Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
Law
Thursday night. His last night on Iris Watch and her brother wasn’t working at the club. Probably a good thing, all things considered. Law was having trouble keeping his eyes off her, though she was dressed almost modestly compared to some outfits she’d worn to Stronghold.
A corset pushed her breasts up but covered most of her upper body. The flirty skirt fluttered around the tops of her thighs but didn’t cling to her ass the way some of her skirts did.
She was giving him little sidelong glances, too. The biggest difference was instead of pretending they weren’t looking at each other, their gazes kept catching… and holding.
“This is almost painful to watch,” Asad said after Iris nearly tripped over one of the subs kneeling on the carpet in the Lounge, and Law hastily looked away. “Maybe you two should just go grab a room here tonight and get rid of some of the sexual tension filling the air.”
Law scowled at him.
“I’m just keeping an eye on her. The way I’m supposed to, remember?”
“Pretty sure Patrick did not know what he was asking when he set you up with that job,” Asad murmured, taking a sip of his beer. Connor chuckled but thankfully, didn’t add to the running commentary.
Glancing around, Law caught Q’s eye as he was making his way toward the bar. Gratefully latching onto the distraction, he greeted the other man and asked if he wanted to join them.
“Here alone tonight?” Law asked after everyone said hello.
Q sat down with them at Asad’s invitation.
The question was fairly rhetorical since he wouldn’t have joined them otherwise, but Law was feeling somewhat desperate to keep the conversation off him and Iris.
He didn’t want his friends looking too closely at them because—if he was being honest—he didn’t want to look too closely at his own motivations.
“Yeah, figured I might try doing a scene with someone. Maybe.” Q glanced at the Lounge area where the subs congregated.
When Law followed the other man’s gaze, he was surprised to see Q was looking at Samantha.
A switch, she’d been in the dominants class at the same time as Q, and they had not gotten along.
Mostly, they’d avoided each other, but there had been definite friction.
Apparently, she was feeling subby today since she was hanging out in the Lounge, chatting with Morgan.
Law wondered if Morgan had given Brian an answer yet.
“The curvy blonde?” Asad asked, also following Q’s gaze. “I wouldn’t mind a scene with Morgan. She’s fun to play with, and she knows the score. I can wingman you.”
“I’m pretty sure she’d murder me,” Q said drily. “We knew each other in high school, and we didn’t exactly get along.”
“Then why do you keep staring at her?” Asad enjoyed uncomfortable questions, and it was a relief he’d found a new victim for it.
“Because I think she post-it noted my car the last time I was here.”
“What?”
Q explained that the last time he’d been at Stronghold, someone had covered his entire car in post-it notes. The doors, the windows, the top, the sides. The frustration was clear in his voice, but it was also one of the funniest things Law had ever heard.
“It took me almost an hour to take them all off.” Q’s gaze flicked back to where Samantha was sitting. As far as Law could tell, she hadn’t looked over at him.
“What makes you think it was her? Did you check the security footage?”
“Apparently, there was an hour-and-a-half-long blackout right before she left the club with Angel and Lexie.” Q pressed his lips together. “The cameras came back online right after Lexie returned. Alone.”
Law coughed to cover his chuckle, and Asad looked as if he was about to lose it, trying to hold his laughter in. Connor was flat-out grinning, but he was using his mug to hide his expression.
Yeah, Q was probably right. Lexie had a bit of a reputation for pranks at Stronghold.
Being the owner’s girlfriend, she could get away with things other subs couldn’t—people still talked about the pink glitter incident.
Patrick always made sure she paid a price, but that wasn’t enough to stop her.
She’d just gotten a lot better about not getting caught.
“Okay, but why would Samantha do that?” Law asked, genuinely curious.
He’d gotten to know all the Dominants who’d gone through the class with Q and had to admit, while Angel and Lexie were known pranksters, Samantha had always seemed more serious.
If he’d had to assign her a stereotype, he would have guessed top of her class, never got into trouble, too smart to be popular, and high school valedictorian.
Even at the club, she’d struggled a little to make friends, though not in the same way as Morgan. It was more she was shy, always holding herself back from engaging with people. He had trouble seeing her pulling a prank, much less roping Angel and Lexie into one.
“Ah… well.” Q’s gaze found its way to the ceiling as though he thought he might find a suitable answer written there.
Though his dark skin and the dim lighting made it hard to tell, Law was pretty sure he was blushing.
“It’s possible, on the last day of Dominant class, someone got a hold of her phone and changed all her ringtones to Lord of the Rings soundtrack songs. ”
Law felt his eyebrows rising up.
Well, that was unexpected.
“So, you’re saying she had a reason,” Connor said thoughtfully, still grinning as he rubbed his fingers over his beard. Q scowled, dropping his gaze, so the baleful glare landed on Connor.
“She can’t prove it was me.”
Oh, but it definitely had been.
“And you can’t prove this was her.” Asad grinned, his attention returning to the Lounge. “I like her. She’s a switch, right? It looks like she’s interested in subbing tonight.”
“I wouldn’t if I were you,” Q muttered.
Iris
Last night with a Watch Dom… and he was watching.
Iris could feel his gaze on her everywhere she went.
Not that he was being subtle about it. Almost every time she’d looked up, his eyes were on her.
The few times they hadn’t been, she hadn’t looked at him for longer than thirty seconds before he’d met her gaze.
Was he thinking about tomorrow?
Regretting his decision?
She hoped not. Iris knew it was a pity scene, despite the attraction between them, but right now, she’d take what she could get. She was wound up, sexually frustrated, and desperately in need of getting out of her head for a bit.
The last week at home had been increasingly uncomfortable.
The first few days of Noelle’s cold shoulder had been a relief, despite the guilt that piled on whenever she had the thought, but now it was getting stressful.
She hated the dark looks, the exaggerated sighs and derisive sniffs, and the feeling of being unwelcome in her own home.
She was going to apologize soon just to get over the hump, even though she still didn’t feel as though she’d really done anything wrong.
Hopefully, she’d feel more like apologizing to Noelle after she’d worked out some of her tension with Master Law.
“Hello, would either of you like a drink?” she asked as Samantha and Morgan paused in their conversation when she walked up.
“Water for me, please. I’m hoping to play tonight,” Morgan replied brightly before looking at Samantha.
“I’ll have a Sprite, thanks.” Samantha smiled up at her. Nodding, Iris went to get their drinks. She glanced at Master Law and his friends on the way and noticed they were all looking over at Samantha and Morgan. Maybe Morgan was going to get her wish.
When she returned, she handed the drinks over with a smile and jolted. Instead of pausing, they continued their conversation, and she wasn’t sure she’d heard what she thought she’d just heard.
“Sorry, I couldn’t help but overhear… did you just say you’re moving in with Master Brian?” Iris kept her tone as apologetic as she could, even though inside, she was freaking out a little. If she had heard correctly, she was pretty sure she knew someone who would totally freak out.
Rae might pretend she didn’t have any interest in the Daddy Dom, but Iris wasn’t buying it and didn’t think anyone else was. Not only that, but she was nearly one hundred percent sure Brian had a thing for Rae as well.
What the hell was he thinking, letting another woman move in with him? Especially Morgan. Iris didn’t know her very well, but she hadn’t pegged her as the type who wanted a Daddy Dom.
“Yes,” Morgan replied, though her brow furrowed, and she looked up at Iris. “You’re friends with… a lot of people here. Do you think everyone will hate me if we do?”
Iris blinked. One of the things she liked about Morgan was how blunt the other woman could be.
She might say the wrong thing at the wrong time on a regular basis and have some very odd ideas about kink and people that weren’t great stereotypes, but every word out of her mouth was authentic. And she had no problem being corrected.
“Why would they hate you?” Iris asked, even though she knew, but she was frantically trying to think of how to answer in a way that wouldn’t be hurtful.
Rae was totally going to hate her. She and Domi had never said anything out loud, but it was clear Morgan had rubbed both of them the wrong way, and neither of them was interested in hanging out with her.
Once Rae knew Morgan and Brian were a thing, she was totally going to hate her, which meant Domi probably would on principle.
Shit, did that mean Iris would have to hate her? Noelle would never stand for Iris being friends with someone she hated. Would Rae be the same way?
She didn’t hate Morgan. Morgan was very na?ve and sometimes mean without intending to be, but she did try, and Iris identified with how hard she tried.
“Because I’m moving in with the only single Daddy Dom. I mean, he’ll still be single.” Morgan wrinkled her nose, not in disgust, more confused. “People keep thinking there’s something going on between us, but he’s like… like a brother or what I think having a brother might be like.”
“He does watch out for you like a big brother.” Samantha appeared amused. The impression Iris had of the two of them during class was they were friendly but had little in common. “If someone hates you, that’s their problem, not yours.”
Morgan chewed her lower lip, unconvinced. Sometimes, she was the oddest mix of complete confidence and crippling insecurities. Totally confident in her looks, sex appeal, and ability to be the perfect submissive but cripplingly insecure whenever she had to make a decision.
“Why did he ask you to move in?” Iris had a feeling the ‘why’ would be more important than the act. At least, she hoped so.
“My lease is coming up, and my current roommate is moving in with her boyfriend,” Morgan explained.
“I can’t afford a place on my own yet, at least not one anyone seems to approve of.
Brian said he needs a roommate and suggested I move in with him.
” She sighed, rubbing her left wrist in a soothing gesture.
“Do you not want to live with him?”
“No, I do, but that’s why I think maybe I shouldn’t.” Morgan frowned. “I’m supposed to be learning how to do things on my own. How am I going to do that when I’m living with another Dom?”
“I have a feeling your biggest problem is going to be him pushing you to do everything on your own,” Sam replied, one side of her mouth curving up in a smile.
“Me, too,” Iris agreed, hoping she wasn’t ruining her friendship with Rae by encouraging this. “I sincerely doubt he’ll take charge if he knows you’re working on learning to do things on your own.”
“You’re right.” Morgan wrinkled his nose. “I guess I’m going to say yes.” She didn’t sound one hundred percent sure, but Iris had no doubt she would come around. She wasn’t sure what was going on with Morgan and the Doms but recognized a group effort when she saw it.
She’d have to give Rae a heads up, though. That should be fun.
Law
“Do you have your scene for tomorrow planned out?” Asad asked, watching Iris talking to Morgan and Samantha. He didn’t seem convinced to stay away from them, but he wasn’t making a big deal out of it.
“Yes. Will and Gina are onstage, and I’ve reserved the Dungeon Room for myself and Iris.” He was so distracted watching her, he didn’t think twice before sharing that information—and he really should have.
“Wait, you’re spending the whole night?” Asad’s head whipped around, his eyes wide as he pinned Law with a stare. Q and Connor were both staring at him as well. Knowing him better than Q, Asad and Connor were far more flabbergasted, but even Q looked surprised.
Shit.
Now they would be all up in his business.
“No, but I wanted to have a place to scene with her after the show.” His voice came out clipped. He really wasn’t planning on spending the night there with her. Hadn’t even thought about it.
So sure about that?
He shook his head as if he could shake away the thought.
“It’s easier. I have to go to Marquis straight from work for a meeting with Olivia and Julie about the next submissives class. That way, I have somewhere I can change before the show. It just made sense.” On multiple levels.
Asad’s dark eyes were lit with amusement, and Connor wasn’t bothering to hide his grin. Even Q’s eyebrows had risen, and his expression was skeptical.
Listening to himself, Law couldn’t blame them. He sounded like a twit.
“Uh-huh. You keep telling yourself that,” Asad said, raising his glass and toasting Law.
“I’m not a relationship guy.” Law scowled. “You know why.” Asad and Connor were the only two friends he had left from that time in his life. They exchanged a glance while Q looked on in confusion.
“We know why you haven’t been, but you aren’t the same man anymore.” Connor reached out, clapping his hand on Law’s shoulder in a gesture of support. “You know, if you want a relationship, you deserve to have one.”
No, he didn’t. Not anymore. He didn’t want to put another woman in that position ever again. Especially not one so much younger, like Iris, who still had her whole life ahead of her and deserved far more than a cynical old bastard like him.
Tomorrow’s scene would be it for them.