She hesitated. “Kyler?”
“Hello, Ella.” She imagined him giving her his charming smile. “Bad day?”
Blinking in surprise, she said, “Just zoned in.”
“Sounds like more than that.”
She shifted against her seat as tingles stirred between her thighs. This man had some serious gifts, which included one helluva sexy voice. “It’s been a bit busy with Aidan being out of the office, but it’s nothing I can’t manage.”
Kyler paused, as if he didn’t believe her. She really had to work on not being such an open book. She liked Kyler, and doubted he’d be all that interested to hear that being with her came with a whole trunk full of emotional baggage.
Some things were better left unsaid.
“I’m sorry to hear your day has been tough, but today is Friday, which means weekend fun.” His voice sounded oddly tight as he continued, “I was wondering if you’d like to go out with me tonight. Do you have any plans?”
Yeah, right.
Her plans included getting some chocolate ice cream and eating the whole damn tub while watching a movie. The idea of going out, especially after the phone call with Rory, made her day. She had wanted to see Kyler again. “Nope, got no plans tonight.”
“Great. What time do you get off work?”
While it made her blissfully happy that he finally asked her out on a date, she thought it was odd that he’d waited until the weekend to ask. He seemed totally invested in taking her out tonight. She wondered if maybe he was a man who played games. Did he not want to show too much interest right away to keep her chasing after him?
She immediately dismissed the idea.
Kyler seemed too honest. “Since Aidan is away, I get to leave at four o’clock.”
“Well, that’s nice of Aidan.” The respect he had for Aidan shone through his warm voice. “Do you mind if I pick you up at home, or would you rather meet at the restaurant?”
She couldn’t help but notice how he always seemed to need her consent for everything. It was unusual, of that she was sure. “You can come get me at home if you like. I live at 4575 Dean Martin Drive—it’s one of the condominiums.”
Damn, she liked giving that address. She would’ve been mortified if Kyler had seen where she first lived in Vegas. A run-down apartment wasn’t her ideal living accommodations. But with the recent salary increase from Aidan and the money her grandparents had left her in their estate, she’d purchased a luxurious one-bedroom condo.
“That’s a good, safe area of the city,” he said. “Does six o’clock work?”
Always a cop, she mused. “Yep, that works.”
“Great. I’ll see you then.” His voice lowered as he added, “Oh, and Ella, wear something sexy for me tonight.”
Her cheeks warmed as her gaze swept through the office. God, if Aidan knew she was having this type of conversation at work he’d fire her, no matter that she did her job. “A short dress is surely sexy enough,” she whispered.
“Yes, I see you have the right idea.” He groaned. “Goodbye, Ella.”
When the phone line went dead, Ella stared at her computer screen, anticipation lighting her up. Yet a sense of guilt rose along with it. She didn’t fool herself, she knew telling Kyler she wasn’t yet divorced was the right thing to do. But she also didn’t think she owed him anything, not in a friends-with-benefits arrangement.
Her future looked bright. She didn’t want to muck it up with a dark past.
With the divorce hanging over her mind and wanting more than ever to have it finalized after Rory’s call, she reached for her personal cell phone in the drawer of her desk. Once she found her lawyer’s telephone number, she clicked the call button.
The receptionist answered on the third ring, and Ella said, “Hello, this is Ella Snow. Could I speak with Derek Nelson?”
“I’m sorry, but Mr. Nelson is in court all week and won’t be in the office,” the receptionist replied. “He is checking his e-mail. If you have anything important that needs to be discussed you can e-mail him, or I can put you through to his assistant.”
Great. Ella knew better than anyone that his assistant would only be able to take her message. If Derek was in court, he was likely overwhelmed at the moment. “Can you just leave him a message and ask him to call me when he’s back in the office?”
“Of course,” the receptionist replied.
“Thank you.” Ella ended the call, glancing down to her cell phone. She knew her lawyer would’ve called if any new developments had happened, and she hadn’t heard from Derek since she signed the mediation agreement that allowed Rory time to make sober decisions before leaving Savannah.
She often wondered about the legal system, but she also trusted in it. She pondered if Rory’s phone call was enough for a violation to force the judge’s hand to grant the divorce, but she doubted it. Rory had hired a helluva lawyer, and she knew a simple phone call would be something he could work around.
Placing her phone back in the drawer, she made a mental note to call Derek next week to learn more about the loopholes to the agreement. One big screwup on Rory’s part was all she needed to ensure the divorce would happen.
Be patient, Ella. Soon this will be all over.
Chapter Eight
Surrounded by stone walls in the police station’s change room, Kyler tucked his cell phone into his pocket and then placed his uniform and duty belt into his duffel bag on the bench behind him.
Relaxed now that his day shift had ended, he zipped up his bag. His job started before sunrise, and all week Ella had stayed on his mind. Every passing moment had intensified his desire for another night with her.
He’d been counting down the days all week, as he’d planned to get another taste of her beauty. While he enjoyed their late-night telephone conversations lasting for hours, he’d relished putting the workweek behind him.
Those moans, her expressive eyes, haunted him.
Placing his foot on the wooden bench, he began lacing up his boot, hearing a locker slam shut. He spotted another Club Sin Master and longtime friend, Sawyer Quinn. As Sawyer approached, he rolled the sleeve of his black cotton shirt down over his dragon tattoo.
To their fellow cops and friends, the tattoo was a symbol of brotherhood that linked Sawyer and Kyler together from their six-year friendship. While they were razzed over sharing the same tattoo, the symbol meant too much for that to bother either of them.
As Sawyer reached Kyler, he fastened his bulletproof vest. His sandy-colored buzz-cut hair fit the uniform. Sawyer was also a veteran, having served four tours in Afghanistan. Kyler figured that’s where the stony edge of his hazel eyes developed.
Sawyer never talked about his time in Afghanistan.
Kyler didn’t dig deeper.
“Are you on the afternoon shift?” Kyler asked.
Sawyer nodded. “Got a drug bust going down at seven tonight. I suspect I’ll be here until nine or so. Then it’s back to the ten-hour grind.”
Kyler was a sergeant, and was content in his position. Sawyer worked in the Drug Unit, and the police officers in that department worked grueling hours.
Sawyer smiled, leaning against the lockers. “Did I hear you making a date tonight?”
“You heard right,” Kyler replied.
Sawyer’s hard gaze regarded Kyler with keen interest. “That little vanilla thing from the wedding?” He smirked. “The one you couldn’t stop talking about on Wednesday?”
Kyler glanced over Sawyer’s shoulder, not seeing anyone else in the locker room. He had briefly mentioned Ella when he had his guys’ night with all the Club Sin Masters at Mickey’s sports bar. He also hadn’t gone into much detail about her. Simply that he had enjoyed her company at the wedding.
If one thing was true about Club Sin Masters, they kept private matters private, and no one had tried to coax anything further from him. They were governed by trust. What happened with a submissive, and what was said to her Dom, stayed between them.
He scoffed. “I didn’t talk nonstop about her. She’s vanilla, but there are hints of submission, too.”
“Interesting.” Sawyer crossed his foot over his ankle. “Do you plan on bringing her to CS tonight?”
Though Kyler liked the thought of bringing Ella to Club Sin, he didn’t know how to broach the subject with her. So, I like to fuck in public, engage in kinky sex play, and demand submission—whatcha think?
He shook his head. “She has submissive tendencies, and from what I’ve seen of her, she seems to like kink, but I can’t gauge how she’d react. I need to get to know her better before I go there.” He couldn’t drop that bombshell on her until he knew she wouldn’t run away screaming.
This thing between them wasn’t something he was ready to give up just yet.
Sawyer pushed off the lockers with a grin. “Why don’t you run it by Dmitri and see if he’ll let you bring her by?”
Kyler was aware he’d need Dmitri’s permission to bring Ella into Club Sin, especially considering he doubted she would jump right in, sign the agreement, and allow him to play with her in front of others. “I could, but I need to have that conversation with her.” He placed his other boot on the bench and laced it up. “I think a first date should happen before I shock the shit out of her.”
Sawyer laughed. “Have fun tonight. I should be in the club around ten o’clock.” He smacked Kyler’s back. “Knowing you, I’ll see you there later.”
Kyler froze with the laces pinched between his fingers. “What exactly is that supposed to mean?”
Sawyer raised his brows. “Patience does not exist in your personality.” He turned, heading out of the locker room, and his loud laughter followed him.
Snorting, Kyler finished lacing up his boot. True, he had never been patient with Club Sin submissives. That’s what made Ella such an appealing challenge. Teaching her would be like reintroducing himself to BDSM—and he’d get to do it with her, through her eyes, all over again. It allowed for freshness, which had been lacking in his life.
Could he get her to submit?
He didn’t know, and that made his muscles quiver. He liked the challenge Ella represented. Christ, he simply liked her.
A smile crossed his face as he reached for his car keys along with his duffel bag on the bench, and then he strode through the musky locker room. Once out in the light blue painted hallway, he passed by the Drug Unit and the Homicide Squad, when someone called his name.
Glancing to his left, he discovered his father in his office. Chief of Police Andrew Morgan looked stern and proud sitting behind his desk. His father waved at Kyler as he chatted with someone on the phone.
He entered the spacious office and his father gestured for him to shut the door. He complied and dropped down into the chair in front of his father’s light oak desk, which was completely covered with case files. Stretching his legs out, he stared at his father barking commands into the telephone.
Amused by his dad’s gravelly voice, Kyler knew his father was a force to be reckoned with. Andrew held this station together through all the ups and downs, and Kyler was proud to be his son. As the dad of four young boys, his father had always attended sports games—he’d been the dad wrestling with his sons on the lawn. As the father of grown men, he was still a man Kyler could respect and was one of the best men he’d ever known.
When his dad finally hung up the phone, he remarked, “Sometimes I feel like I’m talking to a brick wall.” The frustration faded from his face, replacing itself with a smile that softened his blue eyes. “How was your shift, son?”
“Good.” Kyler laced his fingers behind his head. “Dealt with one woman who was beaten to a bloody pulp, but other than that, the shift went smoothly.” He never understood, no matter how much he tried, why women stayed with their abusers. He’d been called to the same location at least three times.
Of course, he understood there were mental and emotional connections there for the victim, but if it were his sister, he would tie her ass to a chair until a therapist broke that connection. As a Dom, it solidified his intent to protect women. Especially those dealing with complete assholes for husbands.
As a cop, he could do only what the law allowed him.
“Glad to hear it.” Andrew leaned back in this chair, sending it to squeak beneath him. “A detective position is coming up. You’ve been on the force now for almost ten years—should I request that you be slotted for the test?”
Kyler knew the politics of the game. He’d pass the test, of course, but he’d get the job simply because he was Andrew’s son. That’s why Kyler had never applied for a detective position. He didn’t want a handout. “Nah, I’ll pass.”
His father frowned. “You need to keep moving up, son, or you’re going to become stagnant.”
The subject had been a sore spot between them for years. His brothers, who were also cops, except the lone one who’d shirked tradition and become a firefighter, had moved rapidly up the chain of command. But Kyler was content. “I prefer dealing with living people, as you know.”
Andrew’s eyebrows drew together before he heaved a sigh. “All right, it’s your choice.”
Kyler inclined his head, thankful his father gave in. Before, when this subject had come up, the argument had become heated. He didn’t want to deal with only death and the evil that came with it. While he liked the idea of saving lives, he preferred saving the living.
Being a cop was personal. Everyone had their reasons for doing the job, and those reasons were Kyler’s. Besides, he held the role of supervisor, and Kyler always thought he’d work his way up the chain of command that way, or apply for some other role that didn’t involve murders. But he’d do it on his own terms, not his father’s.
All the tension faded from his father’s gaze as he added, “Mom wants to have you boys over for a dinner. She’s already talked to your brothers, and everyone is free not this Thursday but the following one. Does that work for you?”
“Of course.” Even if Kyler had plans, he’d break them. It was harder to get everyone together with his brothers starting families and busy with their lives. And his mother made a killer roast beef, which was her typical meal when they all got together.
With an awkward smile and raking his hand through his salt-and-pepper-colored hair, his father asked, “Will you be bringing anyone with you?”
Kyler snorted.
Judging by his father’s level of discomfort, Kyler assumed his mother had forced his dad to ask that question to dig into Kyler’s personal life. A year ago, Kyler had put a dead stop to her endless questions about his love life. It became too complicated to offer excuses to avoid the fact that the real reason he wasn’t dating was because he was playing with submissives in the dungeon. Every once in a while a question would come like this in a nonchalant way. “Possibly.”
His father’s thick eyebrows rose. “Possibly?”
“There’s someone new.” Kyler folded his arms across his chest. “I’m just not sure Ella would want to be bombarded by the Morgan clan so soon.” Christ, he hadn’t even gone on a date with Ella and he was already planning to take her to meet his family and maybe bring her into Club Sin.
He wouldn’t pretend that didn’t mean something.
Which was exactly why he believed something special existed between them. He hadn’t had that instinct about a woman in a long time. He knew himself, knew what he wanted, and that was Ella. Not only for nights of hot pleasure, but, he hoped, for the real woman inside her.
The only thing standing in his way was her, and her insistence to keep things casual.
“All right,” his father said with a sparkle in his eyes. “I’ll let your mother know that you’re dating someone and she might be joining us.”
Kyler chuckled, rising from his seat. “Which I’m sure will lead to a hundred questions that will annoy you.” He opened the door and turned to his father. “I’m off this weekend, so I’ll see you Monday.”
Before Kyler could ste
p out of the office, his father asked, “Is Ella a nice girl?”
Kyler glanced over his shoulder and grinned. She’s sexy, and a little vanilla with a sweet submissive side. “Yeah, she’s nice.”
Chapter Nine
In a restaurant located in one of the top casinos along the Vegas strip, Ella folded her napkin over her lap. She looked to the glass wall with hundreds of wine bottles behind it. Then she glanced around the fancy five-star restaurant, enjoying the romantic atmosphere, with dim lights and candles on the white linen tables.
Wowzers.
Savannah had upscale restaurants, but she’d never been to one this grand. From the sleek black marble bar, to the crystal chandeliers, to the overall luxurious modern décor, she was in awe. And yeah, she was more than slightly stunned by the man sitting in front of her.
Kyler watched her with those piercing eyes and his mischievous smile, and she experienced the weight of his stare right down to her toes. He always seemed to be looking right through her, reading into her in a way that no one had before him.
With a dry mouth, she reached for her wineglass and took a large sip of her red wine. Part of her liked how he examined her. It made her feel special. The other part of her wanted to run away from his long studies. It sure seemed like he wanted to know everything about her, and he appeared to be on a full mission to do exactly that.
While most women might like his attentiveness, it induced nervous butterflies to set flight in her belly. Her past she wanted to keep to herself. She didn’t want to get that emotionally entangled.
Maybe Rory’s phone call earlier remained on her mind, but unease was like a cloud hanging over her. She almost wanted to talk to Kyler about it. He was a police officer. If anyone understood what she was going through, it’d be him. But her past was embarrassing, and the idea of sharing it made sickness roll through her.
Don’t look weak.
She’d always been a strong woman and had prided herself on that. She’d been through a lot in her twenty-six years, and she didn’t want sympathy to cross Kyler’s face when he discovered she was a woman who once had been pushed around. She wanted to leave the past behind her and live in the present.
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