Chapter 3 #2
To the right of the bar, in between the south and west wings, was the boutique Sasha would be managing—Tops & Bottoms. The inventory would include fetwear, resort wear, toiletries, kink toys and supplies, souvenirs, and snacks.
About a month ago, a few weeks after Sasha had accepted the job, Mitch had asked Angie, Kristen, Tori, and another submissive from The Covenant, Shelby Christiansen, to help the new manager pick out items for the shop, including displays.
Apparently, the women had had a blast and gone on a two-day shopping binge with numerous wholesalers.
Boxes, boxes, and more boxes, and even a few crates, had been arriving each day for the past two weeks and were temporarily being kept at a secure, off-site storage facility.
The boutique’s interior would be finished by the coming weekend, and Sasha and two of the four employees who’d been hired to work for her would start setting up the displays and inventory on Monday.
Across the lobby from the boutique was an upscale cigar bar that would only be open to Dominant club members.
Directly across from the front door was a grand staircase leading to the second floor where a ballroom, which could be rented for special events, was located in the south wing.
Across from that in the north wing was another restaurant named the Locked Inn, which would provide more casual dining for breakfast and lunch.
Two lounges, one for Doms and the other for submissives, open to both hotel guests and club members, were also located on that floor.
The one for subs was designed so they could socialize and relax there without going into the dungeon without their Doms.
The third floor housed a gym, several conference rooms, the day spa, a few more offices, including the HR and accounting departments, and a nightclub—Club 69—that gave everyone an additional option for evening entertainment.
The fourth, fifth, and sixth floors were where all the guest rooms and suites were located.
Room keycards were needed to access those floors via the elevators and stairs.
Back on the ground floor, behind the grand staircase, was the entrance to the resort’s two-level dungeon in the west wing.
Around the perimeter of the first floor were fourteen themed playrooms, most of which had large viewing windows so voyeurs could watch the action.
If the occupants of a room preferred privacy, there was a switch that would tint the windows to prevent anyone from seeing in.
Four other rooms had been designated for aftercare.
The interior setup of the vast main room was similar to The Covenant.
There would be numerous sitting areas surrounding a round stage which could be used for collaring ceremonies and demonstrations.
The stage at the resort, however, had been designed to slowly revolve with the flip of a switch.
A full rotation took approximately four-and-a-half minutes to complete, meaning anyone standing on the stage would barely feel the movement.
Guests observing whatever was happening on stage would eventually be able to see it from all angles, instead of having to move around.
Above the stage was open space, so people on the second floor could also see what was going on below.
The ground level had already been dubbed the “pit,” just like its counterpart in Tampa.
In all four corners, there were circular staircases leading to the upper floor which would be filled with different stations and equipment, such as spanking benches, St. Andrew’s crosses, spider webs, stockades, sex swings, cages, and the like.
After giving Sasha the big tour of the first three floors, Sloan and Tiffany took her up to the penthouse level and showed her one of the ten executive suites, which were all devoid of furniture at the moment.
The beds, mattresses, nightstands, dressers, couches, loveseats, tables, chairs, etc.
for the entire resort were arriving in two weeks.
An army of movers had been hired to bring the furnishings to the dedicated areas, offices, and guest rooms. It still amazed Tiffany how much went into opening a new resort.
As they took one of the elevators back down to the lobby, Sasha said, “Tori mentioned that, in addition to having the dungeon open to hotel guests, locals can also become annual members. Have there been a lot of applicants?”
“Holy cow,” Tiffany replied, widening her eyes for effect.
“I can’t believe how much interest we’ve generated.
Master Cordell has about two-hundred-and-fifty applications to go through.
People from Miami all the way down to Key West want to be members.
Apparently, it’s the first private BDSM club of this size in the Keys.
We had to put a hold on applications until we could catch up, because we’re limiting it to three hundred, not including the employees who are free to play if they wish. One of the perks of the job.”
When the elevator reached the ground floor, the doors slid open, and Tiffany felt her knees go weak and a lump form in her throat.
Standing there, looking more handsome than ever, was Sir.
He was wearing dark-gray Bermuda shorts, a red polo shirt with the MKR logo on the left side of his massive chest, and black sneakers.
He’d gone to physical therapy that morning and must’ve just gotten back.
His eyes lit up at the sight of her, but they quickly dimmed again, and her heart sank.
Things had been more than slightly off between them ever since she’d blurted out she loved him when he’d offered her the assistant manager position.
To everyone else, the couple appeared happy and normal, but in reality, they weren’t—at least Tiffany didn’t think so.
How she wished they could go back to the day before she’d fucked up, because she didn’t know how to fill the chasm she now felt between them.
Sir had assured her he hadn’t taken her words to mean she’d fallen in love with him, but she thought that’s exactly what’d happened and that he wasn’t happy about it.
It really sucked. Tiffany was hopelessly in love with the man who’d warned her from the beginning that their relationship was temporary, even though it now included sex.
And what was worse was that she felt the way Sir had distanced himself from her—not physically, but emotionally.
Most of their conversations now had to do with the resort.
They still played, but it always seemed like Sir was holding himself back compared to before the “I love you” incident.
Thankfully, Sloan and Sasha didn’t seem to notice the tension that filled the air between their two bosses, because when Sir moved to the side, they exited the car with bright smiles.
Sloan gestured to Sir. “Sasha, this is Master Cordell Roberts, the manager of Master Key Resort. Sir, this is Sasha Lewis, our new boutique manager.”
“We met once before, during our visit to Tampa several months ago.” Tiffany was surprised Sir had remembered the other woman because she hadn’t. Sir gave Sasha a welcoming smile and held out his hand. “It’s nice to see you again, Sasha. How was your move?”
She shook his hand. “It’s a pleasure to see you again too, Sir.
As for the move, between the packing and unpacking, I never want to do it again.
I don’t think my cat, Flash, would want to go through it again either—he wasn’t happy about the road trip.
But as for me, I’m already loving the Keys.
The resort looks incredible, and I can’t wait to start organizing the boutique. ”
“Well, you’ll be able to start that next week. It’s an honor to have you on board. If you need anything, just let Tiffany or me know. If you’ll excuse me though, I need to talk to one of the contractors upstairs.”
“Of course, Sir.”
Sir’s gaze shifted to Tiffany, and when he raised his brow at her, she realized she was still standing in the doorway of the elevator, blocking his entrance and preventing the doors from closing. She quickly stepped into the lobby, out of his way.
He gave her a nod before walking into the car and pushing one of the buttons. “Ladies, have a nice day.”
His gaze never left hers until the doors shut, and the tension Tiffany had felt finally dissipated. Her shoulders relaxed, and she could breathe normally again. Would she ever stop feeling like there was an elephant in the room with them?