“Was that supposed to be sexy? Or were you trying to sound like a cat in pain?”
“Bitch.”
In the background, Kelsey heard blow dryers and a man yelling. “Lorean?” she guessed.
“Shampoo girl didn’t do a proper rinse,” Andi said. “Honestly, I’m not sure how much longer I’ll put up with him being a bitch.”
“Another ten years?”
“Probably. But only if he takes his PMS medication.”
She knew Lorean had been Andi’s first employee. Despite, and maybe because of, his mercurial moods, he brought in tons of clients. Pissed off plenty of them too. But all the bad reviews that former clients left online just seemed to fuel the drama and attract more interested people. He was becoming a legend in Houston.
“So if you’re not going to let me do something about that mess on top of your head, why did you call?”
Andi’s bluntness was her most compelling asset. Kelsey never knew what her friend would say, or show up wearing—from a designer dress and heels to cartoon-print leggings and an oversized sweater. But it was the hair and makeup that was always the best surprise. Blue. Pink. Bob. Shoulder-length blonde extensions, or even ash-gray ones which gave her purple eye shadow and false lashes the look of a movie star’s.
“Come on,” Andi encouraged. “I’m going to need to run to wrestle a fucking flatiron away from Lorean. Jesus H. Where’s my Xanax?”
“The Donovans have”—she ran her finger around the plastic lid covering her cup and settled for—“acquired Newman Inland.” She mentally patted herself for the word. It was better than her first choice, stolen.
For a moment, there was silence. “Donovan? Like Donovan, Donovan?”
“Yeah. As in Nathan Donovan is my new boss.”
“Holy fuck bunnies.” Andi whistled, and the noise was so high-pitched that Kelsey had to move the phone away from her ear. “That’s a fine man right there.”
Except for the personality that went along with the classic good looks and stunning body. “He’s a hard-ass.”
“Meaning he acts like a Dominant?”
“What?” Kelsey demanded.
“Just askin’,” Andi said. “I forget which, but one of the brothers is part owner of that new club.”
Kelsey frowned. “What new club?”
“You know, the one I was telling you about. The tie-me-up-and-beat-my-ass-hard club.”
“The BDSM one? You’re not talking about Deviation, are you?” Kelsey had read about it in an exposé in the alternative newspaper that could be picked up for free at the trendy places around Houston. A man who lived in Boston and was reputed to be a friend of Julien Bonds was the majority owner. But she didn’t remember seeing the name Donovan. Maybe because it hadn’t mattered at the time. But now… A kaleidoscope of questions turned over in her mind. Could Nathan possibly be a Dom? Could that explain her visceral reaction to his personality?
She shook her head to clear it. Even while she told herself she wouldn’t think of her new boss that way, she said to Andi, “Keep talking.”
“I may or may not have personal knowledge of said club.”
“What? You? You went to a kink place?” Kelsey almost dropped her cup. “When?” According to the article, the place was all very secretive and exclusive. It had some amazing high-tech additions, making it unique among all the clubs in the country.
She thought back to Nathan, his watch, the unique things it did. Was it possible that he was the brother who’d invested? She discarded that thought almost as quickly as it had formed. Even in the short time she’d known him, she doubted he’d put his money into something with that kind of risk.
If Andi actually answered her question, Kelsey didn’t hear her. She was so consumed with her own thoughts that she was no longer listening. “Can you get me in?”
Andi interrupted herself to demand, “What? Seriously? Shut your mouth. You want to be tied up. Or wait…”
Kelsey could imagine Andi’s pseudo-frown. She’d had too many face-freezing injections to actually get wrinkles, but she managed to bring her carefully drawn eyebrows somewhat closer together when she was genuinely caught off guard.
Truthfully, Kelsey was more than a little surprised that she hadn’t been able to prevent the question from tumbling out.
“Wait… Do you want to do the tying? Do you want to beat some little subbie’s ass?”
Kelsey rolled her eyes. “No.” But the image of
her
body, bound and naked, tantalized her.
“I had no idea you really were kinky. Girl, we gotta talk more about this. I get off early tomorrow night. Martinis and confessions?”
“I’m not sure I’d be brave enough to talk about it without fortification,” she admitted. “Friscos at six?” She named the nearby downtown hotspot. They had a great happy hour, meaning she could eat dinner for almost nothing. She might have unkindly called Nathan a penny-pincher but the truth was, she, too, was a master economizer.
“Six it is, and girlfriend, I’m telling you this. Get me Sofia or Lara Donovan as a client, will you? If you do, I’ll make your first cut and color half-price.”
“Half-price? Your generosity knows no limits.”
“You know, I want Erin. She’s your boss’ sister. You can get her, right? Talk to him? God above, get me Erin and I’ll give you a BOGO.”
“Buy one, get one? Which means I have to pay full price for the first one?” Kelsey asked. Clearly Andi was insane.
A male shriek cut across the phone line, and Andi screeched in return. Knowing the conversation was over, Kelsey hung up.
As she finished her coffee, she spent a few minutes thinking about Nathan. It made sense that he was a Dom. He seemed to have the personality. Well, as much she knew. Or guessed, really. She read a lot, chatted with a friend who enjoyed participating in scenes with men, was in a few online groups and owned the movies featuring one of her favorite actors as a Dom.
Kelsey told herself to end the fantasies right there. That’s all they were.
She dated men who were considerably gentler than he was, always friends before lovers. And in bed, they were polite. Polite and mostly perfunctory.
The fact that she was curious about BDSM was a conundrum for her. Of all people, she shouldn’t fantasize about being submissive to a sexy man. But she did, more often than she would dare to admit.
She took her last sip and closed her eyes.
Fuck.
Unbidden, the image of Nathan crooking his finger at her and indicating she should lower herself across his lap filled her mind. She saw him lift her skirt and all but felt a trembling in her legs as she prepared for him to lower his hand in a punishing spank.
She heard herself begging, but since she didn’t know whether she would want him to continue or stop, she shoved aside the image.
What in the hell was wrong with her?
Purposefully Kelsey stood and dumped her cup in the nearby trash bin. Making a point to herself as well as the world, she brushed her hands together, as if washing away thoughts of him.
It took the entire walk back to the office to banish the lingering tingles that the images had given her.
Thankfully Nathan’s door was still closed.
Not having to see him after her discussion with Andi was a blessing.
A phone call from Zoe McBride, Sofia’s sister and manager of the Houston branch of Encore Events, distracted Kelsey, made her think about business rather than entertaining outrageous fantasies. They set up a meeting for the following morning.
Thankfully, the next hours passed in a flurry of phone calls and meetings. Nathan left to visit the docks, giving her some appreciated time alone.
She reached out to Holly Newman, and they discussed plans for the going-away party. The woman agreed that the end of the month or beginning of December would be fine.
Before they hung up, Kelsey arranged to visit Samuel at lunchtime the next day.
Nathan returned a few minutes later.
The office temperature seemed to increase as he swept in, full of harnessed energy. Seeing him there, big, powerful, confident, she wondered again if he was a Dom.
Kelsey hoped he’d continue past, but he stopped in front of her desk and pulled up a chair.
“Ms. Lane?”
“Sorry.” She shook her head. “You were saying?”
He repeated that the meetings had gone as well as he had expected, then added, “Anything I need to know?”
She brought him up to date on preliminary plans for Mr. Newman’s party. “If he’s up to it, after Thanksgiving and before your retreat seems to be ideal.”
“Agreed. Did you get the artwork I sent over this morning?”
“I did. I’ve ordered a few things that will be expedited. As for the rest, I’ll get you my recommendations and pricing in a couple of days.”
“Good.” He stood. With a crisp nod, he returned to his office, sucking energy out of her and the room.
It took her a couple of minutes to refocus and get back to her task list.
Toward the end of the afternoon, Lawrence dropped by with a corrected check and termination letter.
“Thank you. Sorry for the confusion.”
“It’s not going to be easy,” Lawrence said. “The changes, I mean.”
“I know,” she replied. Nathan’s words about loyalty seemed to echo in her head. And while she stood by her statement that he had to earn it, she knew she was a crucial part of the company’s future success. And for all the employees, she had to back her boss. Even if she had to bite her lip. “Mr. Newman believed this was the right course.”
“Remains to be seen.”
“And it’s up to all of the management staff to ensure the success of Donovan Logistics,” she said firmly, leaving him no room to argue. “There’s a lot at stake here, beyond your personal opinions. We’re counting on you to help set the tone.”
“We’ve had a lot of questions,” he said.
“No doubt.” She chose her words with care. “If you need to talk to Mr. Donovan, you should. Give him a chance.” She could hardly believe the words came out of her mouth.
“Honestly, Kelsey, I’m not sure.”
“No one is,” she agreed. “But what’s another option? We can leave. And we should if we believe the company is going the wrong direction. Or we can trust that Mr. Newman knew what he was doing and help him fulfill his vision for the company.”
“Seward has been with us a long time.”
“And he screwed up. You know it. I know it. Better than anyone, you know about family leave. He was entitled to it, and he chose not to utilize it.”
“I don’t like it.”
“You don’t have to. Neither do I. But he was given a second chance.” And both of them knew how much worse it could have been. If the barge had sprung a leak or sunk, the company would have been damaged.
“He’s got a problem.” Lawrence pressed his point.
“And we have help for that too. You talked to him, explained it to him, didn’t you?”
He nodded.
“He was given every opportunity. You can only save people who want to save themselves. He’ll be awarded unemployment benefits.”
Without another word, Lawrence put the file on her desk.
“Go home,” she told him. “Enjoy spending some time with your wife.”
He scowled.
“She won’t be pregnant forever,” Kelsey said.
“If I have to go to the convenience store one more time at midnight…”
“Stock up. Hide the stuff she craves in your car. All you’ll have to do is walk to the driveway.”
He loosened his tie. “Not possible. I don’t know if it’s going to be pretzels or ice cream. Last night it was licorice. Black licorice. Who the hell ever wants black licorice?”
“Goodnight, Lawrence. Give Erika my regards.”
“Go home yourself,” he said.
After he left, she glanced toward Nathan’s office to see the door was open. She wondered when he’d done that, and how he’d managed it without her being aware of it. With a frisson of alarm, she replayed the conversation, just to make certain she hadn’t said anything he’d take exception to.
She locked the file in her cabinet for the next day before contacting Seward’s field supervisor. The man explained that the tugboat captain was currently in the middle of his days off, so the termination would occur when he returned.
Though the field supervisor didn’t argue, there were long, uncomfortable silences on the line. She knew it was the man’s least favorite part of the job, and truthfully, it was hers too. No matter how justified, she hated it. Especially when she had a personal relationship, like she did with Seward. “If you need me or someone from HR to be there with you, let me know.”
“I’ll think about it overnight.”
Kelsey ended the call then finished a few more tasks before uncomfortably shifting in her chair. Her lower back felt stiff, and she did a gentle stretch. In surprise, she realized it was after seven o’clock. On some level, she’d been aware it was getting dark, but she’d had no idea it was so late.
She heard Nathan’s deep baritone in conversation, and she debated whether or not to let him know she was leaving. With Mr. Newman, that hadn’t been a problem. Holly expected him for dinner promptly at five-thirty, so he never stayed later than five. Generally, Kelsey was still at her desk when he walked past with a wave and a cheery goodnight.
Since she didn’t want to interrupt Nathan, Kelsey reviewed her upcoming calendar then made a list of her priorities for the next day. After tucking the paper beneath her keyboard, she shut down her computer.
Then came the big, internal debate. She wanted a hot bath and a glass of wine. She needed a workout. Kelsey knew that if she went straight home, the workout would never happen.
She grabbed her workout bag and purse before riding the elevator to the building’s tenth-floor fitness center.
Except for one other woman who was in the shower, the locker room was empty. This late in the evening, that wasn’t a surprise.
Kelsey changed into her gym clothes, pulled her hair back into a ponytail then grabbed a bottle of water and picked up her phone.
The message icon was on and she checked it. Not surprisingly it was from Andi.
Called Deviation. I think we’re in for this weekend. More deets with drinks.
Kelsey’s hand shook. She couldn’t believe she was actually considering going to a BDSM club.