Suddenly Zoe stopped walking, and turned to face him. Cupping his face in her hands she tipped her head up and kissed him hard on the mouth. And when she finally pulled away to break the kiss, looking up into his eyes she said, "I'm sorry I doubted you, Tate. I know you're a good guy, and you've proven it. I guess I was just blindsided when I saw her go after you like that."
He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close, so he could hold her gaze as he apologized. "And I'm sorry you had to see that. Believe me, if I had any idea she was planning something like that, I never would have agreed to meet her, never mind bringing you along."
She smiled. "Well, I guess that answers that question."
"What question?" he asked, looking confused.
"I was wondering if you'd have taken her up on her offer and agreed to spend the afternoon with her if I wasn't with you."
Looking shocked, he shook his head, and said, "No way. Odd, but when I saw her again I realized that I don't feel a thing for her anymore. And suddenly I was kind of glad she'd left me for my friend." He held his hand to her cheek, holding her gaze. "And how could I ever feel anything for her, when I'm with you?"
If he was going to be honest, he really wasn't all that broken up when she'd left him for his friend Curtis. He'd probably felt more of a sense of relief, glad that she'd be his problem now. Lord knew that was no lie. Beth was so high maintenance he hadn't had the energy or the desire to keep up with her and all her demands, especially near the end. Everything they did, even down to where they ate, all had to be just so, nothing like Zoe, who was so easy to be with. So when Beth had latched onto Curtis who'd just been promoted and dumped him, he'd basically thought he'd gotten off lucky by not having to be the one to end it.
Zoe sighed. "Well, that does make me feel better. But now I feel sorry for your friend, if she'd do something like that behind his back, asking you to hook up with her again."
"Yeah, no kidding," he agreed. As they started to walk again, he laced his fingers through hers. "Okay, enough about them. Why don't we go exploring?"
Zoe leaned close and whispered into his ear, "Just remember, I'd still like to explore those handcuffs and that blindfold later on tonight, too."
Groaning, he shook his head. "You know I was kind of hoping you'd forgotten about that stuff."
Yep, she had a pretty healthy sense of adventure all right
.
She flashed him a grin. "Are you kidding? When I woke up this morning that's all I could think of. You're just lucky I didn't go with my first inclination and cuff you to the bed while you were sleeping. And believe me I was getting pretty wet just thinking about it, imagining how hot it would be to have you at my mercy while I gave you that blow job I'd promised you, and then rode you while you were cuffed."
Tate had to clear his throat before he could speak again, with how uncomfortably his dick was already pressing against his fly, now that she'd put that image in his head. "Well, maybe we should try and get back a little early then."
"To try out the cuffs?" she asked, grinning up at him.
"And of course check on Pussy, too," he managed to say straight faced.
"Well, once I release you from the cuffs, I promise you can feel free to check on Pussy all you like."
Rolling his eyes, he needed to adjust himself in his slacks they were getting so damn tight, just imaging how crazy it would be start messing with restraints. "Zoe, if you could just let me get to the apartment before you start driving me crazy, then I'd still be able to walk."
She was wearing a naughty grin as she pulled him to a stop again, took his face in her hands and sank her tongue into his gaping mouth, hungrily mating with his tongue under a leafy maple tree, right out on the sidewalk where anyone could see them. And when she finally lifted her head, she was wearing a positively devilish smirk, deciding it wouldn't hurt to remind him that at least for now, that he was all hers.
Achingly aroused, Tate sagged against her, breathing hard. "You sure you want to see Chinatown today? I mean we could skip it, go back to the apartment, order
in
a little Chinese, and then break out the cuffs. What do you think?"
Knowing just what she'd done to him, Zoe laughed. "No, I want to explore the city a bit before I take you back to try and discover what you'll be like when I've got you under lock and key with that big dick of yours in my mouth."
Zoe tried hard not to laugh as Tate stumbled, barely able to put one foot in front of the other as the image she'd provided flashed in his head. Grabbing hold of the closest sign post to steady himself, he groaned so loudly an older woman stopped to give him a curious look, asking, "You okay there, sonny?"
He shot Zoe a look as he shook head, and said, "Not sure, maybe better check back on me later."
The woman wandered off looking totally bemused as full blown laughter bubbled out of Zoe. Finally, she extended her hand and said, "Come on, Professor, I promise I won't bite." But her brow rose as she teased, "At least until later."
Tate heaved a sigh as he accepted her hand, feeling more helpless than he'd ever felt in his life. God, he really had unleashed a monster, an extremely sexy, tempting monster, but a monster none the less. "Just promise to be gentle with me," he asked, giving her a tentative smile. And the scary thing was, he wasn't entirely joking.
Zoe grinned and said, "We'll see," deciding she was having the best time ever, keeping him off kilter. Feeling braver and bolder than she'd ever felt, she knew that coming out of her shell with him had done it for her, emboldening her to not only try new things, but also to have the confidence to take what she wanted. Which got her wondering if her new and improved self would even be able to exist back in sleepy little Martindale, or if she'd be content to go back to her quiet little life after experiencing how exhilarating life could be with someone as exciting as Tate.
After watching her silently walking beside him for a few minutes as they walked toward Chinatown, Tate remarked, "You're quiet," giving her hand a squeeze and tugging her a little closer.
Zoe nodded thoughtfully and told him, "Just thinking."
He eyed her across the sidewalk. "Care to share?"
She shrugged. "I was just wondering what good all this new stuff I've learned with you is going to do for me, when I can't think of a single person back at home that I'd want to share it with."
Ugh,
what a thought, Zoe digging into her newfound bag of tricks to use on some other guy. "So, is that how you picture things going for you, marrying someone from your hometown one day and settling down?"
She nodded, and told him, "Most likely. But what other choice do I have? It's not like the perfect man's going to come riding in one day on a white horse to spirit me away to a life full of adventure."
Chucking, he said, "A guy on a white horse, really? Is that the only way you can imagine getting free from your life there?"
She managed to laugh at how silly it sounded. "Yeah, I know it's just a fantasy. But you know what I mean. Bottom line is, no one's ever going to come and rescue me and change my life."
They had to stop and step aside just then to allow a young mother with a wide twin stroller to pass, flashing them an appreciative smile as she pushed past. Tate's hand slid along Zoe's waist as he eyed her. "You ever really given any serious thought to living someplace else, Zoe?"
She heaved a frustrated sigh. "We've been over this, and I have. But I have no idea where I'd go. And I don't know how I'd handle it on my own if I left. At least at home, such as it is, I have my family. And I also know they'd never want me to leave, especially to go live on my own."
Sure that his chance of staying stateside and getting an interview at NYU had pretty well crashed and burned with that little fiasco with his vindictive ex Beth back there, Tate knew he didn't really have much choice but to accept the offer he'd been considering. And it was a good offer, too. And would at least give him a chance to start over somewhere completely new, let the air clear, and hopefully allow the controversy he'd left behind at his last post die down. But even with her sense of adventure, he couldn't imagine her agreeing to move away with him. Still... he did have a few days left to try and convince her.
Tate happened to glance down at her feet then, and realized just how self-absorbed he'd been. "Sorry, Zoe, I just noticed you're walking in heels, and that's got to be hard on your feet. And we've still got about a half mile to go. Are you going to be okay, or do think we should call a cab?"
He was just so thoughtful. Unable to resist, Zoe took him by the chin and touched her lips to his. "You're sweet. But they're surprisingly comfortable. Thanks for asking, though."
Smiling, he tugged at her hand, starting off again. "I can't really claim to be all that thoughtful, not when I'm only thinking how hard it would be to carry that sweet ass of yours the rest of the way to Chinatown if I had to." Laughing, he jumped when he felt her hand take a playful swipe at his backside. Still, he narrowed his eyes on her, warning her, "Careful there, sweet cheeks, because you know I'd be happy to mark that luscious ass of yours, too."
Grinning, Zoe bit into her lip remembering when he'd given her a swat and told her to grab the head board that first time when they'd had rougher sex. And how unbelievably hot she'd found it when he'd basically ordered her to obey him. She leaned close and whispered, "Just as long as it's not too hard."
Chuckling, he knew he was getting hard just thinking about getting her back in bed again, never mind sinking his teeth into that perfect round ass of hers. Brushing his lips to her ear, he warned her, "You keep this up and you can bet it'll be hard, really hard."
Leaving behind the leafy residential neighborhood they'd passed through on their walk, Tate watched fascinated as her face lit up the moment they approached the colorful signs, appetizing smells filling the air, and the cacophony of sounds that was Chinatown.
