Chapter One #4
Feeling Donovan at his back, Reaux walked calmly up to the desk and smiled genially at the redhead. The waves of anger radiating off her could’ve fried a lesser man in his shoes.
“Good afternoon, Miss Jennifer.” Because it always seemed to work on women—and a few men—he flavored his voice with a heavy dose of French accent. When her stiff posture relaxed slightly, he widened his smile. “May I trouble you for a few moments?”
Sulky jade-green eyes slid in Donovan’s direction. “Of course, sir. Checking in?”
“Please.”
Fingernails clacked on the keys at a rapid pace.
“Thank you, Mr. Close. You’re in cabin twelve—once you’re back on the path, take the left turn and follow it around until you reach the bench.
Take a right, and the cabin is the third on your left.
Oscar, your driver, has already delivered your bag, and you’ll find the keys inside on the hallway table along with a welcome pack containing all the information you need to know about Serenity. ”
Reaux tapped his hand lightly on the desk. “Perfect. Thank you, Miss Jennifer. Ah, before I forget, when would…” He glanced over his shoulder at Donovan questioningly, as though he’d forgotten the name of his reason for breathing. “…Mistress Vanessa be available?”
“Violet,” his new friend corrected quietly.
“Ah, of course. When would Mistress Violet be available?”
More clack-clack-clacking. “The Mistress recently removed a guest from her schedule, leaving a Saturday afternoon appointment free. Unfortunately, she has nothing available in the next three days unless a guest cancels.”
Three days should be enough time, Reaux mused.
He needed to do some recon around the club, scout out potential bolt holes and her routine before initiating first contact.
If she chose to run, he wanted to be able to preempt her.
“That would give me time to settle in. Please, book me in for then. Where and what time should I be ready?”
“Afternoon sessions start at two p.m. The Mistress is flexible with location—I can reserve any play area you might wish to use, or she can come to your cabin. However, if you choose the second option, I advise you are waiting and ready to begin when she arrives.” Jennifer softened enough to smile genuinely at him.
“The Mistress is strict, especially with new guests, until she learns likes, dislikes, and limits. Speaking of which, if you have any, please make sure you update your list using the app on the iPad in your cabin—by noon on Saturday.”
He couldn’t help it; his grin was wicked and sharp. “Limits? What are they?”
The receptionist lit up like a neon sign, blushing delightfully.
The contrast between her heated cheeks and her hair was appealing, if he’d been in the market for an attractive, easy to mark submissive.
“That’s your prerogative, sir. If you require anything else, please don’t hesitate to let me know. ”
“Thank you, I appreciate your time.” Stepping back from the desk, Reaux tipped his head at Donovan. “I believe it is your turn now. I hear flowers provide lubrication when extracting your head from your ass.”
“My head isn’t up my ass.”
“It’s about to be.” Whistling under his breath, Reaux retreated, leaving Donovan to face the music, as he’d so eloquently stated. The door had barely snicked shut behind him when the shouting started—all from the fiery redhead.
Ah, to be young and in love again. There was nothing quite like that first passion in a relationship to get the blood pumping.
He wondered if he would experience it again once reconnected with Violet.
In just three days, he would find out.
Violet
Standing in front of Evander’s office door, Violet lifted her hand and knocked twice, firmly. It was almost a week to the day since she’d booted Adrian off her schedule and she’d been waiting to be summoned here ever since; she was actually surprised it had taken this long.
It didn’t matter—she could handle Evander. His size was intimidating, but in comparison to his husband, he was a teddy bear. He was dominant in the eyes of everyone but Elias, the only one with the power to make him submit.
“Come in.”
All she needed to do was stick to her guns. She’d made a decision which protected herself, the club member involved, and the club itself. Continuing a working relationship with Adrian was simply untenable, bound to cause more harm the longer it went on, and that was unacceptable.
She reminded herself of that as she pushed open the door… and stopped in her tracks.
Shit, shit, shit.
Not one, but four pairs of eyes locked on her as she froze in the doorway. Instantly, her mood plummeted into a dark, foul abyss from which it would take days to resurface.
Scowling so hard her forehead twitched with the strain, Violet shook her head and stepped back, slamming the door viciously. Whirling on her heels, she strode back down the hall and was almost to the stairs when she heard the door open again.
“Mistress Violet.” The sharp British accent cracked the air better than a bullwhip. When she didn’t even pause, it snapped again. “Violet.”
Fuck. Elias was a good man who loved his family, and she liked him, but several of his qualities reminded her too much of another handsome asshole, one with a very different accent, who’d broken her heart, her confidence, and ruined her. “What, Elias?”
“Come back here, please.”
The please was little more than a cordial afterthought—the order was clear.
Violet stopped at the top of the stairs, one hand on the newel post. Turning her gaze back to Elias, she tried to fry his gorgeous ass from a distance with all the fury bubbling in her veins.
“That is a fucking ambush, Eli. Don’t try to tell me otherwise.
Both owners, the Master of Security, and motherfucking Adrian?
It’s a fucking ambush, and I do not appreciate it. ”
Darker than sin, emanating that edgy, sadistic vibe, Elias prowled along the hallway as though he had all the time in the world. “One might see it that way, yes.”
“One does see it that way,” she snarled back. “Stay where you are, Eli. I don’t want to do something I’ll regret. Callie would never forgive me if I messed up your pretty face.”
Of course, he didn’t listen. Men like him never listened.
“Physical violence against another member of staff is a termination offence.” Humor glinted in his eyes despite his stern expression.
“It would be worth it,” she hissed, knowing she was trapped—one step backward would send her tumbling down the wooden staircase. “Trust me, Elias, I’m thirty fucking seconds away from punching you in the fucking nose and handing in my goddamn resignation. Do not fucking push me.”
“Do you know, I don’t believe I’ve ever heard you use profanity in such a quantity.
” Using his dominance to intimidate, a habit of his she didn’t think he even realized he had, he stopped with his fancy-ass shoes less than six inches from the toes of her heels.
“Would you please come back to the office so we can talk about this like adults?”
“No.”
He sighed. “Why not?”
“How many times do I have to say the word, ambush?”
“It isn’t an ambush, Violet. Adrian is a prized member who has expressed his unhappiness with the sudden removal of your services. He arrived this afternoon and requested a meeting with both Van and I. We thought it best to include Grit, both for security purposes and as moral support for you.”
The sniveling weasel was trying an end run around her, she thought.
Any prospect of her being cordial or maintaining an outwardly professional relationship on club grounds had just been dropkicked out the window.
“I don’t need moral support. Adrian overstepped my personal boundaries and out of respect for myself, him, and this club, I chose to end my involvement with him. ”
“Vi—”
“I also chose not to put a sanction on his record, because apparently I’m too fucking soft and stupid for my own good.
Evidently, I didn’t think far enough forward and foresee that he would run to the rich man’s club in order to get his way.
” Infuriated by Elias’s lack of regard when it came to her personal space, Violet set her hands on his chest and shoved.
“Newsflash, Eli, and you can take this back into that office and repeat it word for word—there is nothing on hell or earth that will compel me into taking Adrian back as a client. Not a damn thing.”
Quicker than a whip in mid-strike, Eli’s hands latched around her wrists, firm and powerful.
In a calculated move, he swung her away from the stairs and the fall she was edging closer to taking, then simply bore into her brain with the dark, foreboding blue eyes that made subs quiver and flee. “Did he hurt you?”
Not a sub anymore, she told herself, squaring her shoulders. Tilting her head in challenge, she kept her lips pressed tightly together.
“Violet, I won’t ask again. Did Adrian hurt you in your last session together?”
Part of her wanted to say yes, just to see what his reaction would be—it was well known in the club that anyone who broke the rules, particularly if those rules involved non-consent or violence toward women, faced worse than simply losing their membership at Serenity. “No.”
The harsh furrow in his brow relaxed slightly. “What boundary did he cross?”
It shouldn’t feel like an inquisition, but she was pissed off enough to take the question as accusatory.
Like she was the one who’d destroyed the line between personal and professional boundaries, who’d done something stupid like proposing to a virtual stranger whose public persona was the attraction.
“Forget it,” she said tightly, yanking her wrists free of Elias’s grasp and spinning away from him. “Fire me or don’t, I’m beyond caring at this point. But if I see that asshole on my schedule or he shows up requiring a session, consider my contract ended.”
“We don’t want to lose you, Violet—”