Page 20 of Dominant

“You should ask Jordan out. Give it a try. You don’t know what will happen.”

The man roughly face-fucking the initiate came with a loud cry. The group of spectators seemed to sigh with relief, as if a collective tension had been broken.

Mark shot me a look. “I’d hate to see you grow old alone, brother, that’s all. You think you need to take care of everyone, but someone needs to take care of you, too.”

I lifted a hand and patted Mark’s shoulder, reminding myself that he was only trying to look out for me. “Thanks, brother,” I told him, thinking, but we all grow old alone.

I was tired and irritable after my day at the office. Jordan refused to give up on the numbered account, and she’d walked into my office that day with a new set of “evidence:” tax filings from previous years that listed millions of dollars in payroll expenses with no employee information.

The truth was that there was employee information, and I’d filed it as required, but all my copies of personal information associated with the club were locked up in my private cabinet. The privacy of every member, servant, and initiate was of the utmost importance to us.

For the most part, the initiates were paid handsomely, although a surprising number came to us voluntarily, having heard about the club through various channels and wanting to experience the transformational journey of giving up their identities, boundaries, and other constructs. These were usually experienced submissives. But others were independent sex workers, who made an informed choice about what they were willing to do for money.

Business number 278503921 Ltd. was a legal enterprise on paper - a private club - but there was plenty about it that was necessarily kept secret. Things that other accountants hadn’t felt the need to dig too deeply into.

Jordan’s little investigation into the account was a growing source of concern for me, because it could potentially have major consequences.

I hadn’t even enjoyed seeing her brave mask of confidence as she confronted me - the way she lifted her chin like she wasn’t afraid, while barely concealing the nervousness underneath. Usually, her vulnerability was enough to give me a mild, pleasant ache in my groin.

She had looked fantastic on this particular day in red lipstick, with her hair pulled back into a ponytail. Although her clothes always seemed a little ill-fitting, it was very obvious that her body underneath was fantastic.

She had cleared her throat, starting bravely with, “Every employee of this… enterprise needs to be identified. This is a major red flag for fraud. So either this information has been misfiled somewhere else, for some reason, or it wasn’t filed in the first place, which fact would frankly amaze me… So I don’t know if there’s a reason you want to hide it, or--”

“Jordan!” I massaged my forehead in frustration. “Can you just leave it already? I’ll have Marianne look into it.” Marianne knew something about the club - nothing specific, but enough to not ask questions. She had no moral concerns either way, as long as she got paid enough to keep her in expensive shoes.

Jordan’s neck bobbed as she swallowed. Her slender, alabaster neck that I wanted to crush in my hands in frustration. “I’m not trying to start any trouble, I’m trying to help.”

I took a calming breath. “Why don’t you have a seat, please,” I tried.

“No.”

My eyes flashed up to hers. It was impossible for her to not be a brat, and it brought out something violent in me. I wanted to break her.

“Sit down,” I said.

“You’re not listening to me.”

“I am listening to you, and I have been very clear about what the expectation is for you here. Sit.Down.”

I saw the resolve falter in her eyes. She hesitated a moment, and then pulled back one of the leather chairs in front of my desk and sat primly.

“I thought we’d reached an agreement on this,” I said, staring her down. “Mr. Abbott? Remember? You agreed to respect my authority, didn’t you?”

“Trying to distract me won’t make this problem go away for you,” she said resolutely. “I’m trying to help.”

“You need to learn to listen, Jordan.”

Suddenly, she shifted gears on me. “Why did you open the car door so suddenly on the night of the party? When you dropped me off?”

I looked at her in surprise, caught off-guard by her question.

“Was it something I did?” she continued. “It seemed like you… suddenly had a change of heart. And I don’t know why.” Her hazel eyes held my gaze, but I saw colour rise on her cheeks. She was embarrassed.

I was sympathetic. My sudden dismissal of her had been rude. I didn’t think I’d ever see her again at the time, and I didn’t want to. “You didn’t do anything wrong,” I said softly. “It’s not about you. I didn’t want to lead you on.”

“You sort of did,” she pointed out.

I sighed. “Jordan, I find you very attractive. That’s why I flirted with you at the party. It’s why… it’s why I flirt with you sometimes in the office. I shouldn’t do it, and I apologize for misleading you. I think, in another type of life, I would have liked to get to know you better. But as I told you in the car, you’re my partners’ daughter. And now you’re my employee. We can only be co-workers. Besides,” I added. “Don’t take it personally. I’m not cut out for normal relationships, anyway.”

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