“But, still, I have no intention on negotiating any sort of session anytime soon. And I’m certainly not allowing anyone to top me. I’m done submitting.”
“I support you for wanting to take some time for yourself. But don’t let the situation with Elise turn you away from who you are.”
“I don’t think I know who I am, to be honest.”
“Yes, you do.” The confidence in his voice made me believe him.
“I could be a switch for all I know,” I tried to explain as I shrugged. James was quiet for a few moments. I was sure he either thought I was completely out of my mind, or he believed there was truth in my words.
“Then you should explore that side if you feel compelled to.”
“What do you think, though? Do you think it’s a waste of my time?” I asked him.
“I don’t think anything is a waste of time that draws your interest. You know I will always support you.”
That was James’s way of telling me to do as I felt was necessary until I figured things out. I took a deep breath and made sure I didn’t exhale loudly. Time to switch topics.
“Where’s Brandon?”
“He’s down here in room ten at Tabitha’s mind-fucking seminar,” James said as he smiled. I loved listening to James talk about Brandon. They were so perfect for one another.
“Mind-fucking seminar? Ali mentioned it was a class on how to get inside the submissive’s mind,” I commented.
“It is,” he confirmed. I laughed and shook my head at his view of the class.
“So, you’re letting Brandon learn about all of your secrets?” I teased. The low rumble of James’s laugh made me smirk since he’d found humor in my comment.
“It’s good for Brandon to have a well-rounded education surrounding the reasons and deeper meaning behind all of the things he does.”
“That makes sense,” I agreed with him.
We stopped in front of room ten and peered inside. I recognized all of the members in attendance. There were a handful of Tops in the room along with some bottoms and submissives. I even spotted a few Doms with their subs. Brandon sat on the floor toward the front of the class. His head moved to follow Mistress Tabitha as she slowly paced around the room. Like James, Tabitha had a presence about her. She was a no-nonsense Top and maintained exceptional composure during a session. Tabitha also had an incredible personality and demeanor outside of a session. Every single head in that room was following along as she moved around the room. She commanded attention merely with her presence.
“Looks like everyone is enjoying the class,” I murmured to James.
“Yes, they do,” he said. I glanced at him, and he was grinning for some reason. I thought I had missed some inside joke or something and spoke up.
“What?”
James raised his eyebrow, making me curious about what he had found amusing.
“She draws everyone’s eyes effortlessly,” James mused. “I imagine her demeanor and presence do wonders for her at work.”
“What is it that she does for a living again?” I asked. She had told me at one point over the past few years, but I had forgotten.
“She’s an attorney,” James reminded me.
My stomach dropped at the word “attorney.” It reminded me of my upcoming appointment with my attorney regarding Elise.
“Oh, yeah.”
I had so much going on. I didn’t know what I was thinking throwing my name in the hat for the ownership and co-operator title of Oxygen. As if that weren’t enough, I had the situation with Elise going on as well as opening the new location for Three Brothers Coffee. And at some point, I needed to start looking for a place of my own. James flung his arm around my shoulders and guided us back toward the main room.
“What are you thinking about, Andrew?”
What wasn’t I thinking about?
“I think a lot of the members would have more confidence in the club if you had taken over.”
