Page 3 of Ruin Me, Daddy

One dark eyebrow raised, sending the butterflies in her stomach dancing all over again. “You came all the way from California just to talk?”

“How did you know?—”

“Please don’t insult my intelligence, Miss Sterling. Everyone who walks through my doors undergoes an extensive background check.”

Of course. She knew that, since she’d signed the paperwork giving him permission to do exactly that when she’d applied for a temporary membership last week. “Right. I forgot.”

Again his lips twitched as he tried and failed to hide his own amusement at the situation. “Also, my daughter happens to be a huge Deviant Whispers fan. Her room has your posters all over it.”

“Yeah?” The butterflies calmed enough for Silver to smile. “I’ll have to leave her an autograph or something before I head back home.”

“She’d love that. Now, are you going to go talk to Ice, or should I pretend I haven’t seen you?”

“If you could pretend for just a bit longer, I would appreciate it very much. I’m not quite ready to talk to him, yet.”

“Consider it done.” Sliding out of the booth, Braden flashed a smile of his own, turning his face from handsome older man to devastating heartbreaker in the blink of an eye. “Welcome to club BDE, Miss Sterling.”

CHAPTER 2

ICE

Someone was watching him. It wasn’t unusual, since even the beard he’d been growing for the past few months wasn’t always enough to hide his identity and there were more than a few Deviant Whispers fans in the club.

But this felt… different, somehow. Heavier. And no matter how many times he glanced around the club, he couldn’t pinpoint where the feeling was coming from.

“You’re jumpy this evening.”

Across the table, Beckett Stone lifted a glass of whiskey to his curved lips. Handsome in a boy-next-door kind of way with a thick flop of perfectly styled dark hair that matched his equally dark eyes, Beckett was the first person Ice had really clicked with when he’d come to South Carolina, and part of the reason he’d stayed so much longer than he’d actually meant to. His plan when he’d left California had been to bounce around a bit, checking out different clubs across the country in the hopes he’d find someone to take his mind off Silver.

So far, he was batting zero.

Arizona, Seattle, Houston. He’d tried clubs from one coast to another, played with submissives of all genders. But nothing had helped. No matter who he had on their knees in front of him, all he could think about was the way Silver had looked during Roulette, kneeling before him in those mouth-watering black boots, the kaleidoscope of colors in her hair dancing beneath the lights.

And despite having spent several months in South Carolina, he hadn’t even played with anyone here yet. Shane, Club BDE’s resident brat, had caught his eye for a while, but they’d never made it past the flirting stage before Shane had moved away for some new job he’d been surprisingly tight-lipped about.

But while he hadn’t found anyone he wanted to top here, he’d found something even more unexpected. Friends, like Beckett and the club’s owner, Braden Elliott, who had given him a sense of belonging he hadn’t felt outside of his own band in a very long time.

Even inside his own band, he’d come to realize the longer he’d stayed away from California. That thought was a bit too uncomfortable, though, so he purposefully didn’t dwell on it very long whenever it popped up.

“I’m feeling jumpy,” he answered with a frown that had Beckett’s brows raising toward his hairline. “Can’t shake the feeling someone is watching me.”

“Isn’t someone always watching you? I swear you’ve got fangirls hiding in the shadows every time we go somewhere.” Clearly amused by his friend’s discomfort, Beckett made a show of looking around.

“Don’t act like you don’t love the attention.” Despite being one of the strictest, most hardass Doms Ice had ever known, Beckett had a tendency to preen like a peacock whenever they encountered Ice’s ‘fangirls’ which amused both Ice and Braden to no end. “And this feels different.”

That got Beckett’s attention. His expression sobered as his focus returned to Ice. “Different how?”

“I dunno. Just different.” Giving himself a mental shake, Ice sipped at his whiskey. “Probably nothing. Are you playing tonight?”

“Haven’t decided yet.” Picking up the drink he’d been nursing for a solid half hour, Beckett gave the amber liquid a swirl, his brows drawing together in a thoughtful frown. “I’m… in a mood.”

Which meant he was feeling even more sadistic than usual, and god help whichever poor subbie ended up at his mercy if he did decide to play. Even though he hadn’t yet indulged himself in what Club BDE had to offer, Ice had gotten plenty of enjoyment out of watching Beckett Stone in action. “Braden could probably find you someone to help with your mood.”

“Invoking my name already?” As if conjured by magic, Braden Elliott stepped up to the table, a wide grin stretching across his face. Though he was a full decade older than both Ice and Beckett, his good looks had remained intact, even with the dusting of gray that had recently shown up at his temples. No doubt thanks to his babygirl, Lottie, who required more wrangling than most submissives. “It’s not even nine in the evening yet, gentlemen.”

“Beckett’s in a mood,” Ice said with a grin of his own. “Thought you might be able to help.”

Braden’s smile deepened. “As it happens, Cordelia is also in a bit of a ‘mood’. From what I can gather, Ivy has been something of a brat this week and Delia would be more than happy to let someone have a go at her babygirl. Should I send them your way?”

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