“Are we taking another helicopter?”
Was it a “get to” or “have to” question? I couldn’t tell from his expression. “Not right now. We have a car waiting.”
“But we will when we go back to the resort?”
“Unless you don’t want to. I can always make other arrangements if you prefer.”
“No!” He unclicked his seat belt and hopped to his feet. “Don’t do that. I liked it.”
“You did?” I knew he’d enjoyed the views, but he’d been so tense. “That’s great, then.”
He started for the rear of the cabin. “Yeah. Alias is going to be so jealous when I tell him.”
My omega was already getting used to the finer things. I loved that so much.
The ride to the club was not long, the town car very comfortable, but the closer we got, the less relaxed Ches grew. Reaching over, I placed a hand on his knee. “What’s going on in your mind?”
“I don’t think I’m ready to try BDSM. I was looking at pictures on my phone before we left and it looks scary.”
“Ah.” I gave him a pat. “Get out your phone and show me what you were looking at, if you’re all right with that?”
“O-okay. It’s kind of embarrassing though.”
“I don’t see why. You were taking the time to investigate something we were talking about, something you know is important to me. Come on, let me see, and we can talk aboutyour concerns.” The car stopped, but I leaned forward and asked the driver to step out for a few minutes.
When we were alone again, Ches thrust his phone toward me then leaned back, hiding his face in his hands. “You can look.”
“All right.” I scrolled through the gallery he’d brought up. “No wonder you’re worried. First of all, this is not representative of what any responsible dom would be involved in. Guessing from the expressions on the omegas’ faces, there is no consent, no agreement, no hard stops, or any kind of safe word. I can see injuries that should never happen, ligature marks deeper than the ones you’re just starting to heal from. No. This is not what we were talking about.”
“Okay. Are there other images I can see?”
“Yes, there are, but I’d be much happier if you explore for yourself. We are not going to play right now. I have a meeting and I wanted to give you a tour before the club opens. Just a tour, nothing more than that. Then, tonight, if you’re so inclined, we can walk through again so you can see what it looks like when there are people using the equipment and scening together. I would never expect you to participate until you, one, know what to expect, and two, tell me what you will allow or want to try.”
“All right.” He opened the car door. “So, I’ll just be waiting for you in a lounge or reception or something while you’re in your meeting?”
“Unless you think you’d enjoy endless discussion about details of a business deal that may take place in the near future. We’ll have someone get you a beverage and you can relax.”
But, as it turned out, that wasn’t what happened. We had just begun the tour of the main floor when Talon entered, followed by his omega Rowan and several others. The omegas swooped in and whisked him off for an afternoon of lunch andshopping, barely giving me enough time to get him a couple of credit cards and tell him to have a great time.
My last view of him was in the middle of the omegas who were all chatting and bumping shoulders, laughter trailing behind them. Might have been easier for him to just be tied down and spanked.
Maybe he’d like that. I knew I would.
Settling at the conference table with the same group I’d met with before, I mused that one of us was going to have more fun than the other.
Chapter Seventeen
Ches
One minute, I was at Grant’s side, taking in the tour and the details of the club, and the next, I was being whisked into a fancy car with a driver and being taken to some local boutiques and out for lunch.
Thanks to Grant’s style choices, I was well dressed and ready for the day.
The omegas, mates of the club owners, talked about things like their kids and babies, and it was enjoyable to hear them get along and be friends. I didn’t know why, but I expected them to keep to themselves. Maybe that was just me.
“So, Ches, how long have you and Grant been together?” one of the omegas asked. I’d forgotten his name already.
I opened my mouth to answer, but another one chimed in. “You two are so cute together. He watches your every move. It’s like he can’t look away.”
