We kept moving closer, taking tiny steps toward each other as we swayed to the song and harmonized on the lyrics. Whenever we got close enough that we were about to touch, he’d get a mischievous glint in his eyes, then spin around, singing over his shoulder and taking tiny steps away like he was escaping me.
It was a much sassier side than I’d seen from him, like the song was giving him permission to act out a little bit.
And goddamn if it didn’t do something special to me.
By the time the song was over, he was cornered near the couch, and we were both laughing. I twirled my microphone in my hand. “I can’t remember the last time I sang karaoke,” I said. “Most of my colleagues are too uptight for something like this.”
He licked his lips, and I saw that he was already getting a little shy again, the magic of the song fading. “No pizza and no karaoke? Sounds difficult.”
I threw my arms over his shoulders and pulled him close to my chest. “If they had a sexy guy like you to sing with, they might all change their minds about it.” I gave him a very gentle shove as we returned to the couch, pushing just hard enough that I know he felt it and sending him tumbling to the seat with a giggle that warmed my heart. “It doesn’t hurt that you chose a great song, too.”
He shrugged. “Who doesn’t love the Eurythmics? They’re classics.”
“I believe that makes one story each and one karaoke duet. So how about it? You ready to share a little more with me?”
“Another fantasy?” he asked. “I feel like you know my desires better than I do at this point. You have years of experience, and I just have stories I made up in my head.”
“A deal is a deal. You’re a businessman, Xavier. Or are you just hoping I’ll collect the payment some other way?” I cracked my knuckles, staring him straight in the eye.
His mouth dropped open, but he quickly regained his composure. “Well, there is one story I wanted to talk to you about,” he said. “That truth or dare game from college?”
“Of course,” I answered. “I’ve thought about that a lot, too. Although I was there for the story, so I’m not so sure if it counts.”
Xavier reached out, grabbing my hand across the couch. I was surprised to see him do it unprompted but felt happy that he was turning to me for comfort. “Well, the truth is, that’s been my main fantasy for years.”
“The truth or dare game?”
He nodded quickly and started to rub his thumb in a circle across the back of my knuckles, all the nervousness from earlier coming back. “I told you I’d always had fantasies about spanking, but that night made it real. For years, all I thought about was what would have happened if I had stayed. I dreamed about all the guys teasing me, and everyone seeing me with my pants down, and about you having total control over me in front of the group.” He looked up, and his eyelashes fluttered in front of his hazel eyes. “I still think about it sometimes,” he said, like he was confessing some deep secret.
I pulled his hand closer, and he inched toward me until our knees pressed together. “I thought about that night a lot, too,” I said. “It stayed with me during all those years in Manhattan.”
“You did?” he said, surprised. “But you were already exploring your kinks. ”
I hadn’t intended to tell him the whole story so early on, but the more Xavier opened up to me, the more I wanted to show him the same level of trust. I didn’t feel like I was risking my reputation. I just felt like we were opening to each other.
“I knew I was into domination,” I explained. “But the fantasy of that night lingered, like a glimmer of something I never could find in the city. Once I was visiting the clubs, a part of me was always searching for another taste of it.”
Searching for you, I wanted to say.
“What do you remember?” he asked tentatively.
“The way your butt looked that night,” I said, grinning like a horny wolf. “And the nervous expression on your face. There was something about the way your lips looked when they trembled that I’ll never forget. What about you? What else do you remember?”
Xavier’s face crumbled a little, and he shook his head softly. “I remember the look on your face, too,” he said. “But I always thought you looked disgusted or something. Like the idea of touching me was the worst idea in the world.”
I released his hand and placed my palm on the back of his head, stroking his hair gently. “Oh, Xavier, I’m sorry,” I said. “I was horrified, but it wasn’t about you. I was scared that everyone would see me for who I was and know the desires I hadn’t even admitted to myself yet. If you had been someone else, someone who wasn’t so pretty and gentle, I probably wouldn’t have even been turned on by the idea.” I shook my head, mad at myself for having hurt him and for deepening his insecurities all those years ago. “I wasn’t strong enough in myself yet, so I couldn’t be strong for someone else, either.”
We leaned forward until our foreheads touched. Our breathing matched, and after a couple of minutes of silence, I pulled his head closer and brushed a kiss across his lips.
When we pulled back, I thought I saw a tear in the corner of his eye, but I couldn’t be sure. He cleared his throat softly, then grabbed my hand again. “So what now? Are we supposed to figure out a scene or something?” He glanced at the door to the karaoke room. “I know this place is soundproof, but…”
I chuckled. “Don’t worry. I’m glad to be here with you, but a pizza and karaoke restaurant is not at the top of my list, at least as far as sexual fantasies go.” I pulled my phone out of my pocket, ignoring the messages to check the time. It had somehow gotten late. “Like I told you earlier, though, I’m in no rush.”
Xavier bit down on his lip. “Does that mean no scene tonight?”
“Why don’t you keep thinking about it?” I said. “And next time we get together, we can try out something new. I want it to be something you pick, though.”
He nodded, but I saw that his face was still sinking into a frown. “That sounds good,” he said, halfheartedly. “I can do that.”
