Page 15 of Ryker

The one named Vault gets this lopsided grin on his face next to him.

Two more are giving each other Oh shit smirks.

Dmitri clears his throat. “According to club rules, any Dom in the room is available.” His mischievous gaze flicks at Mr. Hudson. “You’ve just never been in the room while she’s chosen before, Sir.”

Someone else fights back a small laugh and it looks like Mr. Hudson wants to beat them all to a pulp. His face turns red and the veins in his temples stick out.

“You’ve made your choice then,” he says in a growl. “Everyone, get back to work.”

Dmitri is the last one out the door. Just before he closes it, he flashes a smile in our direction and mumbles, “Have fun, you two.”

The door closes and we’re plunged into an airless, soundless space that seems to have become an anti-gravity chamber because I swear, I’m floating.

“You didn’t have to bid,” I whisper like a little mouse.

“And you didn’t have to get naked.”

“You said to be bold.”

His jaw clenches. We stare at each other and the urge to kiss him is strong. But I can’t. I won’t. Not until I know he won’t strangle me for putting him in this position.

My heart thuds in my tightening throat. “Is being my Dom so awful?”

He doesn’t answer.

Now I’m pissed. “You didn’t have to stay in the room.” I toss my hands in the air. “You could have let Dmitri or someone else escort me here while you went back to ruling over your club. No one forced you to stay.”

I don’t believe for once second that he doesn’t remember what his own motherfucking club rules are. He stayed on purpose, whether he’ll admit it or not.

We glare at each other for a long time.

I’m not scared of him. I think Mr. Hudson is all bark, no bite, and if I’m wrong, I don’t think I’ll mind letting him sink his teeth into me.

“Why did you do this?” He seethes. “You’ve set me up and I want to know why.”

I’ve done no such thing. “I only wanted to be Butterfly. Last night I saw an opportunity, and I took it.”

“An opportunity to tear down what I’ve built.” He slowly prowls over to me.

“I’m not here for your club. I’m only here to learn about myself.”

“You don’t need to be the Butterfly to do that, Miss Reed.” He’s dangerously close to me now. “Why couldn’t you have just walked away from that building?”

“For reasons that no longer matter since we made this deal.”

His eyes darken. “Until you tell me the truth, I will not make this a pleasant experience for you, Tara.”

My heart skitters to a stop. Keeping my expression impassive and voice calm, I tip my chin up and deadpan him. “I told you the truth.”

He’d never hurt me. It’s against his rules. I’m also certain it’s against his nature. He’s just lashing out because he’s mad I got the best of him.

Mr. Hudson holds my gaze for a long time, then he exhales in a half-growl and steps away from me. “I’ll have a driver take you back to your house. You’ll have fifteen minutes to pack your things. You will not have access to your cell phone during your stay here.”

The club has a strict no cell rule, but how the hell is that supposed to work if I’m here for a month?

Ryker pulls out an envelope from the breast pocket of his tux. “This is an NDA you must sign before you leave this suite. Take your time going over it. If you chose to not sign it, the woman who came in second during the ceremony will become the new Butterfly. Since you won this time, you cannot be in the ceremony ever again, which means this is your one and only chance.”

He heads to the door while I’m left holding the NDA in my clammy hand.

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