My heart stutters in my chest. “And?”
Emmett finally meets my gaze, his green eyes full of something I can’t quite name. “I told her the truth. That I think I might like…someone else.”
The air between us grows thick. I’m afraid to ask the next question, but I can’t not know.
“Who?” My voice comes out as a whisper.
Emmett stares at me, his eyes saying everything his mouth won’t. And suddenly, I understand.
“That’s when she got pissed,” he continues, looking away again. “She told me I’d wasted her time, that I should have figured out my shit before asking her out. Then she left me like this. Said I could ‘think about my choices’ while I waited for someone to find me.”
“Harsh,” I murmur, but my mind is racing with the implications of what he’s just revealed.
“Kade, please.” His voice has a pleading edge that sends heat through my veins. “The key.”
I shift my position, now fully kneeling on the bed beside him. “Not yet,” I say, surprising myself with my boldness. “I think it’s time for another lesson.”
“Another lesson?” Emmett’s eyes widen, a mix of confusion and something that looks a lot like anticipation flickering across his face. “What do you mean?”
I lean over him, one hand braced on the mattress beside his shoulder, close enough to feel the heat radiating from him. “Well, our previous lessons clearly didn’t prepare you for what to do when you’re handcuffed to a bed.” I let my gaze travel down his body, taking in every inch of exposed skin. “So I think we need to cover some advanced material.”
7
Emmett
KADE'S WORDS HANG IN the air between us, heavy with implication. I stare up at him, aware of my near-nakedness, the handcuffs digging into my wrists, and the heat radiating from his body as he hovers above me. Something in his expression has shifted—the familiar cockiness now underlaid with a hunger I’ve never seen before. My throat goes dry as I realize we’ve crossed some invisible line, and whatever comes next will change everything.
“Advanced material?” I echo, my voice thin.
Kade nods, settling more comfortably onto the bed beside me. His eyes travel down my body. The weight of his gaze feels like a physical touch.
“Do you like this?” he asks, gesturing to my bound wrists. “Being restrained?”
Heat rushes to my face, burning across my skin. The question is too intimate, exposing things I’ve barely admitted to myself. “I…I don’t know. I’ve never…”
“Never been tied up before?” Kade’s lip ring catches the light as he smirks. “Not even in your head?”
I swallow hard. “I’ve thought about it.”
“For how long?”
“Recently,” I manage, unable to hold his gaze. “Very recently.”
Kade shifts closer, the mattress dipping under his weight. “First thing you should know about situations like this—communication is key. Clear, honest communication. What you like, what you don’t like, what you want to try.”
His teacher voice is back, but lower, rougher at the edges. Something about the familiar tone in this unfamiliar context sends a shiver down my spine.
“Have you done this before?” I ask, tugging at the cuffs. “Taken control of someone like this?”
Kade hesitates, then shakes his head. “No. Not like this.” His eyes meet mine, and the raw hunger there makes my breath catch. “But I’ve thought about it too.”
My heart pounds so hard I’m certain he can hear it. “With whom?”
“Who do you think?” he murmurs, one hand moving to rest on my chest. The simple contact burns through me like wildfire.
I’m aware of my growing arousal, my cock hardening beneath the thin fabric of my boxer briefs. Kade’s gaze drops to the obvious bulge, his eyebrow rising.
“I haven’t even touched you yet,” he observes, voice low with something that sounds like satisfaction.
