Club Alpha: BDSM Romance Boxed Set

by Amy Valenti

  “I will,” I promised her.

  She stared at me for a few moments, and when she realized I wasn’t going to read it in front of her, she moved toward the door. With her hand over the doorknob, she turned to me.

  “Tori, I’ve known you since two days past forever,” she said. “And I really think you need to read that note.”

  With that, she unlocked the door and let herself out, closing the door behind her.

  I sat in the chair holding that crumpled up wad of paper for several minutes, turning it over and over and seriously debating whether or not to read it – or maybe just toss it into the trash. In the end, curiosity won out.

  Victoria,

  I don’t know if you believe in fate, but I do. I believe it has the power to give us happiness beyond our wildest dreams – or to destroy us. Which one is up to us as individuals.

  Don’t let it destroy us. Meet me at Club Red tonight at nine.

  G

  I read the note a dozen times. In order to meet him, I’d have to call out of work again, and I was afraid it would cost me my job. How could I risk that when I had bills to pay and my education was at stake?

  I shook my head and tossed the note into the trash, heading down the hallway to get dressed.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  As I exited the cab, I got a gnawing ache in the pit of my stomach. Perhaps I’d made the wrong decision. I hadn’t paid the cabbie, yet. It wasn’t too late. I took a deep breath and handed the cabbie a twenty.

  “Keep the change,” I told him, and I slammed the door behind me.

  I approached the familiar padded red door with my head held high and the heels of my boots clicking on the pavement. The bouncer must have remembered me, because he nodded me inside without a second thought.

  I pushed the doors open, and the throbbing beat assaulted my ears, enveloping me in a fog that bored into my brain. There was still time to run. It wouldn’t be difficult to hail another cab in this area.

  “Hello, beautiful.”

  His voice was unmistakable, and I shivered upon hearing it. I felt his hand touch my back, and I closed my eyes for a moment, savoring the contact.

  “Shall we go to my room?”

  I nodded, and he applied a slight amount of pressure to my back, urging me forward. I guided myself back to 3B.

  He unlocked the door with the touchpad and pushed it open, and I stepped inside. I headed straight for the couch and made myself comfortable.

  “Can I get you anything?” he asked.

  “Just water, please,” I answered.

  He pulled a bottle of water from the fridge and handed it to me, pouring himself a glass of whiskey. Then he made his way to the chair he’d sat in across from me before.

  “So… are you going to tell me why you’ve been trying so hard to avoid me?” he asked, sipping his drink.

  Well, he was blunt, if nothing else.

  “I guess you want the truth, huh?”

  “Preferably.”

  I screwed the top off the bottle of water and gulped it eagerly, thankful for any brief delay it might offer me. Then I took another deep breath.

  “I’ll admit that I’m attracted to you,” I told him. “And yes, I do feel something between us, as strange as that sounds since we hardly know one another. But I promised myself after my last relationship ended miserably that I’d never put myself through that again. I intended to swear off men entirely, but… well, frankly I missed the human contact.”

  “I’m not trying to pressure you into marriage or anything,” he said. “I just want to get to know you.”

  “Isn’t that always where it starts?” I asked him.

  “I suppose.”

  “Every guy I’ve ever dated, though I admit there haven’t been all that many, has hurt me,” I said. “I’ve been cheated on, lied to, even thrown around like a ragdoll and beaten until I ended up in the hospital. So I’m sure you can see why I would be distrustful by nature.”

  “I’m sorry that’s happened to you,” he said, sounding genuinely concerned. “And I don’t blame you for being distrustful. It took me a long time to trust people, too.”

  “Why?”

  “My father, if you can even call him that, was an abusive piece of shit,” he said. “And my mother was too much of a spineless coward to stop him. She loved that man no matter what he put me through. I haven’t talked to either of them in years.”

  “I’m sorry. That’s awful.”

  “I could have ended up in a much different situation,” he said. “Fortunately, I met a man who saved me from what could have been the same fate that befalls a large number of teens who come from abusive families and poverty. Instead of rotting on the streets and getting involved in drugs, he took me in, gave me a job, and taught me how to survive in the business world.”

  “You’re very blessed.”

  “I am now, that’s for sure,” he said. “At the time, I was a junkie with track marks and a waist so small I was wearing the same clothes I’d worn in middle school.”

  All I could do was stare at him in horror.

  “But Simon changed all that,” he said quickly. “He got me off the streets. He got me clean. He showed me that there’s always a way. And I’ve believed that ever since. Which is why I refuse to give up on you.”

  “Why me, though? A guy like you could have anyone you want. I know you aren’t into the supermodel thing, or so you said, but there are millions of girls who…”

  “Stop,” he said, leaning forward and capturing my eyes with his. “I don’t want to hear you disparaging yourself. You are a beautiful woman, and I can tell you’re smart and capable. I don’t yet know as much about you as I’d like, but I’m just hoping you’ll give me a chance to.”

  “I’m afraid,” I said softly.

  He took my hand and said, “So am I. I’m afraid of losing our one shot at finding happiness.”

  My resolve was melting away like an ice cube under a hair dryer. Slowly but surely, it was dissolving.

  “Why Club Red?” I asked him out of the blue.

  “Excuse me?”

  “Of all places to look for love… why here?”

  He released my hand and leaned back in his chair, running both hands through his hair and closing his eyes. He pushed breath sharply through his lips, and then sat back up.

  “Long story short, I have unfulfilled desires,” he said. “I came hoping to make them reality, but I realized I can’t do that with just anyone.”

  “Have you tried?”

  “A couple of times,” he admitted. “I brought a woman back here twice – two different women, actually. But I couldn’t go through with it. For one thing, I wasn’t attracted to them the way I am to you. And for another thing, I had no connection with them. There was simply nothing there. I finally decided to wait for the right one.”

  I nodded, but I was secretly sick to my stomach knowing I wasn’t the first woman he’d brought to his room.

  “Let’s not talk about the past anymore,” he said. “Let’s talk about the future. What are your plans?”

  “I’m in nursing school,” I told him. “It’s only my second year. It’s going to get crazy next year. Clinicals. I’ve done a few already, but next year it’s going to be insane.”

  “And you like it so far?”

  “I love it! It’s thrilling to be able to help people. I could have gone for a 2-year degree, but I really wanted to get my BSN.”

  “And you’re working as a waitress while attending nursing school? That seems rather difficult.”

  “I have to. My financial aid doesn’t cover everything.”

  “How are you able to juggle working with such a rigorous educational program? Most people would buckle under the pressure.”

  “It’s all I have. Without a social life, I have more time than other people my age.”

  “I have very little time,” he said. “That’s one reason why I chose to get the second residence here at Club Red. It simply doesn’t
make sense to drive home so late when I have to be at work so early.”

  “Do you mind if I ask what you do?”

  “The company I run belonged to Simon. Sadly, he passed away last year and left me in charge. We’re a media company specializing in representing talent. We have subsidiaries that deal with music talent, models, actors, authors, and even athletes. We also provide marketing services for various industries. Svetlana, the woman I was with when I saw you at your job the other day, is one of the models we represent.”

  “I’m sorry to hear about Simon. That must have been difficult.”

  “He was like a father to me in many ways, so yes it was one of the hardest things I’ve ever gone through. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t still grieve for him.”

  “Can I ask you something?”

  “Of course.”

  “Do you think… I mean, is it possible that… maybe you’re comfortable enough to take things to the next level?” I asked him.

  “Do you mean, am I ready show you what Club Red is famous for?” he asked, a coy grin stretching his lips.

  “Exactly.”

  “Come with me.”

  He stood, offering me his hand, which I took. He pulled me to my feet and guided me toward the door, which had remained closed since the first time I’d visited this place.

  He pushed the door open, and we entered a bedroom, as I had assumed. The bed was a plush king-sized four-poster with black and gray bedding and a black leather headboard. There were matching nightstands holding nothing but small lamps with gray lampshades. A dresser held a framed photograph of Gaius with another man, who I assumed might be Simon.

  Before I could fully finish taking in the room, Gaius pushed me abruptly against the wall and took my face in his hands, pressing his lips against mine so urgently that I could have sworn I tasted the metallic bite of blood against my tongue.

  He licked the seam of my lips, and his warm breath was ragged against my face. My lips parted, allowing him to slip his tongue between them, and I was overcome with desire as his tongue probed deep copulated with my own.

  His hands fell down the sides of my neck and rested on my upper chest, which was rising and falling more rapidly with each passing moment. His hands were burning hot against my skin, blazing a path down my skin that rested over my breasts, which he began to knead firmly.

  My nipples stiffened underneath the fabric of my bra, aching to be released against his touch. The growing warmth between my legs was quickly morphing into a raging inferno. It had been far too long since I’d felt the touch of another human being, and never once had I experienced passion this intense.

  He was right. There was something between us – something inexplicable and almost palpable. It was unlike anything I’d ever felt before, like we just clicked on some level that transcended general human contact and rested on a higher plane somewhere.

  His hands slid along the curve of my waist and along my hips, back behind me to grip my ass. He squeezed my butt firmly and leaned against me, and I could feel his hardness straining against his trousers and throbbing against my pubic mound.

  My hands slid up his arms to rest on his biceps, which flexed their ropy muscles as his hands explored my body. I could feel them hard and defined even under the layers of his shirt and jacket.

  He pulled away from our kiss, and his honey-colored eyes, I noticed, had been burnished into a rich amber hue.

  “There’s something you must know before we go any further,” he told me, his voice more intensely serious than I’d ever heard it.

  “What?” I asked breathlessly, my lips desperate to seek his again.

  “I can’t do this unless you promise me one thing,” he told me. “You must promise it with all your heart.”

  “Anything.”

  “I’m not asking for a lifetime commitment, Victoria,” he said, nuzzling my nose with his. “I’m not even asking to turn this into a relationship. But you must promise me that for as long as we are meeting this way… as long as we have this type of connection… you will be solely mine. I cannot bear to take this any further unless you can promise me at least that much.”

  “I can,” I promised him.

  “Please don’t take this lightly,” he said. “I know you’ve been hurt, and I will never do that to you. Please don’t do it to me.”

  “Never,” I swore, my lips once again finding his.

  The kiss lingered for a few moments, and then he pulled away. He took my hand and guided me to the bed, and as I stood beside it, he reached into the drawer of the bedside table and removed a strip of black lace. I stood there, motionless, while he tied it over my eyes.

  My vision was almost entirely masked. I could see nothing but a faint blur of random shapes and colors, and the blindfold made me want to keep my eyes closed, anyway.

  He guided me gently onto the bed, where he began to slowly undress me. His fingers gingerly popped the buttons on my blouse one by one, and I felt his fingertips lingering against the skin underneath just a little longer than necessary.

  With every button undone, he slid the fabric gradually off my shoulders, his fingernails raking trails down my upper arms as he removed the shirt.

  I felt his hands slide around to my back, grasping the clasps of my bra and unhooking each one deliberately. Once it was fully undone, he tugged lightly at the straps and let them fall naturally down my shoulders. Then his fingers appeared at the top of my bra, and I felt him pulling the front downward, his fingertips slipping down my breasts and across my stiff nipples. Once the fabric was peeled away from my body, I felt his hands cupping my breasts, and he pinched my nipples. I gasped at the unexpected contact.

  He lifted my breasts, and I felt the warm moistness of his mouth closing over one of my nipples. I moaned softly as he began to suck, and I could feel dampness soaking into my panties.

  “Lie back,” he ordered me.

  I lowered myself onto the downy softness of the bed, and he lifted my legs one by one, removing my boots. I heard them thump to the floor. Then he laid my legs on the bed so that I was lying vertically on the bed.

  He took one of my wrists and wrapped it in a soft, silky fabric. He lifted my hand and I felt it being attached to one corner of the bed, which I assumed to be one of the bedposts. Then he did the same to the other hand.

  He fumbled for the zipper of my skirt, which was positioned along my right side. He slid it down and I lifted my hips, allowing him to slip off my skirt along with my stockings and panties.

  I felt the heat of modesty flush warmly across my cheeks upon knowing he was seeing me naked for the first time. I hoped he would truly like what he saw, as I knew my body wasn’t perfect by society’s standards. I had little pockets of cellulite sprinkled across my thighs that drove me crazy every summer, and a few stretch marks mottling my stomach – the product of too many diets that succeeded and then failed again.

  I felt his hands against my bare thighs, sliding upward and over the swell of my belly to rest on my breasts again. His mouth took in my nipple, his tongue rolling around it in flicking circles. I began to squirm, my arousal reaching fever pitch.

  The eroticism of being so out-of-control was driving me wild. This man could do anything to me, and there would be no way I could resist. I was helpless. I was bound and virtually blinded, and even if I had screamed, I was relatively certain these rooms were soundproofed even if I could have been heard above the relentless beat of the music outside.

  As he continued to suck on my nipple, his hand slid down over my belly and he cupped my mound in his hand. Then his finger slipped between my lips and found my wetness, dipping inside me.

  A moan escaped my lips as he began to rub the tiny bundle of nerves under its hood, and I bit my lip and purred softly. His tongue swirled around my nipple, sending surges of warm pleasure across my chest and downward toward my clit, which he was rubbing slowly and teasingly.

  His weight shifted, and I felt the warmth of his breath just un
der my nose. His lips touched mine, and I instantly parted to allow him access. Our tongues wrapped together like the end of a twist-tie, and I could taste the whiskey he’d been drinking earlier. I realized my other senses were heightened by the loss of my vision, and I could hear, taste, feel and smell everything more intensely than before.

  He stopped rubbing my clit, and my body relaxed with disappointment. His hand wrapped around my throat and pushed my chin upward and to my left. His fingers began to dig into the flesh just above my jaw, and I could feel his breath against my neck.

  “You belong to me, and only me, if only for this moment,” he growled into my ear, his voice barely above a whisper. “Say it.”

  “I belong to you,” I said softly.

  “Say it like you mean it,” he demanded, pushing forcefully against my chin.

  “I belong to you,” I repeated with more intensity.

  “No man will touch you but me, is that clear?” he asked me.

  “Yes.”

  “Say it with respect.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Much better.”

  His hand pulled my face toward him, and he forced his tongue into my mouth, kissing me harshly. His lips made mine ache with the brutal force being applied, but at the same time there was an electric passion surging through it that thrilled me. Every nerve ending in my body suddenly surged to life.

  In an instant, I felt completely alone. The bed shifted, and I felt his weight move off it as the mattress bounced upward. The sound of a zipper raked through the air, followed by the rustling of clothing. The bed sagged again beside me, and I wanted to desperately to see his naked body or at least touch him, but the blindfold and my restraints kept me from either.

  Fingers rested lightly on my knee and then brushed up over my thigh, across my belly and over my breast. I exhaled softly as delightful chills erupted across my skin and turned my nipples to stiff peaks.

  I’d begun writhing about the bed in desperation. My body needed him. I craved his touch, his kiss, and the release I hoped would soon come. Most of all, I craved his satisfaction, and I wanted to be the only thing in the world that could bring that to him.