“You’re not my mother, Jase. Knock it off, okay?” Attitude was worth a try but probably wouldn’t work today.
Jase held her gaze, waiting for a real answer, a better answer, and Kerri closed her eyes to buy a few minutes. She and Jase were like sisters, friends since grade school. They took care of each other,, ranted and consoled each other when boys or men gave them grief.
“Sit. It’s a long story, and you’ll need a sofa under you for most of it.”
“That good, huh?” Jase sat as Kerri leaned back and situated her legs.
“Honey, you have no idea.” She reached behind her to grab a pillow and hugged it to her queasy stomach. Trying to condense the last twenty-four hours into a reasonable story for her best friend wasn’t going to be easy.
“What do you know about the private club at Velvet Glove?”
Jase’s forehead crease in confusion.
“You really don’t know where you took us last night, do you?”
“It’s just a club. The patrons can be a little extreme, but it’s just a place to hang out and dance.”
Kerri stared at her friend. “Jase, they aren’t just hanging out. They’re meeting people. The costumes you put us in last night are a symbol of a particular lifestyle and worn for a reason. The private club is for people who like bondage.”
“You’re kidding me. I’ve been there a few times with Harvey and his friends. He never said anything about bondage.” Jase shook her head in denial, faith in her boyfriend an absolute.
Jase had an open heart, seeing the good in everyone she met, but it was time for her to grow up and recognize people for who they were.
“Did Harvey take you into the private side of the club?”
“No.” Jase’s frown expressed more than words could.
“Trust me. I know what I saw, what I heard last night. Those people are into tying each other up and having sex.” Kerri almost laughed at the shock on Jase’s face.
Almost.
“What about the guy you went with? Did he, I mean, did you, well, did he—?” Jase stuttered to a stop, her hand over her mouth. The horrified expression was a rare sight. Jase was usually the most unflappable person Kerri knew.
“No.” Kerri sighed and turned the question back on her friend. “Honey, has Harvey ever suggested tying you to the bed or made comments about anything you’re not comfortable doing?”
Jase jerked her head from side to side, eyes narrowed. “No. He’s not like that. He’s always making jokes, dancing and flirting. I don’t think he knows about the private club.” Her head tipped back to rest on the sofa’s high back. “Don’t try to distract me, Kerri Leonard. You were telling me about the guy from last night. More information, please.”
Now the real dilemma began to escalate. She’d made certain promises, but Jase was her one true confidante. “He’s an attorney at Hudson, Handleman, and Meers. I’ve seen him in the hall a few times. You know, the firm where I’m doing my internship.”
“And?”
“And I’ve been admiring him for the past month. He’s nice to look at. The eyes, the hair, the muscles that show even under the suit and tie. He’s a man, not a college student.”
“I can’t argue there, but why him, and why last night?” She shook her head. “It didn’t look like a planned meeting. In fact, I remember you not wanting to go inside at all.”
“I was nervous about seeing him outside the office.”
“That’s not true at all. You mentioned him a few times in the last week. Something strange is going on with you. I’ve never seen you this evasive. Tell me the truth.”
“I’m helping him with a situation at work. I promised him I wouldn’t reveal anything he told me about why he’s going to Velvet Glove.”
Her friend leaned forward, eyes blazing. “That is such a crock, Kerri. This has nothing to do with your internship. Tell me what’s going on with him. You’re acting weird. I’m worried.”
“If I tell you, I need your promise that you won’t tell anyone. We can’t talk about the details, either. You have to trust me completely.”
“What kind of trouble is this guy into? He’s definitely eye candy, but if he’s asking you to hide things from your friends, he can’t be one of the good guys.”
“Jase.” Kerri closed her eyes and took a calming breath, hoping her friend thought she was relaxing when in reality her brain was working frantically to settle on a reasonable explanation. She decided to wing it.
“He’s investigating something at the private club. He hasn’t confided the details because specific knowledge could be dangerous. All I can tell you is that I’m helping with his case and—”
“You are not a private investigator, and you aren’t a lawyer, either. Don’t wreck your life for this guy, Kerri, even if he is hot.”
“I’m not wrecking my life.” Kerri squeezed the pillow tighter to her chest, frustration building. More drama wasn’t what she needed while she tried to reconcile her need for a little adventure with the careful logic she’d studied for the last three years. Stepping out of her comfort zone and into the world Hunter Merritt offered was a draw she couldn’t resist. But she wasn’t ready to confide in Jase. She didn’t want to listen to all the reasons she should walk away from Hunter. “Trust me, Jase. I know what I’m doing. I’ll be fine.”
Jase frowned, creasing her forehead in the worst way until she reached up to smooth the skin. Kerri tried not to smile at her issue with potential wrinkles, but that smile flared anyway when Jase said, “Isn’t there an old movie about some guy pretending to be a spy to seduce bored housewives?”
“I think so. But wasn’t the husband a spy, too?” Kerri said, hoping the change in topic would move the conversation down a different path. Jase had a passion for old movies, but apparently she wasn’t willing to give in to a long discussion about her favorite topic.
“Can you at least tell me his name? Or should I just call him ‘Spy Guy’ when he comes by to pick you up for your undercover operation?”
“Jase, enough with the sarcasm. His name is Hunter and I don’t think he’ll be stopping by the house. We’ll probably just meet somewhere.”
“If he hasn’t given you any details, how can you be sure he’s investigating someone at the club? Maybe he’s just using that line to get into your pants.”
It was a valid question, one Kerri had given serious thought to during the last twenty-four hours. She readily admitted it to her friend.
“But even if that’s the case, I wouldn’t walk away.” How could she explain what she was feeling when she wasn’t sure of it herself? “He makes me feel things. I can’t even verbalize what those things are, just that it’s like nothing I’ve ever felt before.”
She blew out a rough breath. “Damn, Jase, I’m willing to take a chance on this man for no other reason than he makes me feel.”
Jase’s expression didn’t change, didn’t even look skeptical, a testament to the length and breadth of their friendship. “Okay. But know that at any point in time, if this guy turns strange, you call me. No recriminations, just instant assistance.”
“Thanks. I may need your help, but even if I don’t, I appreciate the offer. This is a decidedly different experience for me, Jase. I’m not really sure what I’m getting into with Hunter.”
“You’ve always led a straight and narrow kind of life, even when we were in high school. I don’t get the impression that this guy is taking you down the same path. Just from seeing him at the club, I’d place him as the bad boy type. But I could be wrong.” Twinkling eyes flashed at Kerri. “You’ll have a good time, at least.”
“Is it possible to be scared beyond reason and have a good time, too?”
“Oh, baby, those are the best times,” Jase crooned with a laugh.
Chapter 4
Kerri checked the address on Hunter’s business card again as her GPS directed her into the gated entrance of a pristine Dallas subdivision. Even as an attorney, she didn’t think she’d be ab
le to afford a house in this neighborhood, and she wondered if being a spy or secret agent or whatever he was paid for this affluent a lifestyle. The security console directed her to dial a number, but she had no idea what number to use. She tried the house number, and a sharp buzz rewarded her effort but the gate stayed closed. Lifting his card again, she reviewed the info on the front, not much more than an address and city. Even his name wasn’t on the card. She flipped it over and saw four numbers scrawled in pencil. She tried those, pressed enter, and a phone began to ring.
“Yes?” A male voice, hopefully Hunter’s, came from the console.
“Hunter? It’s Kerri.”
The gate began to slide open. “Take the third right and go all the way to the end. I’ll meet you on the driveway.”
Kerri gunned the engine and made it through the gate as it began to slide closed. She was driving the car her grandmother bought her when she was accepted to law school. The three-year-old sedan was still in good shape, but she felt like a fast-food delivery service driving through the well-tended neighborhood. The houses were mini-mansions with formal gardens and three car garages. Her slightly faded American-made car was as out of place as a herd of cows on the freeway.
Hunter stood on the driveway of a huge two-story house. He directed her into an open bay in his very own three-car garage. The sporty sedan he’d driven to the club the night he’d hijacked her was in the middle bay, a black truck next to it. As soon as he stepped to her car, the garage door began its descent.
“Nice house,” she said as she followed him into the mud room, though why anyone would need a mud room in this part of Texas confounded her. People that lived in houses such as this didn’t get muddy. Not the ones she knew, anyway.
He grunted, gripped her hand, and led her into the kitchen. Dark mahogany wood, dark granite countertops, stark white ceramic tile, it was a sleek, lifeless room with clean, masculine lines, easily the size of all the common rooms of her townhouse put together. A heavy rectangular wooden table sat in front of a bay of floor to ceiling windows overlooking a landscaped yard and a large hot tub and pool.
“Do you really live here?” she asked. “Or is this a rental?”
Hunter’s lip quirked. “Yes, I live here. Want the tour?” He dropped her hand and moved through the kitchen, turning on lights as they went. The living room was full of what would pass as model home furniture. A curved staircase led from the front foyer to an open hallway and a large room spread far enough from the railing to be hidden from the foyer. An overstuffed leather couch and chair took up most of the space and faced the largest flat screen television she’d seen in awhile. A neatly folded newspaper sat on the coffee table next to the remote. This was obviously where Hunter spent most of his down time.
Kerri moved further down the hall, looking into empty rooms until she reached the last door. More dark wood filled the space’s edges, but the centerpiece was a king-sized bed, neatly made and covered with a crimson comforter. A pair of ruddy brown cowboy boots sat to one side of a bench at the end of the bed. When she turned back to the hallway, she walked flush into the solid wall of Hunter’s chest.
“Seen enough?” His voice was deep, rougher than it had been and she wondered if she’d snooped a little too much. As she stepped back to remove herself from the heat of his body, she noticed the closed door across the hall.
“Looks like I missed one,” she replied, reaching for the knob. It didn’t budge. “What’s in here?”
Hunter’s eyes glittered, a hint of mischief and heat washing into her. “Nothing you need to see today. Maybe next time you’re here.”
He let her pass him, and Kerri continued through the lounge and down the stairs. He picked up his keys and gave her a once-over look.
“Leave your bag. You won’t need it and won’t be expected to carry one, anyway. And you’ll need to wear the collar.” He pulled open a drawer and collected it. “Shall I put it on you?”
“I can manage,” she replied, taking it from him. “Is it really necessary?”
“If you go into the shop without a collar, every man in the place will assume you’re fair game, fresh blood. Do you want that type of attention?”
Kerri settled the choker against her skin and snapped the buckle in place, then followed him back to the garage without answering. To her surprise, he put her into the truck instead of the car.
“I thought”—she paused, not sure how to phrase her question—“I thought the car was part of your cover and the truck was part of your attorney persona.”
That one corner of his mouth lifted again, and she had the distinct impression he was amused by her confusion.
“Who are you, really?” she asked. “Which man is the real you, the suit-and-tie lawyer or the dominant bad boy? Or are they both characters you’ve created?”
The security gate allowed their exit, and he tipped his head at her. “Does it matter?”
“Of course it matters. I need to know what’s going on if I’m—” She stopped just short of saying ‘if I’m going to be having sex with you’ because she wasn’t sure if she would be having sex with him. Instead, she hedged, “If I’m involved in this investigation.”
Hunter flashed a wicked grin, one she hadn’t seen before, and it sent a shiver sliding through her entire body. It was as if he knew what she was thinking, what she’d almost said. In that moment, she wondered if Jase was right about him, if he was just using a line to get her into bed.
“You don’t need to know too much. But, to answer your question, there isn’t much of a difference between the two personas you described. They’re both me.”
He didn’t elaborate, focusing on his driving instead of conversation, and Kerri didn’t press. They rode in silence for awhile, Hunter concentrating on the traffic while she pondered her questions in silence. He took her into a section of downtown that had been refurbished a few years back. It was filled with trendy clothing stores and specialty shops. He pulled into a corner parking lot and found a spot near the entrance to a small mall area with a park and a scattering of benches.
When he helped her out of the truck, Hunter took her hand without a word and led her to a small shop with demure ladies’ dresses in the window. A bell chimed, and a bored clerk eyed Hunter, then gave him a quick nod. Kerri’s hand tightly in his, Hunter led her through the small room and down a short hall. Two turns later, the hall opened into a different shop altogether.
Here, leather reigned supreme. Kerri tried to school her expression as she looked around the room. In one corner, a variety of whips hung from a rack next to wooden paddles in several different sizes and shapes. With a tug at her hand, Hunter led her to the far side of the room and began to page through a rack of dresses—or what passed for dresses.
Jase would go mad if she could shop in this place.
Hunter lifted a dark purple dress off the rack, held it against her, and she shook her head in shock. It was more a series of wide strips and buckles than a dress. He handed it to her, and she put it back on the rack, only to find it draped across her arm a minute later.
“I don’t—”
His brow rose. “Your only response tonight is ‘yes, sir,’ Kerri.”
She slammed her lips shut, heat rising in her face as she remembered her role in this game of his. He added two more skimpy dresses and a skirt to the growing pile in her arms before turning to the display of stockings. To her horror, he chose a few pair of over-the-knee fishnet stockings and a pair of boy shorts in black leather before gesturing her toward the dressing rooms.
A woman in a long, form fitting black dress unlocked a dressing room and ushered them inside, shutting the door behind them. Kerri turned when she realized Hunter had joined her in the well-proportioned room. He hung the items she carried on a convenient hook and settled into the chair near the door, his eyes warm on her flushed face.
“You’re expected to model for me, letting me chose what you wear,” he said, easily answering the question that was surely w
ritten all over her face. His voice lowered to a whisper. “Would you prefer I turn around while you change?”
Kerri sighed. She’d never considered herself a prude, and she didn’t have too many issues with her body. Being realistic about her looks had always worked well for her. She shrugged and pulled off the top she’d worn to work, draping it on the hook to her right. She gave a quick thought to what panties she’d put on this morning, glad she’d opted for a full brief instead of something more revealing. Her penchant for pretty lingerie was a blessing in this case. Stepping out of her heels, she let the slacks slide down her legs and pool on the tile floor before they joined her blouse.
A sharp intake of breath caught her attention, and she cut her eyes to Hunter. He was staring, devouring her with his eyes, heat emanating in waves. And there was no disguising the tent of his pants. Kerri felt her blush rush in opposite directions, radiating out from her chest as she recognized his arousal at the sight of her body. Power suffused her, power she’d never known she could possess.
She turned her back on him and reached for the first dress, a black sheath with a deep plunging neckline. Stepping into it, Kerri tugged it over her hips and slid her arms into the deep cutouts at each side. With deliberate ease, she moved the thin straps up her arms and onto her shoulders. Hunter’s hands were at the zipper before she could reach for it, his hands smoothing down her back from the point just below her shoulder blades where the zipper stopped. Hot hands blistered her waist through the thin jersey of the dress, and his fingers splayed across her stomach.
Their eyes met in the mirror, his flaring with desire, Kerri’s with surprise and arousal. Her chest rose and fell as his gaze moved down her body.
“When you wear this tomorrow, you’ll be braless and every man in the place will want you for his own. But you’ll be mine.”
He pulled the zipper back down to her hips and edged the straps off her shoulders. “Try on the next one.”
Kerri complied, holding on to every ounce of control she could muster. His words resounding in her head, you will be mine. Was he playing to some unknown listening device, or did he mean those words? Was this real or make believe? Intellectually, she wanted to believe it was a game, a role they were both playing, but emotionally, she was rapidly becoming entwined in the sensuality of the situation.
Daye, Lavender - Bound By Trust (Siren Publishing Allure) Page 4