Page 14 of The Dom with a Safeword

“I know. Sorry.”

She snorted. “No you’re not.”

Sabrina grinned. Right again. She tucked the final EMF detector into her back pocket then sucked in a deep breath. “Ready.”

Q rose to her feet, her camera strapped around her neck. Jude returned and froze in place as ran his gaze over Sabrina, from head to toe.

Sabrina looked down, trying to see herself from his point of view. Lit up monitors and tape recording devices were stuffed into the vest pockets. A few gadgets hung from her utility belt, swinging into her bare thighs when she moved. A flashlight stuck out of one tight-fitting skirt pocket, her cell phone from the other.

She turned her head to peer at Q. She looked all photographer-like with her fitted black t-shirt and dark jeans. Her long straight black hair was perfectly styled to appear as if she’d just had a good tumble, which made her all the sexier. And here stood Sabrina, usually the fashionable of the two, looking like she’d dressed for some high-tech fishing-wear fashion show while tripping on acid.

Jude stared, his forehead creased, lips tight as if he were biting the inside of his cheek. Then he burst into laughter.

Sabrina put a hand on her hip and waited. “Go on. Get it out of your system.”

Q bit her lip but, like a good friend, didn’t laugh.

“I’m sorry,” he managed between the roars. “I’m sorry. You just look so cute.”

She stomped a foot. “Cute?”

He sobered and cleared his throat. “Sorry. You look very foreboding. I’m sure all the ghosts will take you very seriously.”

“This is Sabrina,” Q told him, matter-of-factly. “She’s at the height of fashion even while hunting for ghosts.”

Stomping past them with a scowl, she muttered, “Shut it, you two.”

Jude walked them up the rickety old stairs. When she grabbed the banister for balance, it teetered and she pulled her hand away fast. This place was fraught with danger. She grinned. So fun.

Jude ushered them from room to room – most were in the same decrepit condition as the front foyer. No action on any of her equipment, sadly. The largest bedroom had already been renovated, like the living room below. Empty, it would’ve made a lovely room. Large windows, refreshing light blue paint, beautiful hardwood floors. But she couldn’t ignore the laundry pile in one corner, the messy bed in the center of the room, and the cluttered dresser across from it. Definitely a bachelor pad.

“Sabrina,” Jude said. “Come here. You’ll be happy to see this.”

He stood by a closet door, hand on the doorknob.

A boy’s closet? She tossed him a skeptical look. “If it’s a porn collection, I’m not going to be impressed.”

“I will be,” Q piped from behind.

Jude swung open the door and motioned them inside. A tiny alcove with racks of clothes, as well as shelves – this wasn’t just a closet. Two walls were lined with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. Her mouth dropped open. Not just that but filled with books. She flitted over the titles quickly to gauge the kind of reading material the man owned. Everything from The Great Gatsby to The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

“Be still my heart,” she gushed. “Books and clothes in the same place!”

She heard two chuckles behind her then Jude scooted by and put his hand on the side of one of the shelves. “Check this out.” He pushed and one of the shelves moved, opening to reveal a narrow passage.

“A secret passageway!” Sabrina bounced on her toes. “Where does it lead?”

Q stepped up with a sly smile. “To the dungeon where straight girls are defiled then pleasured until they scream.”

Jude laughed.

Ignoring him, Sabrina turned to give Q a challenging glare. “In your dreams, sexy.”

“Every night, beautiful.”

A loud bang from downstairs interrupted their heated stare-down. Jude excused himself with an explanation of materials being delivered.

Sabrina broke eye contact and peered inside the passage. “Should we see where it leads?”