She looked at him, studying his profile as he drove. He was a handsome man. To her, at least. “Tell me about your divorce.”
He shrugged. “I didn’t want kids. I told her that from the beginning. I made no secret about it. She said she was okay with that.”
“She wasn’t?”
“Nope. Apparently not. She spent the first several years hinting and trying her best to get me to agree to it. I refused. When she realized I really meant it and that I had scheduled an appointment for a vasectomy, she turned into three gallons of crazy in a two-gallon bucket.”
Shayla laughed. “And that’s why you’re allergic to drama?”
“I had a low tolerance for it before that, but yes.” He gently squeezed her hand. “I mean it when I say I don’t want to be a douche. This is supposed to be fun for both of us.” He glanced at her before returning his eyes to the road. “I need you to talk to me. I can’t read minds. I expect you to call me out if you think I’m out of line. I want a submissive, not a doormat. I expect you to have opinions and to express them. I want to be worthy of your trust.”
She felt the lump grow in her throat and swallowed it back. She squeezed his hand. “I don’t think you’re a douche, Sir,” she quietly said. “And a lack of trust is because of me, not because of anything you’ve done. You’ve been great.” She laughed. “This afternoon was fantastic.”
He pulled into the restaurant’s parking lot. “I feel honored that you’ve put what trust you can in me.”
“Well, Leah, Loren, Tilly, and Clarisse all speak highly of you.” She smiled. “I got the impression that Tilly isn’t someone who trusts people lightly.”
He laughed. “No, she’s not. She’s been through a lot, which you’ve probably already heard from her.”
“Yes.”
Loren and Ross had also arrived and stood with Seth and Leah in the restaurant’s foyer, waiting for them. Tony gently grabbed Shayla’s arm to stop her.
“Hold on, pet.” She looked up at him and spotted his devilish grin. “I’m not going to force you to wear a leather collar in a vanilla restaurant on your first outing with me.”
She felt her face heat immediately as he reached to the back of her neck to unbuckle the collar. She had forgotten all about it.
Loren giggled, but Shayla sensed it wasn’t mean spirited. “Don’t worry, I do that all the time. Ross is always having to remind me to take my collar off.”
Tony handed it to her to slip into her purse before they found their way to their group of tables.
Tony had almost let her go into the restaurant with the collar, but decided against it. He’d built her trust in him to a certain extent. He didn’t want to go blowing that, no matter what sadistic little jollies he’d get over her wearing his collar in public. At least now he had the bulk of the story from her about what happened.
He felt outraged on her behalf. She was taking this a lot better than he would in her situation. He could understand her logic about not pressing charges despite it making her liable for the money.
Didn’t mean he agreed with it.
Tilly, Landry, and Cris also joined them for dinner. Tony noticed after putting in their orders that the women disappeared en masse to the restroom.
“I think you’re about to get graded, buddy,” Seth teased him.
Tony nodded as he sipped his iced tea. “I believe you’re right. They’re going to make sure she’s doing okay and get the dirt on this afternoon. Damn sneaky subs.” He grinned.
Landry cleared his throat. “Speak for yourself. It’s not the sub I have to worry about,” he said as he cast a glance at Cris. “It’s the switchy bitch I married.” His playful smile belied his words. “She can be a holy terror, can’t she, Cris?”
He let out a laugh. “You’ve got that right.”
Ross shook his head. “They’ve adopted Shay into their ranks.” He arched an eyebrow at Tony. “God help you if you piss those women off.”
“Not in my game plan, believe me.” The women returned from the bathroom at the same time a few minutes later. When Shay retook her seat next to him, he asked, “Interesting chat?”
She blushed a little. He doubted she was a good liar given how easily her skin took on that sweet, pink flush. “Just catching up, Sir.”
He carefully watched her throughout dinner. She seemed more relaxed and engaged than she had last week, now that she was familiar with the other women.
When he started to think about what a nice tradition this would be, he snapped that line of thinking off at the source. There was an expiration date on this dynamic, unless she decided she wanted to make it a permanent one.
He knew if things continued to go as well as they were, he wouldn’t mind that at all. Unless something cropped up, it would seem lightning had finally struck him and delivered his unicorn into his lap without him even looking.
Funny how that works.
He found her physically attractive, fun to play with, and interesting to talk to. They had similar interests in reading, movies, TV, and music. He hadn’t seen her apartment yet, but unless she was a nominee for her own episode of Hoarding: Buried Alive, he didn’t see anything that threw up red flags for him.
She was obviously an independent woman. Leaving behind everyone and everything she knew to move across the country to a state she’d never been to before to take a new job had to be a huge step for her.
When it was time to settle the checks, he picked up hers and refused to let her argue. “Leave it, pet. It’s my treat.”
Her face flushed a little. He could tell from the way her gaze kept trying to drift down to her lap that she struggled with his order to look him in the eye. “Thank you, Sir. I wasn’t expecting that.”
“It’s not a problem. I can afford it, and I want to do it.”
He draped an arm around her shoulders for the walk out to his car. She fits me perfectly.
It wasn’t any large stretch to imagine what her body would feel like next to him in bed. However, that thought made his cock ache again, so he nipped it in the bud. He liked the way she leaned in against him as they walked.
“How are you feeling, pet?”
She smiled up at him. “Good, Sir.”
“Ready to play?”
“Yes, Sir.”
He stopped next to his car and took both of her hands. “I meant it when I say if something happens that you don’t like, safeword immediately. I don’t want to push you past your limits and have you hate me later. I’m not a douche.”
“I don’t think you’re a douche, Sir.”
“You’re really okay with everything we did earlier? You won’t hurt my feelings if you say no.”
“I’m really okay, Sir.”
“Good girl. I’m very proud of you for how you handled today. You did very well.”
She blushed. “Thank you, Sir.”
He opened the door for her and held it. “Take your collar out of your purse.” She did and handed it to him. She held her hair out of the way while he buckled it around her neck. “Now let’s go play.”
Chapter Sixteen
Butterflies multiplied in Shayla’s stomach at an alarming rate as they drew closer to the club. Armed with the confidence that she could stop events at any time, and with the support of the other women, she was determined to see the evening through to its conclusion.
I hope I don’t embarrass him.
She blinked, glad for the darkness of the car’s interior to hide her red cheeks. Where’d that come from?
The warm thrill from his praise still rolled through her.