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I notice the muscle in his jaw click at my response, and I instantly feel bad for turning him down. I bet it’s not a common occurrence for him.
Of course, it’s a lie. I don’t have plans after work. I get off at two in the morning. Unless it’s a booty call, who makes plans that late?
“Another time,” I say, moving around him toward the bar to do my job. He doesn’t follow me and when I turn back, I notice him already moving on to another woman sitting on the bench along the wall.
“These go to the couple at table twelve in the VIP room. Male and female, round table,” Marianna says without looking up at me. On the bar are two glasses of ice water, and I feel my cheeks start to flush with heat as her words settle in. I have to take these drinks to the other side of the curtain, and there’s no telling what this couple is doing in there.
I can do this.
She must notice my anxiety because she leans forward and touches my hand. “Don’t make eye contact. In fact, don’t focus on anything. Just walk in, find the table, set them down, and leave.”
With a gulp, I nod.
I’ve got this.
Feigning confidence and indifference, I load up the tray and hoist it up, making my way around the people crowding the bar and walking toward the curtain. One of the bouncers opens it for me and I pass through into the dark space, as if this is just another day and I’m not walking onto the set of a porno.
The sounds come first. Before I see anything, I hear moaning and grunting as well as all the other noises that come with people unabashedly going at it. But I stay focused. I’m looking for the couple on the far left.
Which isn’t really enough to go on. The room is comprised of mostly couches, some recessed into the floor to give the room a multidimensional look. Then there are some chairs, a couple tables, but no beds or anything that would allow people to lie on the floor.
After a few steps inside, moving toward the left, my vision adjusts, and I see movement. It’s surreal and nothing like I expected. It’s not as vulgar or as gross as I figured it would be. Instead, it’s almost…beautiful.
Bodies coming together, writhing and moving to find a rhythm, and I find myself wondering how many of these people are strangers and how many are couples out to have a good time.
I’m no prude. I love sex as much as the next person. But I wouldn’t call myself all that adventurous. I’ve slept with a handful of guys, starting when I was sixteen. My best guy friend and I drank enough of my mom’s wine to get up the courage to just take each other’s virginity. Since then, the experience has gotten a good deal better, but never anything like what goes on at Salacious. And I can’t quite tell if I’m not into kink or if I just haven’t met the right person.
When I finally spot a couple sitting against the wall, they lock eyes with me, and I know it must be their waters I’m carrying. Judging by the way her hair looks slightly knotted and his jacket is hanging over his arm instead of around his shoulders, I’d guess that these two just finished having a little fun of their own. That explains the ice waters.
“Thank you,” the woman mutters as I pass them their drinks.
“Can I get you anything else?” I ask, but they both shake their heads, huddling a little closer to each other.
When I turn around to head back out to the bar, the curtain opens and I watch someone, slightly silhouetted from the light behind him, enter. But I don’t need to see his face to know who it is. I’ve been watching him around this club long enough to know Ronan Kade’s gait and posture. Maybe that means I’m more intrigued by him than I’m willing to admit. Or maybe it’s just because he comes in here that often, but either way, I know it’s him.
And I freeze in my steps as we come face to face. At first, a flash of excitement courses through me when our eyes meet. But then that sick feeling returns to my gut when I realize where he’s going and what he’s about to do.
RULE #8: THE VIP ROOM ISN’T THE BEST PLACE FOR CONVERSATION
Ronan
“He sent her upstairs?” I snap at Geo, my fist tightening around the glass of whiskey.
“It was dead down here,” he replies as he shakes up a martini.
In seconds, I’ve abandoned my drink and I’m marching upstairs on a mission. I’m aware Daisy works in a sex club. And that she’s an adult. And that she’s notactuallymine. What I don’t understand is why I suddenly turn into a version of myself I don’t recognize where she is concerned. It’s only been twenty-four hours since I placed my first bid on a date with her, and already, I’m losing my goddamn mind.
I cannot stand the idea of her in the VIP room. Can’tstandit.
And it’s irrational to be so angry at Garrett for sending her up here. He’s just doing his job. If she was uncomfortable with it, he wouldn’t have sent her.
Not a single rational thought enters my head as I reach the second floor, weaving through the crowd and searching for her like a crazed maniac. What am I going to do when I find her? Throw her over my shoulder again? She wasn’t as big of a fan of that as I was. I’m pretty sure if I do it here, where she’s working, I’ll really see her furious side.
When I don’t see her in the bar area, I know she must be behind the curtain. Without stopping, I pull it back and step inside.
And nearly crash right into her.
First, her expression brightens, as if she’s happy to see me.
