"So what's this Valentine's Day party?"
At the question, Lexie perked up. "I've been after Patrick to do some theme nights and holiday parties. Especially for things like Valentine's Day. Get attendance up during those times and make them a little more fun rather than just having it be a regular night. He finally gave in on the Valentine's Day thing when he heard about the plans the guy I'm seeing was making." The gleeful smugness in her voice said that Lexie had known exactly how Patrick would react and that she had made sure he heard. "So now we're having a party and he's insistent that since it was my idea, I have to be here to help him run it. I said no until he agreed to let me onto the main floor."
"You might be kind of disappointed," Angel warned. "There's not really a whole lot on this floor. All the interesting stuff is upstairs and downstairs."
"Yeah, but it's a step in the right direction. I've been working here for months now and this is the first time Patrick has agreed to let me step beyond this room." Lexie rolled her eyes again. "You wouldn't believe how stubborn these guys can be. It's a small step for the man, but a giant leap for me."
Angel giggled at the moon landing reference. Yeah, she could see how that would be true.
"Well I'll have to come and hang out on the dance floor with you."
"Oh, I'm sure you'll get to do more than that," Lexie said, with a bit of wistful envy. "I had more than one dominant stop by my desk after you left to ask if you were new and available."
A flush of pleasure heated Angel's body, considering that at least some of them had probably seen the scene and the tense aftermath. Nice to know that someone wanted her. Even if she wasn't sure she wanted any of them yet.
"Hey guys!" Lexie called out, looking past her. Angel turned to see three very large men and two women walking in, a brunette and a blonde. Two of the guys were tall, dark and handsome, the other had auburn hair and was a little bit shorter than them but built with some major muscle and he moved with a kind of lethal grace that belied his boyish looks. Both of the women hurried up to say hello to Lexie.
Shifting to the side, feeling a little shy now that there was a large group moving in, Angel realized that one of the tall, dark and handsomes was looking at her. He looked kind of familiar but where-
Aw shit. She'd met him before. At Chained.
For a moment she felt like running, but the second he recognized her his face lit up like it was Christmas. His big grin was so friendly and contagious that she found herself smiling back at him.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't 'Mistress' Angela." The way he said it made it sound like it was some kind of in-joke, rather than the personal affront that Master Adam had taken it as.
Still, she shrugged a little uncomfortably. "It's Angel, actually. And definitely not Mistress."
Out of the corner of her eye she saw both of the women gaping at her.
"Wait, you're the one?" the blonde squealed, reaching out to grab Angel's hand. She was rather bouncy, dressed in hot pink and black, and incredibly friendly. The slightly curvier brunette standing behind her smiled at Angel, looking a little shyer than the more overtly friendly blonde. "Oh my god, you have no idea how excited I am to meet you!"
"You are?" Now Angel was really confused. She glanced around the circle of new faces; Chris - she thought she remembered that being his name - was the only one smiling overtly at her. The one that looked like he could be Chris’ brother was studying her like she was an amoeba under a microscope, and the redhead was looking at the blonde woman in front of her with a mixture of amusement and exasperation.
"Give her a chance to breathe before you bury her with questions," Chris said, laughing. "Angel, this is Hilary, Jessica, Liam and Justin. Everyone, this is Angel, formerly known as Mistress Angela. And I'm Chris, in case you didn't remember my name."
"I did, but I wasn't sure I had it right," she replied with a smile. Her eyes flickered around all of them again. "It's nice to meet you all."
"What's with the 'Mistress Angela' thing?" Lexie wanted to know. She was the only one who looked out of the loop. So Angel explained what she'd done at Chained, how she'd wanted to get some insight into going to a club before she went in as a submissive and some of the things she'd heard online that had made her feel like she needed a better handle on things. Everyone listened attentively. All three of the women nodded sympathetically which made her feel better. Chris just snickered now and then as if it was all a big joke, Liam looked intrigued but not condemning, and Justin's face was so blank he might as well have been Master Adam. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking at all.
"Oh you poor thing," Hilary said when she was done, reaching out and grabbing Angel's hand again to give it a squeeze. "I can't imagine how hard it must have been to go in by yourself... if Jessica hadn't dragged me out here I never would have had the guts to come."
Which was a startling sentence in and of itself, because Hilary seemed like the much more confident person between them. She was definitely not as shy, which just said that Jessica probably had hidden depths.
"And I definitely wouldn't have been able to come on my own," Jessica said with a little giggle, looking up at Justin and then Chris.
"You went to the Venus School on your own," Hilary countered.
"Venus School?" Angel had never heard of it.
The door to the outside opened, admitting more patrons of Stronghold along with an icy blast of cold wind. The women all shivered, which wasn't surprising since Lexie had already taken all of their coats which meant they were substantially less dressed then all of the men.
"Ok, time to go in the club," Justin said, reaching out to snuggle a shivering Jessica under his arm, just as Liam did the same with Hilary. "You can tell Angel all about the Venus School in there."
"Yes, please come sit with us," Hilary said enthusiastically, her big brown eyes shining. They were like Bambi eyes. Angel felt like saying no would be akin to kicking a puppy.
"Okay," she said, gathering her confidence. It wasn't quite the same as stepping into the club with friends, since she didn't really know any of them. Except that Chris had been with Mr. Grouchy at Chained so they must be friends... but he didn't seem like he was mad at her. "Thank you."
After saying goodbye to Lexie, and feeling bad about having to leave her at the front desk, even though she put on a good show of not being envious, Angel went with the group into the club. The music was loud, but not loud enough to stifle conversation.
They sat around one of the tables by the bar, dragging up a couple of extra chairs so that everyone could fit. The dynamics between them were fascinating; Liam was obviously with Hilary and she and Jessica were obviously very close, but Jessica seemed to be dividing her attention between both Justin and Chris. There was something between the two men as well, a connection that was almost sexual but not quite.
After they'd gotten their drinks and Jessica started explaining what the Venus School was and how she'd ended up there, with occasional interjections from Justin and Chris, Angel understood a little better. She'd never met anyone in a real ménage relationship before. It always seemed like the kind of thing that worked better in fiction than reality, but somehow it seemed to fit the three of them.
As much as they looked alike, Justin and Chris acted very differently. Justin was much quieter and more standoffish - not unfriendly, but not friendly either - while Chris was definitely a bit of a jokester, very outgoing, and provided a good foil for his friend and partner. She noticed that Justin seemed to tend to take the lead in the relationship, and everything else too. Whenever someone came by the table to say hi, he was the one to make sure she was introduced to them. When Jessica and Hilary's drinks got low, he was the one to catch the bartender's eye and get them water.
And after Hilary and Liam left to go to one of the playrooms, he was the one to stay behind while Jessica and Chris went to get their own playroom set up after one of the Dungeon Monitors came by to tell them that the room they'd reserved was now available. Angel
got the distinct feeling that he was watching over her, as if she'd somehow entered his sphere of responsibility just by sitting down at the table with them.
"You don't have to stay," she said, feeling bad that his lovers had left the area without him. "I'll go hang out in the lounge with the other unattached submissives."
For a long moment, he studied her again, as if thinking over what he wanted to say. It was a little unnerving being under that dark, steady gaze. "I'd feel better if I stayed."
"You can't just hang out with me all night when you're supposed to be with Jessica and Chris," she said, with just a hint of exasperation. She started to get up.
"Sit."
Her butt hit the sit and she stared at him, startled. For the first time she saw him smile at her obvious surprise. How the heck had he done that? Last night she'd responded to Adam's orders almost from the very beginning, but she hadn't felt that same compulsion with Justin until just now. It was like his voice had deepened, hardened and become a heck of a lot more commanding. It didn't turn her on, but it sure as hell got her attention and sent a little shiver through her.
"I won't stay here all night," he said calmly, as if he hadn't just commanded her like a dog and she hadn't just obeyed without hesitation. "Someone else should be along soon."
"Do you mean Master Adam?" she asked, nervously running her fingers over the condensation on her glass. She'd gotten a bourbon and diet for her one drink but it had dwindled down to mostly ice. If she decided not to play tonight then she could have more. And if Master Adam was going to show up then she didn't know which she wanted. "Because I'm not sure I'm his favorite person right now. I don't really think he wants to see me."
Justin smiled. A slow, knowing smile that made her fidget and want to ask exactly what it was he was thinking. Stupid know-it-all Doms. "He's not coming tonight."
"Oh." Her shoulders slumped for a moment before she pushed them back up. Disappointment warred with relief.
"He'll be here tomorrow." The tone of his voice was casual, the penetrating way he was looking at her was not.
"I won't be. I have plans." A game night with her housemates, but she didn't mind the implication that perhaps she had a date. With someone who wasn't big, blonde and pissy.
"Mmm, too bad." Before Angel could ask what he meant, his expression lightened a bit. "Ah good, Olivia's here."
Turning to see who he was looking at, Angel saw a woman with flaming red hair approaching. She was definitely a Domme, what Angel had pretended to be at Chained, wearing skin tight black latex bodysuit that covered her almost completely except for a keyhole opening that showed off a generous amount of pale skin and cleavage. The utter confidence that she walked with was exactly what Angel had tried to emulate at Chained.
She was also vaguely familiar, and as she came closer Angel realized that Olivia was the one who had stepped in last night with Adam. Heat rose in her cheeks and her gaze skittered away from those clear, grey eyes.
"Olivia, I believe you've met Angel," Justin said, getting to his feet. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go join Chris and Jessica at school."
"Good, shoo," Olivia said, without even turning her head to look at him. All of her attention was on Angel, which was making Angel shift uncomfortably in her seat. The big male Dom paused for a moment, as if he now wanted to show that Olivia couldn't order him around, but then he just shrugged and walked off toward the stairways. Angel sneaked a peek at Olivia, who was now smiling at her. "Jessica's good for him."
"What?" The nonsequitor caught her off guard, it was so far off of anything she thought the other woman might say.
"A year ago, if I'd told him to shoo, he would have stuck around to make a point. Now he doesn't care, because he's happy and he'd rather go be with Jessica and Chris then stay here arguing with me," Olivia explained as she slid into the chair next to Angel.
"I told him that he didn't have to stay here with me," Angel said, feeling a bit guilty and wondering if Olivia was obliquely referring to the fact that Justin had been sitting with her rather than off with his partners. "I can take care of myself. I was going to go over there." She nodded at the lounge.
"No, stay here." Even though it was phrased as an order, there was something in Olivia's tone that made it a request instead. Just a very strongly worded request. A server came up and Olivia ordered a drink before turning back to Angel. "I wanted to talk to you anyway, how are you after last night?"
Angel shifted in her seat. After Lexie, no one else had asked how her first scene had gone. Conversation had flowed easily enough while they'd been getting to know each other, but that hadn't come up. It wasn't until now that she realized that was kind of strange. Then again, she wouldn't have felt comfortable telling them much because it was obvious from the things that they'd said that they were good friends with Adam and she wouldn't have wanted to say anything that could be construed as negative. With Olivia she could be more comfortable because the other woman had been there.
In fact she'd scolded Adam, although Angel couldn't remember any of the specifics of what had been said. She'd been far too out of it.
"I'm okay," she said, fiddling with her drink. "A little confused I guess." She eyed Olivia, but the other woman wasn't looking at her with any kind of judgment. Interest and a tinge of concern, but nothing that said she thought Angel had done anything wrong. And with Leigh away on her romantic weekend with Michael and Angel's housemates unaware of her evening activities, she desperately wanted someone to talk to that could maybe shed some light on the situation. "He was so angry at first... the scene was amazing, but then he was so cold and uncaring afterwards until you talked to him."
"Adam has some... trust issues, we'll call them. Finding out that you were a submissive was a bit of a shock to him and he doesn't like surprises. He's not usually caught unawares." To Angel's surprise, Olivia grinned rather cheerfully. "It's good for him."
"I don't usually lie," said Angel, not wanting this woman to get the wrong impression. "I just... it's scary doing this on my own. Coming here... I didn't feel safe right away. I wanted to know what I was walking into before I came in as a submissive and put myself in someone else's hands."
"I can understand, although I also understand why Adam was so upset. Honestly and communication are incredibly important, especially here. It’s really something that can’t be stressed enough," Olivia said as the server returned with her drink. Taking it, she brought it to her lips for a short sip as she studied Angel thoughtfully. "We went to see your show, you know. You're a very good actress."
"We... you... my show?" Angel stuttered out. Olivia's lightening changes in conversation were not exactly easy to keep up with.
"Adam and I. Last Saturday."
While she was absorbing that, Angel suddenly remembered something Adam had said last night. Most of the conversation following the scene was pretty hazy, but his voice came through clearly, telling Olivia that she was a liar - a good one. Because she was an actress.
"I have no doubt you pulled off being a Domme very well," Olivia went on calmly. "Rick, Chris and Andrew had no idea and they're usually pretty observant, although Adam and Patrick are definitely the best at reading body language. Which is why it threw Adam for a loop when he couldn't quite figure you out and then you showed up here as something different than he'd first seen you. Things that are unexpected and out of his control really throw him, so he'll probably need a couple days to get over that before he's back to normal."
Well he wasn't the only one. Angel felt shell shocked by the knowledge that he and Olivia had come to see her show. Of course she remembered mentioning it at Chained, but she would have never thought that he would remember, much less look it up and then come. She tried to decide if it was creepy, but mostly she just felt kind of hopeful and flattered.
"Oh," she finally said when she realized that Olivia seemed to be waiting for some sort of response. There was just too much to think about and too many emotions to sort through. She had no idea
how she felt about all these revelations, piling on top of each other.
Olivia smiled gently. "Come on, sweetie. I'll walk you out to the lobby. Are you coming back here tomorrow?"
"No," Angel shook her head as she got up. "I can't, I have plans. I'll be back next weekend though."
"Boyfriend?"
"No, I promised my housemates some hang out time."
Olivia smiled again as she escorted Angel into the lobby. "Then we'll see you next week. Lexie, get Angel's coat for her please."
The entire operation was done so smoothly, with Olivia ushering Angel to the front door after she'd said another goodbye to Lexie and given the girl the web address for her Etsy store since she'd forgotten to the night before, that Angel was in her car and driving before she realized that she hadn't done what she'd gone to the club for. The plan had been to do another scene, whether or not Mr. Grouchy was there, because she wanted to learn.
And just because she was attracted to him and they'd shared an amazing scene, that didn't mean that she couldn't scene with other people. In fact, she probably should scene with other people so that she didn't spend all her time thinking about him when it was obvious that he wasn't interested in her.
Except, if he wasn't interested in her, then why had he gone to her show?
As she drove and bobbed her head to the music blasting out of her radio, she thought over the evening and realized that his friends had not only welcomed her into their circle, she'd been watched over the entire evening. Lexie had passed her off to the group, and then Justin had hung around until he could pass her off to Olivia, and Olivia had skillfully given her just enough information to set her head spinning before sending her off without ever giving her the opportunity to even step into the lounge area where the available submissives waited.
It hadn’t been her plan, but she couldn’t quite bring herself to turn around and go back to the club. She’d look awfully silly walking back in at this point.
Sighing, Angel reluctantly resigned herself to a week long wait before she might even begin to get answers to some of her questions. At least she’d have some time to think. And Leigh would be home in a couple days to talk to.
Stronghold (Stronghold 1) Page 15
