Page 74 of Plaything

Reesia turned to me as she parked the car in a mall lot. “I’d ask you how you met the guys, but I already asked them,” she admitted.

I grabbed my purse, and we began walking. “How did you and Collin befriend them?” I questioned.

Reesia hooked her arm with mine like it was natural for her. I felt slightly uncomfortable, but it was only for a second before I saw the warm smile on her face. “Another long story!” She laughed.

“I’ve known Dominic... forever?” she sounded unsure.

“We grew up on the same block and went to the same schools. We weren’t friends, but we knew each other. He was always hanging out with Wyatt and Aiden, even back then. They didn’t meet Niko until high school because he’s the baby,” she joked.

“They’ve always been close, huh?” Pops mentioned they’d always been friends, but Reesia confirmed that it’d always been the four of them.

She nodded, “Oh yeah. They were terrifying in high school. They got really tall, really fast, like boys tend to do. Add in the teenage angst, and you’ve got four unapproachable guys who you want to avoid,” she rolled her eyes with a playful smile, probably knowing that they were just teenagers. It was funny how perspective changed when you became an adult.

“Even Wyatt?” I couldn’t imagine him being anything but kind.

Reesia shrugged, “Eh, he’s always been the less intimidating out of the four,” she agreed. She widened her eyes, giving me a look, “But don’t underestimate him, trust me. I’ve only seen it twice, but Wyatt has a Mr. Hyde,” she said in a whisper, as if she wasn’t supposed to share that.

“As in... Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde?” I caught on. I had a feeling I understood what she meant by that. I’d seen Wyatt’s dark eyes and how his cheerfulness could switch up in the blink of an eye. The night the power went out, I remembered how his whole demeanor changed into someone much darker.

Reesia nodded, “Don’t get me in trouble, okay?” She smirked.

My pointer finger and thumb moved across my lips, sealing them for emphasis. I would never tell on her for giving me information, especially when it would help me in the future. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious about Wyatt’s ‘Mr. Hyde’ side.

Reesia smirked at me before continuing. “Back when I used to strip, I noticed a man following me while I was walking home. I was scared, and if I hadn’t run into Dominic, something bad probably would have happened,” she said casually. How did she admit things like that so absentmindedly? She was very blunt—almost too blunt. I liked that about her and wished I had a sliver of that bluntness.

“Dominic just got out of a bar, and I guess he recognized me from high school. He’d always intimidated me, so I planned to walk past him, but he had other plans. He walked right up to me and pretended that we were supposed to meet there like we had plans or something. I was confused, because I’m not the brightest crayon in the box, but I played along. Dominic kept looking behind me at the man who was following me, and I finally caught on why he was pretending to know me.”

More butterflies fluttered in my belly as I realized Dominic was an all-around good man. I just wish he’d let people see that in him. His willingness to protect Reesia and step out of his comfort zone was admirable. He wasn’t a people person, and considering he didn’t know Reesia well, I was surprised his immediate response was to step in.

“Anyone would be stupid to try anything with Dominic around, so the man left, and Dominic walked me home—that little softie,” she laughed. “After he called me stupid for walking alone, he gave me his number and told me that if I ever needed a ride, I should call him.”

“Luckily for me, I never needed him again,” she winked. “Fast forward a few years, Collin and I are at a... club,” she glanced at me. “That’s actually where we met Vincent and Jamie too,” she added.

Recalling past conversations, my knowledge of how they became close friends and one horrible Google search, I grinned. “So it was a sex club,” I deadpanned.

Her cheeks lit in a blush as she laughed. “Sure was!” Her shoulders relaxed like she thought I would judge her or something. I was the one hooking up with my professors—I couldn’t judge anyone. I was more polluted than I let on.

“I guess Collin knew Aiden from a psychology event they attended, so they started talking. Dominic re-introduced me to Wyatt, Aiden, and Niko. The rest is history,” she shrugged.

My imagination didn’t stretch far enough to even guess what a sex club looked like. Based on the name, I could only assume what happened in one. I nervously bit my lip, “You don’t have to answer, but what exactly does one do in a... club?”

She smiled. “You should come one day!” she gushed. “It’s not as intimidating as it sounds, I promise. They don’t let creeps in, and everyone has a thorough background check,” she explained.

I widened my eyes, “Oh—uh, I don’t think I’d fit in,” I dismissed.

“Okay,” she smiled, readily accepting my denial. “So the one that we go to has a big bar; that’s where a lot of us meet friends with similar interests. It’s also where a lot of Doms tend to hang out. There are private rooms, rooms with a one-way mirror, where people can see you, but you can’t see them. There are people fucking all around the room. A humiliation area, aftercare room, punishment room—”

I blinked fast, “Wait, wait, wait—people do it in front of other people?” I repeated, not understanding that at all. That was... private. “Humiliation?”

She gave my arm a squeeze, “Awe, you’re precious!” She gushed. “But yeah—there’s a lot of that. I was weary of it all too when I first got into it, but it’s actually really hot and exhilarating to have everyone watch you,” she wiggled her eyebrows at me.

“You’ve done it?” My mouth dropped. But she seemed so... sweet? I couldn’t imagine her in any position where she’d like to be watched.

She nodded, “Loads of times. Collin likes to utilize the humiliation part of the room,” she said.

I was having trouble keeping up with all this. “Do I want to know what that means?” I chuckled nervously.

“So, some people have humiliation kinks,” she pointed to herself and cringed jokingly. “In that section, anything’s valid. So people will come up and watch you—they can only touch you or join if they have you and your doms permission,” she added. “They’ll tease you, laugh at you, or just watch.”

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