The Nice ’n Naughty Game

When we write fiction, there are some times we try to stick to facts (I’m generally pretty accurate about settings, though I’ve been known to make up a restaurant now and then) but mostly it’s all make believe.

In my April Brava, Love, Unexpectedly, my hero Naveen Bharani and my heroine Kat Fallon are best friends, but Nav wants more, much more. He needs to break out of the buddy trap and make Kat see his love potential. When she takes a cross-Canada train trip, he leaps at the opportunity to play a sexy “stranger on the train” and seduce her into seeing him in a whole new light.

To aid Nav in his seduction, I created a board game that would allow him and Kat to get to know each other in new, more intimate ways. I’ll let Nav explain how it works.

When he handed the box to Kat, she read the title. “ ‘Nice ’n Naughty’?” She arched a brow. “This definitely isn’t the typical board game. How does it work? You’ve played it before?”

 “No, I saw it in a store and thought it would be fun to share with someone special.”

 He took the package back, ripped off the cellophane, and opened the box. As he did, he said, “The back of the box says the prize is whatever the players agree on ahead of time. It could be….” he paused suggestively, “two hours of Kama Sutra sex or—”

 “What?” she yelped.

 He raised his brows. “You don’t want two hours of Kama Sutra? Okay, then it could be, who buys the wine for dinner.”

 “Let’s stick with the wine.” She eyed him speculatively. “You don’t actually know how to, uh, do the Kama Sutra thing, do you?”

 Oh yeah, he’d hooked her. He suppressed a grin. “Naturally. Indian men have a well-rounded education.” He had in fact read the Kama Sutra and tried out most of the techniques.

 “Hmm. I’ll file that away for future reference, in case it ever becomes relevant.”

 He gave a soft chuckle, but the thought of sex, combined with being alone together in a room dominated by a bed, made his body harden.

 Right now his plan was slow seduction, so he tried to ignore his arousal as he spread the game board on the bottom of the bed and sat beside it. “The squares form a maze, with the goal being to work your way from the outside into the heart. The first person to arrive wins the prize.”

 She leaned forward and peered at the board. Then she picked up the single die from the box. “So you roll this to move.”

 He studied the instructions. “You roll and land on a square. Each square has either a heart, a diamond, a club, or a spade. You draw any card from the corresponding deck.”

 There were four small boxes, each with a symbol on top. She opened the box with the heart and took out a deck of miniature cards, each with a rosy red heart on the back.

 “Don’t read the cards,” he said. “The idea is, when you draw one, you follow the instructions on it.”

 “Oh, sure. Like strip off my clothes?” she said skeptically.

 “I can only hope. Of course, maybe I’ll get that one.”

 The color that rose to her cheeks made him smile. Turning his attention back to the instructions, he said, “You can refuse, but if you do, you have to move back the number of squares on the die.” He glanced up. “Shall we try it out?”

 Her expression told him she was intrigued. “As long as I don’t have to do anything I don’t want to.”

 “I promise. No Kama Sutra unless you want to.” Which she would, if he had his way.

 “Who goes first?”

 He gestured toward her. “Ladies, always.”

 She rolled a two, chose the red mini-cupid figurine, and moved it a couple squares to land on a diamond.

 Nav held the diamond deck toward her. “Take any card.”

 “Here goes.” She drew one from the middle and read, “ ‘Describe the most deliciously sensual meal you can imagine sharing with your partner.’ Okay, food. I can handle that.”

She closed her eyes and a few moments later opened them and smiled. “Oysters to start. Tiny Kumamotos, not the big fleshy ones. With a squirt of fresh lemon for accent. Mmm. A slight scent of the ocean, a silky slide down the throat, the taste of sea foam.”

 Oh yeah, that was sensual. In fact, it made him think of licking her all over until he finally reached her centre. The delicately salty scent and taste, the silky, creamy dampness on his tongue. His erection grew harder and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it.

 “And then,” she said, “a picnic, eaten with the fingers of course. French or Italian bread with that wonderful yeasty, fresh-baked scent. Crusty on the outside, soft on the inside. Creamy cheese, something like Cambazola or Blue Brie, with a subtle bite to it. Kalamata olives, sweet red grapes. Each flavor distinct, unique, and blending perfectly with the others.”

 He imagined the two of them in a secluded corner of Parc Angrignon or Mount-Royal Park, spreading a blanket, feeding each other picnic food with their fingers. Each nibble a kind of foreplay. He cleared his throat. “And for dessert?” Knowing Kat, it would involve chocolate.

 “Bittersweet chocolate soufflé with Grand Marnier sauce. Melting on the tongue.”

 Are you getting the idea of how the game works – and how it aids Nav in winning Kat over? Here are a few of the other Nice ’n Naughty cards I came up with: What’s the one thing you want most in the world? Who’s your favorite person of the opposite sex, and why? Give your opponent a foot massage. Your partner must give you anything you want – tell him what that is.

Do you have suggestions for new Nice ’n Naughty cards? If you could create a sexy game, what would it be?

(If you’d like to learn more about Love, Unexpectedly, visit my website at http://www.susanlyons.ca, where both Susan Fox and Susan Lyons hang out.)