Club X-Dare (Siren Publishing Allure) (5 page)

Condor stared at her, seeing a slight change in her body language. She stood less relaxed, her shoulders almost stiff as he gestured her to follow him. When they came to a door that had the tag D7 on it, he turned and walked away.

Sam watched him for a moment, almost wishing that he had come inside with her. She wondered if he was going to be watching as she unlocked the door, inhaling the scent of fragranced cleaner. The room was magnificent, a blood-red dungeon with a black crackle marble floor. The ceiling lights were inlaid with red bulbs, making the silver equipment shine with an oddly bloody glow. She led Nyo inside, not giving him a moment to think before she spun him and backed him into a shackling bar.

* * * *

Condor raced up the stairs, unlocking his office and going inside. He flipped on the monitor, punching in D7 and sinking in his chair to watch the scene play out before him. Nyo’s hands were strapped above his head, his feet buckled to the floor to expose his naked body. She was an artist in action, the whip flicking through the air with the snap of her wrist. She made good use of her time, taking Nyo slowly up to a whimpering state of overload and then releasing him to masturbate at her feet. She never touched Nyo or allowed him to lay a hand on her, yet when she was done, he sat begging for more. With a soft brush of her palm to his cheek, she turned and walked from the chamber.

* * * *

Sam headed up the stairs, knocking on Condor’s door. He buzzed her in, looking up from the papers on his desk as she sauntered across the floor. “Did you enjoy yourself?” he asked.

“Yes, I did. Are you going to show me the rest of the club? I want to know what rooms are in what sections. I don’t like feeling foolish.”

He pushed back from the desk and smiled as he gestured her out with his hand. “I will be glad to show you around, and then you must be tired. Do you want to go get something to eat or just head back to my condo?”

“I am tired,” she replied, her body suddenly losing the edge of mental concentration. “I think getting some sleep sounds great.”

Condor gestured to the door and walked with her through the entire club. There were ten varied dungeons, and ten rooms clad entirely in nonporous latex. The last ten were more traditional, and Condor said the most popular themes were the jungle, the beach, and the old roman room.

Sam was stumbling over her own feet by the time they made it back to the car. She was suffering from exhaustion, jet lag, and the interminable heat of a Florida summer. Condor shut the door and turned up the air conditioning. “I think you might want to find cooler undergarments if you stay.”

“I think you are right. I am so sleepy.”

“You will be fine,” he said, watching in his peripheral vision as her head lulled to the side, and she was asleep.

Sam was up and dressed when he climbed out of bed. She had made French toast and was sitting at the table drinking a cup of coffee. It was the beginning of a perfect day together. They were children, romping through Disney World and enjoying all the rides. The night was spent having a quiet dinner at one of his favorite restaurants, and then he showed her the condo’s pool. By the time they made it into bed, they were both exhausted.

Over the four days that followed, they went back to Disney, taking in the water park and other attractions. He took her to SeaWorld and out to dinner each evening at a different restaurant. They went swimming and went to look at the available condos in his complex.

It was on the fifth night that Condor got a call from the club. Legs had called in sick, and he had no choice but to leave Sam with a stack of files to look through alone.

Sam waited until he was gone and called Caroline. “Hey, lady. What’s up?”

“Sam, how are you?”

“I have been playing Florida tourist, and I’m excellent.”

“What is Brian like?”

“He is really sweet, and he has done everything to impress me. I hate to come home. I keep reminding myself that it will be different once I settle into a job here. The club is amazing. I have been there a few times and it is very different. The chambers are elegant and imaginative. The people are friendly, and everyone has been really nice to me. I also have a ton of files to go through. I just wanted to call and let you know I’m alive. How are the wedding plans going?”

“Great. We have gotten back most of the reply cards and everyone is coming. What about you? Do I have to find a new maid of honor?”

“Oh shit, Caroline. I forgot all about that. I’ll talk to Condor as soon as he gets back and let him know that I need that weekend off. Unfortunately, Condor got called to work tonight.”

“So, how great is he in bed?” Caroline asked in a conspiratorial tone.

“I don’t know. He hasn’t so much as kissed me.”

“Are you disappointed?”

Sam smiled to herself. “A little bit. There are a few interesting guys at the club, though.”

“You are horrible. I’m so shocked.”

“Don’t be. I haven’t slept with any of them, yet. How is the insurance biz?”

“Fine. I like doing your job. I settled out those two cases that you left on Larry’s desk. One was legit, and the other was fraud. Cool, huh?”

“Yeah, great. I should go, Caroline. I have so much work to do.”

Sam hung up and began the task of reading personal information on everyone at X-Dare Florida.

* * * *

Condor lifted her into his arms, and Sam opened her eyes. “What time is it?”

“It’s one thirty. You fell asleep reading the files.”

“Oh.” She flexed her shoulders, rotating her head from side to side. “I must have slept wrong. My neck is killing me.”

He carried her into his bedroom, laying her down on the bed. “Strip, and I will give you a rub down. You were sleeping at a really odd angle.”

Sam was instantly awake as he disappeared into the bathroom. She had only gotten a look at his bedroom and was surprised to be lying in his bed. “If he is tormenting me again, I am going to kill him and feed him to the garbage disposal,” she muttered as she slid out of her clothing, lying down on her stomach.

Condor stepped over her and sat down on her legs, dribbling warmed oil onto her back. Sam moaned at the glorious heat of his hands as they began to slowly knead her flesh. “Oh, that feels so good.”

“You feel good, and Benny tells me that I am nuts for not sleeping with you.”

“Benny!” she growled, turning her head to look at him and then grimacing in pain. “Of all the people to discuss me with, you pick that foul-mouthed old man. Why?”

“Benny is my uncle.” Sam groaned and laid her head back to the bed. Condor didn’t seem miffed by her insult as he continued to roll his fingers into the muscles of her back. “Benny is the one who owned the cleaning company when I was sixteen. He has Lyme disease and almost died last year. The doctor told him to take it easy, but after he sold the business, he had nothing to do. I figured that I owed him something, and it turns out that the man is a brilliant manager. He can handle any kind of problem and has been a great asset.”

“I’m sorry. I really stuck my foot in that one.”

“Yeah, you did. It’s okay. He does get carried away with his mouth on occasion.” He slid his hands slowly up to her shoulders, kneading the tight muscles.

She could feel his eyes boring into her back. “That feels fantastic. Condor, why don’t you ever stay and watch? I would like you to.”

“I do watch. I have a private viewer in my office. It’s exciting to see you in action, even though I am not into your fetish. I like the women I sleep with to be my partner in bed, not my master. I also keep reminding myself that I don’t get involved with employees.” He seemed to hesitate for a moment, his fingers still on her skin. “My brain and body are not in agreement on the subject of you. The thought of having sex with you is killing me.”

Sam wasn’t sure how to reply. He was an amazing man, his thin, well-muscled body deceivingly agile. He was also intelligent, funny, and well spoken, a rare combination in Sam’s experience. His hands began to flex again, silence between them, and Sam knew that he was waiting for her to respond.

Inhaling slowly to calm her mind, Sam sighed. “I am not sure what to say. I want you and I am terrified of you.”

He dropped onto her back, his breath warm against her ear as he whispered, “Why?”

Sam turned her head away from him, the gesture causing him to sit back onto his calves. “I’m sorry. This week has been incredible. I’ve had a fantastic time with you. The nights I have spent at the club leave me burning with fire. On more than one occasion I have wished that it was you in the dungeon with me. I go to bed with you on my mind, my body aching for your touch, and dream of having sex with you. Then I wake up and know that my mind is too corrupt to ever enjoy anything as permanent as a relationship with you.”

He stoked her hair from her neck, but Sam refused to look at him, her eyes tightly closed and partially hidden by the quilt. “Why do you say that?”

“Because it is true. My parents had a perfect marriage. They were always happy and laughing. My father went to work each day in a gun factory and then came home each night to my mother and me. He always had time for me and time for her. I remember so many occasions where he brought her home flowers or a small gift, just because. She was always grateful, throwing her hands around his neck and kissing him passionately with what I now know was a promise for later once I had gone to bed. I knew they loved me without question, and even as a young girl I did whatever I could to keep harmony in our home. I did my chores and helped my mother whenever I could because I wanted to. I wanted for them to be proud of me, because I knew how much they loved me.” A shiver ran through her body, Condor making note of it as he continued to slowly work the muscles around her neck. “Then my father got sick. I remember the night they told me that he had cancer. I curled up in his arms and cried, not because I really understood that he was dying, but simply because they were both so sad. He only lasted three months after the diagnosis. His death broke my mother. I watched her fade away to nothing, as if her life was worthless without him. I became an unseen presence in our once-happy home. She would sit for hours staring into space. I was starved for affection or maybe attention because suddenly I no longer seemed to exist. I would curl up at her feet, praying that she would stoke my hair as she had before, or pull me up to sit beside her. She didn’t do either. My mother didn’t exactly turn away from me, but simply didn’t respond. I was ten years old. I had no one to tell, and I would get up each day, have cereal for breakfast before I went to school. At some point she would pull herself together and go shopping and even made dinner once in a while. The rest of the time, she didn’t exist, I didn’t exist. Three months passed. I was on summer vacation, and I was afraid to go out of the house and leave her alone. I tried to help her, to get her to talk to me, to get her to laugh. When she did respond, it was only with tears and words about how much she missed my father. I know now that I should have gotten in touch with her sister or someone to tell them how depressed she was, but I didn’t. I was afraid that she would go away like my father did.” Sam fell silent, trying to hold back the tears that welled in her eyes. “I woke up one night and heard her talking to my father. I snuck to the bedroom door and stood there for a while. When she fell silent, I snuck into her room and lay on the floor next to her bed. She said nothing else, and when I got up in the morning, I couldn’t wake her up. My aunt told me that an autopsy showed that my mother had a cerebral hemorrhage, but I knew in my heart that it wasn’t a disease that killed her. It was the overwhelming love that she felt for my father. She died of a broken heart and a lost will to live. I swore that I would never allow love to consume me. I am not going to say that my life is perfect, and some days I long to have someone to go home to. Seal has stayed with me on occasion, and I always end up throwing him out. I’m afraid that if I sleep with you, I’m not going to be able to stop myself from falling in love with you.”

Condor slid back and flipped her over, tenderly wiping the tears from her cheeks. “Oh, my god, Sam. I can’t even imagine how horrible that must have been for you. But do you honestly think that your mother would have given up the happiness she found with your father to spare herself that final pain?”

She shook her head, biting into her lip as she struggled to hold back the swell of emotions that threatened. “No.”

“So why are you denying yourself that happiness?”

Her expression hardened slightly. “Why? Do I have to play homemaker to be happy?”

He grinned despite the anguish he felt for her. “Yeah, picture that. I’m not exactly asking you to marry me. I just want to have sex with you and see what happens between us. Why is that such a problem?”

“Because you are just asking me to give up my last defense.”

“What defense?”

Sam examined the quilt, picking at a fabric ball with her nail. “It has been forever since I laughed like you make me laugh. I felt normal for a while, a tourist in Disney World not dressed in leather or silk carrying a whip in my hand. No one fell to their knees before me, kissing my feet or lowering their gaze when I met it. It was fun and carefree, but I need the release that I find at the club. It keeps me centered, and I like the power it gives me.” It was not the answer to his question, and Sam steeled herself. “I was mad because you didn’t try anything. It hurt to know that you didn’t want me, but anger is an emotion that can be dealt with.”