“Hey, River,” one of them, sporting a short blond buzz cut, greeted, grinning in River’s direction. “Who’s this?” He gestured to me.
River glanced at me out of the corner of his eye, and I forced myself into character. What I hadn’t told River was the number of research hours I’d done since I saw that message on his phone all those months ago. I’d watched all types of BDSM porn and learned as much about the lifestyle as I could.
I nodded sharply. “You have my permission to answer the question.”
The bouncer quirked a grin in my direction, half apologetic that he clearly hadn’t asked for permission to talk to my sub.
“This is Jayce Paxton. He’s my Dom. Sir, this is Merrick”—he waved his hand at the bouncer with the blond buzz cut—“and Benedict.”
The other bouncer grunted at us, staring at me carefully through one eye. The other eye was half shut, and while I couldn’t see much under the lid, the eye beneath looked glassy. I guessed he might be blind out of it. Benedict had ginger hair, a big, bushy beard, and his pale freckle-dotted arms were covered in black ink. He looked like a giant in this lighting and towered over my six foot.
“Pleasure to meet you both. My boy has been raving about Club Triple X. Wanted to check it out for myself.” I sent them a fake smile I’d practiced since I was a teenager and had to lie my way out of uncomfortable situations, most of which were in a cop’s interview room after Hayden and I had been caught either fighting or stealing.
“You have a membership?” Benedict grunted.
Merrick nudged the redhead. “Dude, this is River. He can bring in anyone he wants. Move the fuck out of the way.”
“No one is allowed in without a membership,” Benedict snapped, glaring at Merrick through his one good eye.
The door flung open and a man with a golden complexion, deep brown eyes, and black curls stepped out, making the bouncers stiffen. “What’s taking so long letting people in?” He frowned at them before his gaze slid to us, stopping on River. Flashing River his white teeth, he opened his arms in a welcoming gesture. “River, it’s been a while.”
“You may speak freely, boy, until I say otherwise,” I said before River could glance at me again. If he wanted me to be his Sir, then I would show him how much I really knew.
River leaned in closer to me, and I wrapped an arm around his shoulders, staking my claim. “Elyas, it’s good to see you again. I’ve been busy.”
I nearly snorted. How long had it been since he’d come here? While most of the BDSM clubs were underground, my research said Club Triple X was a little different. It ran as a strip club with a touch of bondage. I wouldn’t have been surprised if they had people watching out for cops because, from what River told me, it was more than justa touchof sex play inside. There were BDSM demonstrations and playrooms. River had said he hadn’t been here for a few months, preferring something closer to the city.
“This is my Sir, Jayce. Sir, this is Elyas, the man who helps run Club Triple X.”
Elyas gave me a curious once-over and nodded. “Welcome to our humble establishment.”
“River wants to enter with his Dom, sir, but his Dom doesn’t have a membership,” Benedict said, though it sounded more like a series of grunts that resembled words.
Elyas cocked his head in our direction before he waved at the door. “We know and trust River. He’s helped us more than once with legal issues. Let them through.”
I tightened my hold on River’s shoulders and smiled in thanks at him. With a nod to the two bouncers, I led River through the door like I knew what I was doing. At least I could play the person in command. As a former marine, I’d been taught to follow rules and be the perfect soldier. To do that, I needed to have control, though not in this sense, but I could manipulate my training into being a Dom.
River moved closer to me when we passed the men on the door and walked into a dark room lit with faint purple background lights from a wide stage farther in. Two smaller stages were dark on either side of the room. The area we stepped into looked to be an audience section with round tables dotted throughout the sparse wooden floor, which was just bright enough so we could see our way around the other men and women already occupying the high stools surrounding the tables. A black high-gloss bar sat against the left wall, running the length of it. I got a saloon-type feel from Triple X, and to anyone who walked right on in, like cops, it looked ordinary, but I had no doubt there were hidden nooks and rooms that the members knew well.
On the stage was a black-rung chair as well as a pole, ready for whatever show was about to be put on.
“River!” A man standing at one of the tables raised his arm and waved, moving away from his group and heading toward us.
River whispered just loud enough for me to hear. “Zack Vicar, but he goes by Vic. He’s the owner of Triple X. Benice. I want to come back here.”
I snorted. “How have I not been nice?”
The man in question was handsome. Tall, with short sandy hair cut close to his head, he wore a pair of leather pants and a black T-shirt, like nearly everyone else in this place. Was there a dress code? Unlike the bouncers and Elyas, though, he held a riding crop in his hand, and when he came to a stop in front of River, he went to tap it against River’s arm. Acting on reflex, I shot out a hand and grabbed the end before it could touch my submissive.
Vic raised his eyebrows toward me.
“Don’t touch my boy without permission, mate,” I warned in a low, no-nonsense voice.
River caught my attention as he curled in on himself a bit and dropped his gaze to the floor. He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing. I couldn’t look away from the movement, and the desire to suck on that lump there nearly made me move toward him in a way I shouldn’t.
Everything about River tempted me and I equally hated and loved it. I’d barely begun acting as River’s Dom and already my worries and concerns had been washed away, as though they never existed. I was free of internal pain for the first time since Alex died, not that I’d tell River that.
Vic tapped the end of the riding crop against my palm playfully. “Apologies. I didn’t realize you were his Dom.”
