“Can I sit?” he muttered. He was clutching the back of the chair hard enough that his knuckles were turning white and his knees were feeling wobbly already.
She eased the length of him out of her mouth, then licked him, base to tip, before answering. “If you have to.”
He turned the chair and dropped into it. She tucked herself between his knees and started licking him with long, slow strokes of her tongue.
He was soon moaning under her thorough attentions. It didn’t take her long to bring him up over the edge.
He sat there panting while she wiped her face with a napkin from their dinner tray. She smiled at him and said, “Yum.”
“You didn’t have to,” he said, still trying to catch his breath.
“Couldn’t you tell I wanted to do that?” she said.
“You did seem to enjoy yourself.”
She crawled up into his lap. It was awkward, given that it was the smallest seat in the room, but they managed it without toppling the chair, or toppling out of it. She kissed him and ran her fingers through his hair.
“I have a session this evening,” Remy said when they parted.
“So does my father. I am going to take a walk outside and then I’m going to have a long hot bath and when I’m sure everyone is tucked away quietly, I’ll come back here.”
“Here, I wanted to give you this.” He nudged her out of his lap, stood, quickly dressed again, and handed her a plastic card in a paper cover with the resort’s logo on it that he fished from his pocket.
“A key card?”
“Yes. To my room. I stopped at the front desk earlier and got a second one. Said I had a bad habit of leaving things in my room so I wanted a second in my wallet for just in case. She said that was common and now I have two.”
“You don’t strike me as the forgetful type.”
“I can be a little scatterbrained but no, I’ve never left a key card in the room.”
She kissed his cheek. “Thank you for this. I’ll see you tonight.”
“I can’t wait.”
She’d brought her jacket with her so she could head straight outside without going to her room. Less chance of getting caught by her father that way. It was lovely out so she didn’t zip up, but she did have to keep an eye on the path for puddles.
The gardens were lovely but she’d seen them before and Remy wasn’t here to play chess today so she didn’t linger long. She debated just going up to Remy’s room and waiting for him but she was sure her father would want to check in with her before bed so she headed for her own room.
Besides, your shampoo and stuff is all in your room and that bath sounds wonderful.
She was humming as she let herself into her room. She closed the door and hung up her jacket.
“Where were you?”
She jumped. “Shit.” She had her hand over her heart. “You want to not scare me like that? What are you doing in my room? I thought we talked about that this morning. And I thought you were doing something this evening. Drinks? Or something.”
“You weren’t at dinner.”
“I was outside. I wasn’t really hungry. I was feeling restless after the afternoon session. Why?”
“You were outside a long time.”
“It was a nice evening. I went out in the woods for a bit. I was really restless.” That last at least wasn’t a lie. Dimitri had really set her on edge. “And I was planning to have a warm bath.”
“Go ahead.”
“Uh, you want to leave, maybe give me some privacy?”
“You can close the bathroom door.”
“Are you being serious?”
“Yes.”
“You know what? Fine. You can wait right there. But I’m not rushing.” She shut the bathroom door with a little force, turned on the light and the fan and the water, and took a few deep breaths. While the tub filled, she pulled out her phone.
“He suspects something. He’s in my room right now and won’t leave. I don’t know when I’ll be able to get out.”
“Good thing you have a key then,” came Remy’s reply.
True to her word, she took her time in the tub, letting the hot water soak out the chill from her walk. She shaved her legs, then drained the tub and ran the shower so she could wash her hair. She toweled off and blow dried her hair. When she was dry and dressed, she took a deep breath and went to face her father.
He was seated in the arm chair in the corner of the room, browsing something on his phone.
“Well, what do you want?” she said, folding her arms over her chest.
He set down the phone. “You’re acting oddly.”
She rolled her eyes. “Why? Because I’m not sitting here in this room waiting for you to summon me? Because I’m trying to enjoy my time here? Or because I’m not keeping my eyes on the floor while meekly replying ‘yes sir’ to everything you say?”
“Tara Brown, that is enough.”
“Oh, sure, scold me like I’m five again.”
“Tara.”
“You know what? I’m tired of being treated like a servant. Or like some submissive sex toy.”
Something dangerous flashed in his eyes. “Has Remy been harassing you?”
She shook her hair back and raised her chin. “No. In my limited experience with Remy he has been nothing but a gentleman. That Dimitri What’s-His-Name from California on the other hand expects me to fuck him to earn the privilege of working for him, and he expects me to be grateful for it.”
“What?”
“Okay, not in so many words. He’s been hounding me for dinner, implying that he wants something more and threatening my career as a freelance techie if I don’t comply. I actually had to have someone from the resort deal with him today.”
“It can’t be that bad.”
“Dad, he almost left bruises where he grabbed my arm.”
“Why don’t you just give him a chance?”
“Because I don’t want to. I’m not interested. He’s too old for me, too arrogant, and too damn creepy. By the way, thanks for telling him I was single, now I’ll never get rid of him.”
“You both work in tech, I thought he’d be a good match for you.”
“You were wrong. If he comes to you looking for the scoop on me, keep your mouth shut, please. I do not want to deal with him.”
“Fine, I will not tell him any further personal details about you, though I still think you’re overreacting.”
“You didn’t come here to listen to me rant or shut down my concerns over my safety. Why are you here, Dad?”
“I’m worried about you.”
“Because I took a walk? Not likely. You didn’t hound me or chase me while we were busy setting up for this conference.”
“You weren’t randomly disappearing while we were setting up for the conference.”
“There was nothing for me to do this evening so I went outside. What is wrong with that? And speaking of things to do, didn’t you have a session this evening?”
“I did, yes. I didn’t go.”
“What? You missed a session, a networking session, just to sit here in my room while I had a bath? You’re losing it.”
“Maybe you should just tell me what’s going on.”
“Maybe I’m bored! Maybe I’m tired of you treating me like I’m five. Maybe I’m an independent person and I don’t actually have to check in with you every time I move or breathe.”
“I can see you’re upset.”
“Thanks Captain Obvious.”
“You should get some sleep. We have a busy day tomorrow.”
“Well thank you for your permission. If you think I’m getting ready for bed with you sitting there, you’re sorely mistaken.”
“Of course.” He offered her a thin smile. “I will see you first thing in the morning.”
“Good night.”
Tuesday
She could see her room just down the hall. It was early, too early, she didn’t want to be awake yet, but she had to get ba
ck to her own room before her father woke up. She shouldn’t have stayed the night, going back in the wee hours would have been safer, but Remy’s arms were too comfortable to walk away from. She got her key card out of her pocket and dropped the second one Remy had given her so she didn’t have to knock to get into his room anymore. “Shit,” she whispered and crouched to pick it up.
When she stood, her father was waiting in the doorway of his room. “You’re up early.”
“I’d forgotten something downstairs. I just wanted to grab it before getting going today. It’s going to be a busy one. I’ll see you downstairs for breakfast. I need a shower.”
She smiled at him but his serious expression didn’t change. He didn’t return to his room and he didn’t head for the elevator.
“Okay. I’ll be quick,” she said, and placed the key card on the lock. “See you soon.”
She slipped inside and stood leaning against the door, her heart hammering. She took a few deep breaths, listening intently. After several heart-pounding minutes, she heard her father’s door close and footsteps in the hallway.
She relaxed. “Safe,” she said. “For now.” But it was becoming more and more obvious that this wasn’t a secret she’d be able to keep.
* * *
“Haven’t seen you in a bit,” Daniel said as Remy joined him and Marnie in the restaurant Tuesday morning.
“Been busy. Had some emails from home.”
“Nothing wrong, I hope.”
“No, just work stuff. They don’t understand what ‘unavailable until next week’ means.”
The waiter came by and Remy quickly ordered steak and eggs and coffee.
“So glad I’m retired,” Daniel said.
“I can’t believe I’ve got ten years to go,” Marnie said. “I feel a lot older than fifty-five some days.”
“It’s hard being a Chief,” Daniel said, nodding. “There’s a weight that goes along with the position. And you inherited a troubled clan.”
“She didn’t inherit it,” Remy said. “She won it.”
“True, meant no offence. But the fact remains, it’s a lot of work pieceing a clan back together.”
Remy smiled at the waiter as he poured coffee and so happened to be looking up when Tara walked in. She’d showered and changed and wasn’t looking in his direction at all. He turned his attention to his coffee.
“She’s here,” Marnie said.
“I saw her.”
“Are you going to wave?”
“No.”
“Remy, so help me if you don’t talk to the girl I will …”
Remy put his coffee down so fast it spilled a little. “Marnie, hush.”
“No, I will not …”
“Marnie, please.”
Daniel put a hand on Marnie’s arm and Marnie lowered her voice. “Fine, but I’m not dropping it.”
“Yes, you are,” Remy said. He lowered his voice a little more. “I already talked to her. Everything’s fine. Everything except her father. And if you make a scene it’ll be that much harder to keep him in the dark. Okay?”
“So this avoidance thing is a ruse now?”
“Yes.”
“Were you really busy with work stuff yesterday?”
“No.”
Marnie grinned. “I told you so.”
* * *
Charles was sitting in the restaurant reading the paper and sipping his coffee. Being a local paper there was very little there of interest to him but it beat staring at the wallpaper while he waited for his daughter.
A raised voice from the other end of the restaurant caught his attention and he looked up to see one of the female Chiefs and Remy in some heated discussion.
He was able to make out some of the words, since she was pretty upset and not watching her volume. “...if you don’t talk to that girl ...”
“Morning Dad,” Tara said. “What’s going on?”
“Seems to be a disagreement over …” he turned to point but Remy and Marnie were talking in hushed voices and Marnie was grinning from ear to ear. “No, nothing, never mind.”
Tara sat and opened her menu.
“How did you sleep?”
“Just fine, thanks.”
“That’s good. You’re not mad at me, are you?”
“For what?”
“Warning you about Remy, about his history with our family.”
“That? Why would I be mad about that? I haven’t spoken to him since Thursday.”
He studied his daughter carefully but her complete attention was on the breakfast menu. He glanced back at Remy, his mind carefully going over his daughter’s odd behavior, putting pieces together to form a picture he didn’t like, at all.
“Do I have time for eggs, you think?”
“Yes. I don’t think I’ll need your help this morning so why don’t you take a few hours to yourself today. I know this is probably very boring for you.”
“Oh. Uh, okay. I do have some emails to catch up on.”
“Wonderful. Then you certainly have time for eggs.”
* * *
Remy’s morning session was on politics. He didn’t want to be there but with his second being both a nationally recognizable business man and the mayor of New Orleans, he had little choice. He walked in to find Charles already there and deep in conversation with the moderator. He shrugged and found a seat and pulled out his phone.
There was a message there from Tara. “Dad gave me the morning off. See you tonight.”
Remy glanced up at Charles then replied, “What session does he have?”
“Some meeting with the Council,” came the reply.
“Because he’s here in my politics session.” Remy couldn’t wait for the reply as Charles seated himself in the chair next to him. Instead he put the phone away and opened his folder.
“You must have a lot to share in this session,” Charles said, smiling widely.
“Most of it second hand I’m afraid. Politics is not my game.”
“And yet, you’re a Chief. There is some politics involved in that.”
“Yes, but you won’t see me trying for a seat on the Council. Let others do that. I just want to look after my people.” The older man’s grin was unsettling.
“An admirable quality. I am looking forward to what you have to say.”
* * *
After the morning session, Remy went to the front of the room and introduced himself to the Council member who’d been leading the session, a man named Reymond. The room was quickly emptying as people headed out for lunch. “I was hoping I could ask you a question about the clan oaths,” Remy said.
“Of course. Though I should think after Gabrielle leaving and that other girl coming in that you’d be an old hand at this sort of thing.”
“You’d think. And honestly this is more hypothetical, something I’ve been wondering because of a conversation I had with one of the other Chiefs.”
Raymond leaned against the table and crossed his arms. “Okay, now I’m curious. Go ahead.”
“Are there other ways, besides the standard transfer of oaths, to break free of your oath to a Chief? I mean, when Jane came to us she didn’t actually have her Chief’s permission. We didn’t know that at the time and didn’t suspect anything because the oath exchange worked.”
“Then I guess that’s an answer in and of itself, Remy. Yes, I’ve seen other cases where a person who has been abused, or traumatized, in some way, breaks free. Your Jane, she’s safe now?”
“Yes. I’m sure you heard all about that business with Laurent?”
“That was her old clan? Well, no wonder she left. Sad business, that.” He shook his head. “But doesn’t that answer your own question?”
“In a way, but would other strong emotions work? Besides fear?”
“I suppose if a bear got angry enough he could break from his Chief’s control but I’m sure in the process of such a violent break he’d go rogue and would be a severe threat. Or would challenge the Chief.”
“What about love?”
“What about it?”
“Have you ever seen someone fall in love, against their Chief’s wishes or orders, and be able to defy their Chief?”
“I haven’t seen it, personally, haven’t even heard of it, but given that fear works and anger is possible, I suppose it’s not outside the realm of possible either. Why this sudden interest in breaking oaths?”
“Because our safety depends on our control over our clans. We need to know if and how someone could free themselves from our control and protection, don’t we?”
“I’ll mention that to the Council. You raise a valid point. Fortunately, arranged marriages are falling out of favor. But anger, that poses a threat we hadn’t considered. Thank you.”
“Of course.” Remy turned and saw the door easing shut. Was someone listening? There was no way to know. He shrugged and headed off for lunch. He’d have to hurry if he wanted to eat and still make it to his afternoon session.
* * *
“Why are we doing this?” Tara said as she stacked papers.
“So all the Chiefs can take home contact information and such,” Mabel said.
“We live in a digital age. Why didn’t we create a mailing list or something and send it all digitally.”
“It’s nice to take something home at the end of an event like this.”
“They’re not children,” Tara muttered.
Mabel ignored her so she sighed and kept on sorting papers. The volunteer work was boring but at least she didn’t have her father watching her like a hawk and she didn’t have to sit in on a bunch of boring old men discussing their business investments.
I’m glad Remy cares more about me and about his clan than he does about money and business, she thought. She glanced around. Mabel had moved down the table leaving her alone, so she pulled out her phone and texted Remy. He was in a session but she missed him. It was a short message, just a quick ‘see you soon’ and some x’s and o’s, and then she tucked her phone away again with another glance about to make sure no one had seen her.
She was just finishing up and tucking the backs into the box labelled “take home” when someone touched her elbow. She turned, a big smile on her face, expecting either her father, or Remy. Instead she came face-to-face with Dimitri and he was standing much too close.
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