Friendly Persuasion by Dawn Atkins

eucalyptus and heard a merry-go-round. The combination of carousel, eucalyptus and water was a dead giveaway. They were at Encanto Park, which had a kiddieland and a lagoon. She remembered that Ross knew people who worked at the golf course there.
    “Don’t make a sound,” he warned, then grabbed her by the waist and quick-walked her into a building. It was cool and smelled of concrete and, of all things, roses. They must be in the little caretaker’s house beside the rose garden.
    He guided her a few steps inside. Then he moved away. He wouldn’t leave her, would he?
    “Ross?”
    “I’m right here,” he said, startling her by being just inches in front of her face. “And call me the Love Thief.”
    The Love Thief. Intriguing…
    “Let’s get you out of this dress,” he said, and slowly began to unbutton the big cloth buttons. This was why he’d requested front opening. “You are my prisoner,” he said, moving slowly from button to button. “All you can do is feel what I want you to feel—what I let you feel.”
    He was right. With her hands behind her back, she couldn’t do anything but wait for his next move, his next touch. Air cooled her damp skin as her dress fell more and more open.
    The Love Thief ran a finger along the line of her bra and she shivered. “Front clasp,” he said. “Good.” He moved behind her and untied her hands just long enough to slide her dress off her arms. Then he clasped her hands together at the wrist in front of her body.
    She felt so exposed in just her bra, panties and high heels. And he was looking at her. She couldn’t see his face or gauge his reaction except through his ragged breathing, which meant he was aroused, and that pleased her.
    “Back up,” he commanded.
    She took two backward steps and hit something.
    “Now lie down on the bed.”
    She did what he told her and he stretched out her arms, one at a time, then tied them to something metal—the headboard probably.
    Blind, with her arms spread wide and her hands bound, she felt as exposed as if she’d been completely nude, held open for him to do what he would with her. She had that itchy, fearful tickle of helplessness and made a halfhearted attempt to tug her hands free of their restraints.
    “There’s no point in struggling,” he said. “I have you. You’re all mine.”
    Again she felt the twinge of arousal and powerlessness.
    “Do you like this?” The Love Thief asked hoarsely. “Being at my mercy? Not knowing where and how I’ll touch you?” The mattress lifted as he got up and she felt him sit at the foot of the bed. “Only knowing that whatever it is, you’ll want more and more?” He took her foot in his warm hand, tugged off her heel, and gently stroked the sole of her foot with the pad of one finger.
    “Ooh,” she moaned, the sensation so good she held really, really still. “Yes. I like that. All that.”
    “Good. I want you to trust me with your body. You do trust me, don’t you? You know I won’t hurt you?”
    “Y-yes,” she stammered.
    “The only thing the Love Thief will steal from you is your pleasure…” he whispered, removing her other shoe to tease its sole, “until you can’t surrender a single moan more.”
    She shivered violently at the possibilities.
    He ran his finger up her shin, barely skimmed the edge of her panties, then shifted to stroke the line where her leg met the mattress. “Does that sound good to you?”
    “Yes,” she gasped, desperate for more contact.
    “Good.” He stopped touching her. “So, what should I touch first?” he mused.
    She held her breath. What would it be? Her mouth? Her breasts? Her core? The possibilities were riveting and frustrating because she could only wait in the helpless dark for him to decide.
    “I think this.” He flicked the clasp and her bra fell open.
    She gasped and felt instantly vulnerable. She imagined his eyes on her breasts watching her nipples tighten. The thought made moisture trickle into her