Page 30 of Pretty Little Thing

He grips the edge of his jacket and pushes it aside, revealing the club’s emblem on his shirt and the bold letters beneath it that read SECURITY.

“It’s my job,” he says.

“Wait.” I laugh. “You workhere?”

“Didn’t I mention that?”

“Uh, no,” I say. “You didn’t.”

“Oh. Well, I work here.”

“How many jobs do you have?”

“Three,” he answers.

“Wow.”

“Yeah, we can’t all be CEOs.” He smiles and glances at my neck. “I’m glad to see that’s coming in handy.”

“Well, it was working like a charm until about fifteen seconds ago,” I quip.

“Do you want me to piss off?” he asks with amused eyes.

“No. The familiar face is nice... even nicer now that I know you’re literally the muscle around here.”

“Well, good.”

I glance behind me, drawn to the sudden sound of a flogger and a woman’s grunt-like moan somewhere else on the floor but I can’t see through the crowd. “So, this seems like a fun gig,” I say.

“It certainly can be,” he says, shaking his head at the next area over. “Mostly just a lot of staring and cleaning. And keeping a close eye on singles, such as yourself...”

“Why, are wedangerous?”

“No, just vulnerable.”

“I thought this was supposed to be a safe place.”

“It is.” He nods. “Doesn’t mean I don’t worry.”

“Do you worry about me?” I ask.

“Honestly, yes.” He clears his throat. “You took off out of here like a bat out of hell last time. I hoped you made it home all right.”

“I did. Obviously.”

“Obviously,” he repeats.

Again, I’m drawn to that woman’s deep groan. There’s a pleasure in it, one that entices and scares me all at once. I’ve never felt anything like that before.

The crowd shifts and for a brief second, I catch a glimpse of her face. Red and glistening with sweat. With pain and ecstasy, both at once.

“Pick one.”

I twitch back to Clive. “Excuse me?”

His eyes scan over my head to the corners of the room. “Pick one,” he says again.

“Pick one... what?”

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