Page 23 of Paved in Venom

“Okay,” I whisper, and as soon as the word’s left my mouth, Danil’s entire demeanor changes. I feel him grow distant beside me, even though he hasn’t moved at all. There’s a hardness to him, though, that wasn’t there before. I can’t say I care for it. His hand reaches up and cups the back of my neck in a possessive grip that I would despise if anyone but him was doing it.

We stop in front of the bouncer, who’s eyeing me like I’m nothing more than a hole to fuck. I can’t say I care for that either. Danil tightens his grip on me.

“Hey, Danil, I heard you made a big purchase today,” the bouncer says.

“I did,” Danil says with a soft laugh. “Just wanted to stop by to show David and offer my personal thanks.”

The bouncer leers at me and then gives me a wink. “She’s a pretty one, that’s for sure.”

“She is,” Danil agrees. After a few seconds, he asks, “You gonna let us in, Robbie?”

Robbie laughs. “Yeah, sorry, just thinking about your new pet.”

“Make sure that’s all you do.”

Robbie pales at Danil’s tone and raises a hand. “Yeah, man, of course. No touching. I know the rules.”

As soon as he steps his large frame aside, Danil leads me into the dark club, and my whole body stills. Sleazy is the first word that comes to mind. It’s a strip club, but that’s not all it is. There are girls, fully naked girls, at the poles, but there are also others giving lap dances throughout the club, and the way the men are pawing at them makes me feel sick to my stomach. I’m pretty sure this kind of thing would never be allowed in a real strip club.

Danil leans down to whisper in my ear. “Just breathe, sladkaya.”

I have no idea what that word means, but I like the sound of it. It’s something nice that I can cling to in this filthy place. Danil leads me through the throng of perverted men, keeping his hand on the nape of my neck the whole time. His thumb brushes along my skin, soothing me and encouraging me to not lose my shit just yet. I look around the darkened room, trying to spot anyone who looks familiar, but all I can see are unfamiliar faces. The men run their eyes over me like the bouncer did, but Danil was telling the truth about the tattoo. I notice their eyes actively look to my left wrist as if trying to sort out if I can be shared, and as soon as they spot the black ouroboros, they look away. I’m no longer worth their time, and that is perfectly fine with me.

When we get to the VIP section, Danil smiles at the topless woman guarding the entrance. “Hey, Danil,” she purrs, and I don’t like it, not one little bit. “Want another dance, baby?”

Awesome. I try very hard to not notice her incredible body, and I refuse to make comparisons between the two of us because this night is already depressing enough. Danil’s thumb runs over my skin again.

“No, thanks,” Danil tells her, and I feel my body relax a bit. “I just dropped by to see David.”

The beautiful woman gives him a pouty smile as she unhooks the rope. “Let me know if you change your mind, baby.”

I look up and meet Danil’s eyes, but his expression is unreadable. I swear I catch a flash of guilt, but it’s gone before I can be sure.

“Danil,” a man calls from one of the booths in the corner. He waves us over, and the man stands as soon as we’re closer. “I didn’t expect you to come in tonight.” He looks at me and gives a soft laugh. “I heard you broke a record today.”

“I did.” Danil pulls me closer and splays his other hand along my lower stomach, pulling me closer to him. My back presses against his hard chest as my ass seems to mold to his body, like it was always supposed to be right here, nestled between his strong thighs. “Thought I’d bring her by to let you see her and to offer my thanks in person. I really appreciate the invite today, David.”

David smiles and motions for us to take a seat as another man walks over. This man has a woman on his arm, and the only thing she’s wearing is a sparkly, tiny thong. Danil sits down and grabs my hips, pulling me down into his lap. Even though I’d been in his lap for the tattoo, this feels very different. Then, I could tell he was trying to give me some space to put me at ease, but right now he isn’t allowing that. His hand rests on my thigh as his other one strokes my back, and when I work up the courage to look at him, he leans closer. The short stubble brushes against my cheek as he brings his mouth to my ear.

“Easy, sladkaya. It’s just like we talked about.”

“Seems like you two are getting along nicely,” David says.

The other man laughs, and when I look over, I see the woman is grinding away on his lap while he stares at me and says, “She’s a pretty little thing.”

I very much want to get the hell out of this place. Danil feels me tense and wraps an arm around me. He kisses my cheek before he looks over at the two men.

“She is, Aaron,” Danil says to the man getting the lap dance. He brings his hand around so he can squeeze the curve of my ass. “I’m very pleased with my purchase.”

I’m having a hard time facing the two jackasses across from us, so I lean into Danil and rest my head on his broad shoulder. He keeps his hand where it’s at, and I can’t help but notice that his splayed-out hand is also keeping me partly hidden from view, and it makes me wonder if he’s doing it on purpose or if he just really wanted to grab my ass.

“I was hoping the men responsible for this auction might be here tonight,” Danil continues. “I’d like to personally thank them for delivering such a fine product.”

“They’re not here,” David says. “They’ve already left the country.”

I let out a sigh at the bad news, and Danil brings one hand to my back, tapping out a soft rhythm against my skin. It doesn’t feel like he’s playing a song like I do, but more like he’s letting me know that he’s noticed what I do when I’m nervous. His forearm is resting on my thighs because his hand is still firmly on my ass, and when I bring a hand down and play a quick melody with my left hand, I see the side of his mouth quirk up in a small smile.

“That’s too bad,” Danil says while I start playing a song on his arm. “When do you expect them back?”

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