CHAPTER 13 #3
I followed him as he wandered through the club, peering into every room before clicking off the lights as he went.
Rather than go down to the dungeon, I had waited on the main floor while he took care of shutting it down.
When he returned, I was skimming through my phone, hoping to find a message from Jamie.
Nothing.
“You ever figure out what you’re going to do about living arrangements?” he asked, drawing my attention away from my text messages.
I shook my head, shoved my phone in my pocket. “Not sure yet. Called a Realtor yesterday.”
“Buying a house?”
“I’m considering it.”
“Ben told me you turned him down for the apartment across the hall,” Edge said as we stepped out of the club, into the dark, cold night. The wind had picked up, and I hadn’t bothered with a coat.
I hefted my toy bag on my shoulder, then waited while Edge closed and locked the main door.
“Haven’t marked it off completely,” I admitted. “I told him I’d consider it. Not my first choice, though.”
Edge glanced my way, lifting the collar of his coat as we walked to the parking garage. “Why not?”
“Seemed like an invasion of your privacy. You don’t need me lingering next door.”
“What if I wanted you to?”
“Do you?”
Edge stopped, then turned to face me. “To be honest, I’d prefer to have you in my bed, but I figured that would be inappropriate to request.”
“Why?”
“I’m not a presumptuous man, Cav. You of all people know that.”
No, he wasn’t.
“It’s an option,” he said softly. “Always an option.”
I nodded, started walking again.
While the idea of sleeping in his bed wasn’t a bad one, I wasn’t up for living with him.
Spending the night on occasion was all good and fine.
But I preferred my independence, and until I got a grasp on where my life was headed, I didn’t want to take a leap like that.
But I did need to find somewhere other than the hotel.
It was a little too stiff and formal for my taste.
Edge grinned. “If I’m the only reason you’re thinking about passing on the apartment, I suggest you take it.”
“I’ll think about it.” I feigned indifference. “But I’m not gonna pass up the chance to check out the real estate.”
“Can’t blame you there,” Edge said, his eyes assessing as they passed over me. “Everything all right?”
No, it wasn’t. Jamie had disappeared tonight without speaking to me, and it didn’t sit well. But I wasn’t in the mood to hash it out with Edge. The man was not in the habit of being honest and forthcoming about his feelings, so I expected him to shrug it off.
“All good,” I lied.
He glanced over at his truck. “I gotta head out. I’ll talk to you tomorrow?”
I nodded in response, then stood there, surprised when Edge walked away without looking back.
He seemed to be in a hurry.
With a sigh, I headed toward my truck. Before I backed out of the space, I shot off another text to Jamie, asking if she was all right.
She hadn’t answered mine from earlier, and I didn’t like the fact that she’d left without saying anything to anyone.
Then again, I had tried to convince Edge to give her a heads-up as to the outline for the class beforehand, but he had refused.
Said something about how I was right, she deserved to attend the class and go through the motions like any other submissive.
And while I had said that, yes, I didn’t mean it quite like that. I’d been shocked when Edge informed me I would not be one of the training Masters but rather on the panel.
By the time I arrived at my hotel, Jamie hadn’t answered my text, and I was getting a little worried. However, it was late, and I figured she was tired. I knew she’d had class that morning and then the club tonight, so it would’ve been a long day for her.
When I got to my room, I tossed my bag on my bed and beelined for the shower, my thoughts on the roster for the training class.
I had memorized who Jamie was assigned to.
This week, she would be with Master Chaos and Mistress Cameron.
Since I knew Timothy well, understood his motivations, I wasn’t worried about him.
He would take care with Jamie, as he did with all the submissives he encountered.
After losing his wife years ago, the man had never settled down with another submissive, and I was starting to wonder if he ever would.
As for Mistress Cameron… The sadistic Dominatrix would be good for Jamie to spend some time with.
It would help her understand the vast difference between a Sadist and a Dominant.
Next week, she would be paired with Master Kaylen, then Mistress D.
I didn’t know Kaylen well, so I couldn’t form much of an opinion.
Mistress D would likely be a good test for Jamie, not to mention a chance to see a Dominatrix who took no shit from anyone.
Following them would be Liam for the first part of week three, then a one-time double pairing with Mistress X and Nash.
I knew I would have to keep an eye on Liam.
Since Edge and I agreed we would not broadcast our interest in Jamie, I couldn’t say which direction the big Irishman would go, but he was the sort who went through subs like underwear.
The final week, Jamie would be under the watchful eye of Ransom Bishop, who we’d all learned was a true test for most submissives.
Considering he was a hardcore Sadist with extremely high expectations, he took an entire week for himself.
Fortunately for me, the man was gay, so I had little to worry about with him and Jamie.
And while I’d memorized the roster and assessed each and every Master, I did not like the idea of Jamie being with any of them.
I wanted her with me, and I was beginning to regret my suggestion for Jamie to join the class.
It was all on me, though. Edge would’ve easily kept her out of it if I hadn’t pushed so hard.
“Deal with it,” I muttered as I shut off the water and reached for a towel.
After drying off, I pulled on sweatpants, then grabbed my phone. I shot another text to Jamie, waited a few minutes, then called Edge when I didn’t get a response.
“Yeah?” he said by way of greeting.
“You try getting in touch with Jamie?”
“I did. I texted her. She hasn’t responded.”
“Same here.” Perhaps I should go to her apartment just to ensure she was all right.
“Let it be for the night,” Edge said as though he could read my mind.
“What if—”
“She’s fine,” he assured me. “She has to come to terms with the rules of the class.”
“And if she doesn’t?”
Edge didn’t answer and that said it all. If Jamie couldn’t make it through the class, she wasn’t going to be the right submissive for either of us, much less both of us. At least as far as Edge was concerned.
“Does it bother you?” I asked.
“What?”
“Her being with all of them?”
“It doesn’t matter if it bothers me,” he said firmly. “You were right. She needs to see what it’s like to be with a variety. Needs the experience.”
“You do understand what this means, right?”
Edge growled. “I fucking know what it means, Cav.”
“And you’re okay with it? You’re okay with the possibility of Jamie fucking another Dom?”
“No, goddammit! I’m not okay with it.”
“Then why—”
“Fucking let it go, Cav.”
The call disconnected, and I stared at the darkened screen.
This was not going the way I’d thought it would. A couple of dates, some erotic interludes, and suddenly Edge was setting Jamie up with a slew of Dominants who would have every right to touch her however they wanted during the class. Fuck her even.
The thought of one of them fucking her… It had a red haze clouding my vision.
Maybe that was what Edge wanted. At least then she wouldn’t be a virgin anymore.
I growled, squeezed my phone, then dropped it before I shattered the screen.
“Son of a bitch.”