G-spot.  The orgasm exploded out from her womb and
clenched every muscle in her body.  She felt her own come dripping from her and
he continued to lick until the shudders wracking her body began to ease. 

Riya went limp as he kissed
his way up her body.  When he got to her lips, she cupped the sides of his
face, pulling him closer for a kiss and tasting her own essence on his mouth. 
The eroticism sent another shudder across her skin.

Suddenly inspired, she
flipped him to his back, surprising him with her strength.  Straddling his
body, Riya worked her way from his face, kneading the muscles of Sean’s neck
and shoulders, and nipping her way over his chest and hard abs.  She licked his
belly button and the defined line along both hips that led to his fantastic
cock.