Page 122 of Owned (Office Intrigue Duet 8)
She smiled, looked away. “Do they watch you have sex? With someone who’s not your … possession?”
“Before you, they have not. I don’t bring others here, so the opportunity’s never presented itself before.”
The color in her cheeks rose, and I knew she remembered how Ari had been there the first time I fucked her, the time I couldn’t help myself.
She took a sip of her wine, looked away. “You’ve never brought a date here?”
“For one, I don’t date.”
“Because you find it annoying like Laura?”
I smirked. “Because I don’t have the time or the inclination.” I stepped in, touched her cheek. “Until now.”
Her breath hitched again and her eyes lowered to my mouth.
“Talon…”
I held her gaze, willed her to speak her mind.
“What’s going on here?” she whispered. “Is it just me or…”
“Or what?”
“Or is there something going on between us?”
“There’s most definitely something.” I leaned in, allowed my lips to lightly brush hers.
Only because this was a business function did I refrain from pulling her into me and kissing her more thoroughly. I’d spent most of the day wishing I could sneak away with her, get lost for a few hours. Resisting her wasn’t easy, that was for damn sure. And that was saying something considering I was a man who relied on my self-control in every aspect of my life.
I was a gentleman, pulling back before it went too far.
Braelyn reached up, swiping her finger over my lower lip.
She smiled, her eyes glittering with humor. “You look kinda good with glossy lips.”
I wasn’t too worried about it, but I enjoyed how she ensured to get it off. Of course, my thoughts drifted to another way to gloss my lips… my mouth between her thighs, her hips gyrating as I feasted on her like a starving man.
“Dinner’ll be served in just a few minutes,” Zion said as he passed by.
Braelyn’s eyebrow arched. “It’s a formal thing?”
“It’s how we kick off the week. These events go well into the morning hours. Some can go well into the next day.”
“It lasts the entire week, you said.” Braelyn slid her arm into mine when I offered to escort her to the dining room.
“Seven full days. We bring them here, wine them, dine them, put them at ease. It’s more of a way for us to get to know them better. For those who are new to the island, we’ve only had limited interactions. I’ll speak with them right after they submit their application, but then there’s not much communication until they’re vetted. If they’re approved, they eventually end up here for a week, multiple if they choose.”
“And the rest of the time they’re here?”
“This is a vacation for them. Aside from the once-a-day event, which, as I said, is optional, it’s at their leisure. The Owners mainly watching their possessions as they tend to their needs, interacting as they see fit.”
Braelyn was staring up at me, and I could tell she was curious as to how it all worked. I liked that she was.
“The majority of the time, when we have guests, we’re outdoors, enjoying the pools, the recreation areas, the beach. Meals are provided. Sunday morning, before they’re scheduled to leave, I’ll meet with each Owner separately, get a feel for their intentions. Will they take a possession or choose to continue interacting for a bit longer? Sunday afternoons they leave.”
“Definitely sounds like a vacation. With the added benefit of kinky sex if they want,” Braelyn mused.
“If you want to look at it that way.”
“But it’s business for you.”
“It is.”
“Are they permitted to interact with other possessions? The ones they aren’t here to acquire?”
“Not unless arrangements have been made.”
“Arrangements?”
“If they have a curiosity about another, and we’ve given permission, they’re free to interact.”
“But it’s not the norm?”
“No.” I glanced down at her. “Keep in mind, many of the possessions are interacting with Owners via the app. It’s possible they’ve already been claimed. It’s not about the highest bidder.” I smiled. “At least not unless that’s what the possession is looking for.”
“Has that happened before? A bidding war?”
“Twice,” I admitted.
“And?”
I grinned. “The highest bidder won both times.”
TWENTY-NINE
Braelyn
Dinner was a formal affair, complete with a plethora of possessions who brought out and cleared away the five courses. Wine was consumed, conversations were had, and up to this point, it had been an interesting yet relatively, and like I’d told Talon, tame endeavor.
I had always gotten the impression from Ransom that events such as this were, for lack of a better term, raunchy. Naked bodies writhing, other people watching.
Didn’t seem to be the case here. It was your average dinner party, complete with a banquet-sized table, more food than necessary, conversation, laughter, and a few stories being told.
I was expecting something a bit kinkier. I mean, I wasn’t a fetish connoisseur or anything, but my brother was unashamedly into BDSM, his focus on sadomasochism, and I’d heard his stories. Plus, after seeing the possessions passing hands from the resort to the Owners, I’d expected … more.
