certain, but she thought she heard a quiet chuckle before she turned to make use of the facilities.
When she was done, she spent a few minutes trying to tame her wild hair before giving up and just making certain her supposedly waterproof makeup hadn’t melted down her face. Fortunately, the brand had lived up to its claim—mostly—and she hadn’t spent the night looking like the lead creature from a horror movie.
As soon as she opened the door, Jace scooped her into his arms and carried her the dozen or so feet to the bed. He placed her in the middle, pressed a kiss to her nose, and then climbed on beside her.
Emma glanced around the dimly lit room. In some ways, it resembled an ordinary bedroom. Although she’d never seen a man-sized wooden X with handcuffs attached, or a wall display filled with whips, in any bedroom she’d visited before.
“What is this room?”
“Just one of the private rooms the club has available for its members.”
“Oh.” That didn’t really explain anything but she was embarrassed enough by her own uncharacteristic behavior not to push for more.
Fortunately, the door opened a moment later and interrupted what could’ve developed into an uncomfortable silence.
“Good morning, little one,” Logan said as he stepped into the room. “Do you have any plans for today?”
“No.” Well, Saturday was laundry day, but she wasn’t about to blurt that out.
“Excellent. Viper has invited us to his home for lunch.”
“Oh, okay,” she said, not even trying to deny the thrill of getting to spend more time with these men. “If somebody could give me a lift home, I’ll…um…meet you at Viper’s place if you can give me an address.”
Their expressions grew darker with every word, and the last few from her mouth were practically whispered.
“Not going to happen, darlin’,” Jace said as he sat up. She scrambled to do the same, feeling at a distinct disadvantage being the only one lying down. Logan leaned over, lifted her to sit against the headboard, and sat himself on the edge of the bed. His big hand held her ankle in a warm grip, and she somehow felt trapped, possessed, and protected all from one seemingly absentminded touch.
“Emma, one thing you need to learn about our lifestyle is that a Dom always escorts his sub to a party.” Logan may have said it with an indulgent smile on his face, but it was obviously one point he would never compromise. “In fact, today we plan to drive you home, choose your clothes for you, and then escort you to the party.”
“Choose my clothes?” she blurted, unable to hide her distaste. “I’m a grown woman, not a five-year-old. I think I can choose my own clothes.”
“Emma,” Jace said as he caught her hand and pressed a kiss to her palm. “Wouldn’t you prefer to wear clothes that you know turn us on?”
She laughed self-consciously. Her wardrobe was rather conservative, and she was fairly certain she didn’t own any clothes that would be to their tastes. She glanced down at the thin black material of the dress she’d worn most of the night and nearly shuddered at the thought of wearing something so revealing in the light of day.
“We’ll find something that suits all of us,” Jace said with a wink.
For some reason, she found herself smiling in return. The word “okay” slipped from her lips before she had a chance to really think about it.
* * * *
Logan didn’t need to figure out which one of the town houses was Emma’s home. In the neat little grouping of modern-looking homes, only one had the word “whore” spray-painted across the front door. He ground his teeth together, wanting to shield Emma from the childish behavior of her ex, but knowing that she needed to understand how dangerous Greg Michaels probably was. If the police reports Viper’s investigator had uncovered had any truth to them, this was just the beginning of Greg’s antisocial behavior.
Fortunately, Jace must’ve seen the door as well