Nope. No point going down that road.
“Now, what do you say we get out there and open the playroom?” William pulled me in for a hug,
rubbing my back until my breathing slowed and my stomach settled. “You got this?”
“Yeah, I’ll be fine.” And if I wasn’t, I’d fake it the same way I’d done with everything else around
here. I wasn’t qualified for a management job when I’d walked in for my interview but, somehow, I’d
convinced Jack I was the perfect candidate. Since then, he’d slowly been handing over more control
to me. I slipped my hand into William’s, allowing him to guide me through the bar.
I felt the eyes on me, but I was safe standing next to William. He wouldn’t let anyone tear me
down.
No one wants to tear you down. You’re not living that life anymore. Believe in yourself.
Instead of napping this afternoon, I should have gotten online to talk to Maverick. He’d have told
me…
He’d have said the same things William’s telling you, but you’d rather believe a faceless
person you met online.
“What was that?” William stopped me near the end of the bar. I blinked a few times, truly seeing
the sight before me. The crowd wasn’t nearing fire capacity or anything, but there were dozens more
than I’d convinced myself would show up.
“Nothing. Sorry, sometimes I talk to myself and the words escape my head.” It was only the fact
that William had gotten to know me that kept me from sounding like a total loon.
William gave me the,what are we going to do with you, look I’d gotten used to over the years,
ruffled my hair, and led me through the crowd. When Corey joined us, I tried to imagine what we
looked like to outsiders—the burly Daddy with his boys on either side of him.
Nothis boys. I couldn’t let myself fall into that trap. Corey might have only agreed to pretend to
be with him for the night, but I knew better. Corey was losing his ability to resist. I couldn’t exactly
blame him. If it was anyone else, I’d have been jealous as hell. Still, I’d be willing to bet William
was the envy of the room with the way things looked to those who didn’t know better.
“We’d like to thank you all for coming out tonight,” William greeted them. The room fell silent
and every pair of eyes in the room focused on us. “I can still remember when Jack first talked about
opening The Lodge. He wanted it to be a place where people could safely explore whatever kinky
desire their dirty minds latched onto.” A wave of laughter filtered through the room. “And now, thanks
