Now, three hours behind the wheel of one of the stealthiest cars Zane had ever been in, as well as being surrounded by the exhilaratingly subtle scent of V had left him in a highly frustrated mood. Not necessarily in a bad way, but not in a good way either.
He felt fine, and the smile on his face was genuine, but Zane was more than ready to back V up against the wall of the elevator they were now standing in and fuck her senseless. Except for the fact that there was a little old couple beside them, he might’ve done just that.
Ok, he wouldn’t have, but it was fun to pretend.
The hotel Travis booked for them was a nice one, which sort of explained the high volume of people checking in at two o’clock in the afternoon. Exactly five hours before they were expected to meet for dinner at some fancy steakhouse not too far from the hotel. According to the voicemail Travis left on his phone, this was going to be an interesting get together, and Zane wasn’t quite sure he was ready for it.
“Where are we going for dinner?” V asked as they made their way into the lavish room. Had it been up to Zane, he wouldn’t have chosen such an expensive room, but Travis had booked it, paid for it, and left no options for Zane to say otherwise. So, here they were.
“Ruth’s Chris?” Zane repeated what his brother had told him, a name that sounded quite strange to him, but after clarification, Travis had ensured him that was the proper name.
V stopped abruptly, spinning to face him, and he was startled by the look on her face.
“What?”
“Have you ever been there?” V was acting as though he should know about it or something.
“No. I’ve never been to Dallas either,” he reminded her. They’d had that conversation in the car on the drive up. They both had that in common. Neither of them had been much for traveling up to this point in their lives.
“They have one in Austin.”
“Well, the answer is still no.” He tossed the suitcases on the king size bed, before turning back to her. “Come here.”
V didn’t move, but neither did Zane. He merely cocked his head and smiled.
“You’re evil, Zane Walker.” Laughing, she moved into him, pressing up against him and then pushing up onto her toes, so he didn’t have to lean that far down to kiss her. And that he did.
By the time he was finished kissing her, he’d managed to sneak his hands up underneath her dress, cupping her ass and grinding his erection against the apex of her thighs.
“There’s no time for that,” V pushed against his chest, successfully breaking his hold on her before stepping away.
Zane swatted her on the butt, smiling once more. “There’s always time for that.”
“Not right now there’s not. I need to get ready for tonight, and if we’re going to Ruth’s Chris, I’ve got work to do.”
What the hell did that even mean?
Zane watched as V opened her suitcase, pulled out some sort of small travel case and then disappeared into the bathroom. Grabbing the remote, he flopped down on the couch to watch television. He needed five minutes to change, which meant he had plenty of time.
V emerged from the bathroom several times over the course of the next few hours, but Zane had no idea what the hell she’d been doing in there each time. The only thing he did know, the woman stole his fucking breath when she finally said she was completely ready. He figured that was his cue to change shirts and grab his hat – five minutes tops.
Mental note: when V’s in charge, schedule at least fifteen minutes to change.
Zane found himself changing once, and then again which had been hard to do considering he only brought one outfit. As it turns out, V knew fashion and what he had opted to wear, although more than suitable for a steakhouse was not up to par with her.
As they walked out of the hotel, hand in hand, Zane had a hard time walking beside V. He’d much rather be walking behind her. Those fucking shoes made her legs look ten miles long, her calves were sculpted to perfection and that damn short skirt swayed just enough, he knew if he watched long enough, he might be able to get a glimpse of her tight little ass. When he’d mentioned as much, he’d earned a slap on the arm and a quick kiss on the lips.
Opening the door for her, Zane waited while she got in, and yes, being the man he was, he tried to sneak a peek, but somehow V managed to remain perfectly decent the whole time. Much to his dismay.
When they arrived at the restaurant, Zane handed the key to the valet and met V on the sidewalk after the second attendant had opened her door for her. He’d much rather it’d been him, but he hadn’t been fast enough.
Mistake on his part. One that he wouldn’t let happen again.
Taking her hand, they made their way inside where a young hostess asked their names and then led them to the back of the restaurant where a large group was already gathered. V’s hand tightened in his when they approached the small group of men and women, most of whom Zane didn’t recognize.
Kaleb and Zoey were already there, which Zane was grateful for considering they were the only people he knew. However, his brother quickly rectified that situation, introducing both him and V to everyone at the table. Thanks to all of the commotion, Zane wasn’t sure he’d be able to keep the names straight.
V chose the seat beside Zoey, leaving Zane to sit on the other side of her, right next to a big guy with blonde hair and unusually intense blue eyes. If he remembered correctly, the guy’s name was Cole. By deduction, he would like to think he was correct, considering he knew Luke and Logan McCoy were twins, and they were seated on the opposite side of the table as him and V.
Thankfully, Travis, Sawyer, and much to Zane’s surprise, Ethan, Brendon and Braydon came walking up to the table, all dressed similarly to Zane. It was damn hard to take the cowboy out of the man, that was for damn sure. At least he’d insisted on wearing his cowboy hat, even after V had tried to talk him out of it.
Once his other brothers took seats around the table, Zane choked back the urge to laugh. It was kind of funny, really. Between the seven Stetson wearing cowboys, himself included, the other men looked a little... uptight. At least as far as their appearance. Not that he had anything against suits and ties and all that, but pigs would probably be flying through the frozen depths of hell before Zane would be caught in one.
Zoey and V were chatting quietly between them, as were the other women at the other end of the table, but Zane couldn’t make out what any of them were saying. A minute later, he had a good idea because Zoey and V stood, changing seats with Kaleb and Sawyer so that they could move closer to the other women.
Well, fuck. Who the hell was he supposed to talk to now?
♀♂
Nervous might just be the understatement of the century, V thought to herself as she sipped a glass of red wine, listening to the laughter and various conversations going on around her. She chimed in when expected, smiled like her lips were being pulled upward by invisible strings, and tried to have a good time. She would be too if she weren’t so damn nervous.
Why? Hell if she knew. Samantha, Sierra, Ashleigh, and a knock out red head named McKenna seemed pleasant enough. They included her in the conversation, but she couldn’t find much to say. Unlike Zoey, who acted as though she had known these women all of her life.
Jealous? Ok, maybe a little.
V watched Samantha as she told a story about something that happened last week, noticing how eloquent the woman was when she spoke. Very confident, not to mention, very beautiful. Her long blonde hair hung board straight, flowing over her shoulders and swaying like silk with every head turn. She was Logan’s wife, although, for the life of her, V couldn’t determine which one of the two men was Logan and which one was Luke. She’d been introduced to each of them separately, knew they were wearing different colored ties, but hadn’t taken enough mental notes to distinguish the difference.
There was Sierra, glowing like a damn lamp post, her hands resting on her round belly, her eyes dancing with humor while her jet black hair
shone with hints of cobalt highlights beneath the overhead lights. The woman sitting next to Sierra – Ashleigh – wasn’t nearly as vocal as the others, but she never stopped smiling either. V was pretty sure hers wasn’t forced though.
And then there was the red haired goddess who had somehow captivated V. Never once had she ever been attracted to a woman, but holy hell, she was pretty sure McKenna could be the exception. She was stunning. From what V could tell, she was a journalist, and she was dating, or engaged to, or hell, she might even be married to, the attractive, bald man sitting at the far end of the table.
“How far along are you?” Zoey asked Sierra when Samantha finished her story.
“Thirty four weeks,” Sierra blushed beautifully.
“Not long now,” McKenna added from the seat across from V.
“Not long at all. In fact, if Sam doesn’t get her butt in gear, we might have a baby before we have a baby shower,” Ashleigh added before sipping her wine.
When the salads were brought out, V managed to eat and talk, without feeling too incredibly awkward. The longer she sat there, the more comfortable she became until she was acting just like Zoey. Like she had known these women all of her life. It was true, V didn’t normally make many friends, but there was something about this group of women that she just couldn’t explain.
Well, that was until Sam changed the subject and V damn near choked on her tomato.
“So, Vanessa,” Sam began, “do you mind if I ask you a personal question?”
V glanced around at the other women, noticing the way Sierra tried to stifle a smile and the quick eye roll that Ashleigh thought she was hiding.
“Ok,” she answered, unsure whether she honestly wanted to be asked any questions. Something told her this one might sting a little.
“Have you ever had a threesome?”
Cue choking on tomato.
Zoey slapped V on the back while all of the women laughed. Oh, they weren’t laughing at her, she could tell. Something told her that Samantha was a wild one and that question probably wasn’t the worst of it. V knew she was as red as the tomato lodged in her esophagus, and she prayed they all thought it was because she had trouble breathing.
“Oh, just ignore her,” Ashleigh laughed, signaling the waiter to bring them more wine.
“I guess I should’ve warned you,” Zoey grinned, looking remarkably pleased with herself.
That would’ve been nice, V thought to herself. From that moment on, even though V hadn’t shared her most intimate secret, the six of them became even closer and the conversation took a very quick and even spicier turn. At one point, V looked up to see the men staring over at them, probably hanging onto every word Sam spoke. The woman wasn’t shy about anything, much less her need to talk about sex.
By the time dessert was served, V was feeling no pain. After three glasses of wine, a steak she had been able to cut with her fork and more laughter than she was sure she had ever heard, she was definitely enjoying herself.
When the topic turned to the club they would all be visiting in the next hour, V’s ears tuned in.
“I haven’t been to the club,” Sam explained. “I’m still shocked that Logan kept it a secret from me for this long. Here I was thinking that the private rooms and the play room were what all the hype was about.”
“I knew the second Tag walked me through those doors that they were hiding something,” McKenna laughed. “I won’t deny that going to the play room has its benefits, but holy shit, it is child’s play compared to The Club.”
“What’s it like?” Sierra seemed just as in the dark as Sam when it came to this uber secret sex club their husbands owned.
“That, my friends, is not for me to tell,” McKenna went on to explain the confidentiality agreement, although she inserted a lot of “blah, blah, blah’s” when she felt the details were boring. V appreciated her for it. As it was, she didn’t understand what they were talking about.
“So, how did Club Destiny come about?” V heard herself asking, seriously relaxed from the wine. She didn’t normally engage in conversations, preferring rather to sit back and listen.
“Luke purchased the club about six years ago,” Sierra began, “and at the time, it was called The Destined Hearts Club. I know, I know. Horrible name. Once Luke took over, he changed the name, then restructured, giving the nightclub a face lift and creating a secure area on the second floor of the building he now owns.”
“That’s the sex club part?” V inquired, trying to visualize this place.
“Well, if you mean do they have sex there? Yes, they do. But not like you think. Club Destiny is restricted to members only, and it’s pretty upscale if you ask me. Totally not what I expected when I first went on the tour. There are a handful of apartments that they rent out to members, several conference rooms that they use for business, as well as a play room.”
“Yes, play is exactly what happens in this room,” Sam added when it was obvious V didn’t understand. “Taboo, if you will.”
“But nothing compared to what you’ll see tonight,” McKenna added. “I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by what you find. If you’ve ever researched sex clubs, this is not what you would expect, although it very much is a sex club.”
V hadn’t researched sex clubs. Glancing over at Zoey, she wondered whether her friend had. By the way her eyes were glazed over as she hung on every word, it was quite possible. In order to avoid sounding any more prude than she already did, V didn’t ask any more questions. That wasn’t a problem because Sam began firing them off left and right like she were a prosecutor and McKenna was on the witness stand.
McKenna didn’t answer a single one, which made Sam pout, although not for long. The next thing V knew, everyone was getting up from the table, shaking hands, and agreeing to see each other at the club.
Feeling the minimal effects of the alcohol, and according to the conversation she just had, V began to wonder whether she should’ve ordered another glass of wine. Or ten.
Yep, her nerves were back, and the second her eyes met Zane’s, she was instantaneously overridden by an even more poignant emotion.
Lust.
Chapter Twenty Two
♂♀
When Zane pulled Sawyer’s Corvette into the underground parking garage of Club Destiny he was still reeling from dinner, and it had nothing to do with the food. Although fabulous, Zane had barely tasted a damn thing. Instead, he’d been hanging on every word that the McCoy’s spoke as it related to Club Destiny. To hear how the club came about, what it was before and what they managed to turn it into, he’d been impressed. More so, when Travis spoke as though he knew more about the sex club industry than even Luke and Logan McCoy.
His brother had undoubtedly done his research. The same could be said for Sawyer and Kaleb who held their own, asking questions that seemed to stump Luke a time or two. It all made Zane realize just how out of the loop he actually was. He’d made a commitment to himself that he would rectify that once they were back home. Seeing how intensely serious Travis, Sawyer, and Kaleb were about making AI a success made Zane need to prove his worth to his brothers. He had absolutely no doubts that he could do this, but he was no longer willing to sit in the shadows and wait for guidance.
“Are you all right?” V asked when he helped her out of the car.
“Fine, why?” Zane knew he hadn’t been talkative on the drive from the restaurant, but it had only taken five minutes, so he didn’t feel the need to talk. Since V hadn’t chosen to say anything either, he’d been content to enjoy the companionable silence with her.
“You’ve been quiet,” she answered, taking his hand and walking with him to the club entrance.
Zane put his hand on the small of her back, walking behind her as they entered through a door one of the bouncers – make that security guard - held open for them. Bouncers didn’t carry guns and this man was packing. Once they made it inside, he realized they were in the nightclub, although it seemed oddly empty for
a Monday night.
“He closed the bar for the night,” Kaleb answered once Zane approached the rest of the group, answering Zane’s unspoken question. That made sense. If not, Luke McCoy needed to do some serious advertising because there were only a handful of people, not all of them within their group, but most of them were.
“Who are those people?” V asked, talking to Kaleb.
“He handed out some special invitations. If I heard correctly, they’re interested members that Luke has known for a while.”
Zane liked the control Luke had over his club. He also liked that the man didn’t bat an eyelash at closing the doors on what was undoubtedly one of their busiest nights. As he stood beside Kaleb, listening to his brothers talk, waiting for Logan and Sam who had yet to join them, Zane admired his surroundings. Namely V.
She seemed a little relaxed, probably from the wine she’d had with dinner, but she also seemed different somehow. She was laughing with the other women, talking very animatedly which was something Zane didn’t see her do very often. He decided instantly that he liked it. He liked seeing her with her hair down per se, enjoying herself as though nothing else was going on in her life. If he knew a way to put that smile on her face all the time, and eliminate those memories that somehow managed to mentally cripple her from time to time, Zane would do it.
“You ready for this?” Sawyer asked, pulling Zane apart from the rest of the group.
“Ready for what?” Zane had no idea what Sawyer was talking about.
“This is going to be our first taste of what Travis’ expectations are,” Sawyer explained.
Zane glanced over at his brother, noticing he was standing really close to the red haired woman and the bald man she was with. He had no idea what the connection was with those two, but Travis seemed fairly intimate with them. More so than he had seen his oldest brother with anyone else.
Zane (Alluring Indulgence) Page 21
