She groaned as he stretched her other leg. “You don’t get to excel at everything and be psychic. Seriously, develop a stutter or trip every once in a while. People will thank you for it.”
He laughed and released her. “My sincerest apologies. What can I do to make it up to you?”
She looked into his golden-brown eyes and marveled at this strange turn of events. “Make Stephen jealous. That’s the plan, anyway.”
Ken smiled as people started to file in, clutching dessert plates and searching for a good seat. “Trust me. He will be.”
She did trust him. She stood comfortably beneath the titanium hoop as the lights around them dimmed and Ken put on music with a sensual, hypnotic beat. This was a demo. He was going to keep the knotting simple for the party atmosphere, but it would still be a performance as much as an experience. And no one knew how to play to the crowd like he did.
The instant Stephen entered the room her body came alive. She met his stare head on, knowing that in his current state, this wouldn’t be easy for him to watch.
Maybe Ken was right and they weren’t acting. She wanted Stephen to see her like this. To see that she wasn’t just a body that appeared when he needed her. To see that what she did wasn’t sordid or something to hide. It was beautiful.
And yes, she wanted him to be a little jealous.
Ken put his hands on her shoulders, squeezing gently, and she felt his lips against her ear. “We good to go?”
Knowing Stephen was probably grinding his teeth, she couldn’t help her naughty little smile. “Definitely.”
The nylon rope dangled against her back as Ken started to move with the music. She followed. Their movements were like steps in a dance as he formed her first halter. He wound the ropes around her torso above and below her breasts and attached them to the hoop, then tipped her back until she was gazing at the ceiling, swaying to the beat.
Next his skilled hands went to work on her waist and thighs, creating a secure cradle with his intricate knots. The knots all had names, and she’d known many of them a few days ago, but right now she was just enjoying the sensation and feeling Stephen’s eyes on her body.
What was he thinking as Ken described what he was doing to their audience? When Ken smoothed his hands over her skin to ensure she was okay with each step of the process?
Ken attached the ropes around her waist and thighs to each other, and then to the hoop, and suddenly she was off the ground. Weightless and floating. She smiled and let her arms and legs dangle as Ken turned the hoop this way and that, taking her with it.
Tasha was feeling the effects now. Lighter. A little dreamy. This was what trust looked like. Dangling in the air, relying on someone else and having faith that they knew what they were doing.
This was what she wanted to feel for Stephen. To trust that he was feeling the same thing she was.
Ken began the last phase of the demo with a basic hogtie. He tied her ankles together and knotted the remaining rope at the halter behind her neck, forcing her head to tilt and her back to arch. He gave her wrists a similar treatment behind her back and attached them to the rope between her legs.
The restraints were snug and movement was severely limited, but Tasha wasn’t panicked. She was peaceful. Almost giddy. Nothing in life was as comfortingly secure as this. The admiration and desire she could feel coming from the other guests only enhanced the experience.
Ken stepped away from her to answer questions and other people moved closer, studying the knots pressing into her skin. Tasha closed her eyes and drifted, thankful for the time he was giving her before he took her down.
Had this made Stephen jealous? The plan had been to show a relationship with loose threads for Burke to pull, but she had no idea where her lover was right now. For all she knew, he could have left the room, which could lead their host to the right conclusion but still leave an ache in Tasha’s heart.
She didn’t want to waste a minute of their time here. It was selfish. This wasn’t about her. It wasn’t about them.
Ken had known she was lying and so did she. She was here for Stephen, to be with Stephen more than for his “mission.” Of course she wanted to protect him from Burke, but more than anything else, she wanted to belong to him, if only for a few days.
Then a hand cupped her cheek and she opened her eyes to find him looking down at her. She was dismayed to feel the prickle of tears. “I didn’t know where you were.”