Total pages in book: 160
Estimated words: 149137 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 746(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 497(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 149137 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 746(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 497(@300wpm)
“I don’t think Josh talks too much to anyone about his past,” Barry said. “Sometimes not about his present either. He’s known for being quite silent on both subjects. I think he talked a bit to the one submissive he brought to the club, and that didn’t turn out well.”
“Because she went to the press.”
Barry sighed. “I don’t know everything that went on between those two. I know they had some things in common. They had both been raised in foster care. They seemed to click and then one day I overheard her talking to another sub about how much money she was going to make off him. She had contacted a reporter with a tabloid and was planning on doing an exposé on the whole club. They were going to give her millions.”
“You told Josh.”
“I told my Glo and she handled things from there,” Barry explained. “She had been quite close to Josh’s agent at one point. Tina wasn’t in the lifestyle, but she was certainly part of the acting community. My wife was a casting agent. She made sure that woman was never cast again.”
It was good someone had been looking out for Josh. Still, he’d had a girlfriend. A submissive he’d selected for their compatibility and not her skill with knives and guns. “Can you tell me something, Barry?”
“I don’t know. I have to protect him, too.”
“It’s okay if you don’t answer. I wanted to know if he kissed her. The other girl, that is. Did he kiss her during scenes?”
He froze for a moment, as though processing her words, and then a look of sympathy hit his face.
She held out a hand. “It’s okay. That’s all I need to know. I’m going to pack this laptop up before the party gets started. It looks like they’re bringing in the keg now.”
Barry put a hand on her arm. “Give him time. I see the way he looks at you. I don’t think he’ll be able to hold out forever.”
She wasn’t as sure. He was damaged, and maybe beyond repair. One couldn’t fix what was never acknowledged. If he held that pain close to him forever, he would be stuck. The pain would be his mistress, holding if not his affections then most of his attentions.
She couldn’t compete with the past.
“I’ll be back in a minute.” She would check her makeup, ensure the last few minutes of emotional talk didn’t show up on her face. Josh would want to know what was wrong, and she was too tired to make shit up.
Time was spinning and before she knew it her time with him would be up and she would have a serious decision to make. She would have to decide to stay with him and see what happened or go back to London and get on with her life.
The thought of leaving Malibu made her heart ache.
She was turning the corner to head to the locker room when Riley stepped out of the shadows. His eyes traced right and then left before he took her by the elbow.
“Your boy’s on the move.”
“What?”
“Damn it. Deal with that and then find me outside. Hurry.” His whole expression changed. “See you at the party, then.”
Jared had stepped out of the locker room, now dressed in jeans and a Dart T-shirt. With his own face on it. He was a lovable douchebag, but right now he was trouble on two muscular legs.
She gave Riley a smile she didn’t feel in any way. “Absolutely, Master Riley. I’ll be there in a moment.”
Riley disappeared into the front room, mingling with the others.
Jared frowned at her. “I think you should probably stay away from that guy. Josh doesn’t like him.”
That was news to her. How much time did they have? She didn’t want to lose Josh. If he was on the move, something was happening. He wouldn’t leave her without an explanation. But maybe that’s why Jared was here. Maybe Josh had needed something and ran to get it. Condoms. They went through a ton of those.
Why would he leave without his bodyguards? Without telling her?
“Why doesn’t Josh like Riley?”
Jared shrugged. “I don’t know, but I think it’s important that you not spend a lot of time with the dude. Look, Josh can be weird about some things. He gets feelings about people and he tends to follow his instincts. He thinks Master Riley is hiding something. Give him a wide berth. Don’t give Josh a reason to get suspicious.”
“Of me?” She didn’t like the implications.
“He’s not used to being in a relationship and he needs time before he can trust anyone implicitly.”
“I think I should talk to him about it,” she offered.
And that was when Jared wilted like a hothouse flower. His face flushed. “Josh?”
So Jared was in on whatever this was. “Who else would I talk to?”