Lovell, Cooper - Tessa's Highlander (Siren Publishing Classic) (12 page)

It wasn’t
Marlena
.

He filled the doorway, in form-fitting faded jeans and black boots. A well-worn leather jacket hung open over a blue-and-white pin-striped shirt. The first few buttons were left open so Tessa could see his strong, tanned chest.

“Gavan!” Tessa squealed and threw herself into his arms, but he stopped her and held her at arm’s length.

Standing before her in the doorway he had an odd, unsettled look on his face. His usually warm amber eyes held a cold glint. She wondered for a moment if he’d been out with Jaime and had a few too many beers, but she didn’t smell alcohol on him.

A muscle in his clenched jaw twitched.

“Gavan?” She was confused, didn’t understand his behavior. “What’s going on? Is something wrong? Are you okay?”

He didn’t look at or answer her, but released his firm grip and moved past her into the house. Tessa closed and locked the door and turned in time to see him climbing the stairs to her room. She didn’t know how to feel. He was acting oddly and she felt that something was horribly wrong. She followed him up the stairs and walked to her bedroom door which he’d closed behind him. Pushing the door open slowly, she saw him standing in the dim light with his back to her, holding her High Priestess costume in his hand.

“Gavan?” She stood very still.

Seconds passed and she heard him breathe in deeply before he said, “Come here, Tessa.”

His tone wasn’t harsh, but it was definitely firm. Commanding. She forced her feet to take the steps necessary to reach him on the other side of the room.

When she was close enough, she reached out to touch him, but before she could, he thrust the costume at her and said in the same commanding tone, “Put this on. The whole thing,
doona
forget the boots.” He stalked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Wow. Talk about confusing. Was he serious? He sounded serious. But why all the mystery? What happened to make him behave this way?
She stood there wondering what she should do. Slowly, she realized that he was hurting for some reason. That was what she’d seen in his face when he stood at her front door. Had she done something to hurt him? She couldn’t think of anything, but even if she had done something unintentionally, she wanted to make it right. She hated seeing him like this.

When she had the whole costume back on, no small feat without a team to help her, she did a little teasing to get the “big hair” thing happening again and put the tiara on. She lined her eyes with brown kohl pencil and used the spongy end to smudge it a bit to get the smoky effect that Jackie had given her for the shoot. A little pale pink gloss completed the look.

She assessed herself in the mirror. “Hmm, not exactly like the professionals, but close enough.”

She stepped back into the bedroom, slid her feet into the boots, and zipped them up to her
midthigh
.
Uh-oh
, she thought
, I don’t have the cape and gloves.
Oh, well. Most of the outfit would have to do.

Now fully dressed as the High Priestess of Horror for the second time that day, she stood in the center of her room feeling a little silly, not sure what to do. Was she supposed to wait here for him or go downstairs? She opted to wait in her room and perched herself daintily on the edge of her bed, her back very straight.

She wasn’t facing the clock, so she didn’t know exactly how much time had passed before her bedroom door opened and Gavan stepped in closing it behind him. He stayed just inside, not moving into the room any further. She didn’t turn to him. She felt somehow that she wasn’t supposed to. Instead, she stood up, silently, staring straight ahead, providing him with a view of her left profile.

Gavan spoke, a gruff edge to his voice. “
Verra
nice, lass. Turn around,
verra
slowly, an’ stop whenever I tell you.”

She was still confused but did as he said, turning slowly. When her arms rose up to cross over her chest he said, “No. Keep your arms at your sides. Do only as I say. Nothing more, Tessa.”

She dropped her arms back down to her sides. His voice was softer now, but there was a quality to it that compelled her to do as he bid. She didn’t know where he was going with this, but shivers that weren’t particularly unpleasant began to course down her spine.

“Stop.”

She complied, facing the opposite direction, giving him a view of her right side. She wanted to look at him to see what he was doing, but for some reason she didn’t dare disobey him.

“Turn again.” And she did. As she turned around, facing him now, he said, “Stop.”

She looked straight ahead, not daring to meet his gaze, but could see that he had removed his shirt and his broad chest was bare. He stepped toward her, and she began to quiver. Her pussy clenched and she could feel her wetness trickling down the inside of her left thigh. Her chest heaved deeply, nearly spilling her full breasts out of the top of the velvet garment she wore. When he was right in front of her, close enough for Tessa to breathe in his scent, he reached out and gently twirled a tendril of her hair with his index finger before lifting it to stroke across his lips. After several minutes of intense observation, he lowered his head and moved his lips as close to hers as they could possibly be without touching her. His warm breath tickled her lips. She could smell cinnamon and the woodsy scent that was his alone. Tessa struggled to keep herself from moving and pressing her lips to his, holding perfectly still, awaiting her next command. Such nearness without actually touching him was killing her and thrilling her at the same time. After another indeterminate amount of time, Gavan straightened and took several steps backward.

He stopped and said, “Turn.”

When she was facing the windows, so that her back was to him, he said, “Stop.”

She waited but didn’t hear him stir. This was beginning to drive her mad. She ached for his touch, was ready to beg for it. He had been so tender last night and this morning. But now he was hard and unyielding. Oddly, she didn’t completely dislike it. In fact, judging by the ache in her breasts and the slippery cream running down the insides of both thighs, she was enjoying this immensely. Finally, she heard his footsteps in the soft carpet approaching her. Her skin tingled when she felt him gently move her hair to one side. He held it back, placed his mouth right next to her ear, and said nothing. He just hovered there, his warm breath showering her ear, heightening her senses. Then suddenly he was gone and her hair fell back onto her shoulder. Tessa stood there waiting to see what he would do next.

She heard him right behind her and nearly moaned when he licked and kissed one ass cheek then the other. His hands moved in a slow, kneading caress.

“So pretty,” he said as he stroked his hand across her left cheek.

Tessa bit her lower lip in an effort to keep her body still. His refusal to touch her up to this point had her nearly frantic with need, and the sensation of his warm, rough palms was sheer ecstasy.

Smack!

Tessa jumped and yipped, “
Ow
! That stung!”

She tried to reach back and rub the spot on her ass where his hand had made contact but he grabbed her wrist and gave her a firm, “No.”

Her arm relaxed and he let go of her wrist and moved his hand to the tingly spot on her flesh to gently soothe it with his palm and kisses.

Smack!

This time on the other side. She managed to hold still other than a small lurch and not force him to grab her wrist again. In an instant his hand was on the new spot, soothing the sting out of it. Part of her was infuriated that he dared to spank her bottom, but that part of her was quickly replaced by the raw excitement coursing through her. Her breathing was ragged and her body was humming like a tuning fork.

He released her and she heard him walk away, again putting distance between them. She was bereft.

From across the room he said, “Tessa, turn around and walk tae me.”

She turned to find him sprawled in the armchair across from her, completely naked. His long legs spread out before him as if on display for her. She moved to him until she stood between his legs, but not quite as far as the edge of the chair.

“Stop,” he said.

She continued to stare straight ahead, still assuming that she wasn’t supposed to look at him, although he hadn’t actually said that. She stood like a statue, and he finally spoke.

“Take off the thong.”

Her entire body pulsed as she slid the pieces of elastic down over the boots and stepped out of them, kicking them to the side.

Moments filled only by the sound of her own breathing. Excitement, desire, confusion, and a touch of angst coursed through her.

“Touch yourself, Tessa.”

A whimper escaped from her throat, and as she moved her hand for Gavan’s pleasure, she closed her eyes.

“Open your eyes,” Gavan said quietly but sternly. “I
din’na
tell you tae close your eyes. Open them and look at me.”

Tessa swallowed hard and opened her eyes, dropping them to meet his. This time, she didn’t see the pain she saw earlier. It had been replaced by heat and desire. His amber eyes nearly glowed with hunger for her. She licked dry lips then froze, concerned she’d be reprimanded for that act, but Gavan said nothing about it.

“I told you tae touch yourself.”

Tessa realized that her hand had been frozen in midair in front of her. She moved it down and slid her index and middle finger into the folds of her cunt.

She moaned.

“I
dinna
say you could make noise.”

She nodded and concentrated on her hand, never breaking his gaze. Her fingers moved back and forth, sliding in and out of her cunt lips, feeling her swollen clit slipping between her index and middle fingers, close to bursting. He took his huge erection in his hand and began to slowly stroke it. His thumb rolled over the big knob and swiped up the first drop of wetness that had appeared there.

Watching him pump himself mesmerized her. The thought of how he tasted in her mouth rushed back to her, and it sent a jolt through her causing her body to visibly shudder and tense.

“No Tessa. You’ll no’ cum till I let you. Pull your fingers from your pussy.”

She did as he bade as though in a daze.

“Now taste yourself, Tessa. Bring your hand tae your mouth and taste your sweet juices.”

Her lips parted and she inserted two fingers into her mouth.

“Tell me how you taste, Tessa.”

Almost inaudibly, Tessa whispered, “Sweet and spicy. Sort of like salted honey. Very slick.”

He smiled wickedly, and her knees nearly buckled. “Aye, lass. That’s how I remember it. I’ve never tasted
anythin
’ so perfect. I’d like tae taste you again. Would you like that, too?”

She nodded, still lost in his gaze.

He released his cock and stood to his full height, so close to her that her nose now touched his chest. God, he was huge.

“Turn around.”

She did as he bade and waited while he unfastened the seemingly ten thousand hooks on the bustier that cinched her till she could barely breathe. It dropped to the floor, leaving her naked except for the thigh-high boots.

“Now, walk tae the bed and climb up on it. Stay on your knees.”

She followed his command. He moved behind her and placing a hand between her shoulder blades, pushed her upper body down.

When she put her arms out to catch herself, he said, “No. All the way down.”

He placed his big hand on her chest to help lower her so she wouldn’t fall forward. With her head turned to one side, shoulders resting on the mattress, she was completely exposed. He took a step back, and she knew he was inspecting her, her ass in the air, every fold of her pussy open to him, dripping with anticipation. An odd sound reached her ears. With a surge of panic, she identified the sound of his belt being pulled from the loops of his jeans that lay on the floor in a heap. She thought the spankings were about to resume at a whole new level and she whimpered, not sure she wanted that. Hand-to-ass smacks with kisses and soothing after were one thing but introducing leather was highly questionable. But she trusted him not to harm her.