He allowed his gaze to drift over the taut, firm muscles of Cole’s bare back and as with any morning, Luke appreciated that he was able to wake up to someone as incredibly sexy as Cole. The man had the ability to turn him on like a fucking switch and this morning was apparently no different than any other.
“What are you doing up?” Luke asked, forcing his thoughts from sex and back to what his plans were for the day.
“Alex asked me to go meet with Carson Throckmorton this morning,” Cole answered, sipping his coffee. Luke felt Cole’s eyes on him, which didn’t help the current state he was in.
“What time?”
“Ten,” Cole said as he stood from the bar stool before carrying his cup back to the sink and rinsing it. “What are your plans for the day?”
Luke wasn’t quite sure what his plans were. He knew he needed to go to the club. He needed to have a conversation with Serena, better known as Mistress Serena, before Trent Ramsey made another appearance. From what he heard, the two of them went toe to toe the night they’d allowed the Walker brothers to visit the club. It hadn’t been a good run in either, or at least that’s the story he’d gotten. With Serena, he had absolutely no idea. The woman was in a league all her own, and for a man who didn’t get scared easily, she sometimes freaked Luke out.
“I’m going to talk to Serena and Kane today.” Luke needed to talk to Cole, but he wanted to do it at the club, he just wasn’t sure how to go about bringing up the subject yet. Convincing his lover to quit his full time job and come help him manage the club wasn’t an easy conversation to instigate. He wasn’t sure how Cole would take the request, so he kept putting it off.
“Well, once I’m done with my meeting I’ll come back and keep Sierra company.” The grin that split Cole’s too handsome face quickly forced the weariness from his brain and got his blood pumping. That mischievous glint in Cole’s eyes said he had something much more compelling than an afternoon of meetings planned.
“Speaking of,” Luke began, glancing down the hall to their bedroom, checking to see if Sierra was awake yet. “You think she’s doing all right?”
“Why?” Cole looked perplexed as he turned to face him, standing just a few feet away. “I don’t know, I’m sure it’s the pregnancy,” Luke admitted, turning away to face the counter again. Luke knew Sierra was more fatigued than usual, she’d told him as much. But for some reason he wasn’t sure that was all it was with her.
Cole’s intoxicating scent drifted his way, and Luke damn near dropped his coffee. He wasn’t sure what the hell was going on with him these days, but he couldn’t seem to get enough of him. They both had too much to do today for him to get something started. He damn sure wouldn’t survive not being able to finish it. After the last time the two of them had been alone upstairs, Luke had been hoping for a repeat.
Only he was hoping for something a little different.
Maybe.
Shit.
“Are you ok?” Cole’s smooth, rich voice slid around him at the same time his warm hands pressed against his back.
Luke let out an involuntary hiss at the feel of those smooth, yet callused fingers against his skin. When Cole leaned in closer, tucking his chin in the crook of Luke’s shoulder, pulling his head back slightly, he damn near saw stars. He was getting bolder these days, and Luke would be damned if he didn’t love the hell out of it. He just wanted to give in to Cole, to give in to whatever the man wanted to take from him, only he feared that’s not what Cole wanted.
Luke had his own fears as well, but they revolved more around giving too much of himself away. Those demons were still lingering, still fresh in his mind, even if Sierra and Cole had managed to alleviate the worst of his fears over the last several months.
But he also feared that by taking, or rather giving in this case, what he needed, he would be taking something away from Cole. He knew by the way that Cole reacted to him just how much he expected Luke to be the dominant one. And for the most part that’s what Luke preferred as well. It was only recently that he’d started thinking about something else.
Something more.
Cole nipped his earlobe and Luke growled, reaching behind him and gripping Cole’s head, holding him close and absorbing his body heat against his back. Fuck. This was two seconds from getting out of control, and the feel of Cole’s thick cock pressing against his ass wasn’t helping matters at all.
“You don’t have time to start this,” Luke warned, but Cole didn’t pull away.
To his shock, Cole tilted Luke’s head to the side until their mouths hovered close together. The feel of Cole’s bare chest against his back, his strong hand planted in the center of Luke’s chest, the other holding his chin firmly had his entire body gearing up for what he knew would come next. Only his natural reaction was to control it, so why he didn’t try to pull out of Cole’s arms, he had no idea. Sliding his hand through Cole’s hair, he allowed the man to bite his lower lip before sucking it into his mouth.
“Fuck.” It was Cole’s turn to growl, the vibration in his chest sending a torrent of pleasure coursing through Luke’s veins, which in turn had all of his blood heading south.
“Don’t do this,” Luke warned, reaching for some measure of sanity. He couldn’t let Cole take control. It wasn’t in him to let anyone take control. He didn’t care if he trusted Cole with his life, he still wasn’t about to let him see him weak.
“You want it,” Cole whispered. “You know you do.”
Luke didn’t respond. He remained stone still, feeling Cole’s breath feather over his lips. Fuck. He wanted to kiss him senseless and then bend him over the fucking table and take him like a mad man. That’s how hot Cole made him.
“See, that’s where you’re wrong,” Luke growled, gripping Cole’s hair tighter. “I won’t deny wanting you,” Luke managed to turn slightly, “but never mistake who’s in control here.”
Cole let go, taking a step back but still meeting his stare. Luke turned fully to face him, then stalked him across the kitchen like a jungle animal set free, only Cole didn’t back up. He was exerting even more of his dominance than Luke was used to. Like usual, he didn’t succumb to Luke’s demands. At least not at first.
“Just remember, you started this,” Luke smiled, leaning in and biting Cole’s lip the same way he’d done to him seconds before. “And I’m going to finish it.”
“I’m counting on it,” Cole said, kissing him briefly before turning and walking out of the room without looking back.
Rubbing his cock through his jeans, Luke trailed Cole with his eyes until he disappeared around the corner. Sonuvabitch. It was going to be a long fucking day.
~~*~~
“Did you notice that Dylan’s here again?” Luke asked Logan as they stood in his office at the club staring down at the small group growing bigger by the minute.
Club Destiny was popular on Friday and Saturday nights, but in recent months, Monday’s had become quite busy. Probably for the fact that Luke made Monday’s karaoke night despite Logan’s extreme distaste for that decision.
Logan joined him beside the window and glanced down at the bar. Luke watched as Dylan held up a hand motioning for Lucie to bring another drink. From where he stood, it was clear that the man wasn’t drinking water. Whatever it was, he was doing doubles, and he was rapid firing them as soon as Lucie handed them over.
Luke couldn’t help but think that Dylan’s day was going about as shitty as his own. Not only had Trent postponed their morning meeting to the evening, Luke had the pleasure of sitting in a room with a decidedly unhappy Domme for the better part of an hour. Serena didn’t talk often, but when she did, it was hard to get her to stop. He didn’t mind for the most part because he truly needed to know what was going on between her and Trent Ramsey.
As it turned out, after sixty minutes of continuous chatter on her part, Luke had learned nothing.
“Something wrong with him? Besides the obvious?” Luke asked, watching as Lucie handed Dylan another g
lass, nearly half full with clear liquid. It didn’t take long for him to down that one. He had to be feeling good and numb by now. When he called Lucie over again, this time she had the proper sense to ignore him momentarily and shoot a glance up at the window. Luke knew she couldn’t see him, but he could see her.
“You want to go talk to him?”
“Not really, no,” Luke admitted.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to talk to Dylan, but he knew the man was going through a tough time right now. The anniversary of his wife’s death was never an easy day, and although Luke didn’t want Dylan to pass out cold on his bar floor, he knew someone had to go talk to him.
“Fine,” Logan said, turning to walk away.
“Hey,” Luke called to Logan, turning to face his identical twin brother. “Why the hell are you here anyway?”
The grin Logan tossed at him said Luke wasn’t going to like the answer.
“I heard you were supposed to meet with Trent. I knew by your mood when I walked in that it hadn’t happened yet.” Logan didn’t look nearly as pleased with himself as the words came out.
“He should be here any minute. You might want to go talk to Dylan, or I’m tempted to force you to hang out with us.”
“Oh, hell no. Give me the drunk guy any day,” Logan responded at the same time there was a knock on Luke’s office door. Before he could call out to whoever it was, the door opened and in walked Trent. Somehow Logan managed to slip out of the room without even having to talk to him.
Bastard.
Luke had been expecting Trent for a while now, and like usual, the man seemed to keep his own schedule, the rest of them be damned. Ever since the night he gave a tour of the club to the Walker brothers, Trent had been pacing like a caged tiger. It was clear he had something on his mind.
“What brings you slummin’?” Luke greeted Trent with the question as he moved closer to his desk. He wasn’t sure he wanted to sit just yet. At six-foot-five-inches, Luke was by far a small man; however, it was interesting because even though Trent was probably an inch or two shorter, he was larger. Strangely, he was bigger both in size and personality. It explained why he was in the industry that he was in.
“Slummin’?” Trent laughed, his deep, raspy voice sounding oddly jovial and putting Luke’s back up.
What was he up to?
Luke, Logan, and Trent went way back. Although Trent was five or six years younger, the three of them had somehow forged a friendship prior to Club Destiny’s inception. Theirs was one of those friendships that coincidentally happened – right place, right time and all that. The three of them shared the same unique appreciation of adult clubs and many years later, here they were.
With the help of Trent’s and Logan’s capital, along with almost every penny Luke had in savings at the time, the club had been born. Going into it, the three of them knew they had bigger dreams than just creating a public bar.
Their intention was to create and expand a fetish club into something much bigger than what Club Destiny even was today. Considering recent events, they seemed to be moving in the opposite direction which had obviously pulled Trent out from behind the scenes.
“You bring the paparazzi with you?” Luke asked before deciding to drop into his chair. Hell, he wasn’t intimidated by Trent, and if the man wanted to loom over him like he had all of the control in this situation, he’d let him.
“Let’s hope not,” Trent sighed, finally taking the seat across from Luke. The more days that passed, the calmer Trent became at least in comparison to that first phone conversation they’d had when Trent insisted Luke open the doors to the club once more. He hadn’t been happy when Luke told him that wasn’t going to happen. At least not yet.
“How’d you manage that?”
Trent held up a baseball cap and a pair of sunglasses.
“Does that normally work?” Luke asked, laughing.
Trent Ramsey was one of the hottest actors on the scene at the moment. Being a hot commodity didn’t allow for much anonymity; therefore, Trent had never out and out shared his interest in the club only because of the fact he didn’t want to bring the press down on them. Luke was pretty sure that was going to be a thing of the past now that Trent had decided to jump back into the game so to speak.
“Most of the time, yes,” Trent answered. “It helps that I sent a decoy out early this morning, and I’m pretty sure they’re hot on his tail by now.”
“I’d tell you I’m impressed with your evasive skills, but I’d be lying,” Luke said sternly, working to get them to the topic he knew Trent came to talk about. “If you came by to insist that I reopen the club, it’s not going to work.”
Trent’s handsome features changed from lighthearted to serious in the blink of an eye.
“When?”
“When what?” Luke decided to play ignorant. He’d had more than his fair share of these conversations with Trent in the last few months. He didn’t want to have another one. Not today, not tomorrow, not ever.
Club Destiny was his fucking club, and he made the decisions on whether the doors remained open or not. With Logan standing behind him on his choice, Luke knew he could make any decision he chose. Without a doubt, he knew his brother, as well as Sierra and Cole, would support him regardless of whether they agreed with him entirely or not. And between him and Logan, they still owned the majority of the shares.
“How much longer are you going to keep the doors closed?”
“Don’t know.” Since he had wiped out all of the previous members with the exception of a few, Luke wasn’t sure it actually would matter whether he opened the doors or not at this point.
“I think we need to put a plan together. We can’t keep them closed forever. We’ve got an opportunity to take this to the next level,” Trent said seriously. “It’s time we amp up our game.”
“We don’t have any competition in this, remember? It’s a private adult club. How the hell do you propose we do that? Advertise?” Luke could see it now: a billboard shining bright over one of Dallas’ main thoroughfares letting the great city know about the fetish club equipped with its very own dominatrix.
Not gonna happen.
“Not exactly what I was thinking.”
“Then what were you thinking?”
In all honesty, Luke had given significant thought to what he wanted to do with the club. He didn’t go into this business to manage a night club, but that seemed to be where he was at the moment.
With the fetish club seemingly nonexistent for the time being, he was spinning his wheels trying to come up with a plan. He’d even hired Kane Steele full time to work on growing their membership, but until Luke figured out what he wanted to do with the club, Kane couldn’t do much of anything more than conduct background checks and extensive research on the applications they were receiving. He had to be getting bored at this point, Luke knew.
“How are we going to fare against the Alluring Indulgence resort? Are they our direct competition?” Trent asked.
Luke watched Trent intently. He seemed to be fixated on the Walkers new resort, which amused him somewhat. Until now, Luke hadn’t tried to figure out exactly why Trent was so concerned about an adult resort being built three hundred miles south. Considering Luke was also an investor in the resort, he didn’t see a conflict of interest for himself; however, stepping into Trent’s shoes for a minute, he could certainly see the potential for concern.
“It’s not the same concept. They’re going all out with their resort concept. You know, spa, hotel, convention center. That sort of thing. Their clubs will be the only thing we have in common, but since they have yet to design them that I know of, I seriously doubt they’ll be our competition. On top of that, they’re three hundred miles away.”
“I heard Travis nixed the hotel idea,” Trent added, twisting his hulking body around in the wooden chair across from Luke. The way he continued to tap his sunglasses against his thigh was slightly annoying. It also was a tell for Trent’s anxi
ety level.
“He didn’t nix it entirely. He just opted to change the floor plan so to speak. He’s not building a hotel, rather adding single, standalone bungalows in lieu of. He thinks it’ll give the guests more privacy.”
“Not a bad idea, I have to admit. Have you thought about broadening our scope?”
“Broadening how?”
“The resort concept is a brilliant idea.”
Luke knew Trent was hinting at something, but he was being evasive as usual. Was he interested in expanding on what they had?
Luke tended to subscribe to the “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it” concept. Since their doors were closed, it was obvious something had gone awry, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to start with a different concept. Interesting thought though. He’d have to talk to Cole and get his input. He valued Cole’s opinion as well as Sierra’s over anyone else because he was confident they had his best interest in mind.
“I’m not sure I’m interested in going that route right now,” Luke admitted honestly.
“What if we disconnect the two and let Kane take over running the show here?” Trent asked.
Luke thought about that for a moment. He liked the idea.
He openly would admit that Trent was the most creative of the three of them when it came to the direction they wanted to take the club. In fact, it had been Trent’s proposal to implement the general public bar in order to take some of the interest off of the adult portion of the club. Luke had been left to implement the idea, which he did, and until recently, they hadn’t had any significant road bumps along the way.
“What’s your biggest concern?” Trent asked when Luke didn’t answer his earlier question.
Luke narrowed his eyes at Trent, trying to gauge where he was taking this conversation. “With what?”
Luke wanted Trent to get to the point and he wasn’t interested in putting himself totally out there just yet. Not until he had a chance to talk to Cole.
“Let’s start with the members. I know you eliminated most of them, and it’s obvious the more we try to keep the club hidden, the more we’re going to risk as far as memberships being leaked. What if we go the route that the Walkers are going?”
Devotion (Club Destiny #7) Page 5