Asylum

Chapter 10: Untasted

Now I was blushing for a different reason. "Well, I usually think up the drink recipes on the bus on the way to work, or a couple of times even after I've started my shift, and it's kind of frowned upon for bartenders to drink on the job." Though many of them do. I didn't voice that last thought.

He was in bar owner mode as he took another sip, no doubt thinking of all the other drinks on previous nights that had gone out unsampled. "In the interest of quality control," he said, "From now on, go ahead and try your concoctions before you start hawking them.

"In fact," he said, struck by an idea, "Go ahead and give a shot of the finished product to each of the bartenders at the main bar. If any of them are interested, share the recipe; that may ease a little coworker resentment."

I was surprised. "Are you sure? I mean, don't get me wrong – free drinks are bound to go over well, but you're sure it's okay with you?"

"You're going to end up splitting about two drinks six ways, and anyone who sells one is going to charge around sixteen dollars each for them? Yeah, I'm okay with that math. You should probably bring a shot to Stefano, too; I find it's good to keep the boss complicit in anything you feel a little shady about."

I took a thoughtful sip. "I should give one to Mateo; he's the one whose good side I really need to find."

Ivan frowned. "I'm afraid it's going to take more than the occasional designer tipple to win Mateo over, especially since I think he might be a teetotaler. Besides," he said, draining his glass; I copied him, lapping the last of the salt off the glass with a fruity red tongue. "I generally like my security sober and alert. I'd feel a little less safe encouraging too much of a party atmosphere on the job."

He walked around to stand in front of me and put his glass into the sink. "Now," he said as he put his arms around my waist. "I have something for you."

I grinned. "You mean, besides a cabinet full of liquor?"

"Every girl's dream, I know." He kissed me soundly, breaking it off just as my head started to swim. Moving his hands up under my arms, he hoisted me to his waist, and I wrapped my long legs around him. He opened my lips again and began leisurely stroking my tongue with his as he walked us toward the bedroom.

I moaned softly into his mouth, returning his kiss with passion. One of his strong arms held my body crushed to his, the other supported me from underneath my dress, long fingers splayed on the smooth flesh bared by my thong. He gently stroked his middle finger across the silky skin, sending humming vibrations throughout my body as though he were plucking some secret string deep inside me.

He groaned. "Promise me you'll never wear any other kind of underwear."

I caught his lower lip between my teeth and pulled playfully. "Okay, I promise."

Ivan carried me through the bedroom and into the darkened master bathroom. I reluctantly slid to the ground as he moved his hands up my body, signaling me to dismount. He flicked on the light.

"You have something for me in the bathroom?" I asked uncertainly. As I looked about, my eye snagged on an obviously out-of-place pale pink ribbon, tied into a small bow around around a purple and white toothbrush nestled in the tumbler next to Ivan's green and white one.

"A toothbrush, huh? What are you trying to say?" I resisted the urge to cup my hand in front of my mouth and huff to check my breath.

For once, Ivan looked something other than completely confident. He searched my pale eyes with his stormy blues. "Only that you're welcome here, and invited. Having to use your finger to clean your teeth feels a bit like a one-night stand, and that's not what this is."

I was surprisingly touched, as much by his awkward explanation as by the gift itself. I ducked my head for a moment until I could swallow the sudden lump in my throat.

"That's very thoughtful. Thank you," I whispered finally. "And quite a relief – I thought you might be expressing some disapproval about my oral hygiene."

Ivan's wicked smile crept back into place. "No, Мой милый котенок (my sweet kitten). I like your dirty little mouth just the way it is." And he leaned in to show me exactly what he meant.