By Invitation Only

by Allie Quinn

  “He still lives there, in the house that was next door to you. He has a nice big garden in the back with a shed that holds his tools. I think I’ll see about getting a warrant and taking a dog or two out there, perhaps a metal detector, and see what I find.” He stood up and placed his cup on my desk.

  I noticed he hardly drank any of his coffee. I hadn’t had any after my first sip either.

  “Maybe I’ll find nothing.”

  I wouldn’t bet on it.

  He left me alone.

  How long I sat in my chair, staring out the huge window at the city, I don’t know.

  “Are you all right?”

  James’s voice drew me out of my daze.

  Was I all right? I had felt so all right in Raven’s arms last week. I wished that feeling could last. Why was it every time I felt as if I could move on from Ana, she came back to haunt me? Was I ever going to be all right?

  “I don’t feel very well.” It wasn’t a lie. “I think I’ll go home.”

  “Home? Early? You’ve never left early since I started here. Do you think you’re coming down with something?”

  “I hope not.” I was sure it was a bad case of reality shock.

  I don’t remember my drive home. I started to call my mom, but I put it off. She and my dad were happy, healthy, and retired and away from danger. I saw no reason in ruining their day. Besides, Detective Larson might find nothing. Ana might really have had enough and run away. Maybe she was happily married to the perfect man and had two point five children and was living in London. It was a nice pipe dream.

  I dropped my purse on the table inside the door and flopped down on the sofa, putting my feet up as soon as I could get my shoes kicked off. It amazed me how this still haunted me after so much time had passed. I could still see him. The night had been cloudy. The moon had peeked in between the clouds, making shadows in the garden. There had been a thunderstorm later that night. In my child’s mind, I’d thought the heavens protested.

  Suddenly, Ana was there, in my living room. Still thirteen. Young. Fresh. Lovely in her innocent way with her long, lanky legs and long, straight hair.

  “It’s okay,” she said in a voice that often haunted my dreams. “We were both kids. There was nothing we could do. My mom tried time and again, and all he did was blacken her eye or knock out her teeth.”

  I jumped awake as my phone chimed with an incoming text.

  I looked around before I got up. My mind began to clear. My living room was empty. Ana had been nothing more than a dream. A very real dream that had left me feeling jumpy.

  I looked at my message. It was from Raven. It brought a small ray of sunshine into my foggy, horrible day.

  I’m thinking of you.

  I texted back. That’s sweet. I’m thinking of you too.

  I considered asking him if he’d reported to the police what I’d told him but then I reconsidered. It didn’t matter. Besides, telling them—finally—had taken at least some of the weight from my shoulders.

  I looked out my living-room window. Storm clouds really had gathered, just like the night Ana disappeared.

  I thought of Raven, wanting to try and convince him to come over—wearing his mask, of course.

  Should I?

  Could I?

  My time at the Midnight Castle made me bolder than ever. Why not? What could I lose besides the pain of my memories? After all, the worst he could say was no.

  I could greet him at the door, wearing nothing but the mask he gave me.

  Before I could text him, he beat me to the punch.

  Can you come to the Midnight Castle at 6? I know it’s sooner than we planned, but I need you.

  I texted back. I can be there whenever you wish. I left work early.

  5?

  I’ll be there.

  I’m hard thinking about you.

  I had enough time to shower and find something to wear that he might think was sexy. He’d liked that little black dress. Maybe I’d just wear that again.

  Thinking about him and the Midnight Castle and the way he’d touched me and how he’d made me come with his tongue and how he’d tied me up didn’t leave room for thinking about Ana or Detective Larson. For which I was thankful.

  Even if I could only put it on the back burner for a while.

  Raven

  I knew Jack Larson had gone to see her. Hell, I’d called him. It made me sick that she’d lived with her pain, her fear all this time. It made me sicker when my cousin, Jack, had told me another girl that had just been reported as missing and had had a connection to the same abusive police officer as Alexandria’s childhood friend. I also knew at a time like this, Alexandria shouldn’t be alone.

  If it was up to me, she’d never be alone. For the first time, I questioned the need for my mask. All I wanted to do was hold her. Forever. I felt in her the need to do the same. What if she no longer wanted me after seeing who I was? She’d walk away, and that would be that. The fact that she’d kissed Agnew after he’d treated her to lunch and walked away happy told me she’d walk away again. Fuck. I should stick with the mask. If it was the only way I could have her, then it would be what I’d take.

  For now, I planned to hold her and see her through this horrid time of her life. She was probably reliving memories and fear. I planned to do whatever I could to ease that fear.

  There was a lot of activity at the Castle tonight, even for a Friday. All the private rooms were reserved. All four swings were occupied, as were two of the St. Andrew’s crosses. Cleo and Tony were playing within a group of five.

  I knew Cleo had invited Alexandria to join them. She had asked my permission first. As I watched them play and enjoy one another, I wondered how easy it would be to watch had Alexandria accepted. It would probably be a bittersweet combination of pleasure and gut-wrenching pain, watching her with someone else, anyone else.

  As soon as she came through the door, I swept her into my arms and held her against my chest. I hoped she understood she was safe in my arms, that she was always safe with me. I hoped she understood I was there to hold her anytime she needed to be held.

  She looked a bit washed out, as if Jack’s visit had sent all her blood to her feet.

  Otherwise, she looked elegant in the little black dress and heels I liked.

  “Any pretty panties tonight, my love?” I whispered in her ear.

  “No. I see no reason to wear them. You’d probably take them anyway.”

  I laughed. “Yes, I would. Is there anything special you’d like to play tonight?”

  She looked up at me with her big eyes that were the color of melting chocolate. “I’d like to have you in my mouth.”

  Fuck, I was instantly hard and needed exactly what she suggested. I know of no man who turns down such an offer. I certainly wasn’t going to, even if I did want to take our night slow and make it last, holding her a lot. But I wanted to pleasure her as much as I knew it would pleasure me.

  “I’d like to take it a step further than that, if you like.”

  “I like everything you do.”

  I led her to the large sofa where I’d held her last week. Along the way, I grabbed another length of soft rope, since she seemed to enjoy that part. “Turn around. I promise this won’t take as long as last week.” I tied her arms together behind her back at her wrists. If I had more time, I would have made it a very fancy lace job up her arms, but she obviously needed to please me. So I didn’t want to make her wait.

  As I bound her, I whispered in her ear, “Did you know every time I called you this week and I heard your sexy, deep, throaty voice, I needed to jack off?”

  “Really? I made you hot, did I?”

  “Exceptionally.”

  I finished tying and sat down on the sofa, taking her with me to her knees on the floor before me. I opened my lounging pants for her. “I’m all yours, my love.”

  From the first moment her mouth slid over my cock, I knew this wasn’t going to be slow. She was like a lioness, needy an
d wanting, as she took in as much as she could. Sliding up and down, she had a suction like no other. Damn, I wasn’t going to last long at all. I was glad I’d tied her wrists. Her electrifying touch would have had me shooting into her mouth after the third or fourth swipe.

  Well, two could play this game. She wanted to take me to the edge, make me insane? I could do the same for her.

  I could have easily lain back on the big sofa. I didn’t. I remained sitting and touched her. I kept one hand down the front of her dress, cupping her perfect tit. I loved her tits, beautiful and full and very sensitive. She groaned at my touch, and her hard nipple pressed against my palm. Amazingly, she sucked me harder.

  With my other hand, I reached under the hem of her dress at the back, moved the dress up and out of the way, and massaged her back. “Your skin feels amazing.”

  She apparently liked the compliment as she moved up and down faster. I moved her dress down in front, so I could see her breast as I played with it. Beautiful, so beautiful. It jutted out a little fuller than usual with her arms behind her back. She groaned more as she moved even faster.

  I didn’t have long. And although I loved it, I wanted to be inside her when I came. I wanted to be lost looking into her eyes.

  Grasping her shoulders, I pulled her off.

  “No,” she protested.

  “Don’t worry. I won’t take anything away from your good time. Come here.” Still sitting, I pulled her onto my lap, her legs straddling me. As I took her sweet nipple into my mouth, I slid my cock deep inside her and pulled down the other side of her dress, making her bare to the waist.

  She was tight and wet and wrapped around me like no one else ever had.

  We rode together—hips thrusting, bellies rubbing, pelvises rocking. She met me thrust for thrust. I squeezed and played with her perfect tits as I moved. I kissed her, made love to her mouth with my tongue, and tasted myself.

  It turned me on, made me move faster before I teased each of her nipples with my lips. My action made her squeal, and her already tight pussy clenched me even tighter.

  “Look at me. I want to watch you while we come together.”

  She met my gaze. Her eyes were liquid pools of endless dark passion within which I wanted to get lost.

  And I felt lost as we came.

  I wanted to give her nothing but pleasure. I wanted to erase her pain and lift the weight of a horrible memory from her shoulders. I untied her hands, then pulled her against me.

  I wanted to hold her in my arms forever and keep her safe.

  I wanted to hold her so close the rest of the world could not invade.

  I knew as I laid her back on the sofa with me that I had to settle for one night at a time.

  But I would take as many heartbeats together as time would allow us.

  Then my world stopped as she looked into my eyes, cupped my face with her hand, and said, “My heart is yours.”

  I fucking wished it could be forever.

  I held her for a long time, just feeling her pressed against me, listening to the sound of her breathing, not moving as my cock shrank inside her but her heat continued to melt through me.

  We shared a shower afterward.

  “I love soaping you down.”

  She giggled. “I love soaping you down too.”

  “It is the best massage I’ve ever felt.”

  We dried each other. My heart was still soaring from her earlier words. I kissed her while I dried her off. I touched her and patted her with the towel. She did the same for me. I would have loved to have echoed her words, but my fear was that she would learn my identity. I don’t know what she would do with my heart then.

  I took her to my apartment within the Castle, to my private rooms. As before, she thought it was merely another private room a member could reserve for the night.

  I held her through the night, the two of us tucked between my sheets.

  It was where she belonged.

  She woke before the sun came up and insisted she needed to go home. I tried unsuccessfully to talk her into staying. She grinned.

  “I want to go shopping and buy something sexy to wear for you tonight.”

  That made my heart melt.

  It also made it easier to kiss her good-bye in the parking lot.

  I kissed her with my whole soul. I held her face and looked into her eyes, which glistened with the end of moonlight and the promise of dawn. “You are mine.”

  She gave me a small smile and nodded, as if my words choked her to the point she couldn’t speak. I liked leaving her speechless as much as I liked making her breathless. I watched her taillights as she left via the front gate, and I made the decision to remove my mask for her. When the moment was right. I wanted to wake up with her every morning. I wanted to talk to her about work while we shared dinner. I wanted every day with her, not just fun and games on the weekend. When I knew she was far enough away not to see, I pulled my mask from my face.

  The risk she might reject me once she knew my identity was a risk I was willing to take.

  I took a deep breath. I’d never removed my mask while being within the public walls of the Castle. It had been my grandfather’s rule, then my father’s, now mine. Looking back on how my father had met and married my mother, and my grandfather had met and married my grandmother, I saw now the importance of this mask rule. At the same time, I saw why each of them broke it.

  I returned to my apartment, where I dressed in jeans and a black T-shirt. I was well aware of the dress code at the Castle, but I planned to stay in my apartment until I heard from Alexandria.

  My phone buzzed.

  Who would be calling me at five in the morning? Maybe that was her already, saying she was coming back.

  It was my cousin, Jack.

  And I didn’t like what he told me. I raced to my car.

  Alexandria

  I should have stayed with him. We could have had breakfast. We could have made love again. We weren’t the usual couple who kissed and said we loved each other. I felt our connection was deeper than that. I’d given him my heart. He’d made me his.

  This was deeper than anything I’d ever felt before.

  It was scary and beautiful at the same time. I wanted to make it more. I wanted to please him in every way. I left because I’d wanted to get some coffee and buy some new sexy clothes, panties for him to remove every time we were together. I planned to get back to Midnight Castle, to him, by lunch. I wanted to spend as much of the weekend as I could with him.

  I wanted…

  Hell, I wanted him forever.

  I reached my little villa. I loved my villa. It wasn’t the Midnight Castle, but it was home where I could live comfortably without having to be in charge of mowing the grass. I walked in the door in a rush and dropped my purse and keys on the nearby table inside. I felt like I could fly. I belonged to Raven. I’d never felt so at home with someone before. I knew the stores weren’t open, but I wanted to grab some breakfast, put on fresh makeup.

  My phone buzzed. I smiled. Raven was calling me. My heart did a little skip at the idea.

  I looked at the display and was surprised to see Jack Larson’s name and number.

  I was about to press the little telephone icon to answer, but something stopped me. It was that gut instinct that warned me something was wrong—terribly wrong.

  Before I could look around my darkened living room, I was grabbed from behind, held too tight to escape, pressed against a big, hard body. I didn’t need the light to know who it was. I didn’t need to see him.

  “Miss me, little girl?”

  I recognized his voice. He used to call both me and Ana ‘little girl.’

  Memories flashed through my mind. “Get in here right now for supper, little girl!” “How’s it going, little girl?” “Do you know where your mom is, little girl?” “Are you up there, little girl?” He was the man who haunted my nightmares. He was Graylan Conner.

  And my heart turned cold at the metal I felt him pres
s against my throat.

  Chapter Twelve

  Raven

  From a block away as I turned the corner, I saw Alexandria enter her villa through her front door. A second sooner and I would have been able to lay on the horn and get her attention. I parked behind her car in her drive and vaulted to the front door, listening close before I pressed the bell.

  I heard the muffled voice of a man speaking. He was in there with her. Fuck.

  Jack was on his way and probably had the cavalry with him. I heard sirens in the distance. They were too far away.

  I considered busting through the door. To startle him might make things worse for her.

  I casually rang the bell. Through the door, I heard the chime echo through the villa. I heard his voice, filled with anger.

  “Who are you expecting this early in the morning, little girl? Especially after being out all night like some whore?”

  I wanted to cut out his tongue for what he said to her. Given the chance, I would have tied him to one of the dungeon tables in the Castle and tortured him. Long ago, during just one night in my previous job before I’d managed to escape, I’d learned first-hand many ways to torture.

  The door opened a few inches. I saw only Alexandria, who was rather pale. He was probably holding on to her, standing where I couldn’t see him.

  She recovered quickly from her shock at seeing me on her front stoop.

  “James?”

  “I apologize for coming over so early, Alex. But I just got a c-c-call from my cousin, Jack Larson, who tells me there has been a change in the c-c-case we’re working on, and I wanted to f-f-fill you in.” As always, I hated that fucking stutter. It was worse now because I was worried. And scared for her. I could never understand why it didn’t affect me at the Castle. Of course, I was extra careful about the words I spoke while I was there. I had also learned to use my stutter as an advantage. Growing up, a lot of people thought I was stupid or slow because of the stutter. Maybe Conner would underestimate me.

  I also knew my words sounded like the lamest excuse in history, but it was the best I could think of at the moment.