by C. J. Thomas
Wes and Kami greeted us at the bottom of the staircase.
“Good evening.” Wes extended his arms to Kendra. Kissing her cheek, he then turned to me. We hugged. “I can’t wait to hear how your day went,” he whispered in my ear.
Stepping to Kami, I greeted her with a warm embrace. “You’re looking as gorgeous as ever.”
She held her belly and smiled. “Thank you.”
“Now, let us indulge in a few drinks before the show.” He pressed his palm into the center of my back before turning his attention to Kendra. “There are a couple new performers tonight that I didn’t want you two to miss.”
Kendra shot me a glance as we trudged our way upstairs. Settling at Wes’s private table, he had our entire evening plan. After the show we would have dinner, followed by dancing, talking, and celebrating.
“Celebrate?” I asked skeptically.
Wes reached for Kami’s hand. They smiled into each other’s twinkling eyes, their faces glowing. “Would you like to tell them, or should I?”
Kami turned to face us. Bringing her elbows to the table, she tipped forward with lips curling at the corners. “We’re celebrating tonight because we just found out we’re having a baby boy.”
“Oh my god.” Kendra’s hands flew across the table, grabbing for Kami. “That’s wonderful.”
“Congratulations,” I said. Wes gave an appreciative nod back.
“First, we weren’t going to find out,” Wes continued the story. “We were going to keep it a surprise. Then a few things—none of which are to worry about—happened and one thing led to the next…”
“This is fantastic. I’m so happy for you both.” Kendra fell back and I draped my arm over her shoulders. “Any names picked out yet?” I asked.
“I particularly like the name Kelly for a boy,” Kendra said with heavily seduced eyes.
“Honestly, I thought it was a girl with how cranky my mornings have become.” Kami smiled. “So, we’re starting fresh with boy names.”
Drumming that sent the whole floor vibrating announced the beginning of the show which inevitably ended our conversation and shifted our focus to the stage below.
Wes wagged his head and together we excused ourselves and headed to the railing with drinks in hand. As the two participants began, I glanced over my shoulder to Kendra. She had moved to sit next to Kami. They shared whispers in each other’s ears. Rolling my neck forward, naturally I wondered how much of what they did on stage reminded Kendra of what Madam did to her.
“Tell me about Sylvia,” Wes said.
“There is nothing to report.”
He angled his body toward me and raised one eyebrow. “How is she taking the fall?”
“Graciously.”
His brows pinched. “No resentment for Nash?”
“None.”
Nodding, Wes rolled his eyes down toward the stage. “Did she guarantee you that our secret is safe?”
“If it’s revealed, it wouldn’t have come from her.” Wes pulled from his tumbler. “Sylvia is sticking to the narrative already out there. If we do the same, nothing will come of this. It’s their word against ours.”
Wes bit into an ice cube and gave me a look. “It’s not what happens that matters. It’s how the story is told.”
Kendra stared wide-eyed at the two performers going at it like rabbits. “Angel found me today,” I said.
Wes straightened his spine and tipped his head back. “And where has she been since admitting to killing Tonya?”
“Good question. She came to tell me Stone wants to talk.” I could see Wes’s thoughts churning. “Angel made it sound like Stone is taking credit for Madam and Oscar’s demise.”
“Why would he think that?”
“Because there’s some truth to it.”
Wes’s pupils shrank.
“He’s not wrong, you know. If it weren’t for him pointing the way, who knows how much longer we would have had to play Madam’s games.”
I followed Wes’s gaze back to the stage. My thoughts were stuck on Madam—how she introduced me to the lifestyle Wes was busy capitalizing off of. The reminders were everywhere, and so were the pains. Suddenly, Kendra’s suggestion to get away for a while sounded intensely sweet.
“Then we finish this, Kelly.” Wes squared his shoulders and took a step toward me. “Our survival is in your hands.”
“I’m afraid it’s not that easy.”
“We agreed you would do what it took to keep Stone behind bars, did we not?”
I sighed.
“We don’t know who will replace Oscar at the district attorney’s office, and we can’t take any chances. Hell, I think Oscar’s corruption was a surprise to us all. Was it not?”
I scrubbed one hand over my face and nodded.
“I have too much money invested in this town and its people’s talents to not have it clean of the predatory behavior that comes with the sense of entitlement too many of these assholes think they deserve.”
Fame and riches, the root of all evil, I thought as my eyes drifted down Wes’s expensive designer suit and diamond watch. Wes was speaking about other people when he could have been talking about himself. He owned the nightclub, a thriving talent agency, had a fleet of sport cars, and billions in the bank. Many would consider him the problem. Irony at its best.
“I have a plan for Stone,” I said. “He’ll get what he deserves.” My anger wound into a tight ball of revenge. I would say I was doing it for Wes, but I knew I was really doing it for myself.
A sudden flood of commotion behind us got us to turn.
The girls were standing, mouthing off two men wearing dark suits.
Wes and I rushed to their assistance. He was quickly intercepted, where I wasn’t. A gold badge was tossed in his face.
Reaching for Kendra’s hand, I froze and stared, not recognizing the agent pinning Wes against the railing. But I knew he was FBI. “You can make a scene, Mr. Reid, or you can come with us quietly.”
Wes turned his heavy brow to me with nostrils flaring as if this was somehow my fault. Tugging on his suit, I heard him say, “Let’s take the exit in the back. Membership rates are too high for the show to be interrupted by you assholes.”
16
Kendra
The woman had thick thighs, a well-rounded rear, and skinny arms. And, it was easy to say, I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. Elegance had that effect on me.
Her skin shone with oil under the fishnet lacing she wore. Her body swayed back and forth as she dangled from the chrome chain hanging from above. She had her hair—the same brunette color as the blindfold covering her eyes—done in a thick braid.
The shirtless muscled man circled like a vulture overhead. Keeping his eyes on her, he studied her for vulnerabilities he could exploit. Slapping the paddle he held against his palm, my thighs squeezed and my vagina pulsed in anticipation.
Kami continued on with our conversation as if I was still listening. In one ear, out the other. She told me more about her pregnancy, how her diet had changed, and how difficult it was for her to sleep at night—never being able to get comfortable. I nodded politely but my focus was elsewhere.
The man’s arm coiled back, revealing thick ropes of muscle, before releasing forward with the speed of a mousetrap. Snap! Fire shot up from the stage floor with a loud roar at the moment of impact. Startled, my hand flew over my racing heart at the same time the woman’s squeal reached the top floor.
Kelly glanced over his shoulder, his brows raised, clearly impressed by what Wes had put together for tonight’s entertainment. When he rolled his gaze forward, my eyes flicked back to the man below. His pants pitched at the front and I bit the edge of my bottom lip.
Kami touched my thigh. I was radiating volcanic heat and needed a splash of red wine to cool down. We shared a glance. Together, we blushed and giggled.
“Though, I must say,” she said, “the sex with Wes has never been hotter.”
“I’ve heard pregnancy ca
n do that,” I managed to breathe out before turning my attention below.
Tugging on the chain, the woman’s body stretched. Tossing her head back, she screamed in agony before he loosened his grip, dropping her to the floor. Her body collapsed before she pushed herself up and heaved through heavy breaths.
Spinning a barstool around, the man placed it near his subject. Pulling her to her feet, he guided her to the seat and bent her spine at the waist. Widening his stance behind her, I watched as he placed a hand on her back for balance. Unzipping his cock, setting it free, he took his thick girth inside his hand and began stroking it.
One slap across her backside sent a wave shooting across her body.
He moved to the side and exchanged the paddle for a feather. I nibbled on my fingernail as I watched the strokes he painted across her body. Figure-eights, zig-zags, he traced the feather along the flare of her hips, up her sides, and had her squirming with tickles.
A wave of heat rolled down my back. My skin crawled with the craving of an addict.
Soon, my mind was running wild with renewed possibility. Maybe what I needed with Kelly wasn’t hard but, in fact, soft. It was the sensation, the promise of nothing, that kept the anticipation of orgasm alive. Flicking my eyes to the back of his head, I hoped he was seeing what I was, taking note of the lesson being presented.
I felt my pulse slow. Minor aches and pains settled in my joints. Things hadn’t worked the way I had hoped, but, like Kelly, it was important I remained optimistic—knowing we would get there if our relationship was meant to last.
Perched up on blood-red heels, the man took his flat palm to her backside. She grinded her teeth and sucked back a deep breath, dulling the sudden pain. Then he dove his hand between her legs and thrust his fingers inside of her, hard and fast, until she cried out.
I wanted to touch myself. Roll my nipples between my finger. Experience all that she was feeling. The punishment. The retreat. The highs and lows of going from hot to cold in the blink of an eye.
Fingering my collar—Kelly’s mark of ownership—the man stopped doing what he was doing. My heart stalled, too. Silence filled the room. And when he tilted his head back and searched the balcony floor, he locked eyes with me.
But now his face wasn’t his own. It was Oscar’s.
Ducking my head, I squeezed my eyes shut and covered my face. “No. No,” I cried.
Kami stood from the table. “You have no right to be here.”
“Miss, please settle down.”
Peeling my gummy lids open, I lifted my eyes to the sight of FBI. With my heart hammering inside my chest, I bounced my gaze from Kami to Kelly with the natural instinct to flee.
Standing, I glanced to the stage. Oscar was gone. The man was back. The show continued.
Kelly and Wes rushed to the table in a moment of sudden panic. Swooping me behind him, Kelly said, “We have to go.”
My ears were back. Sound flooded in. I darted my gaze, knowing that I didn’t want to be recognized. I had already been taken into custody once and wasn’t interested in a second rodeo. Even if they did recognize my face, they already knew my experience with Echo and Mint. I didn’t want them knowing I was back so soon after being asked whether I had ever seen Maria here.
Kelly’s fingers laced with mine.
Tightening his grip, he turned and dragged me with him.
“Wait,” I protested. Glancing over my shoulder, Kami was arguing with the authorities as they prepared to take Wes away. “We can’t just leave her.”
Weaving through the maze to the front, Kelly barely slowed when he said, “You think she doesn’t know what to do, where to go?” I tripped over my pumps. “This is practically her place. Wes has plans for times like these.” Kelly kept marching.
I understood what he was saying. We’d do more damage if we stayed. Our reputations were shielded by a thin layer of ice that could easily be broken. From the outsider’s perspective, by the looks of tonight, we gave the appearance of celebrating an early victory. A triumph we didn’t quite deserve.
Kelly pushed our way outside. Streetlights illuminated our jog.
Grabbing the stich in my side, my stomach twisted painfully as it wrung out the first drips of sudden stress.
I was terrified the FBI knew about Maria being killed at Mint. Why else would they have surprised Wes tonight?
Maxwell noticed us coming and quickly exited the vehicle. Rounding to the back, he opened the door.
Ripping my mask off my face, I glanced back to the club’s entrance. I couldn’t stop thinking about Kami, what she was going to do without Wes. And, of course, I was worried about their growing baby boy. I didn’t want to think about his future and the possibility of growing up without a father.
“What about Wes?” I asked as we approached the car.
“He knew this was coming.” Kelly nodded to Maxwell and ushered me into the back. The door shut as Kelly settled in. He turned to me and said, “He knows the narrative and what to say.”
Reaching behind my neck, I unclasped the collar with a shaky set of hands.
Kelly reached for me. “We can trust Wes to keep his word.”
My eyes darted across his face. I didn’t know what to think.
“You don’t have to be afraid.” He threaded his fingers through my hair as we began to drive. Leaning forward, his moist lips brushed against mine.
Fighting back the effort to swallow, I whispered, “They asked me if I had ever seen Maria at Mint.”
Kelly retreated with the crease between his brows deepening. “Who asked you that, Bella?”
“The FBI.”
“When? Tonight?”
Shaking my head, I said, “The night they arrested Madam and Oscar.”
Kelly sucked back a deep breath and glared out the front windshield.
“Sylvia must be talking,” I suggested.
“It’s not Sylvia.” Kelly balled his hand into a fist on top of his thigh further away from me.
“How can you be so sure?”
“I talked with her today. It’s not her,” Kelly said without looking me in the eye. “It has to be Madam.”
Bile rose up my throat at the sound of her name.
“Stick to the story, and our secret is safe,” Kelly kept saying to himself, as if I wasn’t in the car. But the more times he repeated the mantra, the more I decided he was only saying it to put it out to the universe for others to adhere to. Because. if they didn’t, then Wes and Nash were finished. Maybe Kelly, too.
I melted into his side. He grew quiet, and so did I. Neither of us said another word, not even once we were back inside his penthouse suite.
As I watched Kelly remove his coat jacket, I couldn’t rid my mind of the show.
Kelly lifted his gaze to me. “About earlier… I shouldn’t have—”
“I realized something when watching the show.”
Kelly raised his brows.
From behind a curtain of lashes, I said, “Maybe you noticed it, too?”
He cocked his head to one shoulder.
“Madam was the true Dom. The one who made us all submit to her every demand.”
Something clicked inside Kelly’s eyes that made me believe he knew what I was saying. Without another word, he marched to the back bedroom. An explosion of noises crashed against the wall. With my heart racing, I ran to see what was happening.
Kelly’s hands were on his knees as he keeled over and worked to catch his breath.
My eyes darted across the mess he’d created.
The closet door was opened. The overhead light flickered. The toy chest smashed. Its items scattered across the floor.
Feeling my blood thicken in my veins, Kelly turned his head and looked me directly in the eye. “I don’t want to do this anymore,” he said.
Suddenly, the walls of my life caved in.
17
Kelly
We slept in the same bed but might as well have been in different time zones.
It�
�s wasn’t Kendra’s fault. I’d lost my cool. The truth of what she said about Madam being the Dom wedged under my skin like a thick splinter.
Kendra was still fast asleep by the time I was showered and dressed and on my way out the front door. I left her a note on the kitchen table but, other than that, I was still too worked up to say anything more.
Taking the SUV, I adjusted Maxwell’s settings in driver’s seat and backed out of the parking space. Leaving the garage, I slid my sunglasses over my eyes. The egg yolk colored sun lifted over the horizon.
It wasn’t just what Kendra said. What happened at Mint last night was out of my control. Sylvia said her part. I said mine. If we all stuck to the same narrative, the authorities would move on and accept Maria’s moment of finality to be at Echo. Simple as that.
I drove with a lead weight sinking in my stomach.
Worry twisted my brow. My meeting with Stone was imminent and I couldn’t stop thinking who might fill Oscar’s position. I still hadn’t heard from Wes and I wanted to believe no news was good news, but even that was difficult.
Without thinking, I touched my lips. Instantly, Kendra’s beautiful face filled my vision. Lifting me up, my lungs filled and my vision expanded.
I wasn’t quitting on her. I was simply abandoning the idea that we had to incorporate anything into our relationship other than what we already had. Wasn’t that enough?
Turning the wheel, I was one exit closer to the place that really had my head swimming.
The weight I carried was still here, and the closer I got to the scene of the accident, the more I questioned if this wasn’t the real reason I wasn’t feeling like myself. As much as the idea to get away sounded like the exact kind of therapy I could use, deep inside I knew that I wouldn’t leave until I made sure I got justice for my family.
As soon as I pulled off to the side of the road, I reached inside my jacket pocket and pulled out a picture of Patrick. With cars flying past, I took a moment to reflect.
Patrick was the perfect combination of Nora and me. He had her cute little button nose and my dark eyes. His handsome face was filled with the promise of a future that never came. He deserved so much more. I’d failed him.