Control

by M. S. Willis

  My breath rushed out of me as she said that and my head dropped into my hands. I knew what Logan was saying. Hell! I’d personally observed Daemon’s man-whore ways. Images of slutty redheads marched before my eyes and I simply chose to look the opposite direction. However, Logan was right. It would be ridiculous for me to think that Daemon would change. I’d be guilty of the same type of mistake Alex had just made with me.

  “I know. I saw the women congregating around him Saturday night while I was at Tomb. I also saw him and one of those women half naked on his balcony the following morning. Logan warned me that night as well.”

  David came around the corner as Annie and I were talking. “Why the long face?”

  Annie looked up at David as she answered for me. “Logan told me that Daemon had a reputation for being a player and I just told Paige to be careful.” Her eyes suddenly widened and an excited expression came over her face. “I know! I’m going there tonight to see Logan. I can watch Daemon and report back to you if I see him with another woman.”

  I was about to decline her offer when David interrupted. “I have a better idea. Paige, you’re an investigator, right?”

  This can’t be good.

  “Yeeeeesss,” I said in my best skeptical tone. “Why?”

  “Well, since you are an investigator, you happen to have the exact skills necessary to find out if Daemon is still seeing other women.”

  One eyebrow went up as I tried to determine where David was going with this. “So, what you’re saying is…”

  David huffed out an annoyed breath as if I should know what he was suggesting. “I’m saying that you need to spy on Daemon.”

  A laugh burst from my lips at David’s idea. “And how am I supposed to do that? Somehow I think he would find it odd if I sat at the bar all night and videotaped him working.”

  He tsked at me. “There’s no need for video and he wouldn’t recognize you if you were in disguise.” His excitement dripped heavily on that last word.

  Annie let out a squeal and clapped her hands in front of her. “That’s an excellent idea! It’ll be so much fun to get you ready. What will we dress her up as?”

  I jumped up from the couch and held my hands out in front of me to slow their momentum. “Wait, no, that’s absolutely ridiculous. He would recognize me! There is no way in hell that I’m going to go into that bar, disguised, to spy on Daemon. There’s a word for something like that. It’s called ‘stalking’.”

  David waved off my protest and continued in his decision making. “Paige, Annie and I will take care of everything. Daemon won’t recognize you once we get finished and we have everything we need to make you into a totally different person. Matt will be here soon and he just happens to be going to school for cosmetology. We could totally pull this off.”

  I shook my head at what he was saying but my brain was telling me it just might work. Obviously, they would have to completely transform me, but there was a slight chance I could pull this off. I’ve never been undercover before and it’s something I’ve always wanted to try. This could be easy. I would go in, sit in an inconspicuous spot, have a couple drinks, and watch to see what Daemon was up to. It wouldn’t take long to get my answer and then I could scoot out of there before anyone noticed a thing. David’s plan was actually pretty good.

  “Okay.”

  David and Annie jumped up and hugged each other then turned around to hug me. David grabbed my hand and started dragging me back to Annie’s room to begin my ultimate makeover with Annie following closely behind. My error in judgment was apparent to me when we entered Annie’s room and David immediately went for the tweezers.

  Oh god. What have I gotten myself into?!

  Chapter Fourteen

  “I look like a five cent hooker!”

  The black haired, red lipped woman that stared back at me from the mirror was a sight to behold. Somehow, Annie, David and Matt had found a way to turn me into one of the tramps that typically hang out at Tomb. Annie’s collection of past Halloween costumes turned out to be a treasure trove of the most god awful skin tight clothing I had ever seen. David was delighted with the collection and I griped and complained every time they pulled an article of clothing out of it. Most of it was your standard ‘sexy nurse’ or ‘sexy cop’ or ‘sexy fairytale character’ and was unusable, but David had the brilliant idea of mixing and matching and throwing together an outfit that I wouldn’t be caught dead in normally. Unfortunately for me, I was outnumbered. By the time Matt arrived and had also became thrilled with the project, there was no way I was able to back out.

  Once the three of them had finished poking and prodding and plucking my body into submission, I was dressed in a skin tight black leather skirt that barely covered my ass and a bright red halter top that should have been considered illegal to wear in public. My body could barely squeeze into the material and I was shocked that Annie, with her ample curves, had been able to wear them at all. They accessorized the ensemble with a pair of four inch stiletto heels and round silver earrings that I believe could pick up satellite reception if aimed in the proper direction.

  “Oh shut up, Paige. You look great. Daemon will never know it’s you.” David stood behind me as he took in my reflection in the mirror.

  “I’m supposed to be inconspicuous, David! How the hell am I going to blend in wearing this?!” My eyes couldn’t take the sight of me anymore so I walked away from the mirror and sat on Annie’s bed.

  “Well, Matt did an excellent job on your makeup and it’s only for a few hours. Everything will be fine. Now get up and practice walking in those heels before you go in there and embarrass yourself by breaking your neck.” David pulled me off the bed and I almost fell over when my legs refused to balance on the spiked heels. The heels made me 6’2” and I developed vertigo from the added height.

  “This is such a bad idea, David. There is no way I’m going to be able to pull this off.”

  Annie gave me her hand to balance me when she said, “Don’t worry so much, Paige. You’ll be in and out of there before you know it and you’ll have your answer about Daemon. Nobody will know it’s you, so there’s no point in worrying about looking like a tramp. Just have fun with it. I’ll be up there at eleven and I can take over until the bar closes.”

  My nerves were working my body over pretty good and I felt like I would get physically ill before it was all said and done. I cannot believe I went along with this. I made a mental note to seek counseling as it was obvious that I hadn’t been myself lately. First, I agreed to date Daemon, and now I’m practically stalking him due to my fucked up trust issues. This is the exact reason I don’t date. I’m not cut out for it.

  “Look at the time, you need to move it along, Paige.” David grabbed my purse and shoved it in my hand. I couldn’t take the motorcycle because I was wearing a wig, so David loaned me his car for the trip. He handed me his keys and practically shoved me out the front door. When the door slammed behind me, I knew that this was going to go down.

  ~

  Tomb was unusually busy for a Thursday night. I glanced at the marquis on the way into the club and noticed that a band I had not heard of was playing tonight. Thankfully, the front line moved quickly and I was able to make it into the bar without any problems. I noticed Logan working the right bar so I went to the left and sat at a barstool in the darkest area I could find. My purse sat in my lap as I scanned the crowd in search of Daemon. The dance area was packed and the pit was as busy as it had been the night I met Daemon. I was concerned that I wouldn’t be able to keep an eye on him due to the amount of people. The bartender approached me and I ordered a cranberry vodka drink. I’m not normally a liquor person, but the added alcohol content would be useful to calm my nerves.

  I continued to scan the crowd when I spotted Daemon sitting on the speaker where I had met him. It appeared as though the band was about to go on stage and I determined that Daemon was helping himself to a front row seat. A trashy blonde was sitting next to him and m
y body instantly tensed. She appeared to be talking to him and he smiled every once in a while in response. I gulped down my drink and then caught the attention of the bartender to order a second one. I had the feeling this was going to be a long night.

  The band came on as the bartender was handing me my drink and they started to play a fast paced song that had a dark quality to it. The female singer’s voice was haunting and melodic and her words invoked a dark sense of desire and intense need. I would have thoroughly enjoyed the music if I wasn’t so focused on Daemon and the wonder-slut sitting next to him. They weren’t touching or openly flirting and they had pretty much stopped talking by the time the band had started playing, but I still couldn’t shake the jealousy that was tormenting by body. Homicidal ideations flooded my thought process and I attempted to calm my reaction by remembering that this was his club and he was probably just being polite. It would be ridiculous of me to expect that Daemon wouldn’t talk to other women while at work and I couldn’t comprehend why I was freaking out to this extent. I started employing deep breathing to calm my nerves and begin to think clearly again.

  I continued throwing down drinks as the band played their set and before I knew it, an hour had passed and I was tipsy. My bladder started screaming and I ventured to the bathroom to take care of that need. My gait was extremely unsteady due to the amount of alcohol coursing its way through my system combined with the four inch heels strapped to my feet. I somehow managed to make it to the bathroom without falling and I was proud of myself for the accomplishment. As I was walking back to the bar, I noticed that Daemon was no longer on the speaker and I made my way back to the chair I had previously occupied. My eyes scanned the crowd again and I located Daemon standing near the left bar.

  He looked absolutely amazing tonight in a button down slate grey shirt with dark jeans that hugged his muscular thighs. His shirt sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and the shirt was pulled tight across his chest and shoulders. He crossed his arms over that broad chest and it burdened the material of his shirt that much more. His brown messy hair was perfectly framing his face and the lighting in the area where he stood created shadows that accentuated his square jawline and high cheekbones. I bit my upper lip just looking at him and heat ran through me when I thought about the night before.

  “Well, hello there, Beautiful. My name is Mark, what’s yours?”

  I turned to find a man who looked to be in his early twenties standing to my right. His dirty blond hair was worn in a military cut and his clothing was preppy and appeared to be expensive. His eyes roamed over my body and his mouth formed an ‘o’ as he took in my state of dress. Rolling my eyes at his attempt to pick me up, a scowl came over my face and I worried that this could get out of hand. Ending this encounter quickly was crucial before my cover was blown. I plastered my most innocent smile on my face before I responded.

  “Hi Mark. Wow, you are cute. Listen, here’s the deal, I have a really nasty case of one of the worst STDs known to man, so I’m going to do you a favor and be up front with you about it before you agree to talk to me any longer. My doctor says there’s a one percent chance that I could still have sex without infecting my partner and I’m here looking for someone who is willing to take that risk.” I winked at him. “What do you say, Mark? You feeling lucky?”

  Mark’s face instantly dropped when he processed what I finished telling him and he practically ran from me without another word. I snickered as I watched him bump a table in his retreat and disappear from view after taking the stairs down into the pit.

  Score!

  Due to its effectiveness, I filed that line away for future use. I straightened up in my chair and looked back towards the left bar to where I had last seen Daemon standing. The crowd had become thick in that area and I had to push up from the chair to look over the mass of people. Daemon wasn’t standing in the same location and I hastily looked around to try and locate him. The last thing I needed was for Daemon to get close and recognize who I was. I continued my search and located him walking over to the right bar.

  Crap!

  I jumped up from my chair and had to steady myself before walking off. I kept my head low and crossed through the tables and over the upper level dance floor. It was my intent to take a short cut by taking the stairs down and crossing through the pit. I quickly changed my mind when I remembered I was walking on stilts. I took the long way around the pit and made my way over to a dark area near the left bar. I had to be careful to stay out of sight of Logan.

  Once I was situated at a table near the back corner, I looked around to find out where Daemon had gone. I spotted him as he walked past the right bar and turned to go back down into the pit. He was walking in circles around the club and I realized that he was just making his rounds as a bouncer. I relaxed somewhat at the thought and continued to watch him. He made it through the pit and was coming up the stairs to the left bar again. Once he reached the top of the stairs he moved back over to the area where he had been standing previously. I kicked myself for not having stayed at the right bar because it was apparent his current location was a favorite place for him to stand.

  Within five minutes of Daemon stopping, a group of five women approached him. Like last time, they were dressed provocatively and they were shamelessly flirting with him. Daemon didn’t appear to be interested but he wasn’t stopping them from touching him and rubbing their hands down his arms as they were talking to him. My hands balled into fists as I watched the women throw themselves at him. Daemon continued to scan the crowd but smiled every so often at something one of the women had said. As his eyes crossed my path they stopped momentarily and I panicked. If Daemon recognized me, I knew he would be pissed and would most likely think I was psychotic. It felt like minutes that his eyes were looking in my direction and I kept my head down to prevent him from making eye contact.

  Daemon’s gaze began to wander again and I let out a breath I didn’t realize I had been holding. My shoulders slumped at the release of tension and I absently played with the straw in my drink. I looked back up at Daemon and noticed that he was flirting with the brunette girl of the group. She was standing directly in front Daemon and had one of her hands placed on his chest. She twirled her hair with her other hand and the grin on his face made his dimples pop out. My heart fluttered at the sight of those dimples but then dropped when I realized that he must still be seeing other women. I guess the whole ‘owning’ thing was a one sided requirement. When he leaned down to whisper something in her ear I was convinced and my body slumped even more from the disappointment. It was a bad idea to come here, but at the same time I was thankful I knew the truth about him. I couldn’t believe I was foolish enough to think that anything he had said to me was sincere. It was apparent that Logan was correct in his assumption that Daemon had only intended for me to be another notch on his bed post.

  I continued to watch as Daemon and the brunette were talking when he looked over in my direction again. I didn’t bother to look down since the likelihood that he would see me was slim. He scanned over the table to my right and when his gaze met mine, his eyes stopped. He held my stare for a moment and then winked.

  Not good.

  I immediately broke eye contact with him and looked down as if I was interested in something in front of me. The water in my glass had formed a whirlpool from the speed at which I was twirling my straw. There’s no way he could have recognized me and I was trying not to panic. I looked up again. Daemon was still looking in my direction but looked down again at the brunette who was rubbing herself all over him. A smug smirk was on his face and I wanting nothing more than to walk over there and slap it off of him. The brunette’s behavior was disgusting me and I didn’t know how she slept at night without feeling ashamed of herself.

  Since I now had my answer, there was no point continuing to torture myself. I slowly got up from the table and started making my way to the front doors. Out of habit, I waved at Logan as I passed and his eyes widened at the sight of me.


  “Paige?”

  Apparently my costume wasn’t as convincing as my roommates had thought. I flashed Logan a quick smile and then continued my path to the front doors without stopping to explain myself. I had almost reached the doors when I was suddenly lifted and thrown over Daemon’s shoulder.

  Without a word, he carried me to the storage room, placed me down and performed his usual routine of locking and barricading the door. I stood perfectly still as his eyes raked over my body. His gaze was hooded and traveled slow before meeting my eyes. He stood there silently staring at me for a few moments before he finally spoke. His voice was deep and husky and it ran through me as he said, “Can I ask why you are here this evening dressed as a prostitute?”

  My eyes dropped to look down at myself and I sighed when I remembered what I looked like. What the hell was I supposed to say to him, I’m disguised so you don’t catch me spying on you? Somehow I didn’t see that working out too well so I said nothing. Of course, it didn’t really matter what I said because once I was able to give Daemon his bike back, this thing between him and I would be over.

  “What does it matter, Daemon? You were obviously busy, so why don’t you just let me go so you can return your attention to the brunette woman?” I looked up into his eyes and could tell that he was enjoying this little exhibition of mine by the slight upturn at the corners of his mouth. When he couldn’t contain it any longer a sideways grin broke out on his face and one dimple came along with it. I held his stare while he processed his thoughts and became impatient as I waited for him to move away from the door.

  Daemon chuckled. The bastard chuckled! His reaction pissed me off and I started marching forward to move him out of the way. The only problem was that I had forgotten that alcohol and stilts didn’t go together well and I took a step only to promptly land on my ass. I dropped my head into my hands, sighed loudly and then began the process of removing myself from the floor. Before I could accomplish lifting myself, two massive hands gripped around my arms and pulled me up. I looked up to a searing glare in Daemon’s eyes. The expression on his face could only mean two things; either he was about to kill me, or…well, okay, there was only one thing. He was about to kill me.