Page 53 of Savage Bosses

How was he so detached? I didn’t have his profession of love and commitment as an anchor. He had mine, though there were parts of me he hadn’t unlocked yet. The parts of me that loved wildly and unconditionally. Loving him hadn’t freed those things I only read about. Like knowing Dax was in a room before I saw him. Or feeling the tingle from his touch curl my toes in anticipation. Or knowing he saw my soul when he looked at me. I yearned to experience those things though.

I stroked the low brown hairs at his nape, and he tilted his head away. “Don’t. You’ll mess up my hair.” He removed my hand, placing a quick kiss against my knuckles.

Our moment of tenderness swiftly passed. I sighed. I loved moments when he wasn’t all hard or lukewarm. He knew I did, yet Dax held that softer side at bay. Teasing me with it as one would dangle a mouse before a cat.

“Did I tell you how good you look in this dress?”

I flushed. Hungry for his approval. I enjoyed dressing sexy. Reveled in the way my clothes felt against my skin, but this dress was far more revealing than any outfit I would have chosen.

“You look hot in it. Your dark skin is perfect against the white fishnet.” His hand was between my knees again and my breath hitched. “I have half a mind to take you home and fuck you myself.”

But he wouldn’t.

“You’ll look even hotter when that dress comes off.”

I fidgeted, aroused. Not just by the thought of another man’s cum inside me, but by knowing I was pleasing Dax. Later, when we made love, I’d see his eyes darken in lust at having his fantasy fulfilled and know I’d given that to him.

“What do you think?” He nodded toward the room. “See anyone that whets your interest?”

We’d been at the club for an hour and I was a little surprised he hadn’t asked earlier. He’d been patient so far, allowing me to find a lover that ignited my naughty side. Now my hesitation had him on edge.

I took another look around the immense room. There were two other cozy seating areas, like the black leather loveseat we were currently sitting on. In one, a woman wearing a gold mask had three men also wearing masks at her feet, all in various submissive forms. She tugged on the chains attached to their collars before brushing each one’s jaw in a soothing caress. Her touch was gentle… intimate, and the men leaned into her seduction. She whispered to them and though I couldn’t hear the words, I saw their effect as the men closed their eyes when her breath touched their cheeks. The woman’s entire focus was on her pets, not the room or the attention she’d gained. And I couldn’t help but envy her and her submissives for their moment of devotion.

“Do you like what you see, Zo?”

“Yes,” I whispered. I did. But I was sure it wasn’t for the same reasons Dax found the group appealing. I didn’t just see submissives and a dominatrix, I saw men who willingly gave over their pleasure to their mistress. I saw trust. And a firm foundation in commitment to each other’s pleasure where my ground was shaky with uncertainty.

Dax’s hand moved further up my thigh, stopping at the slit. “Maybe the next time we visit, I’ll find someone to tie you in those ropes you’re fascinated with.”

A friend of a friend I’d never met invited Dax to the club. There was no way Dax could afford a place like this. He made decent money, but not Filth Den money.

“Shibari,” I whispered.

If he wanted to try bondage, the pink ropes I bought on Valentine’s Day wouldn’t remain unopened under our bed.

I smiled. “Sounds nice.”

Tonight wasn’t about me. Right? It was about proving I could handle all the parts of our relationship. I was enthusiastic about our future and could taste it, and I redoubled my efforts, paying close attention to my surroundings. Although Dax’s only rule was no anal sex—not that I’d want to experience that with a stranger or someone who didn’t know my body—I came up with two rules of my own. No kissing. No orgasms. Both were intimate to me. While I wanted to enjoy the act and the game of being with a stranger for our pleasure, succumbing to either was surrendering to my lover.

It was emotionally dangerous. A game of closing off my heart that I couldn’t win without drawing lines.

My pulse raced under my skin at the thought. Damn it. I closed my eyes and repeated my rules because it was the only way I knew to avoid caring too deeply or letting tonight touch my heart.

Tonight was a celebration, I reminded myself, and a way to show Dax that I was far from a prude. That we could have a great relationship in every way. Besides, in two weeks, I would begin my new job as a personal assistant, and neither of us knew how busy I’d be working for an oil tycoon. I opened my eyes, ready to tell Dax no one had caught my interest when the elevator doors opened and my heart jolted to a stop.

I stared, hardly able to drag my eyes from him. The dim lighting didn’t hide the power and self-confidence he wielded. It cloaked him like a pair of leather pants. His complexion reminded me of bourbon and his sleek raven hair gave him a worldly air. He was dressed in a black suit with his white shirt partly unbuttoned. He should appear disheveled with his bowtie hanging around his shoulders but looked devilishly sexy instead.

Would he care if I ran my fingers through his hair?

Guilt for comparing the newcomer to my boyfriend rode hard on the heels of my speculation.

Okay, Zoerina. Deep breaths. I quickly dragged my eyes away.

Although this man was the only one to gain my interest all evening, I dared not choose him. He didn’t seem the type to accept dispassionate sex. That made him a threat to my chances at happiness with Dax.

Movement at the corner of my eye arrested my attention and my gaze returned to the newcomer in time to see his head fall back in laughter. I hadn’t noticed the man or woman beside him. A gorgeous couple that also carried a confident charisma. The couple’s fingers interlaced into a lover’s hold and another smidge of envy sank its claws into my chest. I snuffed out the reaction, allowing myself one last glance at the man with raven hair until his head turned in my direction.

I sucked in a calming breath when his eyes met mine from across the room. It was unsettling that I couldn’t look away. More unnerving that my body heated everywhere his gaze touched. I fidgeted, then quickly stopped my unconscious movements, but it was too late to go unnoticed.

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