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"No discussions about it. The decision is final."
I nodded at Matt before walking away. Something told me that the discussion would happen anyway. And by no stretch of the imagination did I need to be a part of it.
Audrey
4 WEEKS LATER
With my arms folded across my chest, I stood in front of the huge mirrored wall that divided the main room into two parts. On one side was the bar, dance floor and lounge, and on the other side was the playground. If you wanted to, you could turn off the mirror function on one side and get an exclusive glimpse of what was going on behind the mirrors. That's why there was a sign above the door that readFollow Alice Behind the Mirrors.
The whole building still smelled of fresh paint, woodwork, and remodeling, but now everything was ready. In place, ready to be inaugurated.
Kaia, Nikau, and I had worked out the concept, while the men had done the rest. Lei for the part with the banks. Blake and Amo had taken care of the legal part, and Kaden had been busy for the last four weeks keeping the media on their toes. He had been feeding them headlines to the point where our guest list for the opening night was bursting at the seams, and we had made it an exclusive event for invited VIP guests.
Tonight it would happen. Tomorrow the first classes would begin. A trial run with interested people who were already on the scene and had some basic knowledge to make sure that what was being taught was up to our standards, all under the motto; Safe, Sane, Consensual.
The past four weeks had been an ordeal for everyone involved. Not only had it felt completely utopian to create this project from nothing in four weeks, but it had also brought with it a lot of problems. Suddenly, not only were the trolls online, but they had thrown a lot of stones our way. They had graffitied the front of the building, vandalized the exterior, and caused several construction companies to cancel, even though we desperately needed their help with the interior.
We had been threatened for what we were doing– because the facility was not in an industrial area or some other hidden place, but in the middle of the city. It was inconvenient to have us in the neighborhood when they had no idea what this was all about.
But none of that had stopped us from going through with our plan. The sex tape of Lei and I had become the best publicity there was for us. So good, in fact, that we had begun to release other clips– with a subtle hint about 'Onohoni.' There were requests for interviews. There was reportage about this place in the making. There were reports about Lei, who had lost his job because of his private preferences, but also about Blake, who ran a prestigious law firm and had no problems with prejudice. Kaden was also part of the report– after all, he had been dealing with the island's press for years and had his own experiences.
Interestingly, the men on our side had unanimously decided that there would be no direct reports about us. Not because they didn't want the attention, but because in the last few weeks it had become necessary to call the police because we had been harassed inside and outside the building. To the point where we could no longer work without security.
I was grateful for the protection, especially considering the facility would also exist digitally. Various rooms were livestreamed at certain times to a protected website where you had to register with all your contact details and even pay for the service. We worked with the best security system on the market to make leaked videos a thing of the past.
None of us had said a word about the fact that we had used Alexander's betrayal as a marketing strategy, creating something outstanding out of something terrible. I was well aware that Lei had paid my ex-fiancé a nice visit more than once– always for damn good reasons and last but not least to make sure he kept his mouth shut and didn't tell anyone it had originally been an act of revenge on his part.
I watched Kaia through the mirror as she approached me. She was wearing the construction helmet we were all officially required to wear until the authorities certified that this building was no longer a construction site. Which hopefully would be the case later today.
"Are you happy with the result?" I asked, turning around so I wouldn't have to look at her through the mirror.
Kaia stretched out her arms and spun around. "This is much better than I imagined. The bright, open rooms. The high ceilings. The crown molding up there. The inviting details. Most sex clubs look dusty and the predominant color is red. The lighting is basically heavy and bad, but here? It looks like paradise."
On the top floor we had set up meeting rooms for the classes. Other than that, there were two floors. This one and the basement. Both had the attributes she had just listed, because it was important to us not to put a foreign body in this town, but something that reflected the character of Hawaii.
"And the party tonight is going to be fantastic, I'm sure. Kaden will open it. Lei is taking care of some exhibits... what about Blake and Amo?" Curiously, I looked at her. Especially the latter had comparatively little to do with the kinks. Even though he had supported us all the last weeks, I still wasn't sure if he wouldn't withdraw from the business completely after the opening.
"They're both coming. I'll make sure Amo is comfortable. I don't think it's going to be a culture shock because it's going to be relatively tame tonight, but I'm not taking any chances. He doesn't need to see anything that makes him uncomfortable." Kaia seemed so determined in her words. As if she always had in mind everything that needed to be considered. And not just with one man, but with two. "Have you heard from your dad again?"
"You mean after he gave me money to pay for the land?" I shook my head. Although he had recently apologized and told me in person that Alexander had left the company, that was as far as it had gone. He probably hadn't fully understood the plans that had surfaced shortly after the video was leaked– even though Lei had explained what it was all about.
It was probably not ideal for a father to have his daughter involved in opening a sex club. But since it was my life, he simply had no say in my decisions. And right now, I felt more than comfortable overseeing this project, watching a small, desperate idea grow into children's shoes and eventually shed them.
"At least he doesn't think you were the problem anymore, as far as Alexander is concerned."
That was a small comfort– but it wouldn't mend the fractured relationship with my parents. Instead, it just added another layer that made it harder to resolve all the issues. If that was ever my goal. Right now I was happy, they weren't going to destroy that for me.
"It doesn't matter in the end, does it? Look around you, Kaia. This is what we have created. A circle of friends who somehow found each other. There are people out there who hate our guts just for existing. That's the best compliment you can give us, isn't it?"
"You mean aside from the bomb threat two days ago that prompted the large-scale operation?"
So we could now claim a very special relationship with the police. They knew us there now– and surprisingly there had been no strange looks, but a big thank you from one of the officers who had heard about our course plans and then told us how many people he had already had to free from shackles and how many accidents in the bedroom could surely be prevented with a little more knowledge.
No matter what problem we might have in the future, none of the staff had to be afraid to inform the cops. They had our backs, publicly supported the establishment, and that alone meant that anyone who wanted to do us harm would not stand a good chance.
"Other than that, yes. But even if there are problems I'm not worried. Are you?"
She shook her head. "Not in the least. We've got some dominant men on our side who are only too happy to protect us."
