Double Shot

For Mark, my loving husband and best friend.

I’ve been lucky to have the support of so many amazing people in my writing career. I want to thank my writing buddies J.K. Coi, Wylie Kinson, Amy Ruttan, Kimber Chin and Delphine Dryden for all the chats, opportunities to bounce ideas off them and listening to my general craziness.

And to Mark. Thank you for every time you took the dogs for a walk, the kids out to the store and ran general interference so I could write. I love ya, sweetie!

Never in her life had Sadie been to a sex club. She did have certain preconceptions about what the interior of one should look like—metal trim, neon lights, lots of leather and nakedness—but not once had she considered the inclusion of the large wooden cross currently facing her from the stage. Anyone entering Mavericks for the first time would be struck by the sight. Leather cuffs dangled from the tips of shining silver chains secured to the dark polished wood. The beams were crossed with supporting leather straps. The thing taunted her naïveté, practically begging her to come forward and throw herself at its mercy.

She cleared her throat.

Warmth from the afternoon sun still heated her skin, a contrast to the cool air of the bar. She’d agreed to come at this hour because the club would be empty of the normal crowd, saving her from any possible embarrassment. While she’d known Paul wouldn’t tease her for being a bit wide-eyed during her first visit to Mavericks, she’d rather not face an entire room filled with club members. Thankfully, the main bar was otherwise empty of any other unusual equipment.

If her siblings could see her avoiding the behemoth in the room, they’d tease the holy hell out of her. She was
not
a prude, thank you very much. Her footsteps clicked as she kept walking in a wide circle around the center stage and the cross. Sadie wasn’t completely innocent. In theory, she knew what a St. Andrew’s Cross was even if she lacked the practical experience. Her sister, Paige, had told her about a few times when she’d been stretched out on one, how she could have come out of her skin from the sexual turn-on she’d experienced—and hadn’t
that
been a screwed-up conversation.

But being faced with the reality was much different than any fleeting fantasies Sadie had.

“Paul?”

No response. Sadie checked her watch, wishing once again that she’d called ahead to make sure he wouldn’t be late. She’d come right over from the coffee shop, which was only a five-minute power walk through Toronto’s Queer West district. She should head back and wait for Paul. It would be better than skulking about an adult-only club by herself.

She hated being alone.

“Paul?” Yeah, this was so not going to plan.

Unable to stop herself any longer, Sadie’s gaze slid over to the cross. She pictured herself tied up, stretched wide and exposed, surrounded in the crowded club, making her the center of attention. Paul would be there, dressed in leather pants, bare-chested and wielding a flogger, marking her pale skin. The reality was, she couldn’t imagine being brave enough to do something like that. She wasn’t like Paige. Or Ian for that matter. Her siblings had gotten all the showmanship genes in the family. Sadie was content to hang out on the sidelines.

And if she were completely honest with herself, being on the receiving end of a public flogging wasn’t what actually fired her sexual imagination—but being with Paul did.

The
tap, tap, tap
of footfalls on the catwalk above grabbed her attention. She caught sight of Paul as he turned the corner and came down the metal staircase. When his gaze met hers, it was as if a switch flipping somewhere deep inside her chest. Squeezing the edge of her clipboard, she mentally beat down the butterflies.

“Sadie! I’m sorry. The minute I walked through the door, I had to take an emergency call. I’m gone for twenty minutes and you’d think the world was falling apart at my office. You weren’t waiting long?”

It was a hedonistic pleasure to watch him move. Ten years and she still hadn’t grown tired of the pastime. She loved the sure way his long legs chewed up the distance as he approached her, the sparkle in his brown eyes as he offered his hand to shake. Even the way his brown hair curled around his ears kept her mesmerized.

“I’ve only been here a few minutes. I’ve been admiring your décor.” She nodded in the direction of the cross and prayed she wasn’t blushing. “You’ve been holding out on me.”

“You like that?” He winked at her. “I’m not into the whole Dom/sub thing, but it’s a popular feature of the club. Josh’s pride and joy.”

“It certainly makes an impression.” She pulled her clipboard closer to her chest and turned her back to the cross. “You said on the phone you had a proposition for me? I take it it’s not a movie night.”

Even though Sadie had known him for a decade, it was hard to look at Paul and
not
blush. She’d had a crush on him since the moment her best friend had introduced them, though she hadn’t shared that particular bit of information with anyone.

“No movie this time. You were the first person who came to mind for this particular project. And you’re not allowed to say no. Want to talk here or go up to the office?”

The presence of the cross had set Sadie’s nerves on fire. God, she’d never be able to concentrate. “The office, if you don’t mind,” she said, and chuckled when Paul winked once more.

“No problem. That thing can certainly be a bit intimidating. This way.”

If there was one thing Sadie hated, it was being a cliché. She did her best to fight against stereotypes, and yet here she was slipping into the mire of banality. Lusting after her friend while pretending she wasn’t interested was the stuff of high-school gossip sessions. Still, a saint couldn’t fail to notice Paul’s ass as he traveled up the stairs. Those pants left little to the imagination and, when it came to Paul, her imagination had always been active.

“How are you three making out with the store? Hey, did you get that DVD I gave Ian for you?” Paul held the door open, presenting her with a perfectly normal room, considering its location. The black-and-tan décor was a bit disconcerting after the display below.

Sadie did her best not to rub her body against his as she slipped past him into the room. “Paige is working on a marketing campaign. Ian is still obsessing over coffee beans and working more hours than any human should. Nothing unusual in either case. Yes, I did get the movie and no, I haven’t watched it yet.”

“You need to.”

“I will.” She rolled her eyes as she sat down. Paul never could pass up an opportunity to introduce her to some low-budget indie film.

“And you? How’ve you been?” Rather than take the chair behind the desk, Paul leaned against the edge of it, in front of her. His knee brushed hers, sending an electric shiver through her body. “It’s like I hardly see you anymore.”

She crossed her legs and managed not to groan when she rubbed against his calf. “Oh, I’m up at the crack of dawn baking for the store. Then back in to take care of the catering orders. We all have to do what we can if we want to make it. But it beats the law firm.”

Paul nodded in such a way that Sadie knew he got it. He’d always seemed to know where she was coming from. While they seemed to drift in and out of each other’s lives, those snatches of time when they were alone always stuck with her. Paul had a way of making her feel special with the simplest of gestures. It was one of the things she loved about him.

He slapped his hands together and grinned. “How about if I had a way to help? I want Pulled Long Espresso Bar and Catering to take on a rather large catering job for me.” He was talking in that overly excited, car-salesman voice he liked to tease her with when she was sad or upset. It always made her giggle.

Fighting the urge to give in to her nerves, she sat up straight. “How large and who is the client?”

“Food to feed eighty. We’ll provide the wait staff and I’ll provide
you
with a generous tip. The client is Mavericks.”

Sadie had the word
yes
sitting on the tip of her tongue. She knew Paige and Ian wouldn’t give a rat’s ass that the proposed event was for an adult sex club. Shit, even
she
didn’t care. The venue wasn’t what made her want to whimper.
Eighty
people? She’d never catered an event that big before.

“How much time and what are you thinking for food?”

Paul stood up and held out his hand. “Let me show you.”

This time there was no denying the blush as she slipped her fingers into his palm and let him pull her from the chair. If he noticed, Paul was gentleman enough not to call attention to it.

“Josh is planning a member appreciation night for the club. He’s been in business for ten years now and wants to give something back. Big and glitzy. I’m on the board of directors and offered to help organize things. Volunteered on the food side mostly because I thought of you. I won’t trust this sort of thing to a random caterer.”

He spread out various lists with ideas for the party on the desk. Most of it seemed pretty straightforward, and the knot of tension in her stomach began to melt. That was until item nine on one particular piece of paper caught her attention.

“An erotic cake?” She squinted down at the paper, trying to pull an image to mind. “Like one of those penis things I made for Diane’s bachelorette party?”

Paul laughed, reaching across her to pull out a picture. “I was thinking more along the lines of something like this.”

Sadie gasped. The cake was a work of art. The headless torso could have been a mannequin. The blue and gold of the corset would have passed for cloth if not for the huge chunk of cake cut out of its side.

Without thinking, Sadie snatched the picture from Paul and held it up close. “This is amazing. Where did you find this?”

“A friend sent it to me. With you being into cake art, I figured you could do something similar for our event. It would be perfect given the members’ tastes…though a penis would do in a pinch.”

“I guess, considering what goes on here, a penis cake would be considered elementary.” God, she couldn’t believe she was having this conversation.

“And what do you think
goes on here,
exactly?”

Something in Paul’s voice had changed, causing Sadie to shift her gaze from the picture. “Pardon?”

“Your sister has been here a few times, back when she was still out doing the whole club scene. But in all the years we’ve known each other, not once have you asked me about the club.” Paul reached out and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. Heat radiated out from her pussy, making it hard not to squirm. “I’m curious. What is it you think happens here?”

Her best friend had never told her what she and Paul did at Mavericks while they’d dated. And while her sister would be more than willing to discuss the details, the less she knew about Paige’s sex life, the better. “Weren’t we talking about catering?”

“We are, but it’s important you have a clear understanding of what the club is about. If I hire Pulled Long for this event, I expect you to be here to make sure everything goes off without a hitch.” Paul swayed closer and his gaze dropped to her lips. For half a second, she thought he would kiss her.

Sadie snapped her mouth closed, ignoring her disappointment when he didn’t. “It won’t be a problem. I know the people who come here are consenting adults and you have security to make sure everything is safe.”

“Yes, everything that happens between these walls is one-hundred-percent consensual, safe and mostly sane, though it can get a bit wild. Josh does have a strict screening process.”

Paul shifted closer. Sadie could smell his aftershave. The air seemed thinner and she suddenly had to think about her next breath. And the one after that.

“You still haven’t answered my question. What do you think people do here?”

Licking her lips, she suddenly found the top button holding his shirt together the most fascinating object on the planet. “I assume people come here to have sex.”

He nodded. “That’s a part of it.”

When she realized he was waiting for her to continue, Sadie huffed and tried to crush her growing embarrassment. “Rachel never told me what the two of you did together. From what she hinted at, people come here to live out certain fantasies.”

Paul’s grin was damn near predatory. Sadie didn’t mind it being directed at her. “Lots of couples want to expand their horizons. Sometimes that involves acting out a part, or adding another partner to the mix. Normally, they want to do something they could never do out in the real world.”

Reaching up again, Paul adjusted the collar of her shirt, toying with it before finally letting it go. Sadie forgot how to breathe altogether. Had he always been this tactile? Yes, but she’d never assumed it was anything more than friendly contact.

“Josh takes people’s fantasy fulfillment almost as seriously as their privacy. That’s why I can’t get just anyone to cater our event. It has to be someone I trust.”

“Thanks,” she managed, waiting for her heart to start beating again.

“What about you?” He leaned a bit closer, still not touching.

“What about me?” Now her heart was hammering wildly, out of control. What the hell was going on with her?

“Do you have any fantasies you want to live out?”

Fantasies?
Several came to mind, including one where Paul fucked her bareback on top of the desk. Sadie pressed between Paul and another man—one holding her while the other licked her pussy. “No.”

He chuckled. “I find that hard to believe. I bet you have quite the active imagination when it comes to sex. If you’d let me in on the secret, I’d be able to help.”

“And how many times has that gotten you into trouble, Paul?”

Sadie jumped away from Paul, snapping her head to the giant of a man standing in the doorway. He was dressed in leather pants and a black T-shirt. The sharp angles of his face would have appeared too harsh if it weren’t for the smirk on his lips and the mischief in his eyes. He was stunning.

“Jesus, Josh. What are you doing here? I thought you weren’t coming in until later?”

“I got bored. Plus, you’re entertaining a beautiful woman in
my
office. Did you honestly expect me to stay away?” Josh took her hand and kissed the back of it, never breaking eye contact with Sadie. “This is your caterer? I have to say, you have excellent taste, Paul.”

“Sadie, this is Josh Scott, owner of Mavericks. Josh, Sadie is one of the owners of Pulled Long.”