Page 20 of Master Key Resort

“Well, what do you think?” Mitch asked Cordell after the two had finished taking a tour via a golf cart around the small island that was soon to be called Master Key, with Tori, Ty, and Tiffany tagging along in a cart behind them. The threesome had arrived yesterday and had stayed in their cottage, but Cordell and Tiffany had ended up losing some time with a few traffic jams. It would’ve been two in the morning when they reached their destination if they’d continued the last leg of the trip, so Cordell had made the decision to grab a room at a Marriott in Port St. Lucie. After an early breakfast, they’d gotten on the road again for the last five hours of the trip.

Cordell climbed out of the passenger seat and glanced around again. “I like it. A lot of work needs to be done, but you already knew that.” He hadn’t spotted anything that needed attention that hadn’t already been laid out in the plans for new resort or that Mitch and Ty hadn’t mentioned during their walkabout. The original hotel had been demolished last week and the crew was in the process of hauling away the last of the rubble. Tomorrow, the footprints of the new building would be measured out, and then the following day, the construction company would start to lay the foundation. “I think you picked the perfect spot. The views are gorgeous.”

A small bridge linked Master Key to the closest island to the south with access to U.S. Route 1, which ran from the mainland to Key West along the Seven Mile Bridge and linked many of the larger keys together. Multiple golf carts were available for the guests to use if they didn’t feel like hiking around the two-square mile Master Key. The north side of the island looked out over nothing but water and would be the site of the resort’s clothing optional beach. The only chance of the guests being spied on or having their pictures taken would be by boat or drone. The new head of security was apparently working with Brody Evans and Marco DeAngelis from Trident Security, to ensure the chances of that happening were slim to none. On the west side of the island there was a clothing-required beach available for any guests who preferred that option.

“Wait’ll you see the sunsets,” Ty said as he joined Mitch and Cordell, leaving the women alone to chat. “I could watch one every night of my life and never get tired of them.”

A golf cart pulled up next to the other ones, and a blond man climbed out, carrying a clipboard. A gorgeous German Shepherd jumped down from the passenger seat and was at his owner’s heels in a heartbeat. If the burly guy wasn’t former military, Cordell would eat the baseball cap he was wearing. Tall and broad, with a crew cut and a lean muscular physique were his first clues, but it was the man’s sharp, blue eyes, taking in his surroundings within a split second, that had Cordell narrowing his assessment. The guy hadn’t just been in the military, he’d been in Special Forces.

The newcomers joined the group, and Mitch took care of the introductions. “Cordell, this is Dante Calvano, your new head of security. Dante, this is Master Cordell Roberts and that’s his submissive, Tiffany Armstrong, talking with Tori.”

“G-day,” Dante said, sticking out his hand for Cordell to shake. His accent wasn’t hard to miss, and Cordell pegged him to be in his late thirties or early forties. By tonight, he would know everything about the man after reading the folder Mitch had given him today containing a full background check and other necessary information. “Nice to meet you.”

“Same here. What part of Australia are you from?”

“Sydney, although I’ve been living in the States for the past few years. My mum grew up in Arizona, so I have dual citizenship.” He turned to acknowledge the women who had rejoined the small group. “Tori, nice to see you again.”

She gave him a friendly wave. “Good to see you too. This is my cousin Tiffany.” She gestured toward him and completed the introduction. “This is Dante, the resort’s head of security.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Tiffany,” he said with a smile, before indicating the dog, who was sitting by his side, clearly well trained. “And this is Cooper—he’s also part of the security team.”

Tiffany gave him a shy smile. “It’s nice to meet you, Master Dante, and you too, Cooper.”

“It’s just Dante, luv—I’m not a Dominant, and I have my own Master.”

While Cordell knew having an alpha personality didn’t mean a person couldn’t be a sexual submissive, it still surprised him when he came across one and did as Tiffany had just done. He’d assumed this tough-looking, alpha bad-ass in front of him was a Dom. He’d obviously been wrong and would have to remember that when the man’s Master was present. “Will your Dom be joining the club, Dante?”

The man nodded. “Yes, Sir.” The honorific that easily fell from his lips, despite being outside a BDSM scene or situation, was probably from a combination of his military and lifestyle training. “Master Reed has already submitted his application, since my employment came with access to the club.”

“Please, call me Cordell unless we’re in a D/s setting.” When the other man nodded his assent, Cordell asked, “Is Master Reed in the security business as well?”

“Nah. Master’s battles are fought in the boardroom of his corporation.” The phone on his hip rang, and he took a step back from the group while pulling the device from its holster. “If you’ll pardon me, I need to answer this.”

“Go right ahead,” Cordell responded, liking the guy already. Knowing the Sawyers, he was sure Dante was good at his job. With Ian and Devon being retired SEALs in the security business themselves, they would’ve vetted Dante so well, they probably knew his shoe size and what time of day he usually took a shit. With Cordell’s law enforcement background added to the mix, security would undoubtably be tight at the resort.

“How many did you say were going to be on Dante’s team?” he asked Mitch and Ty.

“Twelve full-timers, including him,” Mitch responded. “And four part-timers. Although, he’s the only one who’s on the payroll already. Devon and Ian are still interviewing candidates—that was the one input they’d insisted they had. Each will have a heavy military or law enforcement background. Dante is retired from the Australian Army.”

“Special Forces, right?”

The other two men smirked, but it was Ty that answered this time. “Would you expect anything less from Ian and Dev?”

“Nope—not at all.”

Mitch glanced at his watch. “Well, we have about two hours before our meeting with Milo to go over the work that’ll be done during the next phase. Whataya say we all go grab some lunch? There’s a great burger place about ten minutes west on Route 1.”

“Sounds good to me. Pet?”

“Burgers sound great to me too, Sir. I didn’t realize how hungry I was getting.” Tiffany’s arm was looped around her cousin’s, and both women were grinning. Cordell couldn’t honestly recall his submissive ever looking so happy. Yep, bringing her to Florida with him had been the right move—for both of them.

Tori tugged on Tiffany’s arm and began leading her back to the parking lot. “They’ve got great frozen margaritas too. Let’s go.”

The three men stared after the giggling women a moment before Mitch glanced at Cordell. “You know, I think that’s the first time I’ve ever heard Tiffany giggle.”

“Me too,” Ty chimed in.

Mitch slapped Cordell on the shoulder and started after the women. “You’re good for her, man. Damn good for her.”

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