Nicole Edwards - Perception

Tim glanced over at Xander, who was sitting beside Mercedes, but his gaze didn’t linger elsewhere for long. The man was probably trying to determine what he wanted to say.

Xander leaned back in his chair and watched things play out between the two of them.

“Depends,” Tim finally admitted, his voice lower than before. “If we’re talking business, I do. When it comes to other things, I could be persuaded to give up control.”

“Persuaded?” Mercedes asked seriously, sipping her wine as she stared back at him. “Or is it something you prefer?”

Xander had a feeling that the question was loaded. He got the impression there was only one correct answer where Mercedes was concerned.

“It’s something I prefer,” Tim’s assistant stated firmly.

Xander’s gaze darted to the pretty young woman sitting to Tim’s left. She wasn’t looking at her boss, which was probably a good thing because her open admission seemed to have shocked Tim somewhat.

Based on Mercedes’s reaction, she hadn’t expected it either.

“Do you play at a club?” Mercedes asked casually.

“I have, yes,” Clarissa Tinsley admitted, her cheeks turning pink.

“Well, Xander here,” Mercedes glanced over at him, “is a Dom.” He wasn’t sure why, but somehow she had successfully pulled him directly into the conversation. He fought the urge to laugh at that.

“Is that right?” Clarissa asked sweetly, her eyes glazing over slightly.

“Mercedes is being too kind. She’s a Domme herself, but she doesn’t like to brag,” he said with a smile. “I’m a member of Kink,” he admitted, sipping his wine and making sure they all noticed his casual disinterest in the conversation.

What he wanted to do was to talk to Mercedes directly. Preferably about something other than business, but until today, she’d managed to keep their brief relationship on a steadfast professional level.

He had hoped to change that tonight.

She had successfully cock blocked him by inviting these two.

“Is your husband a Dom?” Mercedes asked Clarissa, and Xander heard the subtle irritation in her tone. It seemed as though she hadn’t been looking to spread the word of her Domme status.

Fair was fair, in his opinion.

“I’m not married,” Clarissa admitted, her eyes immediately going down to the table.

“Well, Mr. Boone might just be interested in showing you the ropes.”

Lord, was she serious?

Keeping his reaction to Mercedes’s very blatant assumption was difficult, but he prided himself on his ability to maintain his composure at all costs. He also thought she might’ve been testing him, so he decided to play into her hands.

“If you’re interested in seeing the club, I’d be more than happy to have you as a guest,” he told Clarissa, watching Mercedes out of the corner of his eye.

“What is it that you like about being a submissive?” Tim asked this time, surprising them all with his interest.

When Clarissa seemed to be thinking things through, Xander added, “Don’t overthink it. Tell him the first thing that came to your mind. Why is it something you prefer?”

“I don’t want to be in control all the time,” Clarissa offered easily.

“I could never do that,” Tim said, laughing. He appeared as though he were suddenly uncomfortable.

“No?” Mercedes asked. “Is that because you want to be in control of your business?”

“I would never give up control of my business.”

“Who said you had to?” Mercedes asked.

Xander wondered why she seemed to be pushing the issue.

“I just assumed,” Tim said, glancing around to look at the three of them.

“But aside from that, you’d give up all control?” Mercedes asked Tim, resting her elegant forearms on the table, her beautiful hands wrapped around the stem of her now empty wine glass.

The waiter must’ve noticed her body language because he was immediately at her side, refilling her glass.

“Thank you,” she told him with a brief glance.

“I think it’s a possibility.”

Xander’s attention jerked back to Tim. Had he been answering Mercedes’s question? Was this guy a submissive? Or was he just playing with Mercedes?

There was only one way to tell.

“So, you’d be interested in being dominated by a woman?” he asked, signaling for the waiter to refill his glass as well.

“I think it would be fun,” Tim said.

Xander could see that Tim was making every effort to keep from looking at his assistant.

Yep, the conversation was definitely uncomfortable for the man, but at the same time, at least it wasn’t business.

Xander focused on the television screen, noticing the words scrolling across the bottom for the first time. He didn’t pay them much attention even now, but as he watched the jumble of words, the memory of that first dinner date began to fade. He did his best not to think about the events that happened shortly after that dinner either.

As it turned out, Tim was very interested in being dominated, and Mercedes had been all too kind by agreeing to show him the ropes. It was their introductory scene at Kink. Xander would never forget it either. If he were correct, Tim wouldn’t either. The man had been smitten, just like several of the unattached male subs that night. Needless to say, Mercedes had garnered a reputation at the club.

If they could only see her now, he thought to himself.

Pushing up off of the sofa, Xander untucked his polo shirt from his jeans. On his way up the stairs, he unbuttoned one of the buttons near his neck. Once he was inside his bedroom, he reached behind his head, grabbed a handful of cotton and pulled his shirt over his head, discarding it on a chair nearby.

He made his way to the master bathroom and propped himself against the open door, staring at the beautiful woman soaking in the oversized Jacuzzi tub.

Xander was pretty damn sure that each and every time he saw her again, she was even more beautiful than the last time.

Black hair piled haphazardly on top of her head, her naked body covered with mounds of white bubbles. She was sensational. Her eyes were closed, her arms resting along the sides of the tub.

For once, Mercedes looked entirely at peace.

“You decided to join me?” she asked sweetly, not opening her eyes.

“Not tonight,” he informed her, pushing away from the wall. Rather than join her in the tub, he decided for a quick shower. And then they’d play a little before bed.

Hoping to give her a few more minutes to relax, he took his time in the shower, glancing over at her through the glass walls. Xander liked the fact that she was watching him. In fact, she never seemed to look away, unabashedly watching as he soaped up.

“Are you making me get out?” she asked, smiling.

“It’s time. I was hoping to show you something before bed.”

That seemed to catch her interest.

“What are you going to show me?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” he teased.

God, he loved the way she seemed so comfortable in his bathroom, relaxing in his tub, sharing the space with him. It just felt… natural.

Reaching down, he waited for her to take his hand. Once she’d hit the button to release the water from the tub, she took his proffered hand, and he assisted her to her feet. Taking the handheld shower sprayer that was attached to the tub, he turned on the warm water and rinsed her thoroughly.