Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 132657 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 663(@200wpm)___ 531(@250wpm)___ 442(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132657 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 663(@200wpm)___ 531(@250wpm)___ 442(@300wpm)
Leah laughed, the sound cackling Harlow’s mind, and put a hand on Niall’s chest.
“Too bad he’s a softie,” Gigi said with a sigh. “If she tried that shit with Gabe, she would get the staring of a lifetime. I swear that man can freeze water.”
“Yeah, he comes by it honestly. His dad is scary. All the Lodge-Taylor kiddos learned how to stare at a young age. I think they took a kindergarten class,” Ruby quipped. “And yes, Harlow is thinking of going in, but now she’s doing that thing where she totally lets the past keep her from even coming close to getting laid.”
Niall frowned and took a step back.
Leah looked horrified.
“No, I’m not.” She was going to go and see if she got a better result. That was what she was going to do. Because he had never once looked at her like that. Like she was slightly distasteful.
“Oh, the huggy Dom is pissed,” Gigi said with a grin. “I like it. Actually, he’s way hotter now.”
Harlow turned on her cousin.
Gigi backed off with an apologetic grin. “I see you also went to Julian Lodge’s school for terrifying stares. Sorry, cos. He’s all yours. Honestly, I’m happy to see it. You go get that man.”
Harlow sighed. She should have been more private about this, but she wasn’t backing down. Shit. She was starting to come out of it. She was starting to heal because she was thinking more about the future in this moment than she was fearing the past. “Damn it. I think I’m ready.”
Ruby stood in front of her. “You are, babes. So it’s up to you if you want to hedge your bets. You can make him an offer he’s not going to refuse, or you can separate the relationship from work.”
“I kind of want both.” She wanted to see what he was like in the field. It would tell her a lot.
“Then go for it, bestie,” Ruby said. “I’ll take Gigi, and we’ll go watch her friend for a bit. See if we can get her kicked out of the club.”
“I don’t…” Gigi shrugged. “I really do hate her. She calls me fat. Not in those words, but she always talks about how I must be an incredible cook. I am, but that’s not what she means. She also says I’m brave for wearing the clothes I do.”
“Oh, we can fix this,” Ruby promised as she led her cousin away. “This sounds so much better than playing tonight. It’s been a long time since I took a mean girl down. Tell me something. Is she real clingy? Because we might be able to use Seth.”
Harlow took a deep breath. It was time. She was ready.
Ready to put Jensen Wiley behind her. Ready to forgive herself for making mistakes. Ready to see if this gorgeous, funny, kind man was someone she might be able to care about.
Hell, she already cared about him.
Be brave. Say what you mean. Use the word.
Ready to see if she could love him.
Fuck. She was going to do this.
Harlow strode across the dungeon, ready to start again.
Chapter Three
Jensen glanced down at his phone and realized two hours had gone by. He’d broken up two fights, kicked out a dude who had too much, and called an Uber for a woman who had a trauma response to watching a scene. He’d tried to talk to her but she didn’t want to be near him.
They needed female tops. That woman might have talked to a Domme, but this place wasn’t a real club. It was a front for a criminal organization, and management didn’t care about the mental health of its clients. Phil had told him they were a more traditional establishment with what he called stricter gender roles, i.e. men dominated women and not the other way around.
He took a long breath of cool night air, needing to be outside for a moment. And then kind of wished he hadn’t since this part of the city wasn’t the nicest and this was where everyone came to take their smoke breaks. It was right behind the back room of the club, and it was also where the trash bin was.
A good metaphor for his life.
“Hey, was that lady okay?”
Jensen glanced over and noticed one of the new guys standing in the doorway. Jack Cameron had been hired on as a bartender the week before and seemed to be a good kid. Kid? Hell, Jensen was only a couple of years older than Jack was, but he felt like there were decades between them. According to his “application,” Jack Cameron was twenty-two and fresh out of college with a mountain of debt and no job to show for it. He had some bartending experience, so he was falling back on it.
It was the story of so many young people these days. It made them vulnerable to people like Hamilton who told them he could solve their problems, who offered them a different way out. One that led to a shallow grave or jail time.