Page 29 of King of Temptation

But she had a point. Neither my family, nor the staff here, would take kindly to us obviously hooking up and so I’ve been keeping my distance.

But my patience is getting so thin.

I hear the doors open, and the club instantly fills with people. We’re the sort of place that has a line, even at ten when all the other clubs are dead. I resist the urge to go back and check on her. I wait until I can hear the floor is packed and then the techno music sounds.

That’s the cue that the dancers are about to start.

Only then, do I head out of my office and onto the floor.

I’ve got a spot at the corner of the bar that I can slip in and out, see everything and hardly be seen.

I take my place, Mike, the bartender, giving me a sparkling water as the strobes start up, the cages rising.

The crowd is already going nuts as the cages hit the top, the lights fading away.

And then they surge back on, illuminating the cages, the dancers in place.

I see Kim, striking a pose in the center cage, her long lean body making my balls ache.

But I’m not the only one who notices the new dancer.

The crowd lets out a roar as the first song begins and Kim starts to dance. I’m sure the other dancers move too, but who can watch them? My eyes are glued to her, and I lean forward, drinking in every second she’s performing.

“Wow,” Mike says from next to me. He’s watching too and not serving drinks. “That new dancer is really something.”

“Back to work,” I bark out and push up from stool. I shouldn’t do it, I never go upstairs at night, but I find myself stomping up the stairs to the upper landing.

The next set of dancers is already waiting. They won’t go in the cages for another fifteen minutes, the girls getting changed out every half hour or so. But they know the drill. Everyone waits at the ready. The night moves seamlessly. This is why Temptation is a success.

I walk around the edge of the room until I’m at the corner of the rail where I can see all the cages floating up and down.

The crowd is going wild and several of the spotlights are trained on Kim. My arms cross, my hands are clenched into tight balls under my elbows.

Finally, the cages start up and I stomp toward hers.

Her operator stops her cage at the top and reaches his hand in to help her step out.

But he’s not looking at her, not watching her steps. The crowd is pulsing and cheering for her and he’s staring out at them grinning.

I pick up speed as Kim steps out of the cage, her first foot landing fine but her second doesn’t. The ball of her foot is on the platform but the heel.

I see her wobble, her heel floating over thin air. She tightens her hand in the operator’s but I’m there before he can even respond.

The fear in her eyes is enough to make my blood run cold as I yank her from his grasp and into my arms.

I feel her stuttering gasp, her eyes so wide and her lips parted in surprise, but I barely look at her before I’m snarling at the operator. “What the fuck?”

He’s gone completely pale, not that I care, and I’m about to tear him open when Kim’s hands slide down my biceps. “I should have been watching where I stepped.”

That brings my gaze to hers. “It’s his job to see to your safety.”

“I know, but it’s my job too. Yell at me for not watching where I put my feet.”

Yell at her? Is she crazy? All I want to do is hug her to my chest and then kiss her senseless. And just like that, my anger evaporates as I pick her up and carry her toward the stairs.

“Leo,” she gasps, hands tightening on my arms. “You can’t just carry me. Everyone’s watching…”

“Let them.” All right, maybe I’m still not thinking completely clearly. But the idea of her falling has my blood pumping.

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