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her feet. The exterior, with its mirrored glass and
clean lines, was contemporary, but that was nothing on the rooms. Two walls
were glass and let the morning light stream into the space. The ceilings were
two stories high…soaring and slightly intimidating. The room was stark white
with whitewashed oak floors. There were low white leather couches around the
space. Along one wall was a curved bar with more glass and mirrors. The
barstools were low with straight lines. Toward the back of the space was a
large public play area. The toys were in white oak or chrome and mirrors were
placed strategically around the play space. There was a sweeping wide staircase
that went up to the upper level.
    Normally, Mouse didn’t really like contemporary design
because it seemed cold to her. But this space really worked and it fit Tor’s
personality somehow. Not that he was cold, but that he was up-to-date…cutting
edge.
    “Would you like a tour?”
    “Yes please.”
    “You can leave your coat on one of the couches.”
    Mouse did as he suggested then followed him to the public
play area. Out the corner of her eye, she could see him watching her. In fact,
he watched her closely, as though trying to determine what she thought without
actually asking her. Mouse hadn’t noticed at first, but a clear catwalk ran the
full length of both windows on the front and side façades of the building. She
pointed up.
    “Don’t those windows allow people to look in here and see
what’s going on? Kind of defeats the purpose of a discreet club, doesn’t it?”
    He smiled, obviously proud. “That was a great design. From
the outside, the glass reflects like a mirror. From the inside, you can see
out. Guests can stand in front of those windows buck naked and feel as if
they’re exposing themselves to the whole world, but no one outside can see
them.”
    “Even at night?”
    “Yeah. When we did renovations after purchasing the
building, I stood outside to make sure and I still check periodically. Just to
be sure. It’s kind of like a one-way mirror.”
    They headed for the bar area and Tor introduced her to a man
straightening the area.
    “This is Wade, my bar manager.”
    “You serve alcohol?” Mouse tilted her head as she surveyed
the wall of bottles behind Wade.
    Tor frowned. “We do. Customers expect it.”
    “But the focus of the play is safe, sane and consensual,
right?”
    “Yes. What’s your point?”
    “Well, a drunk Dom isn’t particularly safe or sane, and a
drunk sub certainly couldn’t give informed consent, could they?”
    Wade laughed, looking away from Tor. “She sounds like
Regine.”
    “Mother probably primed the pump. C’mon, we have more to
see.”
    Mouse didn’t move. It was only as he reached the stairs to
the upper level that he realized she wasn’t following him.
    “Let’s go, Mouse,” he called.
    “You didn’t answer my question.” She crossed her arms across
her chest, determined not to move from her spot until he came back to explain.
    He rolled his eyes and returned. “The members of this club
expect elegance. We deliver.”
    “How does alcohol contribute to elegance?”
    “It contributes to the ambiance. We serve nothing but the
best.”
    “How does alcohol contribute to ambiance? Frankly, drunk
people are the least elegant people around, and the ambiance they contribute is
the sense of a place that’s out of control.”
    She watched him take a deep breath and could almost hear him
counting to ten before he responded.
    “People don’t drink to excess here.”
    “How do you know?”
    “We enforce a two-drink maximum.”
    “How do you do that?” Tor growled, so she turned to the bar
manager instead. “Well, Wade? On a busy night, how do you know that Mistress A
has had only one drink but Master B has had his two drinks? Especially if the
sub is going to the bar to get the drink for them?”
    “Uh…” He looked uncomfortably at Tor.
    “In other words, you don’t know.”
    “We have