Chapter 42

Ira

First thing I do is unchain her legs. Then I unhook her hands, watching her flex her fingers and bring both fists to her chest. Then I remove her collar, tossing it onto the nightstand and using that movement as an excuse to curl up next to her and leave a kiss on her throat.

She doesn't say anything. I don't blame her. She went through a full scene with me, and she did it beautifully – minus that one hiccup. But if I were going to pick any roadblock in a scene with someone like Katie, it would be watching her lose her mind in that capacity.

I came close to it as well.

Fuck, I'm spent. All I want to do is drag her into my arms and go to sleep with my nose in her sweet-smelling hair, but she needs aftercare with a scene like that. As soon as I have the strength, I kiss her, lightly, reaching into the nightstand to find the lotion that's perfect for the marks I left on her ass and thighs.

"Call me your darling," she mumbles into my chest, my fingers working the lotion into her skin. "Call me anything."

My senses are returning to me, not that I want them to. However, now I can give her the due attention she deserves, and then some.

"Love."

I don't know why I picked that word. Yet I whisper it into her ear, letting my teeth and tongue tease her earlobe as I fantasize about what we'll do in the future. This is only the beginning, Katie. You did well and will tell you as much.

There aren't many words to exchange now. Katie is drifting off to sleep, and I would love to join her. As soon as I am able, I turn off the light and draw her deeper into my embrace, my mouth planting easy kisses on her skin as she lightly dozes against my arm.

She looks like an angel. A princess. A goddess. Her blond hair circles her head like a halo. If it weren't for the pink and red all over her midsection, I would think she's some virginal creature here to taunt me.

Oh, she's taunting me. She's making my life hell. No.

She's enriching it.

I don't want to let her go. I'll keep her here forever. The outside world won't miss her. I'd miss her presence more.

The words are on my lips, but I can't bring myself to say them. It's not the right time.

Yet when I hear her lightly snoring against my pillow, I take my chance and unleash a phrase I've seldom said in my life.

"I love you, Katie."

She doesn't respond. She's asleep.

Soon, I am too, and I wonder if my feelings are only a dream.

If I hadn't seen Kennedy nude numerous times at Midnight, I would think she was overcompensating with this stupid car of hers.

Look, I'm used to rich bitches having ridiculous cars. My car wasn't exactly cheap either, although in my family we tend to stick to nondescript sedans that are more flawless function than style. However, I'm not immune to a convertible.

Anyway, Kennedy Anderssen has pulled up to The Ace in her souped-up convertible, this giant machine that makes even Donovan Mathison sigh in disbelief. To be fair, Lara doesn't look too proud that her spouse owns a lime green monster and isn't afraid to drive it around downtown in front of protestors and the occasional reporter.

"I'm so glad she was able to make this a farce," my father mutters as we get ready to welcome Kennedy and go inside to finalize the sale.

Okay, so the sale isn't finalized yet. That should go through by next week, after which we will be given the keys and can start the real work on the hotel. I'm not getting much rest once that happens.

Kennedy's barely to us when we hear the first voice on the other side of the street, where the police have designated a protected protest zone. We managed to get them off the private property, but apparently the guy who runs the business across the street is a sympathizer.

"I hope you sleep well at night on your bed of money, you capitalistic pig!"

Cheers erupt from the other dozen or so protestors who turned out today. What do they think they're accomplishing? We're still buying the hotel. We're still remodeling. We're still opening it as a bustling business in the community. Is it because we're corporate? Is it because everyone thinks we rich bastards only want to destroy everything? Well, I don't know about the Anderssens, but I don't think my father really cares about that. He gets his kicks from chasing women, not kicking the little guy while he's down.

Some things are the same between us, I guess.

Kennedy ignores the protestor and waltzes into the building without us. Here we go.

I'll be glad to have business done with these people. All the preening and bullshit has me so on edge that I keep waiting for another shoe to drop while we're in our meeting. Our lawyers are present, displaying the paperwork we've all agreed to. The down payment has already gone through. All that's left is to sign a few documents and wait for them to process.

It should be routine, and it is until the meeting is over and we're shaking hands.

"Ira," Lara says, bringing me in close. Great. Here we go again. More flirting. "We're looking forward to the final meeting next week. However…" Woo! Here we go! "We're looking even more forward to the festivities we have planned afterward."

"Is that so…"

"Why, yes. Don't tell your father, but after we have the celebratory drinks that afternoon, Kennedy and I would like to treat you and Kathleen to a trip up in the mountains."

"Kathleen, huh?"

"Naturally. We were awfully hard on her these past few weeks. Not her fault, really, but we would like to make it up to her. Besides…" Lara puts her hand on my shoulder. Her classic move, not that her flirting works on me. "The party we have in mind is more her tastes than your father's, if you get what I mean."

I snort. "Up in the mountains, huh? I can only guess what you're planning."

"You've been to the Manoir, right?"

"Once or twice." Any rich deviant has been there. It's a notorious place for the elite kinksters, where for one night you can hire a pretty woman to be your sub or Domme. Everyone knows that the on-call services of one of those girls are reserved for the Anderssens.

Now they want to take us with them to this house of debauchery. Well. Well.

"Then you know what a great place it is to relax… if you know what I mean." Lara pats my chest and winks at me. She's too much.

"What are Kathleen and I supposed to do there?"

Lara laughs. Cackles, really. "After we're done being entertained, you'll find something to do." Her sly smile makes me uneasy. "For example, maybe you could finally get that pesky sexual tension out of the way. Kennedy and I have been gagging on it these past few weeks."

My lip is twitching, but it's more important that I keep my decorum with a business associate than correct her. "Who said it was tension?" Oops. Too late.

The smile goes from sly to oh-ho-ho. "That so? Well, you guys make a cute couple."

I don't respond to that. "I don't care one way or the other about going to the Manoir after you hand over the keys. Take it up with Kathleen, though."

"Why don't you, since you two are such good pals now?"

Before I can answer, my father signals to join him on the other side of the gutted hotel lobby. I take my leave of Lara and go to my father, who has arranged for his driver to pop around the corner so we can avoid the protestors on our way to lunch.

Apparently, there's something he wants to talk to me about.

He made that much clear this morning when we arrived at The Ace. Made it sound important, too. I don't know what the hell it could possibly be, but I'm hoping it's nothing serious – like disease, a new wife, or one of our businesses going under. There's been some trouble with a property in Texas that we don't keep a close enough eye out on.

"Kid," he begins, while we're still in the back of his car. His driver politely raises the divider. That man has been working for my dad for decades. Don't know what we could possibly be hiding from him. "This business with Allen's daughter needs to be resolved."

I turn my head. "What are you talking about?"

"Are you dating that girl or not?"

"I don't know why it's anybody's business." I clear my throat. "Besides, she's a grown woman and would probably prefer being referred to as such."

"Don't you start that with me. You're a kid and she's a girl. That's how it is when you get to my age. Gender don't matter!"

"Regardless, my relationship with Kathleen is rather complicated. Why? Mom hasn't gotten to you, has she? She keeps bugging me about marriage and babies…"

"Forget your nosy mother. This is a bigger matter. Namely that you two have been seen together outside of work a few times now. At our office building, at the symphony, at restaurants… for the sake of all that's good for our business, Ira, people are talking. I've had more than one tart come up and ask when the wedding is."

I roll my eyes.

"Well?" Dad continues. "When is the wedding?"

"What the hell? It's not like that between us. It's casual. That's what I told Mom, and that's what I'm telling you."

"Kid, sow all those wild oats if you want. I don't even care if it's with Silas's grown daughter, although keep in mind I would like to maintain a nice relationship with Allen. Rather hard to do if he finds out my kid upset his daughter in such a way."

"Are you finished?"

"Not at all." Blast my luck, we're stuck at a light, and there are too many cars around for me to get out and walk. "What I'm trying to tell you is that you need to be careful with a girl like that. It's one thing to date a woman from the civilian world. It's another to court a girl as well-bred as we are."

I feel like we're living in some tipsy world. Usually, you hear the opposite of this crap in the media, but no, my father is worried about me dating a girl of good standing like Kathleen.

In truth, I don't know what our relationship is. When she left Thursday morning, I had come down from my high that told me I was in love with her. It was like any other day seeing her. I found her attractive, I wanted to talk to her and maybe make her breakfast and coffee, but I wasn't heartbroken when she left. Don't worry, I'm confused on my end as well. Hence why I'm telling people it's casual and complicated. God knows it is.

"I've invited Silas and your mother to the house next weekend. Lunch. I think it's time we all sat down and talked about this."

The car lurches forward. My stomach lurches up in my throat.

"You're kidding, right? I don't even think her father knows."

"He will soon enough. Your mother is the biggest blabbermouth this side of the Mississippi. Trust me, kid, this is in the best interest of everyone. You're lucky we already know each other and get along. Think of it as a celebration. Not every day our spawn gets together."

"Dad, I will tell you one more time. It's complicated. I don't know if things will get more serious with Kathleen."

The car pulls up to where we're having lunch. While we wait for the driver to get out and open my father's door, he says, "Doesn't matter. It's been done. Next week we're all having lunch at the house."

You've gotta be kidding me. First, I'm taking Katie to that BDSM Manoir, and now I'm taking her to my family home to officially meet the folks as my, what, girlfriend?

Is Katie my girlfriend?

Ha! As if. That would not be likely.

No matter how you look at it, however, these next few weeks are going to be beyond interesting. I can only imagine how Kathleen is taking it all.