Nicole Edwards - Perception

And for that, he loved her all the more.

“Baby, just say the word,” Luke told her.

Looking around the room once more, Luke found himself smiling. It wasn’t just the club, or the success of the previous night, or even tonight. It was all of it combined. His wife, his husband, and their daughter. Life was looking up for them, he knew that much.

And if anyone who knew him from before were to see him now, they’d probably wonder just what had happened to him. That was easy. Love. That’s what had happened to him.

And now it was time to celebrate.

Mercedes stood beside Xander, trying to appear casual and unconcerned. Truth was, her nerves had taken to breakdancing, and she wasn’t sure how much longer she could tolerate the tension that was building to a crescendo.

The look in his eyes, the one that said things were about to get real, wasn’t helping. The only positive, they were at Devotion and not Kink. She’d be mortified if they’d gone to their regular haunt because she was known there. Here, she was just another nameless face, and if Logan McCoy had mentioned anything, people were already believing she was a submissive.

Ha! The joke was on them.

Shit.

Mercedes’s gaze landed on Shane standing on the far side of the room. He looked up just in time to see her watching him. Without hesitation, he excused himself from the group he had been conversing with and was hastily heading their way.

She could do this.

That statement went on a constant loop in her head, and she held tightly to the imaginary repeat button to ensure she didn’t forget it. She only hoped that if she thought it enough times that she’d soon believe it because at the moment, she was worried that backing out of the whole thing was high on her priority list.

“You look incredible,” Shane said when he approached, leaning in and kissing her firmly on the lips.

She smiled up at him, hoping he didn’t realize just how terrified she was now that he was there.

The sound that came from behind her stopped her heart for a millisecond. She looked up to see Xander glaring at Shane, and that’s when Shane must have realized his faux pas.

“Shit,” he mumbled, staring back at Xander. “I’m… Shit.”

Shane was tongue tied, and Mercedes knew why. If she had to guess, Xander was currently burning a hole in Shane’s face with just a look. Shane had kissed her right on the lips, something that they did all the time. It meant nothing. They were friends.

But until tonight, she’d never been wearing a Dom’s collar.

“Sorry, man.”

Mercedes had known Shane longer than she’d known Xander, but not by much. They were good friends, possibly even closer than she and Xander. She spent a lot of time with Shane during her down time. It wasn’t strange for him to stop by her condo just to chat. Where Xander was the quiet, observant one, Shane was chatty and loud, the life of the party much of the time.

Shane’s gaze dropped to her neck again and then his eyes darted to Xander, who was now standing directly behind her. Just when she thought he wasn’t going to say anything more, he broke the silence.

“That was fast.”

Crap.

Xander’s body moved even closer to hers, his hand sliding to her hips as he pressed his front against her back. He was like a living, breathing security blanket and for a moment, she felt a measure of relief. With him standing there, she could almost envision herself absorbing some of his strength.

She would need it if she wanted to survive the night.

“You’re good with this?” Shane asked, his question directed to her.

There was another unmistakable growl that came from Xander, and she smiled. Territorial much?

“Of course,” she lied. She was committed because she’d made a deal. Didn’t necessarily mean she was good with it; however, she needed Shane to know that she was on board.

The expression on Shane’s face softened and then he laughed.

“M, I’m not sure how he managed to talk you into this, but darlin’, I fully intend to watch this one play out.”

Mercedes didn’t smile even when the Texas twang he worked so hard to disguise slipped out. In fact, another emotion took root. Mortification. She wasn’t sure how she would endure Shane watching a scene. Especially one where she was a submissive. It went against everything she’d worked so hard to build for herself and here, tonight, she got the impression Xander intended to strip her of all her control.

Because he could.

“Back off, Shane,” Xander growled from behind her.

“Yeah, what he said,” Mercedes said, trying to lighten the mood. “It’s fine. And if you want to watch, be my guest.”

Xander’s grip tightened on her hip, and that was when she realized she had overstepped. Tonight he was in the lead. He was in control, and she didn’t have a say in the matter. She knew that based on the way Xander played at the club.

Shane’s eyes darted back and forth between the two of them and then he laughed again. “Yeah, good luck with all of this. I’m still not sure how he talked you into it, but yeah…” Shane stopped talking, but his sparkling blue eyes were lit with amusement.

“Did you come here to play?” Xander questioned, his hand loosening somewhat.

“I did, actually.”

“Did you bring Clarissa?” Xander asked.

Mercedes’s gaze darted behind her. Clarissa? She turned her attention back to Shane while she waited for him to answer.

“Not tonight. She had something to take care of. I promised I’d bring her to the next one.”

“Clarissa? My Clarissa?” Mercedes asked, confused.

“Technically, she doesn’t belong to you, doll,” Shane said with a chuckle. “But, yes, we’re talking about your friend Clarissa.”

Holy shit. Clarissa and Shane. That was an interesting combination. Then again, Clarissa was an unattached submissive, and she had known that her friend thought rather highly of Shane.

“Are the two of you…?” Mercedes couldn’t get the words out.

“We’re just playing,” Shane assured her. “Nothing serious.”

Maybe not for him, Mercedes thought to herself. She made a mental note to call her friend first thing tomorrow. As much as she loved Shane, she wasn’t at all sure he was the best man for Clarissa to be playing with.

“So who’s your victim tonight?” Xander asked, his tone gruff.

When Shane looked over his shoulder, Mercedes glanced in that direction. There, on the other side of the room was a pretty blonde and an equally pretty brunette staring back at them.

Yep, that’s the way Shane played. It wasn’t surprising to see he’d set his sights on two women for the night. It took a lot to hold Shane’s interest, and although he was a fun loving, laid back charmer most of the time, when he went into full Dom mode, his entire demeanor changed.

He liked a challenge and subs loved him for it. He didn’t play around, didn’t entertain the notion of relationships any more than Xander did. In fact, he made that point clear up front, and surprisingly, women still flocked to him. No doubt hoping they would be that someone special who could change his take no prisoners approach.

God, she prayed Clarissa wasn’t thinking she might be the one to change him.

Mercedes would’ve warned them if she could. But it wasn’t her place. And honestly, she enjoyed watching Shane and his inane ability to bring even the most defiant of subs to heel.

Then again, she had more than enough to think about. Like her own submission, and how, if at all, she was going to pull that off.

She glanced around the room as she waited for Xander’s next command or for Shane to make another snide comment.