Chapter Twenty-Three
It was just the four of them, and that’s how she wanted it.
Maybe because Matt spent so much time with them, and by that, so did she, Gina felt comfortable attending the party with his bandmates.
He glanced around the VIP space, fondly remembering when the room was almost too small to accommodate them all.
The days when nine princes reigned were all but gone.
Nothing lasts forever.
Dillon had been licking his wounds in Dublin for more than a month now.
Understandably, Linnea opted to remain at home.
Kodiak said Kelly refused to watch her niece put herself on display, which made Matt wonder what Katie and Brendan had planned.
Bo and Ava surprised everyone, taking off to city hall to get married a few weeks ago.
They were down in Florida on a “familymoon” with Emery.
Monica and Danielle’s son came down with a bug, so they bailed.
Chloe was watching Declan for Katie, as well as her own two, and Taylor and Jesse wouldn’t come without her.
So, that left him and Gina, with Kit and Sloan on either side of them, swallowed up in cushions of deep plum silk on a U-shaped sofa that was far too big for the four of them.
Kyan’s spirit was here, though. Matt could feel it.
The ghosts of yesterday didn’t exist for Gina.
To her, the Red Door was novel and wondrous.
Awestruck by the club’s decadent splendor, he watched her curious gaze drift up to the polished wood beams, suspended by chains from the ceiling, and travel down the filmy drapery hanging from them, which provided privacy from the neighboring space beside it.
Much like a child’s first trip to Disneyland, Matt wanted the experience to be special for her, and it delighted him to see the excitement in her eyes as she took it all in.
“Where does that go?” she asked and pointed to the grand imperial staircase on the other side of the club.
“Up and to the right takes you to a bar and dance floor. See it?”
“Yeah.” Nodding, she pursed her lips. “How come nobody’s dancing?”
“It’s early yet.” Matt threw his arm around her and squeezed her shoulder. “Come midnight, you won’t even be able to get in there.”
“People don’t go up there to dance, Trouble,” Sloan said from beside her. He stretched his arms and laced his fingers behind his head. “They’re on the prowl for someone to fuck.”
With a shake of her glossy mane, she tsked. “So crude.”
“You do know where you are, don’t you?” Beneath his trendy bespoke blazer with its floral brocade and satin lapels, Sloan ran his fingers up and down his oiled chest. Tailored slim-fit trousers. Hermès loafers. The dude was obviously looking to get laid tonight.
“Is that how you do it, Sloan—dance?”
That’s my girl.
Not put off by his snark, Gina met him quip for quip.
“The only way I dance is horizontal, pizza girl.” And he winked at her as if he needed to make sure she understood what he was implying. “Your man there is the hunter—or was, I guess I should say. I’ve never had to chase down pussy. It comes to me.”
“Christ, you’re so full of yourself.”
“Nah.” He laid his head on her shoulder, and looking up at her with an innocent face, Sloan batted his lashes. “But I am a very talented dancer.”
“Dick.” She burst out laughing and swatted him.
“Yeah, I’m that, too.”
Chuckling at their banter, Matt shook his head. “Club staff offices are to the left.”
“What’s downstairs?”
“Uh, themed playrooms, the dungeon—”
“Dungeon?” Her pretty eyes went wide, pupils dilating, but Matt wasn’t sure if it was because of excitement or alarm. He thought he’d prepared her for what she’d find here, but then again, maybe not.
“It’s not a medieval torture chamber, dear,” Sloan said with an eye roll and patted her thigh.
Holding her close, Matt pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. “The dungeon is an area that’s set up and equipped for BDSM play.”
“Oh, like Christian Grey’s red room.”
Sloan snorted.
“Not the best comparison, but yeah, something like that.”
“Is your playpen down there, too, Kit?” Gina asked, trying to engage with him. He’d been mopey and quiet, which wasn’t particularly unusual, but she didn’t know that.
“Yeah.”
All she got for her efforts was one syllable spoken with a glum sigh.
“You’ll be all right, bassy boy.” Sloan leaned over him and Gina to pinch Kit’s cheek. “Just take it to the alcoves.”
Trying to be inconspicuous, the blonde server who waited on them the last time he was here slipped inside their space—what was her name again? The only thing Matt recalled was Sloan making a big deal about her saying y’all.
She opened a bottle of champagne and set platters of the typical club fare on the low table for them to nosh on. Strawberries covered in rich, dark chocolate. Figs drenched in honey. Caviar. Melon balls and pomegranates.
Kit smiled at her, which Matt found odd considering he hardly ever did. “Thanks, Savannah.”
That’s right. Savannah from Denver.
“I’ll be right back to set up your bottle service.” Friendlier than last time, she smiled back. “Will you be having the usual?”
“You know it.”
The fuck?
Was that a grin? Matt could see the dimples in Kit’s cheeks, and hell, he almost forgot the dude had them.
“Wait.” His hand went up, halting the server’s departure. “What do you like, Gina?”
“Don’t worry about me. I’m good with champagne.”
“Glenlivet it is then,” Kit said with gusto.
“Of course.” The girl locked eyes with Gina. “Your private bar is stocked, but let me know if you change your mind. I can have the mixologist whip up something special.”
“Hey, what’s with the new fit?” Sloan took hold of Savannah’s forearm before she could make her exit.
A transparent deep plum had replaced the black thong getup.
She didn’t flinch. “Ask your friend. He had them custom-designed, I hear. I just put on what they tell me to.”
“You match the furniture.” And he let her go, sitting back against the cushions with a smirk.
“Yeah, so we blend in.”
Hardly. With her nipples, not to mention every inch of nubile skin showing through, there was no blending in wearing that.
Matt couldn’t help but notice that neither Kit nor Sloan could take their gaze off the girl as she left the room, and it didn’t escape him they were on more familiar terms with each other compared to the night they last held court down in the big purple booth.
He realized then, and it surprised him, six months had gone by since he’d been here, and of the nine princes, only two were left to claim.
“Yowza.” Once Savannah was out of view and out of earshot, Sloan reached for the bottle of iced champagne. “That girl’s got a magnificent pair of—”
“Didn’t I tell you to stop talking about Savannah like that?” And the bassist’s hand came down on the empty cushion beside him.
“Like what?”
“Like an object.” With her jaw going slack, Gina gave her head a little shake. “You’re sexualizing her. It’s disgusting and dehumanizing.”
“You have forgotten where you are.” Sloan poured a glass of champagne and put it in her hand. “The human body is a most incredible work of art, and I can appreciate its beauty. No need to get so butthurt, Trouble. I think your tits are gorgeous, too.”
“You really are a dick.”
“Yeah, well, we’ve already established that now, haven’t we?” And he clinked his glass with hers. “Cheers.”
They squabbled like siblings, and it warmed his heart to see it.
His bandmates—his brothers—were his only family in the world, and therefore an extension of himself.
Matt wanted his boys not only to accept Gina but to love her in the same way they’d all come to love Linnea, Chloe, Katie, Ava, and Kelly.
Fiercely, unquestionably, and without hesitation.
Gina took a sip of champagne, then let out a sigh. “So, now what?”
“Now, we relax and get comfy.” Matt pulled her against him a little closer, leaving a trail of kisses on her skin. “Eat a little. Drink a little.”
“And we wait for the entertainment to begin,” Sloan said, waggling his brows.
She looked up at him, hazel eyes blinking, as if she wasn’t sure what that meant.
Her na?veté showing, Matt reminded himself that Gina’s only actual experience was with him.
That selfish buffoon who couldn’t even get her off didn’t count.
Responsive and willing, it was only now that she was discovering her true sexual self.
He wasn’t selfish. As the man who loved her, he’d be the one to guide her, teach her, and show her every conceivable pleasure her body was capable of.
“Like I said, bunny, we’re early.” Discreetly, he grazed her nipple. “Pretty soon there’ll be demos to watch on the platform down on the main floor.”
Sloan leaned into her ear. “Don’t worry, you’ll get a close-up view on the jumbo screen.”
“What’s a demo?” she asked.
Sloan snickered. “Think about it.”
“The Red Door is more than just a sex club.” His thumb remained on her nipple, and she didn’t seem to mind.
Not so discreetly anymore, Matt traced circles as he explained, because fuck, he needed her to get it.
“It’s a safe space, a venue where people can be free from shame to explore and connect in enthusiastic, consensual ways, no matter where their interests lie.
See, every single one of us is unique. Some folks are into BDSM; others might like pet play or femme domme worship.
And those are just a few examples. There’s a wide variety of kinks and fetishes. ”
“Your man here thinks he’s a dog,” Sloan said, then lifted his gaze toward the ceiling. “Woof-woof.”
“A demo is education disguised as entertainment. It’s an open house tonight, so there’ll be some vetted guests here as well as standing members.
” At least Kit was attempting to be informative.
“You wouldn’t want someone tying you up or wielding a paddle on your ass if they didn’t know how to do it properly. ”
“It’s a learned skill. Takes practice.” Holding onto Gina’s hand, Sloan winked. “I’m good with a whip, too.”
“Err, um, I think I’ll pass.”
“Sex-positive doesn’t just mean acceptance, baby.” Smoothing her hair, Matt pressed a kiss to her lips. “Yes, we’re judgment-free, but safe and consensual is a huge component, so education is of the utmost importance.”
“Brendan even holds classes here,” Kit said, nodding.
“On how to tie people up?”
“Among other things.” He chuckled. “And it’s called Shibari—Japanese bondage.”
“Oh.”
Savannah returned with their Glenlivet and, without a word, stationed herself close by.
The tables on the main floor, now filled with familiar faces, some dressed to the nines, and some wearing fetish attire, had their gazes on the platform, waiting for the show to begin.
Montages of demos past played on the jumbo screen, whetting their appetites.
Brendan had quite the crowd here tonight. With the smell of sex already in the air, Matt watched the guests stroke and fondle each other while he toyed with Gina’s nipple. Christ, he needed to be inside her. He got pumped up thinking of all the things they could explore here together.
She had a curious mind. Matt paid attention to her breathing, the dilation of her pupils, and made a note of what appeared to excite her.
Rough fingering and fisting didn’t surprise him.
They’d been working up to it and were almost there.
And as much as Gina protested to Sloan, she bit her lip when she saw the paddle.
A little impact play, perhaps? I like it.
But while watching a scene of a girl with a harem of men pleasuring her, Gina audibly gasped. Chuckling, Matt pinched her nipple. He could make that happen for her, too.
She wore the little white dress he’d found that day in the boutique window. He could see her dusky nipples, hard and swollen, through the fabric. His boys could see them, too. He’d seen them looking.
Brendan and Katie walked onto the raised platform.
Matt lowered the strap of Gina’s dress, exposing her bare breast, and she let him.
“Here we go, bunny.”
“What are they gonna do?”
He bent over and kissed the creamy swell of her breast. “No one touches his wife. Ever. Only him. He’ll let you watch, though.”
“You get to see your friend get her guts rearranged by Brendan’s monster cock.” Sloan squeezed the flesh just above her knee. “Katie gets off when people watch.”
“Have you?” she asked, staring up at him, her hazel eyes big and round.
“Have I what?”
“Watched them.”
“Fuck yeah.” He moved her hand to the bulge in his pants. “I like to watch.”
She squeezed. “Wow, that’s so kinky.”
“We’re all kinky, bunny. Some of us just hide it better.”
“Bren used to do demos all the time—he’s a master. He only does them with Katie now,” Kit said, his gaze fixed on the jumbo screen. “Katie’s a subbie. She gets off by pleasing him, too.”
“I see.”
No, she really didn’t.
Not yet.
But she would.
Gina was watching, too. “God, they’re hot together.”
And they were.
Naked but for strands of pearls that circled her neck and hung over her breasts, Katie kneeled upon a bed draped in sumptuous, deep plum satin, assuming the Nabu position.
With her back straight, she placed her upturned palms on her thighs spread wide to signify her willingness and desire to please her master.
“It’s because they love each other so much—you can see it. He adores her. She worships him.”
Then, the spreader bar came out.
“I don’t think I can watch.”
“You don’t have to, my darling.” And he slipped the other strap off her shoulder. “We can distract you.”
“How?” she asked. Panting, she watched Brendan attach the cuffs to his wife’s ankles.
Oh, I think my baby likes that. Matt decided then and there he was going to get one to bring home.
“Let us worship you.”
“You want to worship me?”
I do. Forever and always.
“Yeah.” He pushed her white lace thong to the side, the intoxicating scent of her arousal making his mouth water. “Just like the video that soaked these pretty panties.”
“Be bold, Trouble, remember?” Laying his head on her shoulder, Sloan ran his fingers through the lips of her wet pussy. Hearing her whimper only made Matt’s dick even harder. “You should try everything at least once.”
“But what if I like it?”
She already did. He could tell.
“God, I adore you.” Matt took her mouth with his, kissing her with everything in him. She deserved to experience every pleasure. “I want you to like it, baby.”
She nodded.
“You’ve got to say it, bunny.”
And she did.
“Worship me.”