Page 30 of Sinful Chains

“It’s just a term,” she said as she picked up a section of my hair. “I had one. Never told you about him cuz he was an old white man.”

“What?”

She snickered. “Yeah, girl. He helped pay for this shop, if that tells you anything.”

I thought about that. “So it didn’t bother you? Like, you didn’t feel guilty?”

“Fuck no.” She ran the flat iron over my strands, then pin curled the section and put a clip in. “It’s not like you’re manipulating them into it. Girl, they love it. They get off on that shit.” She stopped to think. “I’ve never heard of a black one, though. That’s rare.”

“Hmm.”

“Got you a whole unicorn, San. Enjoy it while it lasts.”

“Well…he gave me his card the other day so I could buy some stuff for the wedding…” I trailed off, my cheeks heating from the memory. “I have to say, Ireallyenjoyed the aftermath.”

Gina pressed a hand to her chest, fanning herself dramatically. “This is better than I could have imagined. You been getting your feet rubbed, paid, and he lets you run him.”

I shifted in my seat, feeling defensive. “I don’t run him. I told you, it’s complicated.”

“What’s complicated about being worshipped?”

That was the same term Storm used. It sounded to me like this really was a thing; they had vocabulary words and everything.

I stared down at my hands, fingers tangling in my lap. “It doesn’t come naturally to me,” I admitted. “I just don’t know if I have it in me.”

“To torture him?”

I nodded.

She smiled, setting the flat iron down before turning my chair so I faced her head-on.

“San, listen to me. He wants this. It’s not just something they like…it’s what theyneed.” Her eyes bore into mine. “Some men need to be in control all the time. But other men? Like yours? They need to give it up.”

I nodded.

“Think about it. He has all that pressure on him every day. Students he’s responsible for. People that look up to him. That house y’all own.”

And all the people he gets paid to kill.

“Serious responsibilities,” she continued. “You’re the only person he can go to where he can let all that shit go.”

I pressed my lips together, thinking through it. “Okay, but what if I go too far? What if I push him past his limit?”

“San.” She squeezed my shoulder. “He’ll tell you if you do. That man ain’t gon’ sit there and take something he doesn’t like. But the bigger picture you’re missing here is that hetrustsyou. He knows you can handle him. You need to trust yourself.”

I blew out a breath.

Gina had clocked me, per usual. At the core of it, I didn’t trust myself in this position. But like everything else in my life, I could excel if I put my mind to it. And my mouth. And my coochie.

Gina smirked. “If you can handle dating and fucking three men at the same time, you can learn how to be a little dominant.”

I shot her a look as she pulled out the hot comb.

“Bitch, I ain’t tellin’ you nothin’ else.”

Chapter ten

A week after HarlanWhitman met his end, the men of Omega Theta Tau gathered to celebrate the joining of our brother Osirus and his lovely bride, Anika.

---