Seductive Secrecy (Shadows series) (33 page)

“Can you be quick?”

“No, baby…I’ll have exactly what I want later.” He wiped his mouth. “This ride was all for you.”

***

When we arrived at our apartment, Cameron sent me to our bedroom and told me to dress in what was waiting for me on the bed. Once again, I was met with a set of boxes, though tonight’s ensemble didn’t include a mask. The heels were four-inch spikes this time, and the outfit came in two pieces. The top was layered, a light pink satin came first and then a black sheer piece rested over it. They merged to form a corset with a sweetheart neckline. It tied up the back. The cut and tightness pushed my breasts up until they spilled
out of the top. The material barely covered my nipples. The
matching skirt was made of the same material, fitted and just as snug. I wore my hair up so it wouldn’t detract from what I was displaying, and kept my makeup focused on my eyes.

As we stepped out of the limo, Cameron held my hand, leading
me through the back entrance of an unfamiliar building. He
wouldn’t tell me why we were here or what this place was, but it didn’t take long before it was revealed through subtle hints all along the way. We moved down the hallway that was bathed in a deep, reddening glow that floated to the ceiling. It illuminated the black that floated above us and threw a ruddy cast over the dark hardwood floor. The music was slow and sensual, like burlesque with a modernized beat. We didn’t walk alone; a man in a black vest and top hat escorted us.

When we reached the mouth of the entryway, my suspicions
were proven correct. Gels in red, orange and fuchsia filled the
spacious
room, pouring luxuriant light over the extravagant tapestries
hanging from the ceiling. The fabric created privacy dividers and adorned the
walls in such a way that they appeared as frames for faux windows.
Wax dripped from candelabra; large ornate mirrors were hung
throughout—some on the ceilings, others above the long poles that reached from the ceiling to the floor. Despite the room’s grandeur, there was a feeling of intimacy, a closeness that the swaths of fabric only added to. Women worked the floor, gathering on various stages in the main room and clinging to the poles. All were outfitted in a similar style to mine, wearing tight corsets and tiny shorts, fishnet stockings and high heels, wrapping and swinging their lean frames
around the golden metal. There were some who had already
stripped
from the waist down; those who were topless made sure their
nipples remained erect, their backs were arched so their breasts were on full and prominent display.

We were taken to a private booth in the corner. The soft velvet of the seat hugged my back as I slid in. Cameron’s hands closed around me almost as tightly as my dress. Before I had a chance to even cross my legs, we were greeted by a waitress who placed two glasses of wine on the table—both red, and both from a bottle that I had no doubt Cameron had requested especially for us.

I brought the glass up to my lips. “Are you going to tell me now why you’ve brought us here?”

He didn’t lift his glass off the table; he didn’t even touch it. Instead, his hands moved to my arms as he grazed my skin with just the tips of his fingers. The tickling made my shoulders shimmy and my back straighten, but there was little room to move. His body was pressed against me; his lips brushed my ear. “One of my clients opened this club recently. I thought you might enjoy it.”

He knew me well…which meant he knew I had an appetite for women. They weren’t something that I constantly craved. I hadn’t been with one since the Recruiter at the mansion; in fact, none of my clients had been female. But I enjoyed the way they touched my body, the way their faint curves dipped, the taste of their skin. And here, in this carnival of flesh, I appreciated the way they contorted their lithe, taut muscles around the pole, the erotic aroma and carnal tease that came from their twisting and turning.

“Was I right?” he asked.

My mouth didn’t give him an answer; my ass did instead as it pushed against his lap, slowly grinding until I felt his response. I didn’t know how long my body gyrated over him. The songs had no break; they all blended together into one endless soundtrack of our
lust. My movements stopped only when I noticed the woman
working her way to our table. Her strut started from the other side of the room and accentuated the mounds of her hips, her toned legs, the
bounce of her breasts. The sexiness of her lips, the fierce stare from her eyes, her astonishing beauty were all causing the tingle between my legs to build. I knew Cameron could feel it, too. His hands reached under the table and began to stroke me through my skirt. When she reached us, she extended her hand out to me. Before I took it, I turned to face Cameron. His head tipped, and we both exited the side of the
booth.

We followed where she led, her fingers still clasped between
mine. We passed through a side door, a short hallway and into a private room that was decorated in the same colors, the same aura as the room we had come from. There were several mirrors in the narrow space, a pole and an oversized velvet chair with a high back. She sat Cameron first, waiting until he was comfortable in the seat before guiding me onto his lap.

In this light, I was able to really take in what stood before me: her chin-length black hair, the round pop of her dark eyes, the candy
red painted over her lips. Her skin was fair, creamy, and it
practically gleamed against the blood-red corset that she wore, and the black tutu that jutted out from her hips. Her hands moved to the top of the chair as she straddled our legs, never touching them directly, but grinding above them. The tops of her breasts rose just above my face.

Her dancing wasn’t an improvised striptease; it was fully choreographed. Her shoulders shook; her back arched. Her arms
released the chair and moved through the air while her head swung from side to side. The swishing sent me her essence: an amber-based perfume, matching lotion, a mint in her mouth. During her tease, Cameron’s hands roamed my body. His lips pressed into my neck as his tongue traveled between my chest and ear. While enjoying his
torment and her show, I picked up the rotation that I had been
giving him before, my ass meeting the front of his pants, pressing and circling into him.

I knew he wasn’t going to let me come in this chair
we had an audience. I also knew he wasn’t going to let her touch me; that was
for a time before I was with him, and him alone. And I honestly
didn’t want either to happen. I only wanted us to be able to admire the body that bowed in front of us, the hips that tantalized our eyes, the flesh that performed for our pleasure. And we did. In my ear, he whispered what he wanted to do to me, in words that left none of his desire to question. It was an intense form of foreplay, without any parts of my body actually being penetrated or pulled or licked. I didn’t know how long I could let it continue without tearing off his clothes
and mine.

I didn’t have to wait long. Seconds later, the dancer produced an
envelope. She never slowed her motion or interrupted her flow.
She just suddenly had a slice of folded white paper shining
between her
teeth.

Once again, she neared our chair and dipped her head, bending her face close to mine. She didn’t want me to use my hands to take it
from her…so I didn’t. I reached forward, removing the envelope
with my own mouth. Once I had it, she disappeared.

We were finally alone in that amazing, sensual room. We would be able to release the aching throb that was spreading through my body so painfully. But I knew Cameron wasn’t going to let me come that easily—not for this round…and especially not with an envelope between my lips.

“Open it,” he said, my body still pressing against his.

I stood in front of him and slid my finger under the paper flap, removing the folded sheets that were inside. The first one showed an airline confirmation, two first class tickets to Florence, Italy. The date was a month away.

There was a fluttering in my chest that was almost as strong as the one between my thighs.

“What is this?” I asked.

“Open the second sheet,” he said.

I did as I was told. The paper showed a picture of a villa, with a
patio that overlooked the ocean. Beneath the image was a
description of the house, the amenities it included and the attractions nearby. My eyes struggled in the dim light, but I managed to read every word. Then I slowly dropped the papers to my side and looked at him. “We’re going…
there?
”

He nodded. “Yes, baby; I’m taking you to Italy. I know you’ve always wanted to visit, and I know you’ve never been able to. There’s no question that you can afford to do it for yourself now. But I want to be the one to take you.”

I didn’t need to be spoiled with presents and dates and the constant pressure of looking perfect. I’d had that when I was inside the mansion and it wasn’t who I was. I knew this wasn’t about that.
During the long talks we’d had while I’d been hiding out at my
father’s apartment, he had listened to me discuss my desires of traveling one day and how Italy was the very first place I wanted to go. He’d actually paid attention to what I wanted. And more than that, he’d tried to make a dream of mine come true.

“I…I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything, Charlie. There’s more.” He folded his hands in his lap and crossed his legs. “I’ve arranged for us to see someone special while we’re there.”

I knew without him saying it. “You mean…?”

He nodded. “We’re going to see your father.”

My eyes widened. “How did you do
that
?”

“I called him from the phone he gave you. I told him about the trip and how much it would mean to the both of us if we were able to see him. He agreed before I even got the words out.”

My head was swimming. “He’s really going to come?”

He nodded again. “We’ll have a few days alone, and then he’ll come for a night or two. I know he’s a little anxious about it, and with good reason. But he sounded really excited. I hope you don’t mind that I went behind your back to call him
”

I rushed over to him and pressed my mouth against his. I didn’t need to hear any more, and he certainly didn’t need to apologize. I just wanted him, and even more I wanted to show him my gratitude for everything he’d done for me. My hands framed his face for several seconds before they dropped to his shirt and started pulling at the collar.

Before I had a chance to rip any of the buttons off, he stopped me and pulled his lips away. “Not here,” he said. I frowned at that. “It’s not that I don’t want to. I just have something else planned for that.”

I looked around us, at the room, at our travel plans scattered on the floor. “There’s more?” I didn’t know how that was possible.

“Oh yes,” he said, in a tone that only made me wetter. “There’s so much more to come.”