Mardi Gras by Lacey Alexander (reading the story of the TXT) 📕

down and dirty. I can’t live without the down and dirty, so I have to live without the cute and sweet.”

“Quite a sacrifice,” Jack quipped.

Ty flashed a light smirk. “Believe it or not, the lack of substance gets a little old.” This time, Jack let out a hearty laugh. “You’re so full of shit. You forget, I was exactly where you are until a year ago. Findin’ the right woman is the greatest thing on earth, but either way, you can’t tell me hot sex gets old.”

“Maybe I’m just reaching a point you never reached,” Ty suggested. He shook his head, half laughing at himself along with Jack, but still trying to figure out what he was attempting to convey. “I’m just…kinda bored lately, I guess. I mean, it’s same old, same old after a while. Different girl, same experience.”

“What exactly is it you’re not gettin’ that you want so bad?” Ty lowered his feet back to the old hardwood floors beneath him and cocked a slight smile toward his friend. Given the direction the conversation had taken, he was glad Mia had stepped out for a few minutes so he could speak freely. “Have you ever been…tied up by a woman?”

Another chuckle echoed toward the ceiling, an easy grin gracing Jack’s face. “Sure.

Liz and I play around with that sorta thing sometimes. We play around with everything.”

“Does it get you off?”

Jack flashed an are-you-serious? look. “It’s Liz. Everything Liz does gets me off.”

“What if it were somebody else?”

“Who knows. Can’t say.”

13

Lacey Alexander

Ty leaned back in his chair once more. “I guess I’ve just been thinking about that kind of stuff. Believe it or not, I’ve never been with a woman who was into the bondage thing, and I suppose I’m looking for something new to keep sex interesting.” Jack sat up a little straighter in his chair. “Well, you know, there are bars you can go to, places to meet women who are into that.”

He nodded uncertainly. “I know. But I’m not sure I’m into the whole gagging, nipple-clamping thing. Nothing hardcore. I just wanna…you know…experiment a little.”

“Sounds like you need a wife, ami,” Jack said on a chuckle.

“What?”

“Get yourself a wife and you can experiment with anything you want.” But Ty shook his head. “No, get myself a wife like Liz and I could do that. But I don’t think all wives are that accommodating.” And the truth was, Ty had been dating strictly naughty, sexy girls for so long—he didn’t even know what he would look for if he were able to switch his attentions to sweet girls. That perfect combination Jack had found in Liz…well, he figured that was once in a lifetime, that she was one of a kind.

And besides, sweet girls and him? It just didn’t add up.

Take Mia, for instance. She was about as sweet as they came, and he loved hanging out with her, working with her, bumping into her at a bar or a party, but when it came time for intimacy, well…he was just too accustomed to hot, wild sex to want to give it up, and any good girl worth her salt would probably faint if he said he wanted her to tie him up and fuck his brains out.

“Speaking of Liz,” Jack said, “that sort of leads to why I stopped by.” His voice drew Ty back to the conversation. “Oh?”

“My lovely wife and I are throwin’ a party Saturday night to kick off Mardi Gras.

Eight o’clock. The usual suspects, plus some people from Liz’s office.” 14

Mardi Gras

“Did you invite Mia?”

Jack nodded. “Of course. Why?”

He shrugged. “She’s fun to hang out with.”

Jack gave his head a speculative tilt, and Ty could almost read his thoughts before he spoke them aloud. “Now that’s who you oughta ask out. Mia’s a sweetheart.” Ty simply laughed. “Are you deaf, Jack? I just told you, sweet girls and me are like oill and water. It would never work. And besides, she’s Tim’s little sister. I’ve known her since she was a little girl. It wouldn’t feel right if we got anywhere even close to sex. Not to mention that she’s a great employee and I wouldn’t want to risk fucking up our working relationship.”

Jack sighed. “Well then, maybe you’ll get lucky and hook up with somebody else at our little fete.”

“Does Liz have any hot girlfriends who like to play with whips and chains?” Jack grinned. “You’ll have to find that out for yourself, my bon ami.”

* * * * *

Mia stood frozen in place at her desk. When she’d returned to the office for her purse, Ty and Jack had been laughing about something and hadn’t heard her come in.

They very clearly hadn’t heard her.

Because they were talking about fucking, and being tied up. Her entire body had sizzled with shock…and arousal.

The conversation she’d overheard had certainly confirmed one thing. Ty had no interest in her whatsoever as a lover. As she’d suspected, he just didn’t think of her that way—apparently couldn’t think of her that way.

The part that really caught her attention, though, was when he’d told Jack he wanted to be tied up. Her blood ran hot just envisioning Ty, naked and bound, at her mercy. Until this moment, she hadn’t been aware that she wanted to experiment with bondage, either, but the heavy pulsing of her pussy said she did.

15

Lacey Alexander

As she stood there, quiet, purse in hand, not quite sure what to do next—or how to sneak back out without them hearing the door—an idea flashed in her mind. A really naughty idea.

Could she, the infamously sweet Mia, ever pull off such a thing?

If she wanted to try, it would take some work.

First, she’d have to hit her favorite craft store down on Royal—they stocked tons of great glitter and feathers this time of year. And as luck would have it, her latest craft project was making Mardi Gras masks. It had started as a way to help her fifth-grade niece with an art assignment for school,