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Dahlia desperately wanted to pursue the topic. It was on the tip of her tongue to tell the guys to get lost for a while longer, but good manners prevented her. Instead, she managed a smile. “Sure,” she agreed.
Cameron stepped into the room and placed his hand lightly on Jess’s waist. “You ready?”
“Yes, Sir,” Jess replied, the honorific tripping easily off her tongue. She turned to Dahlia “I’d love to continue our conversation, maybe over drinks after work? You in town over the holidays?”
“Yep,” Dahlia said. “And I’d love that, too.” It felt good to be included so readily into this new, ready-made group of like-minded friends.
The girls pulled out their phones and exchanged contact information. Then the two couples drifted back to the main gallery.
“Did you miss me, babe?” Hayden asked, putting his arm around her shoulder.
“Uh, what was your name again?” Dahlia said with a laugh.
The artist, Rowan, was a dark-haired, dark-eyed beauty with smooth olive skin. She was clearly riding high from the success of her show, and accepted Dahlia’s compliments with a sweet, shy smile. Dahlia’s eye was drawn to the beautiful pendant she wore around her neck. It looked like a pair of angel wings beautifully rendered in onyx and gold. Was this, too, a secret collar?
Her partner, Eric, was a rugged-looking bearded guy with hawkish features and a strong jaw. His obvious pride in Rowan glowed in his face. Dahlia gathered from their brief exchange that Rowan, like Jess, was his sub girl, but not his slave. This information gave Dahlia comfort. Not all members of the Masters Club were in Master/slave relationships.
At the same time, a niggle of worry tugged at the edges of her mind. If she and Hayden got serious, would he require that she formally accept his collar?
Was that what Hayden wanted, ultimately? Dahlia couldn’t imagine giving herself over to another to such a degree. But then, she’d never thought she’d come this far.
She pushed down her fears, reminding herself that, so far, Hayden hadn’t taken her further than she’d been willing to go. He’d led her into new and scary territory, yes, but she’d been a willing participant every step of the way. She needed to stop borrowing trouble, and stop second-guessing her every move. However things worked out, she would just enjoy this astonishing journey, without trying to control and direct it.
As Hayden’s comforting arm draped itself around her shoulders, she leaned into him, letting his warmth suffuse her.
Chapter 12
So far, the evening had gone better than Hayden could have imagined. He’d endured a bit of ribbing from the guys, all of whom were skeptical about his getting involved with a newbie. He’d shrugged good-naturedly, reminding them they had all been newbies at one time. “She’s a natural-born submissive,” he’d assured them. “It’s just taken her a while to get there.”
“You always did like a challenge,” Cameron had teased. “Here you have literally dozens of beautiful, willing, highly trained submissives at your beck and call, and what do you do? Hook up with a BDSM virgin.” He had pulled a face, pretending horror at the very thought.
“It’s more than hooking up,” Hayden had protested. “Dahlia and I experienced a connection from the moment we met, though it took us some time to act on it.” He’d shrugged, adding, “Anyway, who the hell are you to talk? You sent Jess for pleasure sub training instead of claiming her from the get-go. You could have lost that woman. I have no intention of taking that risk with Dahlia.”
Cameron had sobered at that. “Man, when I think back on what I did.” He shook his head, his expression rueful. “I was such a fucking idiot. I’m lucky another guy didn’t swoop in and snatch her up while I was busy getting my head out of my ass. And you’re right, of course. We seize love where we find it, or we should.”
Love.
Who said anything about love?
Where were Dahlia and he heading? How long could this relationship, if that’s what it was, last?
Because, despite his bravado with the guys, he wasn’t sure Dahlia had what it took, either by inclination or desire, to give herself to him in the way he needed. While he didn’t particularly care about titles or protocol, he did require complete submission from his sexual partner.
The only way to find out was to keep moving forward, paying attention to her cues and building trust. As scary as it was to admit, he was falling hard for this complicated, wonderful woman.
They got back to his apartment building a little before midnight. Hayden had been purposely holding back over the past week, giving Dahlia a chance to ease back into BDSM after her minor freakout over her friend’s reaction to her bruised ass.
He’d been aware of her subtle overtures asking for more, but he’d wanted to be sure she was ready. And tonight, he’d decided, she was.
