Page 106 of Enthrall Ecstasy
His arrogance started to fade because he was showing how much he cared. That was his Achilles heel and he thought no one knew. It would have been easy for him to throw me into the scene, savor my fall into the pit of debauchery. Yet Shay held on to me, held me back, unsure if I truly wanted what I was asking for.
The hero behind the mask. A side he kept hidden.
“I don’t want to be the man who causes you regret,” he said quietly, as though realizing I could see the truth about him.
“I’ll go back to Pendulum,” I threatened, wanting him to throw his sense of responsibility away with those scattering leaves caught in the breeze, swirling around us with their autumn dance.
“They won’t have you back,” he said.
I was waiting for a kiss.
His lips hovered close to mine, as though he was teetering on the edge of pressing his mouth against mine and binding us together.
“You brought me this far,” I said bitterly.
“You consent to me orchestrating your time here?”
“Yes.” I was breathless.
“You consent to going beyond your fantasies?”
“Beyond?”
“Yes, Rue. I will take you farther than you have ever gone. That’s why you’re here, right? To be pushed over the brink?”
Tears stung my cheeks. Finally, someone saw me.
Understood what I needed.
He stepped back. “Meet me in the foyer in an hour. Wear something suitable for dinner at Imperial. Ever dined there?”
A rush of excitement flooded through me. “No, I’ve never been. I can wear the dress I wore to Enthrall. Will that do?”
“No panties.”
“Yes, sir.”
He gave a nod of approval. “We’ll discuss your next session over dinner, and then go from there.”
Shay walked away.
“Are you going to back out at the last second?” I called after him.
He turned to look at me. “The real question is…will you?”
Rue wore the same dark pink dress I’d admired when I’d taken her into Enthrall. The color complemented her sexy and sassy side.
As instructed, we’d met in the foyer of Chrysalis.
Her perfume wafted around me; the scent of submission.
She looked stunning waiting beneath our grand chandelier, those shards of light offering their blessing for what lay ahead.
Cole had thrown a million dollars at that central light fixture—and it looked like it, too. The thing was massive. It was the type you’d expect to see in a fancy hotel lobby. I still remembered the first time I’d walked in here and stood in awe, just staring up at it, waiting for Cole to appear.
He’d strolled toward me with arms open wide and a big welcoming smile and said, “What do you think? Not bad for your first day at work?”
It was his way of offering me the job.
