Chapter 16 #3
“Let me finish. Thank you. As Reuben said, this man was out of my life for almost six months. I believed I was safe, but somehow, he found me. I was lucky and managed to get away from him. Since then, Reuben and his friends have not only been looking for the man, but they’ve also protected me.
I have someone guarding me anytime I’m home alone or leave the flat.
I tried to reject their protection, but Reuben refused to stop or let me pay for them.
Before that, he stepped in, before we were even together, to dissuade a guy who wasn’t taking the hint that I wasn’t interested in him.
Reuben has already proven to me he’ll protect me, no matter what. ”
“Why didn’t you tell us?” her mamá sobbed.
She had tears in her eyes, and she was clutching her husband’s hand. Cristiana’s papá’s face wore an expression of fury. Her sister and sisters-in-law appeared appalled. The guys were enraged.
“Because I knew if I did, Papá and the boys would go ballistic and try to hunt him down and either end up hurt or arrested,” Cristiana said.
“But you decide to run away from your family rather than let us handle him?” Marco snapped.
I wasn’t happy about his tone, and if he kept it up, I’d have to shut him down.
“Where are you meeting these bastards?” Cesar asked the question she had been dreading the most.
I wrapped my arm around her and made sure she was glued to my side. Her body was rigid. I heard her inhale before she answered, and she opened a box she never wanted opened.
“At clubs that I’m a member of. I was a member of one here and then, after I went to Nashville, I joined another there. However—”
She was cut off by her brothers and Henry, who came to their feet. Marco came over to stand directly in front of her. The other two were behind him.
“What kind of club?” Marco demanded.
“A club that caters to people with specific needs and wants,” Cristiana replied.
“Needs and wants?” Henry asked.
“Jesus Christ, please tell me you’re not referring to one of those goddamn sex clubs!” Cesar roared.
Cristiana flinched as the other women gasped. I was done.
“Step back and don’t raise your voice to her like that,” I ordered.
“You don’t tell me what to do. She’s my sister, and I’ll talk to her however I see fit,” Cesar snarled.
I let go of her. She tried to hold on to me, but I easily rose to my feet. I planted myself between her and them. My legs were spread, and my arms hung loose at my sides. If this got physical, I’d defend myself and her.
“You think you scare me, tough guy. Sit down before you get your ass kicked,” Marco snarled.
“Stop this at once!” their mamá begged.
“Boys, you need to calm yourselves and sit down. There will be no fighting in this house. There are women and children here,” her papá stated firmly.
“Senor Perez, I don’t want a fight in your home, but I will not allow my woman to be berated by anyone. If they choose to make it physical, I will defend her and myself. Tiana is sharing something with you that’s extremely hard for her to do. Don’t make assumptions.”
“What else can we do other than assume? Ana, are you saying you’re part of a sex club?” Cesar demanded.
Cristiana moved to stand next to me. She took my hand. “I’m a member of a kink club. And before you lose it, it’s about more than sex. It’s about like-minded people being free to express their interests without judgment.”
The cursing was loud and inventive. Her mamá burst into tears and was sobbing in her husband’s arms. He stood there rigid.
The other women were shocked and somewhat appalled.
The men were the ones swearing and yelling.
I’d let them vent a bit, but then they had to dial it back.
Cristiana was shaking. I brought her around to stand in front of me, with my arms wrapped around her.
“Breath, my amor, they’ll be fine. Let them get some of it out of their systems,” I whispered in her ear.
“God, it’s as bad as I knew it would be,” Cristiana whispered brokenly back.
Honestly, I had expected her parents or at least her papá to be directing most of the conversations today. A timer beeping broke through the din. Her sister and sisters-in-law headed to the kitchen. I took it as my chance to jump in.
“I know this is a shock to all of you, but it shouldn’t change anything. Cristiana is the same person she’s always been. She’s warm, caring, loving, smart, and so much more.”
“Like hell it doesn’t change things. My sister is a whore who fucks God knows how many people and does who knows what perverted shit!” Marco shouted.
His words and the way they made her whimper did it.
My calmness flipped to rage. Letting go of her, I swiftly moved in front of her.
I felt Cristiana’s hands on me, trying no doubt to hold me back.
I easily broke free and got in his face.
Her brothers were a few inches shorter than I was.
On the weight end of it, we were probably better matched, but from the looks of it, I had them when it came to muscle.
“Call her a whore or say anything else disgusting, and you’ll swallow your teeth. Tiana isn’t a whore. I’m the only person she’s sleeping with. And unless you’ve been in a club, you have no damn clue what happens there. Don’t believe everything you see in a movie or read in a book,” I growled.
“Let me guess. She met you in one of those disgusting places,” he sneered.
“Your sister and I did meet in the club she’s a member of in Nashville.
I happen to be the manager and have been for a long time.
There’s nothing wrong about expressing yourself, as long as everyone involved is eighteen, competent, and gives consent.
How often are those three things not happening when people outside of a club hook up or go to a bar? ” I challenged.
“At least outside of there, they’re not behaving in a way that’ll send them to hell!” Cesar interjected.
“How do you know? Can you see into their offices, vehicles, behind the bleachers, and into homes? The fetish, kink, or whatever you want to call it, lifestyle, is far more prevalent than you can imagine. The reason you assume it’s not is that those involved in it don’t talk about it because they don’t want to be judged or misunderstood.
They don’t judge you for being straight and vanilla when it comes to sex,” I said, smirking.
Marco growled, and I saw it coming. I let it. He shoved me. I remained immobile. My lack of stumbling pissed him off. He swung at me as his papá yelled at him to stop. I caught his fist in my hand.
Crushing it tight, so he hissed, I softly warned him, “I don’t want to disrespect your parents’ home, but if you try to hit me, touch me, or your sister. Or keep throwing ugly accusations at her, I will.”
“Try it and see what you get,” he snarled.
“Marco, Cesar, Henry, that is enough. If you won’t sit and behave, then leave!” their papá thundered.
Utter silence descended. I watched as all three men backed away and took their seats. Cristiana’s mamá was cradled in her husband’s arms. Her tears were no longer streaming down her cheeks. She was biting her bottom lip.
When the three guys were seated, I moved to angle around Cristiana and brought her back to the sofa to sit with me.
I lowered her down on my lap, where I cuddled her.
I placed small kisses on her cheek and neck.
I kept my gaze on the hotheads. Whatever the other ladies had to do in the kitchen must be over with for now, because the rattling stopped and they rejoined their husbands.
The atmosphere was so tense that it was palpable.
I knew that the next step had to be her family’s, not ours. If they weren’t able to at least open the door to a conversation, there was nothing either of us could say to get through to them. I’d hate that for Cristiana, but we could only control ourselves.
“What is it that you get from being a part of one of those clubs? Have you always wanted those things?” Isla asked. She sounded curious rather than put off.
“Many things. I feel more in control of myself and my needs. Feelings of respect, and with Reuben, I’m totally understood, cared for, and protected.
Did I always have those needs? Yes, but it wasn’t until I joined my first club that I recognized them fully.
I knew something was missing —just not what —and that was what had me go there in the first place.
It’s many things, not just sex. But even when it comes to sex, there are things I need and want.
Honestly, the guys I met outside of the club environment couldn’t or wouldn’t give those to me.
And I’m not talking about wild, kink stuff,” Cristiana told her.
“Aren’t they just a bunch of people having an orgy and trading their partners?” Clarisa asked.
“No, absolutely not. Sure, if you’re interested in having more than one partner, you can.
But Reuben and I aren’t into that. We’re monogamous.
And it doesn’t have to be public at the club.
There are rooms you can go to and be entirely private or open the window shade and let others watch,” my woman explained.
“Before you ask, no, I don’t let anyone see my woman.
She’s for me alone. I never thought of myself as jealous or caring about that, but your sister changed me.
She’s the first woman I’ve ever loved and wanted to be monogamous with.
And there is the ability to play without including sex.
We do both together. It would take us months to explain everything our life is like and not like,” I tacked on.
Slowly, the conversation began to open up. It was primarily due to her sister, her sisters-in-law, and her parents. However, it was better than I had hoped, despite the rocky start. I prayed it would end in her retaining her relationship with her family.