a punishment for whoever he chooses,” Lauren added.
Jess scooted back his chair and got to his feet. “Tsk-tsk, ladies. I realize this is going to be hard on those of you who don’t get to experience my incredible expertise.”
Anton brought his fist to his mouth and coughed to cover up his exclamation of “Bullshit.”
“Yeah. What Anton said. You can just keep your tongue to yourself, mister,” Kinsey said.
Jess ignored the outburst and circled the table, passing each woman once before stopping behind Kinsey on his second trip around. With both hands on the back of her chair, he leaned down and ran the tip of his tongue around the shell of her ear, blowing softly until she shuddered.
Sydney’s own heart fluttered wildly, and one look at Lauren and Poe confirmed that neither of the other women remained unaffected. Even knowing Jess was all bark and no bite didn’t stop any of them from wanting to feel the nip of his teeth. Though, mused Sydney, not half as much as she wanted to be nipped by Ray.
“Now,” Jess said to Kinsey, breathing the words into her ear. “Don’t be giving me grief about my tongue when you obviously don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.” And with that, he continued his second trip around the table.
Sydney held her breath as he passed behind her, and she caught Ray staring as she slowly let it go. She wanted to know what he was thinking, what it meant when his pulse ticked at his temple, when his jaw seemed to grind. She wanted to know if he possibly wanted her, and how she was going to sit through the rest of the evening until she could find out for sure.
No one at the table said a word when Jess came to a stop behind Poe’s chair. She still had her arms raised, her hands laced behind her head, and Jess settled his palms on her elbows. Her mouth quirked slightly, as if she’d never had a doubt she’d end up as his choice.
He ran his hands from her elbows down her triceps and back up to her forearms before pulling her to her feet, pushing her chair out of the way with his hip as he did. Then he turned her, wrapped her arms around his neck, settled his hands on her hipbones above the low-riding waistband of her pants and backed her into the table.
When he lowered his head, Sydney found herself once again holding her breath. Jess nuzzled his lips over Poe’s jaw and chin before moving his mouth to her mouth. He was tender and gentle and soft with his approach.
He wasn’t grinding his hips into hers and slipping his tongue into her mouth as Sydney was certain everyone was expecting him to do. No, he was taking things slow, the way a lover would take things slow, letting go of Poe’s hips and moving his hands up her body to hold her face, finally opening his mouth enough to coax Poe to do the same.
It was unbelievable, the way Sydney’s pulse raced, the way she found herself unable to pull in anything more than shallow breaths. She glanced at Lauren, then at Kinsey. Both women were equally transfixed. But this time Sydney could not bring herself to look at Ray, even though she hadn’t a doubt he was looking at her. The sensation of being caught in his gaze like a fly in a spider’s web was enough to keep her from glancing over. Or from looking again toward Jess and Poe.
The suggestion of intimacy stirred Sydney’s hunger unbearably, and she breathed a huge sigh of relief when the couple broke the embrace. She even joined in the applause that followed and finally felt able to come up for air once Jess had taken his bow and made his way back to his seat.
“Well, now,” Poe said, slightly out of breath as she settled back into her chair. “You almost convinced me that you meant it.”
“Then I guess I won that round,” Jess said, not entirely undisturbed himself.
“I don’t know.” Kinsey shook her head. “For some reason I feel like I won.”
Her comment brought the laughter the room seemed to need. That, and the whiskey that was obviously beginning to take effect. Sydney had purposefully sipped slowly and made sure to water down what booze she was drinking.
And a good thing, too, since Jess turned to her and said, “Sydney?”
She looked up, feeling a rush of nervous trepidation. “Yes?”
“Truth or dare. Since you have had a bit of an icy reputation in the past—” Jess paused, letting the implication sink in “—I’m curious to know if you had an orgasm the first time you had sex.”
Sydney didn’t even blink. Could Jess have possibly asked anything she would’ve wanted to answer less, considering the present company, who could call her on any lie she might try to get away with? The present company who had brought her off repeatedly through the hours of that long, hot, summer night all those years ago?
And so she sat back, crossed her arms, looked Jess straight in the eye and told him and the rest of the room the truth. “Actually, Jess, yes. I did.”
Anton snorted, obviously in disbelief. Doug sat slack-jawed. Jess stared from beneath two raised brows. The women were more vocal. Their responses ranged from “No way!” to “Go Sydney!” to “You lucky dog!”
And then the circle of reactions came back around to Anton and his skeptical suspicion. “Give her a dare, Jess. She’s lying through her teeth.”
Sydney turned a steely gaze on Anton. “What makes you think I’m lying?”
“It’s hard to believe any woman would come her first time. Half the time even women who know what they’re doing fake their orgasms.” Anton flinched as a half-melted ice cube pelted him in the center of his chest. He glared across the length of the table just as Lauren threw another.
“If she’s with the right man, a woman can have an orgasm every time. But since it’s hard to find a man willing to take the time to learn what a woman needs, it’s no wonder women end up faking.” Lauren popped a third ice cube into her mouth, sucked it free of whiskey.
Anton upended his glass and drained the remainder of his drink. “Let’s not forget that some women seem to be able to come at the drop of a hat. Sorta makes a man wonder why she keeps him around when she can obviously do her own thing as long as she’s got the batteries.”
“Hey, dude. I don’t know what you’re complaining about.” Jess glanced from one-half of the quarreling couple to the other and back. “Finding a woman uninhibited enough to come sure takes the pressure off.”
“Exactly!” Lauren exclaimed, then turned to Jess. “Thank you, Jess. It’s nice to know that a man can appreciate a woman’s sexuality without feeling threatened by it.”
Anton got to his feet and Sydney held her breath, waiting for what she knew would be an explosion. But Anton surprised her by calmly grabbing the decanter of bourbon from the center of the table and not saying another word. And then he left the room.
For several moments no one made a comment, as if talking behind Anton’s back was as bad as talking in front of Lauren. Finally Poe split the difference with a mumbled, “Well, since I managed to so beautifully blow that, I think I’ll console myself with a quick and painless death by drowning. Or at least a long walk along the beach.”
“Oh, Poe. You didn’t blow anything.” Kinsey reached across the table and took hold of the other woman’s hands. “If you’re in the mood for company, I’d love to come along. My head could use the fresh
