Chapter 5

I blink at him as I process his statement. He just stares back at me, a hungry look in his eyes, his tongue toying with his bottom lip.

“I…” I clear my throat. “I am afraid I’m not available,” I manage to say, although it comes out in a barely audible, breathy whisper.

He raises an eyebrow. “Why?”

“Because I’m not looking to be dominated.”

I see his teeth clench, a muscle twitching in his jaw.

“If you’d still like to consider this, I can find you someone who—”

“I’ll pay double,” he interrupts.

“Excuse me?”

He steps forward. I step back.

“I’ll pay extra. For you.”

“I’m not a submissive,” I repeat.

“Never?” He smirks, his hand coming up to my face, his fingers grazing my cheek just below the lace of my mask. “Not even once?”

I open my mouth, then I close it. I don’t want to lie to him. I always tell him the truth at the office, and now I’m finding that I also can’t lie to him here, out of some kind of moral stance. He smiles, sliding his hand to my neck and tugging me closer, his lips almost touching mine.

“What will it take for you to consider submitting to me?” he asks in a whisper.

In this moment? Not a whole lot.

In general? I’m not sure. If other clients get wind of me being dominated, it could impact my reputation, and then my clients could leave.

I take hold of his wrist and guide his hand away from my neck, trying to maintain a blasé expression on my face. Once he drops his hand, I clasp mine together in front of me.

“As I said, fill out the forms and note your preference. If we can’t accommodate it, you have the option to withdraw,” I say robotically.

“My preference isn’t a suggestion. I want you, or nothing.”

I want to melt into the floor at his words, but I force my jellied legs to start walking toward the door instead. As I exit the walkway, opening the door back to the main room, he steps out, and I walk over to Kai.

“Please, can you give Mr. Reid the new member forms?” I ask the guard politely, still trying to shake off the adrenaline bubbling through my body.

I can feel him standing behind me. I can feel his breath over my neck as Kai hands me the packet. I whip around, determined not to let Mr. Reid’s gorgeous face interrupt my professionalism, and hand him the papers.

“I hope we see you again, David,” I say politely.

He smiles. “That depends on you, Doll,” he replies before turning away from me and heading to the front door, the forms firmly clutched in his hand. He looks back at me just after pushing the door open and gives me a wink.

I breathe in as he leaves, the door shutting too loudly in my opinion. Like I’m too aware of it. I race to the bar as quickly as my heels can carry me. Nico already has a martini ready for me, which I gulp down.

“You okay?” he asks, the worry evident. I never act like this here—so affected.

I just give him a thumbs-up and keep drinking. He grabs his walkie-talkie.

“Sel, she’s coming up,” he says, watching me slam the now-empty glass down and race toward the door that leads up to the office.

“WHAT A FUCKING NIGHTMARE!” I yell as I throw her door open and storm in. She’s sitting behind her desk, her eyes wide, everything tidied away in preparation for my return. “That was ridiculous, Sel. I am NEVER—”

“What did he say?”

“What bit exactly?! Because it was all—”

“After you showed him Room Four,” she clarifies, turning to her computer screen and clicking her mouse erratically. “You know we have no sound on these, but this?!” She swivels the screen around to show me the camera footage of him stepping toward me, his hand coming to my cheek.

It makes my face tingle with the memory.

“What the hell did he say to make your face look like that?”

“He…” I inhale. “He wants me.”

“I’m sorry?”

“He wants me. To dominate. He wants me to be his sub,” I mutter.

Her eyes widen, and then she starts laughing.

“This isn’t funny!”

“Oh my god, Nora, this is… God, that is something.” She keeps laughing, rubbing her eyes. “Reid, your boss, whom you have a crush on, wants to dominate you, the resident dominatrix? Jesus…” She starts laughing again.

“SEL!” I yell, and she coughs, trying to sit up straight in her chair and put on a professional face.

“Right. No, you’re right. Hmm.” She puts her finger on her mouth as she thinks. “What did you say back?”

“I said no, that I’m not a sub.”

“It’s not that you’re never a sub, though—”

“He said he’d pay extra.”

“He did what now?” Her mouth drops open. “Extra?”

“Yeah, he wants to pay extra to have me. He said Double.”

Sel and I share a silent look. I’m grimacing awkwardly, and her mouth is wide open in shock.

“No,” I say, as I watch the gears turning in her head. “Sel, I am not doing it.”

She finally closes her mouth and breathes as she looks back at me. She taps her fingers on the desk.

“Let’s see what his questionnaire comes back with first. Emma’s a good sub; maybe she’ll match him,” Sel says quietly, as though she’s saying it mostly to herself.

I nod and excuse myself, aiming to go back to the bar and try to forget the encounter I just had with Mr. Reid.

Over the next few days at work, I find that I can’t look him in the eye. Our conversations have suffered a little, becoming more awkward and professional, and I find myself trying not to spend too much time at his side. Part of me doesn’t want him to pick up on the fact that I’m the same girl from the club, but I also keep thinking about his words. His touch. The way he looked at me when he was asking for me.

I’m not sure if he has returned his forms yet. Sel hasn’t told me that he has, but maybe she’s also avoiding the topic of him in general after how I reacted. It isn’t until Sunday evening, one of my nights off, that she rings me while I’m at home watching TV.

“Sup, bitch,” I say through a mouthful of pizza.

“I need you to be calm.”

I instantly stop chewing.

“Are you calm?” she asks. I swallow my food. “Earth to Nora?”

“What is it?” I ask. I hear her sharp intake of breath on the other end.

“He matched.”

I know she’s talking about David. I lean forward to put my plate on the coffee table.

“Okay. And?” I ask, dreading the answer that I half-know is coming.

“He’s a match for you.”

“You’re fucking shitting me.” I screw my eyes shut and drop my head back.

“You know I keep your sub profile on the system just in case we get another Ethan. Looks like we have.”

I stand up and start pacing around my living room as I think it over. Mr. Reid, match with me?

“There are a couple of points where he’s one scale away from your answers, but that’s negotiable—” Sel continues.

“You’re not seriously thinking of suggesting I do this?” I snap.

“Do you remember our conversation earlier this week?” she asks. “You need something different. You haven’t subbed in a long time. It’s with your boss. Tell me that this isn’t the perfect scenario to add some drama to your life?”

“This wasn’t exactly what I had in mind,” I groan.

“He’s also already called, asking again if his request was taken into account. His request for you. And he’s offered an obscene amount of money to make sure it happens.”

“Sel!”

“I really don’t have a good reason to say no, Nora, and neither do you.”

“Apart from the fact that it could ruin my life? My day job?”

“With the amount he offered, you wouldn’t even need your day job.”

I pause. “How much?”

“You can look that over after your first meeting with him.”

“My first… did you already book it in?”

“... Possibly.”

“SELENA!”

“Just come and talk to him. You can negotiate a special rate, what you will and won’t do, whatever you need. But you’re doing it because you’re in a rut, and he apparently is perfect for you.”

“If it doesn’t go well, I’m quitting.”

“Well, we’ll just have to see about that, won’t we?” she replies, and I can hear her words being warped by a smile. “Tuesday, 9:30 p.m. Wear something special.”