Page 43 of Merciless Protector

Everything he said made sense, but I still had questions. “How much did he pay for me?”

Though I’d been in the room, I hadn’t been in a position to see the screens of the tablets Ruin had given the buyers to use.

“Two million.” Connor dropped that bomb and I coughed.

I might have spluttered if there had been any liquid in my mouth. Suddenly dry, the words out of my throat felt like gravel. “Why so much?” It seemed like a dumb question. Could I really place value on a human being?

“From what I understand, Ruin didn’t run a typical auction. It was a one-time bid. Highest bidder took the prize. Matt didn’t know what to bid but wasn’t going to risk losing.”

A thought hit me. “But he did lose.”

Connor nodded, though his focus remained on the road. “Based on the outcome, we think the original winner may have hit one too many zeros in his zeal to get his bid in. As you recall, he didn’t have the funds to pay.”

What had I been worth to those sick bastards? Two hundred thousand? Twenty thousand? Two thousand?

“I know what you are thinking,” Connor said, breaking into my thoughts. “The point is, Matt thought you were worth two million, even knowing he might never get it back.”

I felt like crying and chalked it up to pregnancy hormones.

We reached yet another underground garage, and I wondered when I would be able to walk the streets in the light of day again. I missed the sun and the heat on my skin. I followed Connor to an elevator after he parked. Only the elevator didn’t move as he pressed a card to a reader. A second later, the back of the elevator opened, and we stepped out into a little room. When the back elevator door closed, a security panel opened on the wall in front of us. Connor keyed in a code and moved closer as if his eye was scanned before a hidden door opened.

“Wow,” I said. “What kind of club is this?” I was thinking it was like a war room for mercenaries. I never in a million years would have guessed his answer.

“A sex club.” I coughed and tried to mask it as if clearing my throat. Connor thought I was amusing. “It’s okay. Most would never suspect.”

My only thought was, what kind of sex club needed Mission Impossible high-level security with secret doors and eye scanners?

We ended up in an almost basic office, given the kind of money he surely had. The furnishings weren’t IKEA. But they weren’t Louis VI replicas, like in Shawn’s parents’ apartment, either. The desk was solid wood that was expensive but not flashy. He didn’t have fifty screens, but one long one that nearly ran the length of the desk. Other than that, there was a matching credenza behind him and not much more. He sat in one of those futuristic chairs that didn’t look like much but was probably way more comfortable than anything I’d sat in and way more expensive.

The two chairs in front of the desk were modern in design, with sleek, clean lines. The one I sat in was more comfortable than I expected, but nothing to write home about.

He steepled his fingers and regarded me. I took that as an opening and asked my burning question. “Why a sex club? You look like a CEO of a Fortune 500 company.” He had that look more than Shawn, of a very privileged, rich man.

He drummed his fingers. “For you, I’ll answer.” He paused a second. “Ruin took a lot of my childhood away. I could have let that trauma negatively affect me for the rest of my life, or I could take ownership of my choices. It took a long time for me to understand my need for control wasn’t just a response to Ruin’s actions. But really, that’s likely who I was all along. You’ve heard of BDSM, right?” I nodded. “For the longest time, I was ashamed of my need for that lifestyle. Truth is, Ruin did a lot of things to me that I still don’t like today. If my needs were a result of him, they wouldn’t be selective.”

I hadn’t ever thought this way. But it made a lot of sense.

“I decided that opening a safe place where people could be themselves in an environment where they wouldn’t be judged was needed. A place with rules that would keep out those who don’t play by them. Everything that happens here is by strict consent only. And you can stop anytime you want.”

It was as if he could see inside of me. I had doubts and self-recrimination for my thoughts. “So if I like being tied up, it’s not because of Ruin.” Had I really said that out loud?

He grinned. “Fuck no. He may have opened your mind to the possibility, but I’m sure you can think of a dozen things he’d did you don’t like.” That was true. Though I didn’t audibly, I felt myself let out a breath that I’d been holding. “I’m doing a scene tonight. I have a Dom/sub couple that needs my help. After, I can offer the crowd a bondage demonstration. If you want, you can raise your hand, and I’ll tie you up.”

I laughed because his grin was wide. “And what would your wife think of that?”

He sobered. “Nothing I do to anyone outside of my wife is sexual. In fact, BDSM, although thought of as sex, is really a lifestyle that can be outside of the bedroom. So, no, I would never disrespect my wife. I can tie you up, and you can let yourself decide if you like it or not. Your choice. No judgment or pressure.”

When he got to his feet, I thought I might have offended him. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to imply—”

He waved his hand. “It’s not your fault. People don’t understand. Again, safe place. No one here would judge you whether you do it or not. Whether you like it or not. You can try it and stop at any time. Follow me.”

We went across the hall to another room. There was a wardrobe and a sofa on one wall and a large TV on a stand on the other. He opened the wardrobe.

“Although you can enter wearing anything you like, you’d get fewer looks, and people wouldn’t guess your motives if you were dressed the part. There is everything from showing all to showing none. Shoes—” He glanced at my feet. “We have some in your size. Pick what you like if you want to. Everything is new. Again, your choice. No pressure.” He checked his watch. “I should be done in half an hour or so if you want to give it a go. If so, exit to your right. Take the first left and through the door at the end, you’ll enter the club. Keep straight into the main area and you’ll find me on stage.”

“Thanks,” I said before he left.

I sat on the sofa and picked up the remote. I turned on the TV but quickly realized I was being stupid. There was nothing wrong with being curious. And that didn’t mean I had to take him up on his offer. I stood up and went through the clothes that hung on the rack. There were see-through outfits all the way to a latex body suit that covered from head to toe.

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