“Yeah, I think,” Mitch repeated stubbornly. “Even that’s pretty new to me, okay?”
“Argh. Hopeless.” Kincaid gave him a hard look. Yup, between the two of them, Mitch knew who was in charge. “Do not go to Domi with you ‘think.’ Wait until you’re sure.”
“How long do you think that will take?” Brian asked with amusement, talking over Mitch’s head as if he wasn’t even there. “A couple of days before he realizes he’s pining after her?”
Mitch glared at him.
“He might be really dumb and have to wait till he sees her scening with another Dom,” Master Andrew offered, not bothering to hide his grin when Mitch scowled even harder.
Shit. He didn’t like that idea at all. How fast was Domi likely to move on? Would she jump right into a scene with someone else?
“Oooh, somebody doesn’t like that idea,” Brian teased.
“Somebody needs new friends,” Mitch grumbled, but he didn’t mean it. Mostly. They sure as hell had given him a lot to think about, though.
Domi
By the time Avery joined them at the table, she and Rae had already ordered another round of drinks and agreed they were going to make a new friend. Or, as Rae put it, “Add some vanilla to our caramel mocha latte.” Which had made both of them giggle madly.
Sliding into the booth next to Domi, Avery let out a little groan.
“Oh, it feels so good to be off my feet.”
“Long night?” Domi asked sympathetically. Avery shrugged, but the truth was in her drawn expression. She had a beautiful girl-next-door thing going on and looked great without a lick of makeup but couldn’t hide her exhaustion.
“The longest.” Avery leaned back and sighed, smiling as one of the cocktail servers came by to get her order before rushing off—much faster than he’d moved for Domi or Rae. “Nick, our executive chef, is a fantastic chef, but he’s also an ass.”
“He’s the brother of one of the owners, right?” Rae asked. The silent owner, actually, but Rae and Domi had learned a lot about Marquis while they’d been attending classes there before it opened.
“Yeah, but trust me, he didn’t get the job through nepotism. He’s really good. He just also didn’t get it through charm.” Despite her venting, a smile curved Avery’s lips, and Domi raised her eyebrows. Hmmm... maybe Chef Nick was a little more charming than Avery was letting on. “Anyway, I would love to talk about anything other than work if that’s okay.”
“Absolutely,” Domi said immediately. “You wanted to know about the… special club upstairs?”
“Yeah.” Avery paused as the server returned, giving her a beer before hurrying off again. She took a small sip before continuing. “Do you like it there? It’s safe? Do you have to take the class to join the club?” The words came out in a rush, as though she had to get them out before she thought too hard about it.
Domi and Rae both blinked with surprise. It sounded as if she already knew she was interested in what the club had to offer.
“I don’t think you have to take it to join,” Domi said. “We did because we had no experience. If you know what you’re doing and you’re single, they’ll pair you up with a Dom—or sub—and observe you before they let you play with anyone else.”
“I went with Domi, so she wouldn’t have to go alone,” Rae said and shrugged, pretending to be more nonchalant than Domi knew she actually felt. Even more than Domi, Rae struggled with her needs. “I liked it more than I thought, so even though I thought she was perfectly safe, I stuck around.”
Avery smiled and relaxed.
“You’re interested in joining?” Domi asked, even though the answer was obvious. She wanted to get Avery talking. She was genuinely interested, and if this helped her keep her mind off Mitch for the rest of the night, even better.
“I belonged to a club before I moved here,” Avery admitted, a wistful expression growing. It was clear she had good memories of the place. “It wasn’t anything like Marquis, but I enjoyed it. Working down here, knowing what’s going on upstairs… I thought maybe I should get back into the scene.”
“That’s great!” Rae beamed at her. “What else do you want to know?”
Avery turned out to be a lot of fun—they all bonded over their love of terrible chick flicks and bad shark movies, along with their interest in kink. Unlike Domi and Rae, Avery was neither a masochist nor a baby girl in denial. She called herself a ‘service sub.’ Domi found the idea kind of fascinating but not particularly appealing for herself.
So, the day wasn’t a total loss. She’d lost a bondage buddy but gained a friend.
Chapter Seven
Mitch
Another day, another flurry of emergencies.
It could be worse. So far, nothing life-threatening had come in—sprains, a couple broken bones, two guys high as kites, and one dude who had lost a glass dildo up his ass. Mitch had had a quiet talk with him about stuffing his butt responsibly. Things that didn’t have a base to keep a part of them outside the body did not belong in the butt. If only he could make that into a sign and put it up somewhere, people would actually read it. But by the time they got to the ER, it was too late.
All throughout the day, Domi hovered in the back of his mind, just as she had the past few days. He still didn’t know what he wanted to do. The indecisiveness wasn’t like him, but he’d wanted to take a few days to see if his life really was all that different now, without her in it.
One difference was he never got the little jump of excitement when his phone went off anymore because he already knew it wasn’t her.
Another difference was he had trouble keeping his head in the game. He was constantly wondering what she was doing. What it would be like
