Chapter 10

H e leaned in the doorway, watching Jasmine walk into his bedroom, look up at the ceiling, and stop in her tracks.

"Wow. You know, with anyone else, the combination of the mustache and above-bed mirror would be creepy. Why does it work for you?" She glanced at him with a mock-frown before looking back up. "I need to tell Maggie about this. She and Cal would lov—sorry."

Liam groaned. "Can we make it a rule that you don't talk about my dad and Maggie having sex?"

"We can try, but I'm not going to make a promise I already know I'm going to break."

"Great." He knew her too well to think she'd stop, could stop, but it was worth a shot.

Jasmine continued her perusal of his room, her eyes scanning every inch. It wasn't until she ran a finger over the spines on his bookcase that Liam realized she was shaking.

"Hey. "

Instinct made him wrap his arms around her from behind, holding her to his chest. It wasn't until she was actually in his arms that he considered they might not be there . Yet. If they ever would be.

Fuck it. He'd started digging his hole. He might as well keep going. "Are you okay?" he murmured, his breath making her hair flutter.

She relaxed into his body, and relief flooded him. "Of course. I'm fine," she said, her voice lifting on the last word.

"You want to try that again?"

Jasmine blew out a long breath that vibrated through him. "I am. I'm just a little nervous." She spun in his hold, but didn't move out of his grip. She absentmindedly smoothed a wrinkle in his sweatshirt. "What if I can't do it?" Her voice was small, quiet. When she looked up at him, doubt was etched in her hazel eyes. "We should set a time limit. Or at least a time limit on you not coming. I've heard you can die from that."

He hated that she was nervous, but he couldn't help smiling at how fucking cute she was. "That's definitely not true. And you can do it. We can do it."

"So you have a plan?"

"Of course I have a plan."

"Care to enlighten me?"

"Nope. Just trust me, darling. I've got this."

He did not have a plan. In fact, he had no idea how he was going to get Jasmine out of a ten-year orgasm drought, but it started with making sure she was comfortable. He hadn't entirely discounted that it might be a medical issue—God knows doctors rarely took women's health seriously—but it was entirely possible for it to be a mental block. As for what it might be… Fuck knows. But he'd be damned if he couldn't do this for her.

"I trust you," Jasmine replied softly, and Liam's blood hummed in response. "So where do we start?"

"We start at the beginning. Talk to me about what you're into."

"What I'm into?"

"Mhmm. I'm, as you so aptly put it, a pleasure dom —" The term was corny as fuck, even if it was accurate. "What's your thing? Everyone has that one thing that turns them on more than anything else."

"Oh. Uh…"

He tugged her away from the bookcase, undoing the buttons of her shirt dress as he led her toward the bed. Pushing the dress from her shoulders, Liam tried not to run his fingers all over her the second it dropped to the floor. He failed, of course, but the point was he tried .

His legs hit the edge of the bed and he sat down, tugging her onto his lap. Jasmine lifted her legs, and Liam ran his palm along her thighs, her skin silky beneath his hand. He knew they had to take it slow, had to figure out what did and didn't work for her, but God, he couldn't wait to get those thighs wrapped around his head again.

Liam had known what he liked since the first time he'd made someone come. He'd been seventeen, fumbling, and it had taken longer than was probably reasonable for him to figure out where exactly to touch India, but as soon as he'd figured it out, he'd been obsessed.

He and India had been each other's firsts, a one night summer thing during their trip to the Maldives. They stayed friends through the rest of their high school and college days, but they didn't start dating until their late twenties, and in the decade in between his first time with India and their first date, Liam had fallen even more in love with making people fall apart.

"Jasmine," he prompted, and her eyes flicked from the hand on her thigh to his face. "What's your thing?"

She was quiet for a moment, wringing her hands, before saying, "I like being told what to do, but I like not doing it more."

Liam chuckled, and Jasmine raised a curious brow. "Nothing has ever been less surprising than you being a brat, darling."

"I'm not a brat," she said indignantly, but her hazel eyes glittered. "I just like pushing buttons—especially yours." She punctuated her point by wriggling around on his lap until he gripped her hips firmly, stilling her. He would never admit it, but it wouldn't take much for her to break his no coming until she did rule. He was used to fairly regular sex, and even more regular masturbation. Jasmine, sitting in his lap after several days of not coming, was torture. Beautiful fucking torture.

"And you're so good at it," he told her through gritted teeth. "Like I said: brat ."

She rolled her eyes, but Liam felt the way she shifted in his lap—no longer trying to tease him, but searching for friction. Jasmine liked being called a brat. Interesting.

"What else do you like?"

"I like pain, especially as a punishment. But I cry easily, which I don't care about, but it bothers some people. I'm good with most toys and anal, and I'm really into bondage, as long as I feel safe with the person. Which obviously I do with you." Obviously. She said it so casually, like it didn't make Liam's heart swell.

He swallowed the lump in his throat, clearing it before replying. "Good. That's all good." She liked everything he did. Of course she did. "What don't you like?"

She rolled her neck, stretching out like a cat, and, though having her sitting on his lap probably wasn't the most comfortable position for them to have this conversation, he wasn't letting go until she did.

"Role-play isn't a no ," she said. "But I can't take it seriously and it tends to piss people off when I laugh." Liam couldn't imagine her laughing ever pissing him off. "I don't like group stuff. I'm too possessive for that," she continued. "And I really don't like praise, or worship, or anything too… nice. Both inside and outside of bed."

That was interesting. And potentially difficult. Liam usually followed up any kind of degrading dirty talk with praise, but he could adjust. Even if there was definitely something to unpack there.

"I can work with that. Anything else?"

"Oh yeah, I would prefer not to be peed on, but if that's a must, then the shower is my preference. "

Somehow, she continued to surprise him. "I'm not going to pee on you. Even in the shower. I promise."

"Perfect. Anything I should know about you?"

"It sounds like we're into the same kinds of things. I like to focus on the line between pleasure and pain a lot. And I can be a little vocal, especially if someone is pushing my buttons." He tapped her on the nose.

Jasmine raised a brow, her eyes glimmering with interest. "Dirty talk?"

"Sometimes, yeah. And I tend to lean on the, uh, firmer side, I guess. So if there's anything you don't like, or I ever make you uncomfortable, please talk to me. You being okay and comfortable is my number one priority, but I need you to talk to me about how you're feeling."

Jasmine wrinkled her nose. "I'm not great about talking about how I feel."

"Rule number two, darling." Liam tilted her chin, hoping it was clear how serious he was from his face. "Talking about how you feel isn't optional."

"Ugh, fine. If I have to."

"You do. I'll add it to the chalkboard later."

She rolled her eyes, and Liam could already tell he was going to have his work cut out for him on that one. Hopefully, with time, she'd be more open with him.

"You listen to podcasts while you work, right?" he asked. They'd listened to podcasts on the drive to California, and Jasmine loved to tell them about her favorites at family dinner.

"Pretty much whenever I'm not in a meeting, yeah. Why? "

"I'm giving you homework," he said, making a mental list. "Having a good idea of what you're into is great, but I want to figure out what gets you closest to being able to come. Like where's the line, you know? I'm going to give you some audiobooks to listen to."

"You're suggesting I listen to erotic audiobooks at work? Where I'm your dad's assistant?" She didn't look remotely put off by the idea. If anything, she curled in closer to him

"How would he find out?"

Jasmine pursed her lips. "True. And I guess, even if he did, he wouldn't have a leg to stand on given everything he and Maggie?—"

Liam covered her mouth with his hand, groaning. "No. Absolutely not." When he pulled his hand away, she was grinning. "You did it on purpose that time, didn't you?"

"Maybe I like trying to rile you up."

Her low voice when straight to his cock, and Jasmine smirked like she knew exactly what she was doing. "You don't have to try, darling." He pressed a ghost of a kiss behind her ear and she shuddered.

"Is this graded homework?"

"It's pass/fail."

She sighed dramatically. "Damn. I was hoping for extra credit."

He shook his head, burying his laugh against her neck. "I'll figure something out for extra credit. Anything else you want to talk about before we get started tonight? "

"No," she said, quickly and breathlessly. "What's the plan for tonight?"

"We're getting started on figuring out what gets you close." He patted her lightly on the ass. "Get on the bed and wait for me. I'll be back in a sec."

"Underwear on or off?" she shouted behind him as he walked away.

"Off," he called back, amazed that he kept his voice steady, knowing that she was stripping in his bedroom. God. His bedroom.

He grabbed his laptop from the dining table, the two packages of gummies he'd picked up after work, and headed back to the bedroom. He knew Jasmine favored a joint or an edible over a drink when she wanted to relax.

Liam stilled in the bedroom doorway. Jasmine was lying on her front, her chin propped up on her elbow as she scrolled through her phone. She peered over her shoulder at him. "Are you just going to stand and stare, or…?"

His gaze trailed the curve of her frame. She belonged in a goddamned museum. But saying that would definitely go against her no praise rule, so Liam bit his tongue. He took a deep breath, forcing himself to walk into the room and not make an immediate beeline for the bed to take a bite of her perfect ass.

"Wild cherry or pink lemonade?" he asked, holding up the bags. He regretted it the second Jasmine turned, and keeping his hands to himself suddenly became a thousand times harder .

"Ooh." Her eyes lit up as she scanned the bags. "Cherry, please."

He tossed her the bag, and she tore the top off while he set the laptop on the bed and pulled his sweatshirt over his head. When she realized he was undressing, she put the bag down and blatantly watched him, his skin warming under her gaze.

She didn't look away until he lay down beside her, when she held up the bag. "Half or whole?"

"Are you still okay staying over?" She nodded. "Whole," he confirmed. "I want you nice and relaxed."

"Open up."

He opened his mouth, and Jasmine dropped a square gummy on his tongue. Sour cherry flooded his senses, and he screwed up his face, quickly chewing and swallowing. "Jesus."

Jasmine smirked, eating hers with ease as he picked his laptop up. "Are we watching a movie? Oh, let me guess! That Pearl Earring one with Colin Firth. I bet that one turns you on."

"It's Colin Firth, of course it turns me on. Who isn't into him? Even my moms love him."

"Straight men?" Jasmine suggested, and Liam shrugged, typing the web address into his browser.

"Surely even straight men find Colin Firth hot? Anyway, no, funnily enough I didn't tell you to take your underwear off so we could watch that kind of movie."

He turned his laptop toward her, and her eyes widened, a sweet laugh bubbling from her lips. "We're watching porn? "

Liam nodded, setting the laptop on a pillow between them. Though he preferred romance books to porn, it had its place, and his favorite website—a queer-owned, ethical website with a focus on sexual empowerment—had the perfect thing for him and Jasmine to get started with. It was a program designed to help people figure out what kind of porn they might enjoy, and what kinds of things they might want to try out, through short-form videos that started more vanilla and escalated as you worked through them.

He explained the concept to Jasmine, who simply fluffed the pillows behind her and lay back, getting comfortable. "Alright. Let's do this."

Liam threaded his fingers with hers. "You're lefthanded, right?"

"Yeah."

"Perfect. I'm going to hold this hand, and when what we're watching starts to turn you on, I want you to touch yourself with your left." He would be watching her reactions, but he wanted to feel her squeezing his hand when something turned her on.

"I will if you will," she replied, her eyes flicking down his body. She licked her lips and Liam counted to three.

"Fine, but I'm not going to come."

"Yeah, me either," she joked.

"Even if you think you might, you're not allowed," he told her, and her eyes fell to his, her mouth dropping open .

"Not that it's going to happen, but doesn't that kind of defeat the purpose of this whole arrangement?"

"You're supposed to be trusting me, remember?"

She scoffed. "Fine."

"Oh, and other than this," he squeezed their joined hands, "you're not allowed to touch me."

"Worried I'm going to make you come before I do?" she asked with a smirk.

Liam's fingers twitched with the urge to touch her, to put her over his fucking knee. She didn't miss the movement, her smirk widening. Yeah, she knew exactly how to push his buttons. But she could push all she wanted; he wasn't going to break. She was. That was the point of this little exercise. Watching porn, touching themselves, Liam knew it was only a matter of time before she snapped, and he wanted to know what her final straw was. He just had to survive that long.

"Jasmine."

"Hmm?"

"Behave."

"Yes, sir," she sassed, rolling her eyes.

L iam clocked the moment Jasmine moved from just watching to feeling . They were three videos in, the edibles lulling them into a state of calm, when the actors on the screen started getting rougher, and Jasmine's chest started rising and falling a little faster. Her right hand gripped his a little tighter, and he squeezed it.

She looked over at him, her cheeks just turning pink.

"Touch yourself, darling."

She drew her lip between her teeth. "You first."

Liam fought a laugh, shaking his head. "No. Do as you're told."

Jasmine opened her mouth to protest, but her eyes snapped back to the laptop as the sound of a smack echoed from the speakers. When Liam followed her gaze, it was to see a woman holding her partner over her knee, smacking her ass. The woman being spanked writhed on her lap, and, defiance be damned, Jasmine slipped her fingers between her legs.

Her head dropped back against the pillows automatically, but she caught herself, forcing herself to sit up a little more so she could watch the couple on the screen.

Liam sat up and grabbed a spare pillow from the armchair, tucking it behind her head. She gave him a grateful smile before her attention turned back to the screen. A small whimper bubbled from her lips as she grazed her clit with her fingers. She spread her legs further, her calf colliding with his, and Liam swallowed as he watched her fingers moving over her body. Her deep purple nails were the perfect contrast to her pale skin.

She turned to look at him, staring pointedly at his cock and pausing her movements until he wrapped his fist around it. He almost winced at how sensitive he was. It wasn't going to be easy to hold back .

Jasmine's eyes darkened as she watched him draw his fist up and down his cock.

"Eyes on the screen," he instructed, his voice gravelly. She rolled her eyes, but she looked back toward the screen.

Liam's focus darted from Jasmine to the videos, watching her touch herself harder, faster, during the videos she enjoyed most. As expected, she slowed down during the threesome, and she actively wrinkled her nose at the video of someone jerking someone else off with their feet. It was so cute, Liam fought the urge to reach over and kiss the tip of her nose.

He made a mental note of the things she seemed to like most based on how hard she squeezed his hand.

Anal, spanking, impact play, bondage, degradation, and a little bit of gentle sadism.

It was as he'd expected from what she'd told him, but hearing her tell him what she was into versus seeing her reactions were two very different ballgames. And he had to make sure she wasn't just telling him what she thought he wanted to hear. He'd had partners in the past who'd told him they were into the same things he was, and Liam had been able to tell within five minutes they were uncomfortable.

There was a fine line between pleasure and pain, and making someone come over and over again until they were begging and crying for mercy brought him more pleasure than anything else. But only if the other person was into it as much as he was.

Though Jasmine had been edging closer and closer to him throughout the videos she enjoyed most, her breath caught in her throat as she watched the man on screen slapping his partner's cheek before softly stroking his thumb over the red mark, and, just like that, Liam knew it was game over.

He didn't even have time to blink before she was on him, straddling his hips and cursing against his mouth as her tongue slipped between his lips in a fierce kiss. He groaned at the taste of cherry on her tongue. Jasmine pulled away, running a finger over the head of his cock, the videos playing in the background long forgotten. She positioned herself so she could drag her body along the length of him, and Liam had to fist the covers as the cool metal of her piercing glided over his cock.

Jasmine looked down at him with a wicked smile; she had the upper hand here, and she knew it. He'd made a terrible mistake thinking he could hold off—he was so fucking close already.

He grabbed her hips, his fingers digging into her ass, and pulled her up his body until her knees were on either side of his face. But she sat up on her knees, too far away for him to get his mouth on her.

"Jasmine," he warned. "Are you going to sit down and be good, or am I going to have to make you?"

"Hmm, decisions, decisions…"

"Option B, then." Liam gripped her ass harder and pulled her down onto his face, closing his lips around her clit. Jasmine cried out, her hand slamming against the headboard. Whatever ideas she had to fight back died as Liam flicked his tongue over her clit, and Jasmine rolled her hips against his face, riding him. She was a fucking dream.

Her thighs trembled on either side of his head, her moans falling faster and breathier the closer he brought her to the edge. But Liam was serious about not letting her come yet. He didn't think she was ready, but she was close.

He moved quickly, lifting her from his face and spinning them until she was lying on her back and he was pinning her to the mattress between his thighs. She tried to wriggle her way out, huffing indignantly, but Liam held firm. He reached behind him to grab his laptop from where it teetered precariously on the edge of the bed, closed it and set it on the nightstand beside Jasmine's head.

As he leaned down to brush a kiss over her mouth, she stilled for a moment, breathing him in. She knotted her hands in his hair, holding him to her and stealing his breath. It was all a ploy, of course, to distract him enough so she could wriggle out from under him. But Liam saw right through her, his thigh muscles straining to hold her down.

"I think I learned everything I need to know," he whispered against her ear, before calling on every ounce of self control he possessed and swinging his leg over her, and getting off the bed. "I like chamomile tea before I sleep—do you want some?"

Jasmine glared at him like he'd grown another head. "Are you fucking kidding me? "

"What? It's very calming, and it seems like you could use that."

He laughed as he walked away, and Jasmine threw a pillow after him, cursing him out as it smacked him on the ass.