“You’d have agreed without the food stop.”
“Oh, absolutely,” she said as she shook out the waves of golden blonde hair. “But you’ve put gumbo on the table, Sir, and I’m afraid I’ll have to hold you to it.”
Amusement unfurled within me as I slid off the bike and set my helmet on it before taking hers and adding it. Then I cupped her face in my hands and kissed her. Frankie didn’t ask any questions as she pushed up on her toes, her lips parting for me beautifully. The gentle glide of her tongue was intoxicating, but it was the soft moan she exhaled that sent all my blood southward.
Still nibbling, I tested my own restraint as she leaned into the caress, but no other part of her body touched me. Just her face, where I cradled it in my hands, and her lips, which opened to me in eager surrender and potential demand.
Breaking the kiss slowly and more than a little reluctantly, I found her eyes half-closed and her body swaying a little in my direction. The lack of tension in her expression satisfied me on a level so primitive, I didn’t want to examine it too closely. I needed to keep her safe and make things easier for her. The bliss on her face was my objective.
“You ready?” We’d discussed this with Lyssa and Richard the week before over dinner. Funnily enough, the first lesson hadn’t been a lesson so much as a getting acquainted to help remove some of the awkwardness. I appreciated the effort. I also appreciated the fact they had the names and numbers of a couple of similarly-run clubs in New York—one in Manhattan and the other in Brooklyn.
“Is it weird that I’m excited to watch?”
“Nope,” I assured her, then traced my thumb over her cheekbone. Sometimes it was easy to think of her as fragile, but she wasn’t. “I didn’t know voyeur was your kink, but there’s nothing wrong with it.”
Her laughter wrapped around me like a hug. “Not sure I get off on it like Coop does, but I’m excited to see what you’re going to get to do with the ropes. I mean when it’s me, I can’t see what you do.”
That made sense. “I’ll make sure I take pictures if you ever want to see the designs.” Because there would be designs. Nearly every single thing I’d devoured on shibari and the art of rope was that it was an art. Frankie would be the canvas.
“That both scares and excites me… The pictures part, I mean.”
“Well, one step at a time then, yeah?” With that, I slid an arm around her shoulders and we headed inside. One perk of membership was we just had to show our dog tags with the club ID stamped on them, and then we were through the doors to the kitchen and lounging area.
Lyssa was brewing a pot of coffee, and she grinned at us. “Hey, how are you both?”
“We’re good,” Frankie answered as she stripped off her jacket. Neither of us really needed them for the weather, but we definitely needed them for the bike. The reinforced biking jackets had just appeared in the closet one day. They matched perfectly, and I didn’t have to look far for the culprit. Archie just smiled. Considering he just wanted her safe, I let it go, but I did look up how much they cost and paid him back.
Much to his chagrin.
Gifts, I had no problem accepting, but these weren’t gifts so much as his attempt to control what he could. I appreciated that. But we had to have some kind of balance.
“Thanks for coming to graduation,” Frankie was saying, and Lyssa flashed her a quick smile.
“Oh, honey, my pleasure. Sorry I didn’t stick around for the drama though. Just not my scene.” She motioned to the coffee. “You want some? Ian and I can’t have any, but you’re welcome to it.”
“Why can’t you have it?”
“Because,” I answered for Lyssa, “we don’t want any of the senses inhibited, particularly while I’m learning.”
Frankie twisted to stare at me. “Ian Rhys, you didn’t say anything about no caffeine. This might be a deal breaker.”
I cocked my head to the side and stared at her. Her green eyes glittered, and her nose wrinkled up. Yeah, I didn’t believe her either. “Really?”
“No,” she said, making a face. “But I love my coffee.”
“I promise to make it worth the sacrifice.”
“You two are adorable,” Lyssa said with a grin and poured Frankie a cup of coffee. “Also, saw your dad Frankie. He’s a hottie.”
Lyssa absolutely knew what she was doing, but Frankie’s face made me laugh anyway. “He’s a nice guy,” I cut in, because I got it. Let’s not talk about our parents here. “But Frankie’s right—we really do appreciate you coming to graduation. It was thoughtful.”
She smiled. “Again, it was my pleasure. Thank you both for inviting me. My only regret is that graduation means you’re both moving soon, but you’ll be back for holidays, yes?”
“Some, yes,” I told her as Frankie smiled at me. “My parents are still here, and we have a few other ties.”
But Frankie didn’t. Well, she had the ties to our families, because our families rallied around her and were all making it a point to support her. Mom, Dad, Jake’s and Coop’s moms. I counted Jeremy in that number, but I had a feeling he’d picked her over all of us except for Archie a long time ago.
“Well, good. Then we keep your memberships so that you can come and visit with us too, and I know Richard gave you some numbers for New York. I know a few people too. A couple of good subby groups.” She winked at Frankie. “Sometimes, it can be lonely when you’re starting out and you don’t know who to ask questions of. Ian will do everything he can, but he’s not a subby.”
No, no I was not.
“I appreciate that. There’s gonna be so much to do when we
