Fiendish: A Twisted Fairytale (22 page)

Did I hear her right? Her friend talked her into bringing me to an erotic art show. This was going to be a very interesting night.

“No, we’re going in. This is the date you asked me to, so this is the date we’ll have.”

I got out of the car before she could protest.

***

As soon as we stepped into the building and I saw the first piece, my face flushed with color. Seth
’s hand wrapped around mine, and I concentrated on my breathing, hoping that I looked calmer than I felt.
Oh dear god. I’m going to kill her
! I couldn’t believe Macy would set me up like this. She’d said erotic art, but the images I was faced with were something entirely different. I looked up at Seth, and he gave me a wicked smile that added to the butterflies already in my stomach. 

“Ms. Alexander, I had no idea you were into such things,”
 he whispered. His eyes danced with mischief, and it gave me the little boost I needed.

“Does that bother you?”
 I asked with a false sense of confidence.

Seth stepped back to stare at me.
 

He scanned my body from head to toe before leaning in and whispering in my ear. “Everyone is entitled to their dirty little secret.”
 

I had to bite my lip to keep from whimpering. Something in the way he said that made me extremely horny, however just being around him managed to have that effect on me.
 

“What
’s your dirty little secret?” I inquired, trying to keep the game going.

He gave me another wicked smile. “I don
’t think you’re ready to know that yet.” 

With my hand still held securely in his, he led me through the small crowd further into the gallery.
 We stopped in front of the large picture of a woman with some sort of contraption in her mouth.

“Tell me. What are your thoughts on this piece?” he asked, sounding very casual about the piece we were looking at.

My thoughts? My thoughts are I want to get as far away from here as possible.
 I wanted to close my eyes and pretend I wasn’t seeing people, no women in bonds and gagged and who knew what else as we continued on. No, I couldn’t really tell him my thoughts. I had to play this night out.

I studied the close up shot of the blonde woman whose blue eyes were wide with fear maybe. Her deep red lips were held open by some sort of ball contraption that appeared to be pulled tightly by a pair of hands with red fingernails.

“She looks frightened, yet those are women’s hands holding the straps. Makes me wonder if she’s doing it to herself. Or maybe her partner is a woman. Either way, the look on her face doesn’t say pleasure to me.”

“Interesting.
 Have you used one of those?” Seth asked, stepping closer to me.

His fingers brushed lightly against mine, and the contact sent shockwaves through my body.

“Um, no…I don’t know what that is, but it doesn’t look very comfortable.”

“It
’s called a ball gag.”

I looked at him, not sure whether I wanted to know how he knew that.
 

He smiled as if reading my thoughts. “I know about a lot of things,” he said, taking my hand to lead me over to another piece.

“This one doesn’t look afraid,” I commented as I studied the woman. 

She sat in front of what I assumed to be a man in a blue suit. You only saw his jacket and pants legs as she kneeled before him, naked. Her arms were behind her back, and her upper torso was bound with a brown leather rope. Her eyes were closed as her head rested against the man. She looked calm.

“Perhaps she enjoys giving over her power and being submissive to him,” Seth said quietly.

“Or perhaps she holds the power,” I challenged.

“How so?” He asked with genuine interest in his voice.

“Well, from my understanding of how those types of relationships work, it has to be consensual.
 The domineering one can only go as far as the submissive will allow.”

“You
’re thinking of the things you see in movies. Some lady dressed up in leather with a whip being called Mistress; safewords used if things get too intense.” Seth placed his fingers on my chin, drawing my attention away from the painting to him. “Sometimes, the roles may not always be so clearly defined.” He leaned forward. I felt his lips brush across my cheek as he whispered, “Sometimes there are no safewords.”

I visibly shuddered from his closeness and from the tone of his words. Something in how he said it made me want to know more behind his meaning.

I turned my head a bit, and my face made light contact with his. “I don’t understand.” 

Seth let his fingers slide through my hair “You don
’t need to,” he replied before stepping back. “I’m going to get us drinks.”

I swallowed hard and nodded my agreement. Drinks would be a great idea right about now.

I had to fan myself when he walked away. I was so far out of my comfort zone trying to play this game with him. Safewords. Submissiveness. All of it was too much for me to handle. Most of these images disturbed me. Couple that with how nervous I still felt in his presence, it was a wonder I’d managed to make it this long. 

As I waited for him to return, I wandered like the rest of the patrons until I found the one painting that I actually thought was beautiful.
 It was a tasteful black and white of a naked woman caressing the keys of a piano. You saw her only from the back, but the way the lighting was done, it set a very intimate mood. I was so enthralled in the picture I didn’t hear when Seth approached.

“What turns you on more, the woman or the piano?”
 

I turned and put on my best seductive smile. “That
’s for me to know, and for you to try to find out,” I replied, thankful my hand wasn’t shaking when I took the glass from him. 

Seth stepped closer to me, resting his hand on my hip. “I
’m sure I could get the answer out of you, one way or another.”

His breath was warm against my cheek. The sexy, masculine smell that was so distinctively him surrounded me like a warm embrace. Swallowing hard, I knew the game I was trying to play had just been lost.

“There’s going to be a live art show starting in ten minutes,” he said calmly, stepping away from me.

I could tell from the mischievous look on his face he knew exactly what effect he just had, and he reveled in it. Agreeing to do this was stupid on my part. I was already way out of my element, so there was no way I could sit and watch people have sex, even simulated sex, and especially not now.

“I’ve seen enough
art
for one night. Maybe we find something
else
to do instead,” I replied finally. I knew it was a lost cause, but I owed it to at least Macy to see it through to the end.

Seth sipped his drink as he contemplated my implied proposal. “I
’ll make you a deal. If you stay for the show, I’ll give you what you want most.” 

I licked my lips, nervous suddenly that this crazy plan might actually work. “How do you know what I want most?” I asked, bravely taking a step closer to Seth.

“Because you asked me.”

“I did?” I was now very confused.
 It was clear we were thinking about two different things.

“Yes,” he replied.

Seth leaned close, and my heart was pounding in my chest. Those soft lips were inches from me, and once again I found myself hoping they would end up on my lips, not my hand, or my cheek.

“You want to know if there is a Mrs. Jokobi
correct?”

Mentally I chastised myself, hoping that the embarrassment I felt didn
’t show on my face. I had forgotten about the conversation we’d had in the car. 
How could I have forgotten about that conversation?
I was extremely nervous to hear that answer, but I couldn’t continue on with him like this if he were married. I knew I’d already been walking a fine line going out with him without knowing for sure.

“Is there?”

“I’ll tell you after the show.” 

He took my hand and led me through a doorway to the back of the gallery.
 There were two beds in the center of the room. Couches and large cushions were set up around them for viewing. We settled onto one of the cushions. The lights dimmed and a strobe light started, and it took my eyes a minute to adjust. Rihanna’s S&M song started playing. I felt Seth staring at me, so I kept my eyes glued to the scene in front of me. I was going to kill Macy when she got home, that much was certain. 

I watched as a woman led a man out on a collar and leash. He wore black leather chaps with studded black bikini underwear. She was dressed in some shiny, black pleather bodysuit with heels so high I didn
’t know how she managed to walk. The man licked her boots and dry humped her leg, and that was just the warm up. It was the longest thirty minutes of my life as I watched people simulate sex and bondage and spankings. At the end, I hated to admit it, but I was a little turned on. Seth started to get off the cushion, but I stopped him in a manner that shocked us both. I straddled him.

“Not so fast.
 You owe me an answer.”

Those intense blue eyes stared at me. I shivered slightly when his hand ran up my back.
 Even through my jeans, I could feel the hardness between his legs. I shifted my weight, and he let out an involuntary groan. Seth slid his hands down to my waist, and they tightened for a moment before he lifted me off his lap.

“No, I
’m not married,” he stated tensely. “Now, unless you plan on putting on your own show, we should get going.” He stood, holding his hand out for me.

My stomach did a flip. Not only was he not married, but he wanted me just as much as I wanted him right now.
 The car ride home was silent, but we kept stealing glances at each other. When he pulled up to my house, my stomach was in knots. I chewed on my lower lip as I thought about what I was getting ready to do. Unbuckling my seatbelt, I gave a quick glance to make sure my door was unlocked. My keys were in my hand. I leaned over in my seat and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

“Goodnight, Seth.”

I got out of the car before I could change my mind and walked as quickly as possible towards my front door. Fumbling a bit with the lock, I thought for sure I heard his car door open, but I refused to look back to check. I held my breath until I was securely inside, waiting to see if he would come knock on the door. He must have thought about it because I didn’t hear him drive off right away. After several minutes, I heard him crank up his car and drive off finally.

Chapter 21

“What the hell was that?” I asked angrily, pouring myself a glass of Scotch from the bar.

That was you officially losing control of this situation.
I shook my head, ignoring the notion I wasn’t the one in control.

“I had her, she was ready. Hell I was ready, and I let her send me away.” I downed the smooth amber liquid in one gulp.

I’d left Calida’s house confused and pissed that the night ended like it did. I was still in disbelief over my actions, or lack of action. 
Your focus isn’t the same.

“No! I’m in charge. I choose how things are supposed to end. Not her.”

Nothing about tonight was Calida
’s choice. The clothes, her behavior, none of it felt like the woman I’d spent the last few months with.
Or she could have been deceiving you.
No, it was that meddling friend. She sent us to that place, no doubt Calida had told her about our lack of physical interactions. So it was all Macy’s doing, an attempt to force the issue before I was ready.
So why did she walk away?
I saw it in Calida’s eyes; she wanted me to take her right there after that show. She wouldn’t have cared who was watching, but she walked away.

“Macy,” I grumbled through clenched teeth.

This was her influence. The Calida I’d come to know would have never acted like the person I was with tonight. She’d been throwing out signals since we met, begging me to bed her, and now she plays hard to get. The friend needs to be dealt with.
But how?
Calida would be devastated with the loss.
 

“But, I could then be her shoulder to lean on. Yes, that would be perfect.
 She has no one else here. She doesn’t get along with her sister, and her parents live out of the country. I would be all she had left.” A smile spread across my face.

“Ay! Who
ya talkin’ tah? You dent shay thish wha be a threeshome but thatsh cool I alwaysh wanna try that.”

I rolled my eyes at the heavily inebriated girl as she stumbled out of the bathroom.
 I’d forgotten she was here. I needed a distraction after leaving Calida, and this one had been so easy to lure away from her friends. I’d seen them arrive in their rented party bus, and it was obvious that it wasn’t the first bar they’d visited, which meant no one was the sober one. A bachelorette party and the t-shirt she wore pointed out that she was the lovely bride to be. I’d slipped a hundred into her garter, whispered a few words about enjoying her last night as a free woman, and she was in my car before her friends even realized she was missing. No challenge at all.