Page 45 of Masters of Control

But she was friends with Sam, and he didn’t want to rock the boat before he had a chance to talk to Sam about it.

“Hey, you two! Headed downstairs?” She cocked her head at them, something about her manner making Q think not only was she expecting ‘yes’ for an answer, but she wanted to be invited along. Which… maybe he was projecting or reading too much into things because of what he knew about her, but something about the way she asked made him really uncomfortable.

Although if she was a total stranger, it wouldn’t have bothered him, so he tried to mentally shake off his discomfort.

“No, actually, we’re going to Q’s instead.” Sam smiled at Noelle, obviously unbothered by the question because there was no real reason to be bothered. He was going to have to watch his reactions to Noelle, at least until he decided whether to talk to Sam about her. Trying to come between friends wasn’t something he ever wanted to do, and he wasn’t even sure it was the right thing to do.

“Oh! Oh.” Noelle blinked, her voice changing between ‘ohs.’ She grinned at them. “Have fun, you two!” Then she winked.

For Q, it felt way too familiar for someone he didn’t actually know, but she was friends with Sam, and he was probably being too sensitive. Thankfully, neither of the women seemed to notice. The last thing he wanted to do was start shit right after Sam had agreed to come over.

“Thanks, I’ll talk to you later.” Cheerfully, Sam waved her hand, and Q gave Noelle a stilted nod, doing his best to hide his distaste for her. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Law across the room, watching them.

Hopefully, this wasn’t going to turn into a thing.

“Drive together or separate?” he asked as they exited into the lobby. Behind the desk, Freddy picked up Samantha’s purse and grabbed their jackets. Q was sure that his ears were wide open though, listening for the gossip.

“Separate,” she said firmly. The look she gave him was regretful. “I have to get up early to work tomorrow morning, so I can’t stay over.”

Darn. Well, there went that idea, but at least he knew ahead of time.

“Sure I can’t talk you into playing hooky?”

She laughed. Freddy handed everything over, staying completely silent, though he did wink at Q. It felt completely different from when Noelle had done it, seeming supportive instead of invasive. He really would have to watch himself when it came to his reactions to her.

“One hundred percent sure, as much as I wish I could. I’m trying to convince my job to give me a raise. Well, technically, they’ve already denied me a raise, but I’m trying to convince them it was the wrong decision.”

“That sucks.” He squeezed her hand as they went down the stairs, keeping his gait matching hers. It was a lot harder to walk downstairs in heels, so she had to move slower and more carefully than he did.

“Tell me about it.” She sighed. “I do love my job but it’s hard going without even a cost-of-living increase. Sometimes, I think I may need to go get a second job, but I’m not sure what I would have the time and energy to do.”

Holy crap, a second job? That was ridiculous. Sam was an OT. That should be a good salary, even if they did live in an expensive area.

“Are you okay with paying for the club?” He had extra money. He’d shared his house for long enough with roommates, he’d saved a lot, and now he made a heck of a lot more than he had ten years ago when he’d first started his job. If Sam needed help, he would talk to Patrick privately about it.

“So far.” She smiled at him, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Don’t worry about it. There are a lot of people who trade jobs at the club for membership discounts, and I’ll do that if I have to. I’m already getting one for being one of the volunteer Dominants for this class.” There was still worry threading through her voice.

Q knew, while the club gave discounts for people who signed up to help clean, bartend, or DM, it wasn’t like it made the membership free.

He was definitely going to talk to Patrick, even though he didn’t think Sam would appreciate it. On the other hand, as long as she never knew, it couldn’t hurt her pride. Besides, he was doing it for selfish reasons—he had money to spare, and he wanted Sam at the club.

“Okay,” he said, giving her hand another squeeze. “Got your phone? I’ll give you the directions before we go out into the cold.” Directions and help her get her coat on, like the gentleman that he was.

Hobbit in the streets, Aragorn in the sheets.

Or whatever.

18

Bringing Her Home

Sam

Holy crap. Q lived in a house-house. Like a full-on single-family home with a yard, a driveway, and a garage. The kind of house she dreamed about having one day when she was watching home improvement shows. Sitting in the driveway, she stared up at it, lit up by the lights from the street, hanging over the garage door, and next to the front door.

She couldn’t seem to make herself let go of the steering wheel as she stared at the open garage door. The two-car garage only had his car, and it looked like he was getting something before getting out. It occurred to her that she could just drive away.

Back out of the driveway, drive away, and never return.