Page 103 of Ask Me Something

Chapter Twenty-One

Iwas in, all right; in-sane, that is. But at least I was being supportive with my insanity. Yeah, at least there was that. And a good friend didn’t allow someone to get murdered or sexually assaulted without offering to sit in a bar and wait to give the police report. Ugh.

Sure, officer, my friend said she wanted to go to a sex club and learn to be more confident, so I went to have a drink and tried not to wonder what was happening behind those massive closed doors to the left.

Oh, geez, they looked soundproof.

I replied to Brian. “Too late. Bar is safe, mask is on. How do you know about this place?”

“Text me in fifteen minutes,”was his terse response. He hadn’t answered my question but at least he was being a little more reasonable.

“Will do.”

Ordering a diet soda, I tried not to make eye contact with anyone else in the bar area. Although I had a mask on, I still felt exposed and certainly didn’t want to call any attention to myself. If I’d thought speed dating was out of my comfort zone, this was to-the-freaking-moon awkward. But at least I didn’t have to participate in conversation. All I had to do was sit incognito at the bar and wait. Catherine had prepped me that she’d signed up for an hour-long session. She’d also confided that she might be out a whole lot sooner if it didn’t go well.

The bartender was nice and, of course, hot. After all, that was their business. After fifteen minutes, I texted Brian and frowned when he didn’t reply. About twenty minutes in, the bartender came over to check on me.

“Waiting on a friend?” he inquired, having probably seen this scenario play out on any number of evenings.

“Yeah. Tell me something, Eddie,” I said, looking at his nametag. “Are the walls soundproof? Because I’m thinking I may not be able to hear the screams of my friend if she needs me.” I was only half teasing.

He chuckled. “Your friend is plenty safe, I assure you.”

I wasn’t so confident, and even through the mask, my eyes must have conveyed that.

He shrugged. “Considering you’re here with her, I’m assuming this is a first-time thing and she’s nervous, which means she signed up for the beginner’s package.”

I had to ask. “And what exactly is the beginner’s package?”

His eyes lit up in amusement. “You want a menu, beautiful?”

I rolled my eyes and was about to respond when a familiar voice over my shoulder did it for me.

“No, she does not.”

Holy shit. Brian was here.

* * *

I could tellhe was beyond pissed off with the clipped tone and hard stare he was giving me.

“What are you doing here?” My voice cracked at least three times in those five little words.

The bartender raised a brow and made himself scarce, wanting no part of whatever was coming.

“Oh, I think you can guess. Come with me.”

I took out some cash and laid it on the bar for my soda, only to have Eddie wave me off.

“On the house, love. You two have fun.”

Uh, what the hell did he mean by that?

Brian’s hand took mine in a death grip, and he practically dragged me down a hallway.

“Where are we going?” I squeaked, looking at the line of closed doors down the corridor.

Suddenly, we stopped in front of room number twelve. He produced a key, unlocking and opening the door.

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