Page 3 of His Christmas Temptation

She sucked in a shallow breath.

“Why, I wonder?”

Since he’d see the truth anyway, she took a drink of courage and tipped back her head so he could read the honesty in her eyes. “I’m not your biggest fan.” Nor were a few of her friends. Others found his darkness fascinating. A couple longed to chip away his icy countenance. “I’ve seen you on television.” On occasion he made a guest appearance on a show where eager entrepreneurs made pitches to millionaires and billionaires, hoping for large investments of money. He appeared to delight in crushing the hopes of the contestants. “You know what they call you? Killer of dreams. Mr. Dismal.” Maddie paused. She should stop there, but now that she was on a roll, she couldn’t. “I call you a grinch.”

“Oof.” He winced as if her words stung him.

Good.

“That was honest.”

He’d woven a powerful spell over her—shutting out all sound and activity, leaving them as the only two people on the planet. To bring herself back to the present, she scanned the list in front of her, searching for his name. “You’re a dungeon monitor tonight.”Of course he was.Who better to enforce the club’s rules than the grinch himself?

“Always happy to serve Mistress Aviana.”

Aware that his chilled glaze had never left her, she crouched to gather his vest and armband. “It’s not your first time, is it?”

“Meaning?” A hint of amusement teased his gorgeous lips.

The tiny crack in his forbidding countenance made her pulse skitter. “I mean…” Her voice cracked, and she hastily cleared her throat. “As a dungeon monitor.” The quicker she could get this over with, the better.

“It’s been a while. Why don’t you go over the rules with me, just to be sure?”

He’d been a member for years, which meant he was being intentionally difficult.

Since no one was waiting for help and Trinity was still wrapping up with her previous guests, Maddie had no excuse to deny his request. And the bastard knew it. “We’re expecting a record turnout, so we’ll have quite a few DMs tonight. Your role is to ensure that all play in the public areas, including Kinky Avenue, is safe, sane, and consensual.”

He nodded.

“Tore will be on duty as well.” The enormous, bearded, Viking-looking man was Mistress Aviana’s most trusted enforcer and had been with her since the beginning. “You can check in with him if you have any questions, but Mistress Aviana wants you to use your best judgment. You’re empowered to intervene in any scene. As you know, the club safe word isred.”

“Got it. Any particular place you want me to work?”

“Obviously we’d like our monitors to spread themselves out. The private rooms have someone specific assigned.”

“Has anyone said they’re monitoring Kinky Avenue?”

“No.” The small area, tucked away from the main dungeon, featured small, partitioned areas that appealed to specific roleplay scenarios. Wait times for certain rooms could be ridiculously long.

“You can find me there.”

Was he telling her that for general reference, or because he wanted her to know? “There will be a grand parade at midnight.”

“Is that Aviana’s big surprise?”

“She’ll make her entrance then, followed by her court. Trinity has asked for all the walkways to be clear by 11:45, so maybe ensure scenes start to wrap up around 11:30.”

He set an alarm on his watch.

“After the Christmas tree is lit, play can resume. The club will be open until four, but we don’t expect you to stay that long.”

After he nodded, she offered a pen and pointed to a line on her sheet. “If you’ll just sign here…”

His scrawl was illegible.

“Gifts for Santa’s toy bag are being collected at the coat check.” She slid his vest and armband across the table. “Enjoy your evening.”

Instead of moving away as she expected, he shrugged into the black vest. It was a little tight and made him look even more fierce, ultra-Dominant. Things she definitely wasn’t looking for.

---