Alice had only one idea how to distract herself from feeling so unsettled and exhaust her enough that she would fall asleep easily. But should she really go to the Dark Alley? She had promised to not go during the week for a very good reason, because she didn’t want to end up there every day. But what if this was the last time she went there? That wouldn’t count, would it?
Alice knew that she needed to sleep. If she went there, who knew when she would be back home. Her pondering made her feel even more restless. She knew she could stay awake in bed, continuing to worry her head, or just go.
Why did she have to be so timid with Tristan? She could have invited him in, but she didn’t want to.
When she stepped out of her bedroom, still not sure if she really should call the driver of the Dark Alley, her glance fell on the box that was still sitting on her coffee table. Alice stared at it as if she feared it would come to life any second. Maybe it would. Maybe there was a snake in it? Maybe it came from King’s wife – Mrs. Grantham – after all and she wanted to kill her?
“Don’t be silly,” Alice told herself and walked to the box, gripping the cover, and pulling it off.
From the size and material of the box she already had assumed that clothing would be in it, but what exactly it would be was something she hadn’t wanted to think about. It was a sheath dress, again in the color of nightshade, but it was beautiful and from the fabric she could tell that it was expensive. On top of the dress was a little white card and “your admirer” was written in beautiful letters.
Maybe it was King after all, who else would give her such an expensive present? The little card in her hand made the decision for her. Alice would go today, say thank you, and tell him that he had to stop. He wouldn’t win her over like this. Still, it felt a little off, because of how he behaved today, it didn’t really seem to fit to his persona.
When Alice walked down the path to the Dark Alley after the driver had told her it was safe, she was wearing a warm coat over her new dress and only a clutch purse to hold her phone and keys. She still wasn’t certain if she would leave the mask behind, which Big Guy Alfred was taking care of, or if she would take it with her.
“Good evening, Alfred,” Alice smiled at him.
“Good evening, Miss,” he answered, friendly as ever, and turned away to send after the box for her belongings, which seemed to work just as a deposit box storage unit. “It’s nice to see you come back so soon.”
Alice smiled back at him, because she didn’t know what to answer to that, especially when she thought of this being the last time should be at the Dark Alley. Maybe she just needed a break. The last few weeks her life was work and this club. Alice just needed to set her priorities straight.
“Would you like to place an order?” Alfred continued as usual, while they were waiting for her mask to arrive, and Alice was taken a bit off guard, because she hadn’t thought about what she wanted to do.
“Is there any chance that King of Diamonds is here tonight?” She asked before she could stop herself.
Alfred, having his tablet PC already in his hand, began to type his fingers on the screen, and for some reason Alice wondered if he ever had a day off?
“Yes, King of Diamonds is present, but it seems that he hasn’t placed an order, yet,” Alfred answered after a moment. “Would you like to send him a request?”
“No,” Alice answered and Big Guy turned around, to get her deposit box and open it for her. “I will take a look at the club house. I’m not placing an order, either.”
“Very well, Miss Belladonna,” Alfred nodded as she was putting on her mask. “Enjoy your stay.”
Just like every time, Alice felt herself going through a change when the mask covered her face and she became Belladonna. Maybe that was another reason masks were required at this place and that they were individual.
“Thank you, Alfred,” Belladonna smiled at him and began her way down the barely illuminated path towards the club house.
She could hear noises of pleasure and pain from the alleys she passed and allowed herself to imagine what was going on, as she instantly was reminded of what she had done there. The sheer thought was arousing. Could she really quit this place? Did she really want to?
Belladonna brought her mind back to the reason she had come here, to distract herself and wear herself out, so that she could sleep.
So, why was she keen on meeting King then? To see the expression on his face when she was wearing the dress he had sent her? Wouldn’t that be misleading him? He had offered for her to call him if she wanted to talk; so, why not talking here, at this safe place?
As Belladonna entered the club house there were barely any tables left untaken. Instinctively she looked at the booth on the far left in which she had seen or met King of Diamonds. And, he was really sitting there. What surprised her, however, was that he was sitting there alone, with a glass of what had to be Scotch in front of him. He was watching the room and the people in it.
Belladonna started walking up to him and was halfway there when he noticed her and he got up from his spot on the bench as if he had been expecting her. But, she knew he hadn’t because he hadn’t requested her.
“Bella,” he greeted her, saying this name just as her real name earlier, and offered her the spot next to him.
“King,” she answered and sat down.
“That is a beautiful dress,” he said to find an easy opening for a conversation. “The color suits you well.”
“Thank you,” Belladonna answered and decided to tease him with her knowing that was him. “That’s probably why you chose it for me, didn’t you?”
She didn’t expect him to stay silent and couldn’t read his expression, because of the mask hiding the upper half of his face.
“I didn’t buy you the dress, Belladonna,” King finally answered and she felt as if someone stabbed her straight into her heart with an icicle.
“You didn’t?” Her voice quit on her.
Instantly she thought of her laptop again and that it had been in the wrong place, that everything back home appeared to be neatly cleaned. She remembered the boxes of flowers, the feeling of being watched.
“Are you all right?” King placed his hand on hers, which was lying on her upper thigh, making her flinch.
“If you didn’t give it to me, who did?” Belladonna asked more herself than him. “If you didn’t send me the lilies that look like nightshade and Tristan didn’t either, who did?”
“Tristan?” King’s voice sounded slightly sharper, and Belladonna noticed.
She was instantly flushing, but then turning pale again.
“I met him in front of the Alley, we both didn’t…” she tried to explain and couldn’t help but wonder if he had lied to her about not being the one sending the flowers.
“Aquarius,” King connected the dots and Belladonna was a bit dumbfounded he so easily knew.
“I’ve been getting presents and this dress is the latest,” Belladonna explained. “I thought it was you, because I don’t know who else could know my private address. No one in here knows me personally. Apart from Tristan and you. So, if it’s not you, then it has to be him.”
“Do you want me to have his background checked?” King of Diamonds offered as if this was just a phone call for him and maybe it was.
“No,” Belladonna shook her head. “But I appreciate the offer. I will talk to him and ask him to be honest.”
“So, he hasn’t been honest with you?” King inquired, and Belladonna was taken off guard again.
“Not at first, no,” she admitted, again shaking her head, “but he had his reasons. And it’s none of your business.”
“Point taken,” King took his hand from hers and changed the topic. “So, why are you here on a weekday?”
“After learning you… about who my boss is and after…,” she started to explain, but didn’t want to tell him about the laptop. “My mind just doesn’t seem to want to calm down. I kept tossing and turning in bed.�
�� She sighed. “And then I figured that this was why the Alley opens at 10 pm. And you?”
“Same as you, to be honest,” King responded.
In that moment, Belladonna realized that this was the first normal conversation she’d had with this man. Worse, she talked to him as if he were a friend, which he wasn’t. He was the guy she had sex with, tested new sexual terrain with, and, on top of that, he was the big boss of the company she worked for, and he’s married.
“I wanted to be the one to tell you,” King continued. “When I first saw you at The Rabbit Hole I had no idea who you were. The last thing I expected was to see your picture in an employee file as a candidate for the assistant job. It was a pleasant surprise for me, but I could imagine that it had to be different for you. Which was why it was important to me to tell you what was expected of you, when you got the job. But I was so stuck in work that I missed the fact that I was signing off on your contract, because that’s something HR does, unless it’s a position which high importance.”
“I understand,” Alice nodded; despite the mask she felt like the uncertain, slightly frustrated, single again.
“I hoped I could get the chance to explain that to you,” King explained, after emptying his glass and signed to the waitress. “I can understand if you don’t feel like being able to keep your private life and work life separate.”
“You do?” Belladonna cocked a brow, which King couldn’t see.
“Yes,” he nodded. “Most people can’t. That’s why the masks are part of the deal. As long as you don’t know the face behind it there is no awkwardness, no discomfort, or harm. This is a safe place.”
“You are right,” she answered.
“About what?”
“I am not sure if I can keep it separate,” it was Alice who uttered this admission. “Which is why I have decided to take a break and figure out if I want to stay a member or not.” It was Belladonna who grinned. “I can’t be distracted from work when you walk past me and make me think of all the things you have done to me here.”
“Is that so?” King smirked and was about to respond when the waitress arrived to take their order.
“I’ll have what he’s drinking,” Belladonna said.
“Make it two,” King nodded and the woman left again.
“You were saying?” Belladonna readjusted her position, so that she didn’t have to turn her head all the time.
“I’m having the same trouble,” he said and it sounded far from an admission, yet not proud, but rather amused. “I don’t invite women to the Dark Alley on a regular basis, you just have this effect on me that doesn’t seem to stop. It actually gets worse. Good thing I had a briefcase with me this morning.”
Belladonna was stunned. She had never before met a man who so easily told her that he got a hard-on seeing her without sounding like a drooling idiot. None of her exes had even said something similar, they rather turned it around telling her that she was looking so sexy that they became horny.
“I guess that’s a compliment?” Belladonna answered a bit skeptical.
“You can take it as that,” King smirked crookedly. “It was meant as a statement.”
“I never met a man like you before,” she spoke her thoughts out aloud before she could stop herself.
“Without wanting to appear arrogant,” he answered. “There aren’t many men like me out there.”
“A statement again?” Belladonna teased; she already knew the answer.
Which was why King’s response was a smirk, before he said: “There aren’t many women like you out there, either.”
“Is that so?” Belladonna leaned back, but King didn’t answer right away, as the waitress was returning with their drinks.
“You may not be aware of that fact,” he explained. “But just as many men are actually just boys in a grown-up body, it’s true with women, too. Many of them are still little girls who either want to rule the playground, or want to be married to the ruler of the playground.”
“That’s an interesting picture,” Belladonna chuckled, but was intrigued.
“You’re not a girl,” King leaned towards her enough for her to notice, but not enough for her to be forced to either lean in, too, or lean away. “You are a woman. Even though you’re not completely aware of that.”
For a moment, she just looked at King of Diamonds and let his words sink in, then, she reached out for her scotch and looked at the dark golden liquid.
“You are right about that,” she eventually said, looking him straight in the eyes.
He really was. Alice had instantly known that she would accept the invitation to the Dark Alley, while all her female friends would have chickened out if they had been in her position. She was sure of it. On top of that, she had taken the chance and experimented, pushing her own borders, not being ashamed of it. Being a member of the Dark Alley had influenced her self-esteem in a positive way. She felt comfortable in her own skin, maybe for the first time in her life. The only drawback – and the reason why she agreed with King – was that she was afraid of taking what she really wanted, and that was him.
“If you weren’t a woman, you would not have admitted that either,” King pointed that out.
“I still think you are thinking too much of me,” she said softly. “Because I still want a normal relationship with a boyfriend, a shared apartment, shared lives, marry and have children. I still want to be part of what society tells me to be.”
“I know,” King of Diamonds reached out for his scotch and took a sip, not looking at her. “And there is no shame in that either. So, if you want to leave the Dark Alley and try ‘normal’ with Tristan, so be it. I will not stop you.”
Hearing that stung, even though she appreciated his words, they stated that he didn’t have any claim or say. A part of her still wanted him to be mad and tell her that she was his. Fact was, though, she wasn’t.
“That wasn’t the answer you really wanted, was it?” King suddenly took her off guard.
“No,” Belladonna’s tongue was faster again, “I mean, I don’t really know.” She looked at his knowing expression. “And I guess because of that, you’re letting me go.”
“You haven’t asked me to ask you to stay, either,” he gave back and was right, again. “And you didn’t because I am married.”
Belladonna felt as if her stomach was filled with stones.
“And there’s that,” she agreed and took a sip of Scotch.
“My offer still stands,” King said. “We can talk about everything that bothers you.”
“Thank you, but not now,” she declined. “I came here to get my mind off things, not to mess it up even more.”
“That’s the same reason I come here,” King nodded with a light smile on his lips.
He wasn’t looking at her as if he was judging her, or that he was thinking of having sex with her either, which he probably did, but it didn’t make her uncomfortable as when others did it. And that was the problem.
She felt safe with him, in every possible sense of that word. Knowing that she couldn’t have him was torture. Although she didn’t know him, really. It wasn’t a childish crush, either. It was something different, something deeper. Maybe that was what he had felt when he started talking to her in that club “The Rabbit Hole”. What a fitting name.
Belladonna pondered what to do now, even though she already knew what she wanted. Some decent goodbye sex. She wanted to rip off that band aid and move on.
“If I tell you that I want to have sex with you one more time, would you be in?” She asked him straight away, ignoring that sting of guilt, when she thought about his wife, which was ridiculous, she had joined them the last time.
“I would,” King nodded and something in his features changed, softened; it made her feel warm.
“Without the masks?” She continued, redrawing the image she had in her mind.
She expected him to hesitate, since it was against the rules, as far as she remembered, he didn’t say a word,
only smiled widely across the rim of his glass that he just had brought to his mouth; his damn mouth.
“Only if you allow me one thing,” he told her after an eternity of silence, that only lasted a blink of an eye.
“Everything,” Belladonna answered boldly.
“Everything?” King repeated and although she couldn’t see it, she knew that he was cocking one brow.
“I said that, didn’t I?” She felt like being playful and refused to back away now, knowing that if she didn’t enjoy whatever he was up to, he would stop if she told him to
“Okay,” he nodded. “I would say that a room would be better to fulfil your wish.”
Twenty-Four
Belladonna asked herself what she had gotten herself into exactly once, because she already knew the answer. She had been on a date with Tristan one time, which meant that they weren’t dating or exclusive. She wasn’t purposefully breaking any of her rules, that was what really was important.
While riding the elevator up to a higher level she had never set foot to, she leaned her back against the mirrored wall opposite the doors and watched him, the man with a thousand names, Mr. Scotch, King of Diamonds, J.J. Grantham, Jason… She hadn’t said his name aloud and somehow to her it felt like breaking a spell, as if that name alone would turn this crazy ride of a naughty dream into reality.
Right now, it didn’t hurt that he was married, that fact was far away, just as the fact that he was the big boss, that she would see him every other week and had to pretend to not know him, and what luscious things he did in his spare time. It just came into her mind right then and there that she could actually ruin him, if she wanted to. She could sell this story to the tabloids, making herself a rich woman. Without breaking the contract that legally bound her to secrecy regarding the Dark Alley. And yet, J.J. Grantham, multi-billionaire, head of one of the biggest companies in the entire world, wasn’t acting as if he cared. Maybe because he knew that she would never do that to him. All he did, while riding up the elevator, was smile at her, leaning next to the elevator doors, keeping his distance, as if he was savoring this moment, simply watching her.
Dark Alley: Stalker Page 3