Page 84 of Hushed

They made small talk for a few minutes, while Q flitted around behind the bar, making up a little snack board for them.

When she was done and sitting on a bar stool, she asked the question Kenzie had been waiting for.

“Tell me about your Dom.”

“His name is Gage. He was one of my big brother’s best friends.”

“Gage Allard?” Q asked with a raised eyebrow.

Kenzie nodded and tried to judge Q’s feelings about Gage by the look on her face, but it was hard to tell.

“You know him?” she asked after a beat.

“He’s got a reputation as a really solid leader in the community, and he’s known as a Dom who values kink education and safety, but he also likes to play with a lot of different women. How do you feel about that?”

“He’s been really good to me, and after Reggie died, he made sure I was taken care of. We hooked up once right after he died, but he pulled away after that and checked on me via text or phone call every few months. Now he’s really stepped up and says he’s all in with me. We even had a ridiculous conversation about the fact that neither of us are polyamorous earlier today.”

Q popped a piece of cheese in her mouth and chewed. After a swallow of white wine, she smiled. “That’s awesome. I’ve got an invitation to check the club out sometime. Maybe I’ll do that now that I know you might be there. What do you think of it?”

Kenzie shrugged. “I haven’t seen it yet, but he’s taking me this weekend.”

“Wow, so this really is new.”

Kenzie smiled. “Yeah. It really is. He took me to a club in Colorado, though. Club Solitaire? That was really hot. But I’m dying to see what his club is like. I’m told it’s completely different from Solitaire.”

“I’ve heard of the one in Colorado. Never be able to afford a trip, though.”

Kenzie grimaced. “Yeah, the prices were outrageous.”

“I’m so happy for you,” Q said with a grin.

Kenzie beamed. “It was unexpected when it happened, but it’s right, you know? I’m still not sure how I’m supposed to make it work. He clearly loves it here, but there is no way I could do what I do in New York if I lived in D.C.”

“Based on his reputation, Gage will figure out a way to make it work. That’s just his way.”

Kenzie laughed. “That’s the truth. He’s a lot like Reggie.”

Q put a hand on her shoulder. “I’m so sorry he died. That had to be a shock to your system.”

“It’s been rough. I won’t lie about that. But he died doing the thing he loved the most, helping someone else, so I take some comfort in that. Gage is convinced he would be pissed about the two of us together, and he might be at first, but I wish he were here to see how happy I am.”

Q squeezed her shoulder and picked up a cashew. “He can see it. And he’s happy for you too, I’m sure.”

Wanting to change the subject, Kenzie snagged a thin cracker and a piece of salami and said, “Tell me all about getting Skylar Cameron to perform. How the heck did you get that lucky?”

Q launched into the story of getting the singer to do an intimate show in the middle of the venue. Q loved small shows with unique music, and it’s one of the things that bonded thetwo of them as friends all those years ago. After the conference they’d both attended, the two women would go check out the smaller venues all over New York city, and Q talked about how much she dreamed of owning her own place. She was older than Kenzie, but the age difference didn’t bother her, they were still fast friends who were comfortable with each other even if they didn’t talk for months at a time. It was like they were able to just pick up where they left off as soon as they got together again.

After a couple of hours, Q said she needed to get back to prepping for opening up that evening. Kenzie didn’t care for the idea of being in a crowd of strangers, so she said goodbye and called a ride back to Gage’s house.

On the porch, she punched in the door code from the sticky note, but the light flashed red, and nothing happened. Double checking the numbers, she tried to type it again.

As she was punching the last button, the door flew open, and a furious Gage pulled her inside before she could open her mouth to say hello.

“Where the hell have you been?”

Chapter 16

Kenzie

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