“Oh, hells no!” I hold my stomach as if the thought nauseated me. “But his friend Rocco—I can get into that.”
“He’s a cutie, isn’t he?” Luci clicks their tongue on the roof of their mouth. “Quiet though. Tried to talk to him once, but he’s got shy to spare.”
“That’s why I need to talk to Cree.”
“I got ya, girlfriend.” Luci nods and hums tunelessly for a moment. “You hang on a sec. I’ll give ya a call next week about that shopping trip!”
Luci saunters off toward the couch where Cree is sitting. They lean over and speak to him for a minute, and then Cree looks over at me. He says something to his girl before pushing himself out of the chair and walking up to my side.
“Luci said you wanted to speak?”
“Yeah. Maybe over a smoke?”
“Trying to quit.” Cree glances over at his girl for a second, then speaks softly. “Maybe you can bum me one?”
“Sure.”
We head out of the room and through a small door to a crowded fire escape where all the smokers hang out. I hand Cree a pack of smokes and a lighter, and he lights two cigarettes at once, handing one to me.
“That’s kinda hot,” I say, taking the cigarette and drawing on it deeply.
“Just gentlemanly,” he replies. “So, what are you looking for? I know you aren’t into me, and if you’re wondering about my new friend, I’m not sharing.”
“Don’t look at me like that,” I snap but instantly regret it. I need his help, and I don’t want to be a bitch about it. “I don’t want your girl. I just need a little negotiating help from you.”
He narrows his eyes at me.
“I told you not to give me that sassy look,” I say darkly, “or I might have to take you over my knee.”
Cree grins and chuckles. He leans against the fire escape railing and shrugs.
“Not expecting you to ask. I thought you usually talked to Luci or one of the DMs.”
“Dungeon monitors are idiots,” I grumble. I don’t want to bring up the brief fling I had with Sir Gerald, one of the DMs here. He drove me nuts with his constant, needy text messages, and it didn’t end well. “Besides, I think you’re better suited for this one.”
“What is it you want?”
“I’d like to play with Rocco,” I say. “I’ve seen you tie him before, but whenever I’ve tried to talk to him, he just walks away.”
“Yeah, that’s Rocco all right.”
“I’ve been doing a lot more rope work,” I say, “and I’d really like to try tying Rocco. I was in your class earlier this semester when you went over sensual rope play.”
“I remember.” Cree tilts his head and looks closely at me. “I’m happy to act as negotiator, but Rocco is a friend of mine, and I don’t want to see him hurt.”
“I’m not going to hurt him!” I narrow my eyes and place a hand on my hip.
“I’m not saying you would,” Cree says as he takes a slight step back. “Rocco just needs a bit more special handling. He’s…delicate.”
“Yeah, I’ve seen that.”
“You aren’t known to have a soft touch.”
“Maybe I’m more versatile than you think.”
“Why do you want to get your claws in him, anyway?”
“Not really your business, is it?” I take a deep breath, trying to keep myself in check. I hate being questioned, and Cree is all about the questions.