close. “Jack’s not here, which means it’s on me to keep everything running smoothly. I want to make
sure I’m up here, but The Back Deck is busy tonight, too.”
Ihatedhaving to oversee the more hardcore side of the club. Before Jack found a boy worth
stepping away from the club for, he’d always been the one to manage the staff and customers back
there. But he was on a leave of absence of sorts, meaning I had to step far out of my comfort zone.
My biggest issue wasn’t the scenes unfolding all over the place or the over-abundance of bare
skin and leather; it was that no one took me seriously. At five-foot-five, it was nearly impossible for
me to come across as imposing enough to threaten anyone when they stepped out of bounds.
“Talk to John if you need help.”
Gee, if only I’d thought of that.
It didn’t exactly help my case when I had to have the head bouncer escort me through the crowd,
standing behind me with crossed arms so at least one of us came across as menacing.
“It would probably be a good idea to have him help out back there tonight anyway,” the guy
continued. We finished gathering the last of the toys, and he sat the tote along the wall. William and
Corey walked to the center of the room, and everyone quieted as they approached. When I tried
making my way to the playroom entrance, the man reached out to me. “Stay. John can take care of the
deck. You deserve to see their reaction to what you’ve created.”
“You know, if you’re going to manhandle me, the least you could do is tell me your name.” The
second the words were out, I wished I could call them back. This guy exuded dominance, and there
was an unwritten rule that all Dom’s were to be afforded a certain level of respect. Leave it to me to
shit on that.
Instead of pointing out my gaffe, he chuckled. “There’s that fighting spirit. Don’t worry, Sam. I
like boys who aren’t afraid to stand up for themselves. I’m Theron. Now, will you keep me company
while I listen to what William’s about to say? A lot of it will fall on deaf ears since it’s mostly
couples, but you’d do well to consider having some mixers in the future. It’s not always easy to find
someone who’s available, and Daddies don’t like encroaching on another man’s territory.”
I leaned against the wall as I considered what he’d said, then pulled out my phone to add it to the
ever-growing list of ideas for the club. Even though the cynical side of my brain still told me it was
foolish to ask someone to take a chance on my ideas, I had hope that I could prove myself wrong.
I shifted a few times during Corey and William’s presentation, trying to tamp down the feelings
