I consider this while I reach down and pull up the lingerie. On the one hand, he’s allowing me to lead the discussion—which, if I’m smart, should give me a nice advantage—but alternately, it provides a greater opportunity for failure, too. If I ask the right question I might be able to make a solid guess immediately, but if I ask the wrong one, I’ll be left without any useful information at all. Should I ask about the gift’s size? Purpose? Shape? Restricting it to ‘yes or no’ questions makes it a little more difficult.
I decide to take a chance.
“Is my gift currently in this apartment?” I ask.
His brow creases. “I must admit, that’s not the sort of question I was expecting.”
“No?” I say, flashing him a smile. I think it’s a brilliant question, if I do say so myself.
Calder is studying me carefully. His shirt is still unbuttoned, and I reach over and run a finger down his chest.
“Aren’t you going to answer?” I say. “Remember—no tricks.”
He catches my hand. “I’m afraid that you’re trying to trick me. But to answer your question—yes. Yes, it’s in this apartment. I should think that was obvious.”
“Perhaps, but now I’m sure.” His confirmation has proved several things: first, that his present is a physical object—not a “favor” or some other intangible thing. Secondly, it’s a physical object that’s small enough to fit within these walls—so no shiny new BMW with a giant bow. Not that that’s the sort of thing I’d want anyway. Calder knows me better than that.
And if the gift’s in this apartment, then it’s not in plain sight. At least, I think I would have noticed a giant wrapped box in the middle of the floor. That means it’s stuffed away somewhere else. In a suitcase, perhaps, or hidden among our other things.
I turn and stride back into the living room. Calder follows.
“What are you doing?” he says.
“Just having a quick look around.”
“Sounds like cheating.”
“Oh, please. You never specified that I couldn’t do a little investigating.” I flick open the top of the nearest cardboard box. He wouldn’t risk damaging the present by packing it poorly, so wherever he’s hidden it, it’s probably on top of his other things. I find nothing but books in the first box, so I move on to another.
“You think you’re very clever,” he muses.
“You’re just angry because your game isn’t working out the way you expected.”
The second box has a bunch of odds and ends, but nothing resembling a gift. On to the third. But before I can get it open, Calder has me by the waist.
“Hey,” I say, batting at him. “What are you—”
Before I can finish, the world flips around me. Suddenly I’m over Calder’s shoulder, his strong arm around my waist to hold me in place.
“Put me down!” I say.
“I don’t think so.”
“Seriously? Is this your reaction to everything? To just pick me up whenever I’m not doing what you’d like?” This isn’t the first time Calder’s hurled me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, and I’m not going to stand for it.
But he doesn’t respond. Instead, he weaves his way across the room toward the master bedroom.
“What about your game?” I ask. “What about your rules?” He doesn’t seem inclined to answer me, though, so I reach down and give him a nice smack on the ass.
“Ah,” he says. “Is that how you want to play this?”
He pauses at the doorway to the bedroom to reach up and push the lingerie up past the curve of my bottom, leaving me completely bare. Then, without warning, he brings his hand down sharply against one naked cheek.
I let out a sound that can only be described as a squeak. “What are you doing?”
“You spank me, I spank you.”
“Are we children now?”
He chuckles. “I, for one, am feeling very adult.” He slaps my ass again, making me flinch, but instead of removing his hand for another smack, he slides his fingers along my cheek and between my legs. “Very, very adult.”
“So we’re back to sex, are we?” I say, wriggling.
“You seem ready for it.” His fingers move along my wetness.
“We’re in the middle of a game! You’re not allowed to do anything to me unless I make a wrong guess!”
Calder’s moving again, carrying me into the bedroom. We left the mattress in the middle of the floor, and this is where Calder drops me.
“All right, then,” he says, hovering over me. “Make a guess.”
I cross my arms. “I was attempting to make a logical guess, but you interrupted my very important research.”
He leans down so his face is just above mine. “Did it ever occur to you that I don’t want you to make a logical guess?”
“Oh, I have no doubt that you’d prefer me to make a dozen wrong guesses and have me at your beck and call all night. But what sort of game would it be if I just let you win?”
He shakes his head, but I can tell he’s enjoying this.
“Very well,” he says. “What would you like to do, then? Should we play for another hint?”
“If you think I’ll just—”
I’m interrupted by the buzzing of his cell phone. He lets out a sigh and sits back on his heels.
“I’m sorry,” he says, reaching into his pocket. I prop myself up on my elbows as he glances down at the screen.
“Work?”
He frowns and gives a single shake of his head. “It’s that same unknown number.”
“Should you answer it?”
His thumb hovers over the button for a moment, but then he smirks and tosses his phone aside.
“There’s something else I’d much rather be doing,” he says, leaning over me again.
I smile. “That sounds like a good plan to me, too.”
I reach up and grab him by the shoulders, pulling him on top of me. His mouth comes down on mine, and our legs tangle as we kiss.
“I’ve thought of the next challenge,” I whisper against his lips.
“Mm? What’s that?”
“First person to laugh loses.”
He pulls back slightly. “What sort of challenge is that?”
“This kind.” My hands are beneath his open shirt, and I skim my fingers over the muscles of his back before slipping them beneath his arms.