CHAPTER 11
EDGE
The next couple of days went by quickly, but not without incident.
Halloween really wasn’t my favorite day of the year, but generally there was a good time to be had—at least for the members—at the club.
This year was the exception.
Which was the very reason I was walking toward Zeke’s office, fully intending to apologize for the incident that had occurred. One that could’ve easily been avoided if I hadn’t been so damn distracted. Unfortunately, I’d already made the mistake, and it couldn’t be taken back.
How could you have known? I mean, really.
I stopped in the doorway to Zeke’s office, then watched as the man frowned at his cell phone.
Turn around, go back the way you came. Clearly, he’s not in the mood to chat.
Ignoring the inner voice, I rapped lightly on the frame of the door and waited for Zeke to look up.
“What’s up?” he asked, sounding far too chill for the expression on his face.
“That’s supposed to be my question,” I answered. “Need to talk?”
“About?”
Yeah, okay. So he was going to play that way. I figured I might as well get this argument underway. “For starters, what went down at the club on Wednesday.”
“Nothing went down,” he said, although he couldn’t maintain eye contact. “I had some things to take care of.”
See? He had a perfectly good explanation for running out of there like his ass was on fire.
“Yeah?” I lowered myself into the chair across from Zeke. “That’s why Trent informed me I’d made a serious mistake by approving a certain submissive’s membership.”
Zeke shrugged. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Matt Steinberg. Name ring a bell?”
He didn’t move, didn’t so much as blink, but I could tell the name alone pissed him off. “Actually, no.”
“Shit, Zeke.” I leaned forward, feeling as shitty now as I had when Trent advised me that I’d allowed Zeke’s ex-boyfriend into the club. “I had no idea who he was.”
Zeke sighed. “It’s not your fault. Not like I’m big on sharing details of my past.”
“Well, if it’s any consolation, I’ve revoked his membership because of the incident on Wednesday.”
He looked slightly relieved by the news, but it was the least I could do.
For one, I didn’t tolerate the sort of confrontation that Matt had instigated on Halloween.
Although I hadn’t witnessed it myself, I’d heard that Matt had purposely sought Zeke out and made a spectacle of himself in front of everyone on the main floor.
“Trent had a conversation with him before he left,” I informed Zeke. “From what I gathered, it wasn’t good.”
Zeke nodded. “Matt showed up at my house that night.”
“Damn it.” I took these things seriously, and I wasn’t sure how I could fix what I’d clearly fucked up. “I’m sorry, man.”
“No need to apologize. It’s been taken care of.”
“How about Brax and Case? They cool?”
Zeke’s answer came in the form of a shrug. I could see the concern in his dark eyes. I hadn’t seen any of them since the night in question, although I’d worked at the club last night, expecting them to show.
When Zeke still didn’t answer, I got worried. I knew the man all too well and he had a penchant for imploding.
I leaned back in my chair, prepared to dig in deep. “Don’t tell me you booted them because of Matt.”
“Not because of Matt, no.”
Oh, hell. I sighed, rolled my eyes. “Where are they now?”
“Who knows.”
“Have you talked to them?”
Zeke sat up, his mask of indifference falling into place. He was shutting me out.
“Nothing to talk about. They’ve run their course. I’m ready to move on. I warned them already, so it’s not a surprise.”
Wow. There actually is someone more in denial than you. How about that?
I barked a laugh, ensuring Zeke heard I wasn’t amused by him or the stupid voice. “You honestly think I’m buying this bullshit?”
Indifference morphed into anger, his eyes narrowing. “I don’t give a shit what you’re buying, Edge.”
Before I could launch into a tirade, a knock sounded at the door.
I glanced over, saw Jamie standing there.
I hadn’t seen her since Wednesday morning when she woke up in my bed, cuddled between me and Cav.
That had been a long night, which had continued into a long rest of the week for me.
I didn’t realize until that moment that I had missed her so fucking much.
“I don’t mean to interrupt,” she said softly, her eyes coming to rest on me.
God, she looked good. She was wearing a floor-length purple skirt and a short, white, long-sleeve blouse. She was so damn pretty and far too innocent for the likes of me. Still, I wanted to pull her into my arms and hold her, inhale her sweet scent, and never let her go.
Go ahead. See if we can piss her brother off more.
But I knew I couldn’t do that. Certainly not here. So, I pushed to my feet, glanced at Zeke briefly, then turned my attention to her. “He’s all yours, Jamie. Maybe you can talk some sense into him.”
As I passed by her, I allowed my fingers to brush her arm, needing the contact.
We’d been talking on the phone and texting for the past couple of days, but I realized seeing her had been what I needed.
Although she was a temptation I should’ve avoided for my own sanity, I realized it no longer mattered.
“Come find me when you’re finished with him,” I told her, keeping my voice low.
“Bullshit!” Zeke shot to his feet. “She’s not gonna come find you, Edge.”
Anger slammed into me as I pinned Zeke with a glare. What the fuck?
We both stood there, staring one another down like two dogs ready to tear each other’s throats out, the winner marking their territory. I could see Zeke’s anger, knew deep down it wasn’t directed at me, but somehow, I was going to bear the brunt of it.
Well, fuck that. “I wasn’t asking your permission, Zeke.”
“Stop. Please,” Jamie pleaded, placing her hand on my arm. “I’ll come find you when I’m done.”
Realizing Zeke was dangerously close to exploding, I nodded at Jamie, then glared at Zeke one more time for good measure before slipping into the hall and heading back to my office.
Good news. He doesn’t think you’re a pussy anymore.
“Shut up,” I grumbled under my breath.
“You okay?”
I jerked my head up, noticed Justin standing outside my office door. “Fine. What’s up?”
“You ready to chat?”
“Today’s not a good day.”
His eyes raked over my face briefly before he nodded. “I heard about the problem at the club.”
If he wanted to assume that was the reason I was pissed, more power to him.
“Maybe we can catch up on Monday? You here then or at the club?”
“Probably the club,” I said, not making eye contact.
“Okay, fine. Tuesday.”
I nodded, although I wasn’t committing to anything.
When I had accepted the job at Chatter PR, I had informed Justin that I would be balancing my time at the club with my time in the office.
They didn’t expect to see me often, and I was grateful for that.
However, now that they’d offered me a partnership, I suspected that was going to change.
I still hadn’t given Justin my answer because I honestly didn’t know what I wanted to do.
Trent paid me a good salary to manage his club, and truth be told, I enjoyed my role there.
I wasn’t sure I was ready to give it up, but I feared that was a decision I would have to make if I was going to take on a responsibility of this magnitude.
I waited for him to walk away before I stepped into my office and closed the door.
Although I’d never cared much for a desk job, I did enjoy the atmosphere in the office.
With Addison and Luci flitting around, performing their secretarial duties along with their submissive ones, it was rather interesting to say the least. One thing I’d learned early on in my employment here was that knocking on doors was a must. After the one time I’d walked in on Ben and Addison—he’d had her strapped down to his desk—I knew it was a requirement going forward.
The memory had me thinking about Jamie, imagining what she’d look like strapped to my desk.
Now that’s a nice fantasy. Got any rope handy?
I shook off the thought because it wasn’t going to happen. Not here. Not with Zeke only a short distance away.
Oh, so now he’s the only reason? What happened to her being a virgin? Her being twelve years younger? Not a submissive?
I gripped my head, squeezed. I needed that fucking voice to go away. I was beginning to doubt my sanity, and it was starting to piss me off. The only time the voice seemed to be quiet was when I was with Jamie and Cav.
There you go. Spend more time with them. Less time with me.
I took a seat at my desk and dialed Cav’s number.
“What’s up?” he greeted.
“I’m working at the club tonight. Thought maybe you’d stop in.”
There was a brief pause, followed by, “What exactly did you have in mind?”
After our encounter on Tuesday night, Cav and I hadn’t seen much of each other. I wasn’t sure if he was avoiding me or if life was simply getting in the way, but it felt as though something was lingering between us.
A knock sounded on the door, and I glanced up. “Come in.”
I expected to see Jamie, but it was Cav staring back at me, the phone to his ear. He smirked, then disconnected the call and stepped inside.
“Figured you didn’t realize I was in the building.”
I set my phone on the desk and leaned back in my chair. “I didn’t.” I motioned him in. “How’s it going for you?”
“Good. They got me set up in my own office, and Zeke’s asked me to manage Heather and Lance.”
“What do you think of them?”
Like Jamie, seeing Cav made me realize how much I missed him.
If I had my way, I’d be spending a lot more time with them both, but at the moment, I needed the space.
Being that Jamie was new to the scene—not to mention a virgin and, yes, twelve years younger than me—a slow pace was a requirement for her.
Not an easy feat when I wanted her so fucking badly.