Page 90 of Bad Enough

He scowled. “Where is it? You don’t have a purse on you. And that jacket is so tight, I don’t see anything in your pockets.”

“I have a special pocket in all of my corsets. I sew them myself. All the boning helps keep it safe.”

“Why don’t you carry it in your purse?”

“It always falls to the bottom of my bag, no matter where I put it, and then I can’t get to it. Plus, sometimes a purse is bothersome, so my little pocket has room for my phone, ID, and credit card. That way, if I get stuck somewhere, I can get to it easily.”

“Not that easily,” he grunted. “You have to reach into your corset to get it. That’s got to look weird.”

“It’s for emergencies. If it’s a real emergency, I’m not going to care if anyone sees me feeling myself up to get to them.”

You have to give her credit. In a weird way, it makes sense.

“Sometimes your logic defies my understanding.”

She snorted. “Make up your mind. Mad I don’t have my phone in case of an emergency. Mad I’m breaking club rules by having it hidden on my person. Amused by my hiding place. Besides, it doesn’t have to make sense to you. It just needs to make sense to me.”

He pulled her close, putting his mouth next to her ear. His hand dropped below her waist and gave her a quick swat on the ass. “That’s for lying.” He kissed the side of her head and quickly smoothed over where he’d spanked her, his fingers sliding deftly under the layered skirt to tease her skin just below the cheek. “And that’s for being prepared. Good girl.”

Over the next two hours, TB made sure to introduce Flame to several of the regulars in the bar area. As predicted, he noticed how many people saw her collar, glanced at his wrists with the wolf bands, and registered surprise. Doms and subs alike registered disappointment that both appeared to be off the market. At least temporarily. He managed to keep from rolling his eyes, but just barely.

Just after nine-thirty, he noticed the triad come into the bar and sit in one of the large private booths. The two Doms named Loki and Gilgamesh flanked their sub, Medusa. To the casual observer, nothing would seem out of place. But TB suspected there was something more going on with the threesome. He knew when people were casing a location, and these three were definitely involved in a surreptitious conversation, as well as watching the crowd with intensity, even if no one else knew.

TB double-tapped his watch to activate the communication device so that the others could hear the upcoming conversation. “Okay, Flame. This is a group I need to ask questions of. We’re going to go and talk to this triad at the booth. Are you ready to be curious?”

“A real triad?” Her question was breathy. “I won’t need to try to be curious. I definitely have questions.”

He chuckled. “Something to put on your list for ‘research’?”

Ignore that pang in your chest at her answer. It’s heartburn from the curry at dinner. Never mind, you’ve never had heartburn before.

She blushed and shook her head. “Well…” She considered. “Questions, yes. Do, no. I’ve all I can handle with one partner.”

He put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. He ducked his head to whisper hotly in her ear, “Never say never. It’s always the quiet ones who are the most adventurous.”

“Is that…” She bit her lip, and he could tell what the rest of the question was, but he was going to make her ask it anyway. “Have you done that?”

Honesty or lies?

He tilted her chin up and in his direction so that he could see her eyes. “Yes, but I don’t share well with others. And I would never, ever share you.”

Her mouth opened as if to say something but then closed almost immediately. The blush on her cheeks stained brighter. Rather than make her glow a furious red, he put his hand on her back and steered her toward the booth.

“Loki. Gilgamesh.” He nodded at the two men. “This is Flame. She’s new here, and I thought perhaps she might like to meet Medusa.”

“Lobo.” Loki glared at the pair’s sub. “I shouldn’t allow it. She’s in trouble.”

Medusa looked at Loki with a cool stare, just short of defying him.

Loki was in what TB called CEO garb. Crisp white button-down shirt, sleeves rolled up, top button undone, dress pants, and dress shoes. He had obviously lost his jacket and tie somewhere along the way. One hand held a drink. The other was resting along the backside of the curved leather booth behind where Medusa sat.

Gilgamesh grinned at his partner. “A little over the top for stepping out into traffic, friend.”

The language was lighthearted, but Lobo got the sense that Gilgamesh wasn’t nearly as humored by what she had done either.

I wonder what kind of “traffic” she walked out into?

Gilgamesh was slightly older than his male counterpart. He was shorter than Loki and dark to his light. Not only looks-wise, they were opposites in terms of temperament. Loki was forbidding, and Gilgamesh was more fun-loving. He also was more of a playboy. His tight jeans, trendy purple button-down, and generous ink showing from his cuffs and neckline made him a definite favorite topic of conversation and lusting amongst the subs, both male and female.

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