Page 17 of Claimed Darker

Chapter 8

DARREN

Past

In surprise, I stare at the text Bridget sent me in response. It’s not that I expect women to ask “how high” when I say “jump,” but most do. Sure, there are plenty of women—like my ex, Kimberly Park—who play hard to get, but that’s only at the beginning. Bridget’s not the type to play games, though, so when she doesn’t confirm that she’ll be here, it’s because there’s an honest issue. I just can’t tell if her response is coming from fear about what will happen when we venture into the other side of my club or if she’s truly irritated at my command when she texted:

You think I’m at your beck and call?

You should be, I want to text back. But a woman like Bridget might get affronted. Instead, I reply:

You’re the one who said Saturday night might work for you.

Sitting at my desk in the club office, I watch the ellipsis blink as she types back a response.

My plans could have changed.

I type:

Did they?

She texts back:

Maybe.

I don’t want to wait another night to have her beneath my flogger. I decide to call her.

“What does ‘maybe’ mean?” I ask when she picks up.

“It means possibly yes, possibly no,” she replies.

“You don’t have anything more pressing going on tonight. You finished the grant application for your internship on the flight home, and you said you didn’t have anything major due for at least two weeks. So what’s with the ‘maybe’ bullshit?”

“I said that because you can’t assume that something hasn’t come up for me.”

“What’s come up?”

“Nothing came up.”

“Then you’ll be here tonight. I’ll pick you up at eight.”

“No, I…you’re not getting the point.”

I rub my temple. Women operate so much more differently than men.

Just then, I hear laughter in the background and a familiar voice say, “He should have given the rose to Kris, not that Samantha girl. You know what they say about putting lipstick on trailer trash…”

“Who’s that?” I ask.

“Oh, it’s Felipe.”

“My bartender?” What the hell is he doing at her apartment?

“Yeah, I bumped into him on Telegraph.”

“And you invited him over to your place?”

“Um…yeah.”

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