“If you feel pressured, you shouldn’t go,” Cian put in. “That’s not the right reason to.”
I looked at him, catching Akiva’s confident, snarky grin as I did. Pressured was not the right word.
“If Aveline wants to go and you guys are inviting us, why wouldn’t I want to go?” I asked. “But if we’re imposing…“
“You aren’t,” Indra sat up. “We’d like for you to come. You don’t even have to take Akiva up on his uh, little game he’s trying to play with you.” The shifter smiled, but it was much less arrogant and not-at-all menacing.
Fuck.
“I drove, so we’ll follow you, if that’s all right?” Aveline was saying, looking to Cian.
“More than fine with me,” the vampire king replied as he stood and stretched. “You know the way, I take it?”
Aveline was already nodding. “I do. We’ll see you there, then. I need to hit the restroom first.” She turned, dragging me off with her.
“Cute tail,” Akiva murmured as I went, his fingers brushing the sensitive white fur and earning him a scowl from me that only made him smirk.
Chapter 6
“Don’t worry,” Aveline said, throwing her blue Elantra into park against the curb. “They are all yours, George. I’m not even remotely interested.”
“And what makes you so confident I am?” I replied tersely, turning my glare on her. I was. I absolutely was, but not at the expense of my pride.
She looked at me blankly before answering. “Because you almost drooled on their shoes?”
“I did not!” Cian’s Jaguar was in front of us, and with as much time as Aveline had taken in the bathroom I had no doubt they’d been here for at least ten minutes.
“So can I leave you with them? I love you and all but I really don’t want to see you play with them. Besides, I texted this guy and he’s here tonight, so I’d rather hang out with him if you don’t mind.” At my look, she amended her words. “Okay. I’ll stay with you for a bit, make sure it works out, then go grab my boy.” When I continued to look at her, she shook her head. “That’s as much as you’re getting. You can signal me or something if you need me, but I plan to be extremely busy.”
“This was such a bad idea,” I moaned, throwing my head back against my seat. “I should’ve come clean; I should’ve fessed up at Euphoric.”
“Well. Yeah,” Aveline agreed. “But you didn’t, and I kinda think you want to be here. So we’re here. When was the last time you got laid, again? Actually, scratch that. When was the last time you got handcuffed, spanked, and sexed up while your tail was out?”
I didn’t reply; I didn’t have to.
“Exactly. Never. So you are going to get out of this car and enjoy yourself. Or try, anyway. If it doesn’t work out, we’ll go home and drink; I have vodka and a lot of Vanilla Coke. I’ll even leave my friend for you.”
“Promise?”
“Promise.”
“And everything will be okay?”
Having grown up with me, she knew all the tells of my anxiety and how to deal with them. “Everything is fine. I swear on the goddess’s perfect tits.”
“Thanks Av.”
“Anytime. Now get your wolfy ass out of my car because that is all the pep talk I’ve got and I want to go in."
Portal was nothing like Euphoric. The main entry was professional, spotless, and well lit. A woman sat at a marble desk, smiling, and looked up at us as we came in. “Welcome to Portal,” she greeted. “If you’ll check your personal bags with her?” she gestured to a woman standing outside of an open coat closet.
Wordlessly I handed her my bag. Aveline had informed me that phones weren’t allowed to be used and to put mine in my pocket if I wanted to take it in. The rest of our stuff was in my bag that was given to the woman in exchange for a ticket that Aveline shoved into her pocket.
“Please don’t lose that,” I said, eyeing her shorts dubiously.
She grinned and slapped her back pocket.
“Are you with Cian Branwen?” the woman at the desk asked. “He said he was bringing guests and he’s paid your entry fee.”
My eyebrows raised.
“We are,” Aveline supplied, smiling.
“Do you both know the rules of Portal?” the woman went on.
I shook my head while Aveline nodded.
“No drinking, no drugs. No phones to be used except for here or on our balcony lounge. No photos. While you are welcome and encouraged to have your own safe words, we operate on a traffic light system. Green for go, yellow for pause, and red for total stop. If any of our monitors hear ‘red’ they will stop a scene immediately. If you make a mess, you clean it up after your scene. As we cater to preternaturals, we are more liberal with what we allow, but we will make a judgment call if a scene is deemed unsafe.”
It was much the same as the club we’d gone to in Tennessee, save that this place was mostly for our kind.
“You’ll need to pick a bracelet and wear it while you’re here.” She gestured to a basket in front of her.
Aveline plucked a crimson, rubber bracelet from the basket, then turned to me.
I stepped closer, looking at the bracelets in the basket. They were cheap rubber, much like the kind fundraisers and festivals handed out, and came in three colors: neon blue, fluorescent green, and crimson.
The sign said that crimson was for dominants, blue for submissives, and green for those who were unsure or new.
Reluctantly I pulled a green bracelet from the basket.
“If you’re ready, you can go on in,” the receptionist told us. “Please enjoy yourselves!”
Aveline dragged me through the doorway, leading us down a short hallway and into a large, open room.
It was dim, as expected, and had a distinct Greek influence. The floor was dark marble,
