Page 121 of Sliding Into Love
“One espresso coming up,” he said, leaning over to brush his lips over hers before turning toward the kitchen.
“Ah, make mine a double,” she called, “and for you too!”
"Are you sure you want caffeine, sweetheart? You seem a little…jumpy.”
“I just need lots of energy! Ha ha ha.” Ivy groaned internally at the halting, fake laughter.
As soon as the door swung closed behind him, Ivy grabbed the restraints and raced for the bed. Of course, it was a king-sized bed, and of course, it had pristine white linens that would immediately reveal she had tampered with the bed. Nothing could be done to avoid it, though, and Ivy used her full body weight to shove the enormous mattress over enough to slide the long straps into place, leaving the black circles of the wrist and ankle straps dangling at the edges of the bed. She straightened the duvet as best she could and practically leaped across the room to retrieve her bag before bounding into the bathroom and slamming the door closed.
Once inside, Ivy took a moment to breathe and calm her pounding heart. Excitement and a hint of nervous energy flooded through her as she stared at her flushed face in the mirror. She giggled at herself before putting on a serious face, one more befitting of the corset. Naturally, she broke down into more giggles. Letting out a whoosh of a breath, Ivy tugged the corset free of her bag, and two faint clinks sounded as something wrapped in the folded fabric fell to the marble-tiled floor.
Three somethings, actually.
The first item Ivy retrieved was a tube of deep red liquid lipstick, with a sticky note in Lily’s handwriting reading: “it's long-lasting — trust me.” The second was an airplane-sized bottle of vodka, which Ivy set on the counter to drink after the lipstick set so she didn’t smear red across her face. The third item was a small black triangle lined with red lace with dangling strings, and Ivy rolled her eyes at the tiny, ridiculous garment. Quickly, she disrobed, and fully naked, glared at her reflection while applying the lipstick.
Red wasn’t a color she wore often, and the brightness of her lips was startling, though she assumed that was why Lily had given it to her.
Next, Ivy fumbled quickly with the silly triangle thong, until Ethan knocked at the door. An ankle tangled in a strap, leaving Ivy hopping on one foot and screeching, “just a minute,” before she finally set the damn thing to rights, sliding it over her thighs, with the back part of the garment sliding between the globes of her ass.
Somewhere between feeling sexy and empowered, but also awkward and uncomfortable, Ivy looked at herself in the mirror once more before tackling the corset.
With a determined grit of her teeth, Ivy managed to hook three of the front hooks together before the bottom half of the corset split wide over her navel. Grunting, Ivy unhooked the top and tried to start from the bottom. The same thing happened again but in reverse; now the damn thing fell open over her boobs. Stamping her bare foot and swearing silently, she managed to get the hooks lined up and in their places after a lot more swearing and stomping. Except it still didn’t quite fit properly. It was too loose over her boobs and hips, so she reached behind her back and tugged at the red ribbons laced up the back.
After tugging again at the strings with no luck, Ivy gave up and called in reinforcements.
“Ethan? Could you come in here but keep your eyes closed?”
“Um. Yes? Why?” He rattled the doorknob.
“Are your eyes closed?”
“Yes.”
“Are they really?”
“…yes?”
Opening the door but only poking her head around the edge, Ivy saw his hand covering his eyes, so she grabbed him by his other wrist and led him in.
“Okay, keep them closed,” she said, “I need your help.”
“How can I help you if my eyes are closed?”
“I need your hands.”
“I can do that,” he grinned, taking his hand away from his eyes.
“Down boy,” Ivy laughed, “not yet. I need you to give me your hands but keep your eyes shut and here, tie this.” She turned around to have her back to him, reaching behind her back again and dropping the ends of the ribbons into his waiting hands.
Professional athlete that he was, Ethan yanked on the ribbons as though tying his cleats before a game, and all the air in Ivy’s lungs was forced out as the metal rods encased in the lace squeezed her torso.
“A little looser,” she wheezed, and they worked together to get the ribbons tied in a bow, with the length of the loops draping down her back.
“Can I see now?” Ethan’s hands lingered on her hips.
Ivy took in their reflection in the mirror: Ethan, so tall and calm behind her, his eyes still closed, and Ivy, smaller and flustered. She stifled a chuckle at the visual representation of their relationship.
“No, you may not. Go in the bedroom, strip, and lie on the bed.” Ivy’s tone surprised her, and it definitely surprised Ethan, who cocked his head and tried to sneakily crack one eye open.
