Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 68354 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 342(@200wpm)___ 273(@250wpm)___ 228(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68354 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 342(@200wpm)___ 273(@250wpm)___ 228(@300wpm)
It doesn’t matter. None of it really matters. All that matters is that I’m doing the best I can to hold us together.
I go to my room and get dressed for Verge.
I need a phone.
I need to pay rent.
I need some rest.
And I need to get Liam Alexander out of my mind.
I whisper a silent prayer. Until recently, this all seemed so possible. So promising.
And now all I’ve got is a proposition from an asshole to sell myself to him like a fucking whore.
But as I sit in the car on the way to Verge, my mind begins to wander.
What would it mean to be his submissive for eight weeks?
What would he expect of me?
No one ever needs to know…
I shake my head when I get out at the club. I can’t let myself be swayed by this temptation. I make my way to the entrance, I knock, then smile at Geoff when he answers.
“Cora. Nice to see you.”
“Hey. How’s Giada doing? I heard she was under a major deadline and no one’s seen her.”
“She’s good,” he says. “But am I ever ready for her to get this book in already. I’ve hardly seen her.” Giada is his girlfriend, and she’s a writer. Occasionally she gets caught under a deadline and goes missing for days at a time, totally consumed with her work. Geoff puts up with it, and even though he grumbles, he’s proud of her. We all are. She and Chandra are excellent writers, and I love when we get to display their new books at Marla’s store.
“How are you?” he asks. And there’s something in his tender tone that makes a lump rise in my throat. I’m so wound up, someone I hardly know has me near tears with the most common of pleasantries.
“I’m good,” I say, ducking my head so he doesn’t see the tears well in my eyes. “Gotta get to work.” I step quickly past him and nearly collide into Braxton and Zoe in the waiting area.
“I’m not gonna do it,” she says. “No way, no how.”
“Do what?” I ask. Zoe’s standing with her hands on her hips squaring off to Braxton. She’s little, but the girl’s a spitfire.
“A demonstration,” Zoe says, her black hair falling on her forehead when she looks at me. “The people scheduled to demonstrate tonight are sick, and everyone’s come here for a show.” She waves a hand in the direction of the bar entrance behind her. “It’s full in there.”
“Who was scheduled to demonstrate what?”
“Beatrice and Zack were demonstrating the flogger,” Zoe supplies. “But Beatrice got a stomach bug, and you know Zack. He doesn’t scene with anyone else, ever. So Brax is trying to talk me into it, and a public demonstration is just not my thing.” My pulse races at the sound of the word flogger. It sounds terrible. Flogging is like a hard whipping or something, right? Zoe gives Brax a coy look. “Not to mention the fact that I enjoy the flogger on bare skin, and that ain’t happening in front of anyone else.”
Is she mad?
Brax sighs and looks heavenward, shaking his head.
“Aww. Well I’m sure Tobias will find someone.” I feel bad for Zoe but can’t imagine doing something like that myself.
“Find someone to do what?”
No.
I know that voice, and I want him to leave. A petty, juvenile part of me wants to take my ball and go home.
I was here first!
My skin prickles at the sound of the familiar voice behind me, and when I turn, there he is. No longer in his suit, he’s wearing black club attire, bare, tattooed arms folded across his chest, feet planted apart. Tonight, he isn’t wearing a mask, though, and he’s staring right at me.
“Cora,” he greets with a nod.
“Liam,” I respond coolly.
“Oh, hey, Liam,” Zoe says, like he’s just some guy who dropped by for a drink and not Liam Alexander, filthy rich asshole and dream destroyer.
“Hey,” he says with a nod.
Brax explains. “Tobias had a demonstration planned tonight, and people have been looking forward to it, but Beatrice is sick, and Zack won’t scene with just anyone. I was trying to convince Zoe to do it with me.” He rolls his eyes at her. “And she’s not into it.” He mutters under his breath, “But if she continues being so ornery, we’ll have a private session soon.”
Zoe’s cheeks flush a little and she juts her chin out but doesn’t respond.
“What type of demonstration?” Liam drawls in that sexy voice of his.
Oh my God. He is not considering this! I can’t… I won’t… just no. Demonstrations usually take place in the dungeon, I think? But the thought of him wielding a flogger on another girl…
Why does that bother me?
Ha. It doesn’t. I’m just wound up from today.
But it does.
“Flogger,” Brax says. “And it’s no free will offering, either. Tobias has been promoting demonstrations, and the turnout tonight’s pretty solid. There’s a damn good payout for the demo.”