The second she opens her mouth, I can tell she’s going to turn me down. What I don’t expect is the sudden wide grin and whispered, “Booty call, baby.” She lifts her chin toward my office door. “You do yours. We’ll compare notes, okay?” Her secretive giggle makes me think I imagined that whole look on her face. “You’ve got a lot of talking to do, lady.”
A wash of heat floods me. It’s equal parts embarrassment and excitement, and when Sam shoos me off with one hand while tapping on her phone with the other, I decide that thing I saw was just my own guilt for not being as present as I should be when she’s obviously got as much going on in her life as I do.
With a smile of my own, I head back to the office.
“Now?” I ask Grant.
He takes his time to finish whatever he’s typing, his lips turning up only slightly when he responds with “Now.”
Sam’s nowhere to be seen when we leave together, heading downstairs in silence. A quick check of the sidewalk, and he lets us into the club and then down another flight.
It’s totally different here during the day.
“I’ll show you around.” Grant tilts his head toward the low table where we first met. “Bar area here, which you are familiar with. Cocktails and chill out over there.” The sofas are soft, buttery leather. Easy to clean, I imagine.
“These are semiprivate play areas.” He pulls a heavy velvet curtain aside to show me one of a dozen small nooks.
“I had no idea these were here.”
“That’s the beauty of it.” He opens the next one, watching me. “Exhibitionists can open it. More private people leave it closed.”
“No peeking?”
“Those peeking—without prior approval—are given a warning and then thrown out. Come on.” He takes my hand and leads me to a door, which he unlocks. “The front is fully clothed. No nudity allowed.”
“And back here?”
“Private rooms through there.” He walks me into a smaller area filled with wooden crosses and benches, seats, and cages. There’s a stage to one side and another door at the back. “This is the members-only dungeon. Hold on.” He does something on his phone, and music floats out of speakers that I can’t see.
I stare around, taking in details and cataloging them in my head for use in the book nook. “I thought the whole place was members only.”
“Yes, well, there’s a ranking system.”
“That seems elitist.”
“Not really. Given what happens back here, we require longevity and trust before opening these doors.”
“Would I be allowed back here?”
“As my sub, yes.”
“And after? When I’m not your sub?”
His expression goes dark. “The club owners would all have to be in agreement.”
“Would you vouch for me, Grant?”
He watches me, head angled as if to get a fresh perspective. “Well, that depends, doesn’t it?”
“On what?”
“On whether or not you were a good girl.”
“I was,” I reply with embarrassing speed. “I am. I promise.”
“I’ll be the judge of that.” A pointed look at his watch. “I’ve got thirty minutes.” He’s already rolling up his sleeves as he leads me over to a bench in the corner. “Lie down.”
“But, I don’t know, it’s, like… lunchtime.”
