Page 61 of Emergence and Ascendance

"Are you keeping up with my movements?"

"No, I was on my way to the office when I saw you heading to the gym. I did take time to appreciate the view.” He set the folders down in front of me. "Did you find everything you needed?"

"Your gym is more high-end than most fitness centers."

He looked amused but didn’t disagree. "I spend a lot of time in there. Might as well make it worth the investment.”

I nodded toward the folders. "What's this?"

"Take a look."

I opened the first one and scanned the contents. It was our business contract, which documented everything we’d agreed to.

"This looks fine," I said, closing it before I picked up the other one. It held our contract from Erogenous with amendments noted with tabs. I frowned and read each one.

"Location flexibility?" I looked up at him. "You've added your house as an alternative location for sessions."

"Did Giselle call you?"

"She left a message. I haven't had a chance to call her back yet."

Christian sat on the arm of the chair next to mine. “The amendment gives us options. We can use private suites at Erogenous or my playroom."

"You have a playroom?"

"Yes, would you like to see it?"

"Yes."

He lifted and headed to the door. "Follow me."

We left the study, passed his bedroom, and stopped two doors down. Christian keyed the code and pushed the door open but let me enter first.

The room was actually nice, designed in shades of black and charcoal. Nothing like the typical dungeon looking spaces I saw when I did my deep dive. Most of those had medieval-looking furniture with chains and dark wood. His was contemporary and looked more like a regular bedroom.

I didn’t however miss the things that made it a playroom. There was a Saint Andrew's cross on the wall designed to look like a piece of art with black leather padding against the matte black metal. A king-sized bed sat on the adjacent wall with black sheets and a leather headboard extending all the way to the ceiling.

Other things lined the wall next to the bed, arranged on hooks. My eyes scanned the floggers, cuffs, and blindfolds,trying to push the thoughts of being with him at Erogenous out of my mind.

I ran my fingers over a padded bench similar to the one from the club. The style was more abstract, making it look like a curved leather chaise. In the corner he had a glass cabinet with more things on display.

Christian stayed in the doorway, watching me explore with his arms crossed. Each time I looked back at him, he was staring intently.

"It's not what I expected.”

"What were you expecting? Chains and whips?"

I grinned. “Maybe… or at least something with less style."

He looked amused. "Function and style. It’s possible to have both."

I motioned to a padded section of the wall. "What's that for?"

"Restraint in a standing position."

"And that?" I pointed to a curved piece of furniture.

"Spanking bench. Different angle than the standard one."

---