Hardwired For Ecstasy (7 page)

He
released her hands, rose, and then walked around to her side of the table and
slid onto the bench next to her. Emma’s pulse raced. She gazed into those dark
eyes, wanting to throw caution to the wind and give this man anything he
wanted. She was so ready to trust someone again, and she was desperate to feel
his body next to hers. She wanted to find out if he kissed as good as she had
imagined.

Atticus
took her hands once more. “Will you give me that chance, Emma? Will you give
us
a chance? Will you stay here with me
tonight, and make love to me?”

Oh God
… She swallowed hard, and took the
leap of faith. “Yes. Yes, I will. I want that so badly. I want to make love to
you, Atticus.”

Chapter
Nine

Atticus
was afraid for a second that he’d hallucinated her answer, but the look of awe
and lust in her beautiful dark eyes told him he hadn’t. The hell with the rest
of dinner. He wanted her.
Now
.

He
cupped her face and kissed her, not minding the taste of steak and lobster,
since he was certain he tasted the same. She made a surprised noise in the back
of her throat, and at first he thought she was going to pull away, but then he
teased her lips with his tongue and she moaned softly while parting them.

Slowly,
her arms came up and circled his waist, and then she shifted her weight to face
him. He released her face but not her mouth, then pulled her closer and held
her tightly as he worked his tongue inside her mouth. Her moans became louder,
and his cock was rock hard now. If he hadn’t been certain that Carol and Jonas
lingered just outside the room, waiting to clear the dishes and bring out
dessert, he’d fuck her right here on this bench.

A
noise distracted him from Emma’s mouth. He broke the kiss, sighing.

“Pardon
the intrusion,” said Carol, Jonas’s wife. “Did you want dessert now?”

Atticus
grinned at Emma, whose face had gone at least three shades of red. “Maybe
later.”

“Very
well.”

Carol
and Jonas were used to walking in on him and other women in various stages of
extracurricular activities, but Emma didn’t know that. He leaned close so he
could whisper in her ear. “Are you finished eating?”

“Yes,
if you are.”

“I
am. Let’s go.”

He
rose and took her hand, but her attention was on the remnants of their dinner.

“They’ll
clean it up. Don’t worry.”

“I’m
not used to this.”

He
leaned close again, inhaling the scent of her shampoo. “Get used to it.”

Atticus
led her down to the second floor of his apartment and into one of the spare
bedroom suites across the hall from his. He opened the bathroom door. “It’s
well stocked. You should find anything you need, including new toothbrushes.
Use anything you’d like. I’ll wait for you in the hall.”

She
looked at him as if she hadn’t understood a word he’d said, so he pulled her
into his arms again. “Have you changed your mind already? Please don’t say ‘yes’.”

“No,
of course not. I’m just overwhelmed.”

“I
didn’t see you bring anything but that tiny bag, and I assumed you might want
to brush your teeth or fix your hair or something first.” He sounded like an
idiot.

“Oh,
yes. Okay. Sure. Yes, that would be great. Thanks for thinking of it. I’m
sorry. I sound like a fool who’s never had sex before. This place is so … it’s
overwhelming. You’re overwhelming.”

“You’ve
used that word three times now, so I hope you mean it in a good way.”

“Yes.
Absolutely.”

He
smiled, relieved that he hadn’t pushed her away already. He was so used to a
different kind of woman, and would have to remember he wasn’t with them now.
This was Emma, and all she knew was whatever Leland had showed her. Atticus
vowed to erase those memories and replace them with new ones. Better ones, if
he had anything to say about it.

“Take
as much time as you need to feel comfortable. There are even brand new robes in
the closet if you want to put one on.”

“You
think of everything.”

Uh-oh.
He didn’t like that tone of voice.
Time to fix this and quickly. “I would offer anyone who came here the same
courtesies. I like people to be comfortable and have everything they need to
feel like they live here. This isn’t a hotel suite. It’s a home, and I want you
to feel that at ease here.”

Finally,
she smiled. “That’s nice. Okay. I like that description, and now this all makes
sense. Thank you. I’ll be out in a few moments.”

“We
have all night.” He kissed her gently on the lips. “I’ll wait for you.”

Her
eyes went all soft, which made his dick harder and thus more painful, but
Atticus didn’t mind. The fact that she finally looked relaxed was worth any
amount of discomfort. He had wanted her from the moment she’d walked into his
office on that first day. And now, finally, he would have her.

****

Emma
could only imagine what his own rooms looked like if this was a guest suite.
The bathroom and bedroom were decorated in soft pastels, and the fixtures in
the bathroom were brushed brass. He hadn’t been kidding about it being
well-stocked. From expensive hair and skin care products to a complete nail
care kit, she could leave everything behind in her own bathroom, move right in,
and never miss a thing.

She
opened the closet in the bedroom, frowning. Not only new robes but silk pajama
sets, also brand-new, hung there. The sizes were varied, and she couldn’t help
notice none of them were single digit. That made her smile. Atticus didn’t like
skinny women.
He wouldn’t be with you if
he did.

She
shook her head. She needed to stop that shit right now. It was bad enough that
Leland’s name kept popping into her head. The last thing she wanted to do was
get down on her weight. All her fantasies about this man were about to come
true, and she wanted to enjoy them without anything from her past mucking up
her thoughts.

She
removed her clothes and shoes, then took a deep breath and removed the
underwear, too. She placed everything, including her bag, on the bed, then put
on one of the robes. It fit well, and the silk felt decadent against her bare
skin. Placing her hand on the doorknob that led to the hall, she steeled
herself.

This is it!
She was about to get what she
wanted. A whole new adventure, only this time the man wasn’t married. There
would be no whispered rumors or nagging doubts. They were in his home, she’d
seen all of it, and he had no wife or girlfriend hidden away. He trusted her,
and he hadn’t reached that place easily. That alone was enough to make her
heart melt.

It
was time to let a man into her life again. It was time to allow some happiness
for herself. And there was no other man she wanted to take this chance with
besides Atticus. He was perfect.

Emma
stepped out into the hall, and the slow, delighted grin that spread across
Atticus’s face was enough to help her shed the last of her inhibitions. She’d
chosen the correct path. He advanced toward her slowly, like an animal stalking
its prey. Shivers ran down her spine at the look of pure lust in his eyes.

“Turn
around. Let’s have a look.”

She
twirled slowly, and he let out a low whistle. “I might just leave that on you,
Emma. You look so damn sexy in it.”

“Thank
you,” she whispered.

“You
really don’t see what I do when you look in the mirror, do you? How is that
possible?”

She
didn’t know what to say, so she simply stood there, waiting.

He
held out his hand. “Come on. We’re going to get past this hurdle once and for
all.”

She
followed him, her heart racing. What was he going to make her do?

His
bedroom was all dark wood, heavy fabrics, and massive furniture. She almost
laughed. It was so … perfect. It smelled like him, and there was even soft
music playing in the background. The ultimate seduction palace. She couldn’t
stop her grin.

“Is
this the moment where I swoon and beg you to ‘take me’?”

He
laughed. “Well, if you want to, that’s fine, but I’m still going to make you
wait.” He winked, then tugged at her arm slightly. “Come over here. We’re going
to conduct an experiment.”

Atticus
led her to a full length mirror, then told her to stay there. He pushed an
armchair over and placed it in front of the mirror, almost touching it. Then he
sat in it and crooked his finger at her.

“On
my lap, Emma. Face the mirror.”

What
did he have in mind? She gave him a wary glance but did as he asked, enjoying
the tingles in her body as he wrapped his arms around her from behind.

“Here
are the rules.” He nuzzled her neck. “Do not close your eyes. Okay?”

“I’ll
try.”

“There
is no try.” He reached under the robe and caressed her left nipple. She gasped
as delicious shivers raced down her spine. “Do
not
close your eyes or I stop everything and go to sleep. Without
you in the same bed.”

She
gazed into his eyes, spellbound by the intensity of emotion in them. He meant
it. She knew that without a doubt.

“Okay.
Agreed. I’ll keep my eyes open.”

“Good
girl.” He removed his hand and stroked her hair. “Rule number two. You will do
everything I ask you to do, for at least thirty seconds, even if it makes you
uncomfortable. Do you agree?”

“What
if it’s something that frightens me?”

“I’m
not going to ask you to do anything that will cause you mental or physical
pain, Emma. That’s not what this is about. But if we need to talk about
something I ask of you, we will. How’s that?”

“Okay.
Thank you. In that case, I agree.”

“Good
girl.” He grinned, and her pussy grew wet. “Ready?”

“Yes.”

“Open
the robe but don’t take it off. Just let it fall open so we both can see your
pretty tits and your pussy.”

Shit
. She knew exactly what he intended
to make her do, and she wasn’t sure she could with him watching, but that was
precisely the point, wasn’t it? He was trying to help with her lousy self-image
issues. That he would care enough to take the time to do this touched her
heart.

She
opened her robe, working hard not to close her eyes.

“Oh
my,” he said, his voice reverent, like he was gazing at a perfect piece of
artwork. “I knew you’d be luscious, but I had no idea you were this exquisite.”

It
was on the tip of her tongue to protest, and it took every ounce of willpower
not to say a word.

“You
don’t look at your naked body very often, so you?”

She
shook her head.

“I
know. I can see it on your face.”

Emma
swallowed hard against the lump in her throat. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

He
frowned. “No. You have nothing to apologize for. That’s rule number three. No
apologies. Okay?”

She
nodded.

“Emma…
Okay. I want to see you touch your skin. Your face, your arms, your belly, and
then your legs. Innocuous places you touch every day when you shower or bathe,
right? Do it slowly, and let me see you enjoy it.”

Well,
that was harmless. She could do that.

She
moved too fast at first, and he slowed her down by placing his hand over hers
and guiding it. “Relax your muscles. Let me show you what I mean.”

Once
she understood, she did as he asked, but then had difficulty hanging on when he
spread her legs and placed his hand over her pussy. “Keep going. Don’t stop.
Look at me, not at my hand.”

Sure
. That was
so
easy right now. Emma traced a line with two fingers over her
neck, between her breasts, then down each arm and over her abdomen. She reached
as far down her thighs as possible, and then he told her to bend her legs and
draw them up.

She
did, after hesitating only a second or two, and then he moved his hand off her
pussy, and placed his arms under hers. He slipped his hands under her thighs so
her pussy was open and exposed. “Now you can reach the rest of your legs. Go
on.”

She
continued, teasing her feet as well, trying to keep her gaze on his face, but it
kept drifting to her swollen clit and wet slit. He noticed it, of course, and
grinned.

“Look
how wet you are, Emma.”

“I
can’t help it.”

“I
like it. A lot. Move your fingers down there. Rub your clit for me, Emma.”

She
bit her lip. She’d never masturbated in front of anyone. Hell, when she did it
at home she had to have the lights off.

“Had
a feeling that would throw you.” He released her legs and rolled her nipples
between his thumbs and forefingers. She let out a long sigh as tiny jolts of
electricity raced straight to her clit. “Do you like this?”

“Yes.”

“Then
do as I say or I’ll stop.”

Emma
loved him a little for that. He knew exactly what he was doing, but there was
no malice or self-serving going on here. This was all for her. And she didn’t
want to disappoint him. More importantly, she wanted this. It was time to live
the way she’d always dreamed of, and Atticus could help her do that.