Prologue #2
See, my ancestors had been at war with the family who owned Hollows Bay: the Wolfes.
Lives were lost, millions of pounds of damage was caused to both cities, and peace was only found when both families signed a treaty agreeing that we wouldn’t set foot in their city, and they wouldn’t set foot in ours.
It was an agreement that had remained in place for decades, and one my papa—the current mafia don who ruled our city of Forest Point—had drilled into Rafe and me as we were growing up.
So it was fair to say that if anyone recognized me, not only would I have some explaining to do as to why I was in a sex club, but I was risking a war breaking out between my family and the Wolfes.
And yet, here I was. At a club, in a city I was categorically not supposed to be in.
“Hey, can you grab us some drinks while I run to the bathroom?” Kat said, spinning to face me.
“Um, shouldn’t we stay together?”
Tension gathered in my shoulders as my gaze continued to shift hesitantly around. I was certain that any second, someone was going to recognize me.
“Babe, relax,” Kat said, grabbing my arms and smirking at my paranoia. “We got in, no one is going to check our IDs now. Just relax and enjoy the night.”
I let my eyes close for a brief second. Kat didn’t know about the treaty. I should have told her, but the truth was, I didn’t want to miss this opportunity. Instead, I’d let her think my anxiety was out of fear of being caught for attempting to get into the club with our fake IDs.
To help allay my concerns, she’d spent hours beforehand doing my hair and makeup to make it look like I was older than I was. By the time she was finished, I barely recognized myself.
When the time came to show our IDs at the door, the security guard checked our ages, noted that Kat was a member and I was her guest for the evening, and let us through into the club without so much as a blink of an eye.
“You’re right,” I replied, trying my hardest to relax. No one was going to recognize me. I’d been out of the country for the past two years, and even before then, Papa rarely let me go out. “What do you want to drink?”
Kat beamed at me. “Get us some champagne. I’ll be right back.”
As she headed to the bathroom, I made my way to the bar, my gaze drifting over to the hallway leading back to the voyeur room. My mind conjured up the image of the man. The way his biceps had bulged from how hard he was gripping the woman. The ripples of his abs as he thrust into her.
The way his dark eyes had bore into me.
Questions churned in my head. Had they finished their act by now? What would they do after? Were they a couple or did they just do that together?
Would I see him again?
I hoped so.
Even if nothing could happen between us, I wanted to talk to him; something about him had sparked my curiosity.
Lost in thought, I didn’t see the man in front of me until it was too late. Knocking my shoulder against him, wine sloshed from his glass, spilling down my bare arm and over his hand.
“Oh god. I’m so sorry.” I spun to face him, only for my cheeks to heat, and not just from embarrassment at my clumsiness, but from how handsome he was.
He kinda looked like the man on the stage, only his hair was slightly shorter, and he was maybe a couple of inches taller. Oh, and he was fully clothed, but the strain of the material against his frame told me he was of a similar build to the man on stage.
“No damage done,” he replied, his voice deep and alluring. He reached into a pocket on the inside of his suit jacket and pulled out a handkerchief before handing it to me. “Here.”
My blush deepened as I took it from him, dabbing the spilled wine off my arm, and tearing my eyes away from his inquisitive ones. “I’m heading to the bar, let me buy you another drink.”
He chuckled. “You know, if you wanted to buy me a drink, you only had to ask instead of knocking my last one out of my hand.”
My prayer for the ground to open and swallow me whole went unanswered. “Oh no, I didn’t…I mean…”
Mortification gripped me as he laughed again.
“I’m fucking with you. I know it was an accident.” He reached out to take the handkerchief from me once I’d wiped the last drop away, and repocketed it. “Besides, I was raised to be a gentleman. I wouldn’t dream of letting you buy the drinks, I’ve got it covered.”
He winked at me, and despite my cheeks still heating, I couldn’t stop the shy grin from tugging at my mouth. Whoever this guy was, he certainly had charm.
“I’m Ted,” he said after a few seconds of me staring at him like a complete idiot. I took his hand, his palm soft against mine.
“Soph…ie. I’m Sophie,” I replied, remembering at the last minute that for tonight, I was Sophie and not Sofia.
“Nice to meet you. I hope this doesn’t sound cliche, but I haven’t seen you here before.”
“Oh, no. This is my first night here. My friend dragged me along.” I let go of his hand, realizing I was still clasping it.
“Yeah, I’ve got one of those. My best friend insists I come with him every time he wants a night out. I usually end up hiding away in the VIP section, but I was catching up with a friend. Good job too, or I wouldn’t have bumped into you.”
“I thought I bumped into you?” I replied, gently knocking his shoulder again and surprising myself with the confidence rushing through me at my attempt to flirt.
“Right.” He grinned down at me, and the heat covering my cheeks slowly moved to my chest. “How about that drink?” he added, waving a hand in the direction of the bar.
“Sure. But I still feel like I should buy you a drink. I spilled your last one, after all.”
His palm rested against my lower back as he guided me toward the bar. My gaze darted around again, only this time, I wasn’t sure if I was looking to see if someone recognized me, or if I was hoping to spy the man who’d been on stage and still lingered in the back of my mind.
Reaching the bar, Ted waved his hand, and despite the barman being in the middle of serving someone else, he stopped what he was doing and came straight over to take Ted’s order.
“A bottle of 2004 Louis Roederer Cristal,” Ted instructed.
I gaped at him. I figured he wasn’t shy of money, not with his tailored designer suit, but the bottle of wine he’d ordered was in the region of $5000. It was champagne my papa enjoyed.
“Oh my god, Soph, you should see the restroom! I felt like I was pissing in Buckingham Palace!” Kat giggled, appearing next to me and almost bouncing on the spot like an over-excited child.
Her squealing drew Ted’s attention from where he was paying for the champagne, his face expressionless. “This your friend, Sophie?”
“Yeah. This is Katrina. Katrina, this is Ted,” I said, waving between the two of them.
Her real name was Kathryn, but seeing as everyone called her Kat, she wanted something close to her real name for her fake ID, like I did. The last thing either of us needed was to forget what our fake names were supposed to be.
A devious smile pulled at Kat’s mouth, drawing attention to the bright red lipstick she’d reapplied while she was in the bathroom. She held her hand out to him, pushing her chest out to make her breasts look bigger.
“Hi,” she purred when Ted took her hand.
A pang of jealousy shot through me at the way she was batting her lashes at him.
I quickly shook it off, reminding myself that nothing was going to happen with Ted.
Still, a little part of me couldn’t help but be smug when Ted didn’t return her smile, and dropped her hand as if he was frightened he might catch something.
When his gaze met mine again, his features softened. “I’ve got a booth in the VIP area if you’d like to join me?”
“Hell yes, we would!” Kat squealed before I had the chance to reply.
Ted didn’t acknowledge her excitement, staring at me and waiting for my answer.
Part of me knew I should have said no. I didn’t want to lead him on, but Kat’s excitement from next to me was palpable.
“Sure,” I relented, giving him a coy smile.
Grabbing the champagne bucket and four glasses that the barman had placed down on the counter, Ted nodded, indicating for us to follow.
As he led us across the main area, Kat looped her arm through mine, pulling us a few steps behind Ted, and leaning into me so she could speak without him hearing. “Holy shit! Where did you find him?”
“I bumped into him and we just started talking.”
“He’s gorgeous. Please tell me you’re going to let him take you back to his place tonight?”
“Of course not,” I hissed. “He’s got to be at least thirty. Besides, you know nothing can happen.”
“Speak for yourself, babe. He’s my walking wet dream. I mean, check out that ass,” Kat giggled. “If you don’t want him, I will.”
Dejection rushed through me. I knew full well nothing could happen between me and Ted, and truthfully, he hadn’t stirred the same feelings inside me that the man on stage had, but did that mean I was okay with her making a move on him? No, absolutely not.
Did that make me selfish?
Maybe. But this had happened several times when we were younger. Kat took full advantage of flirting and kissing with guys who’d shown an interest in me, reminding me that I wasn’t allowed to do anything with them, and insisting that there was no need for her to miss out.
So maybe, just once, I wanted someone to see me, and only me.
I didn’t reply, instead letting my eyes drop to Ted’s ass where he’d stopped to talk to two security men standing on either side of a red rope, preventing people from going into the VIP area.
Kat was right. He did have a great ass. The way his pants framed it was mouthwatering, just like the way his jacket pulled taut across his broad shoulders.
Once the security guard unclipped the rope and let us pass, we followed Ted through a small mirrored hallway and into another room. It was much smaller, and the lights were softer than the main atrium, giving it an intimate, cozy feel.