Page 23 of Masked

She huffed and opened her mouth to say something else when she realized the call had disconnected.

It would serve him right for her to not be there when he showed up. But that wasn’t in her nature. If he was already on his way, she would accept the ride. Especially because it was cold, and the bus was at least twenty minutes away. This way, she could wait in the warmth of her office.

Her office.

She grinned at that thought as she walked the one block back to the ACSL building. Even when she’d done a semester as a teaching assistant, she didn’t have an office.

While she waited, she opened the Club Exposure file again and Googled the club. Very little came up on social media, but thanks to the information in the file, she was able to pull up a website. It even had pictures. They were unlike anything Reva had imagined. Even with all her curiosity about kink, she didn’t picture anything like this. It was decadent and inviting, and she couldn’t wait to visit on Friday.

“You seem pleased.”

She jumped and fumbled with the mouse to close her browser.

“It’s been a good day,” she said after several seconds of awkward silence. “How did you know where my office was?”

Noah stepped further into the room and suddenly the spacious office seemed suffocatingly small. “I asked Jim.”

“The regional director? I haven’t even met him yet.”

Noah chuckled. “We’ve crossed paths at a few charity functions. Would you like an introduction?”

Reva blushed. “I guess since he is my boss, I should say hello before I leave. Darci said she yelled at him for not giving me a better offer to begin with so I’m kind of nervous. I don’t want to come across as a drama queen.”

Noah laughed. “Jim was Darci’s mentor when she first started with the organization. She’s comfortable with him and her version of yelling is not threatening. Jim loves her like a daughter and trusts her implicitly.”

Reva sucked in a breath. “OK. Then yes, I would love an introduction.”

“Good girl.”

She chewed her lip and tried not to react to the moniker. The Internet told her that being aroused by that term meant she had a praise kink, but it felt wrong coming from Parker’s dad. Or maybe her problem was that it felt right, and she felt bad about that.

“Reva?”

“What?” She blinked and stared at him. “Shit. Sorry.”

“Looks like you could use a nap. Come on.”

He waved her toward the door, and she pushed her chair away from the desk and stood.

A few minutes later, they stood in Jim Perkins’ office.

“Sorry I was out when you got started for the day. It’s been a busy one with hearings on the hill.”

“Darci was wonderful.”

Jim smiled. “She is. You should consider yourself lucky, young lady. She doesn’t come into the office for just anyone these days.”

Reva blushed. “I promise to give everything I’ve got to make it worth her time.”

Jim nodded. “Very good. I hear you’re taking on a lot of clients your first week. If you get overwhelmed, just say something. We don’t want to scare you off before you get settled.”

They made small talk for a few minutes before Noah held up his left hand and tapped his smart watch.

“We should get going, Reva. I made reservations for dinner.”

She blinked in surprise but nodded and offered her hand to Jim.

“Thank you for taking a chance on me Mr. Perkins. I’m looking forward to really digging in and getting to know the place.”

---