He isn’t my husband, nor am I his wife. I never see it going that way either. I see myself enjoying his body, taking what I want from him until the moment this whole charade is over. And I’m sure he’s doing the same thing. Getting off. Making love. Fucking. We’re just two people trapped by a common enemy, destined to help each other out and nothing more.
Passion. Lust. Longing. All colliding to make us both believe we could be something more to one another. But that’s not real life. It’s not my reality.
Because I’m from a completely different world.
He’s a good man. And I’m tarnished. I’m broken from the world Bishop Blackstone pushed me into.
“You feel so good,” he groans.
I can’t tell him how he’s better. He feels better. He is better. Better than me. Better than anyone I’ve ever known.
A tear escapes my eye, and I squeeze them shut, turning my face so Dean can’t see. I don’t want him to know this is affecting me more than it should.
I hold Dean closer, not letting him go just yet. My body ignites, taking off, soaring into the unknown, but I’m not afraid of it. Right now, here, Dean and I are one. I feel like I can soar high above it all.
And then, it all comes crashing back into a burst of sunshine and madness. My body detonates, and I scream out my orgasm, trying my best to hold on to Dean as tightly as I can.
He follows me. His orgasm crashing through the ether, exploding into reality.
“Dean, don’t let go of me,” I tell him as my body calms.
“I’ve got you.”
It’s been three days since Dean and I finally had sex. It’s been an eye-opening experience for me. I’d never had anything like that before. Just a few miserable sexual experiences, nothing to write home about. Until Dean. I never knew sex could feel so empowering. I never knew someone could make me feel free. To open my wings and fly.
“Ready?” Dean asks as we enter the club downtown for Humphrey’s big event.
A masquerade party. I’ve never been to anything so fancy, and I’m all decked out in an emerald green gown with a gold and emerald mask.
“Yes.” This is the first time we’ll be attending the club after exploring each other’s bodies.
I’d like to say we have been busily looking for Bishop, exhausting all avenues. But the only avenues we’ve exhausted belong in the bedroom.
Gold chandeliers hang from the ceiling with glass bulbs filled with brilliant lights. Green drapes cover the walls and gold sconces hang on the walls between the luxurious material.
Dean’s hand rests on the small of my back. He pulls me closer as he spots Eddie from across the room. I hope Eddie stays there. Knowing Dean doesn’t like when Eddie touches me, I try to keep him at bay.
My mask is wrapped around my head and I push it up just a bit. Eddie has the type of mask he holds on a stick.
Dean stands next to me in a black-on-black suit with a Phantom Of The Opera white mask. He’s the sexiest man here, and every woman stares in his direction as he walks past.
A woman reaches out her hand, gliding it along Dean’s arm. I tense a little at the action. “I’d love to join you and your wife a little later,” she purrs. She’s in a black dress that reaches the floor, and a kitty cat mask. She pretends to have claws and shows them to Dean as she purrs louder.
I try not to laugh as he pulls me away.
“No, we won’t be playing with the kitty tonight.”
“Aww,” I say, pretending to be hurt.
Dean knows I only want him touching me, that I’m not into the activities at this club. That he can satisfy me just fine, and we’re only here because we’re getting closer to finding Bishop.
“The man you were asking for is here,” Eddie says, stepping up behind me and twisting his arm around my waist.
“Hi, Mr. Gallo.” I keep it formal, so he doesn’t think he has some sort of claim over me just because we got a little carried away the other night at the party.
“Please, call me Eddie.” He smiles at me, and then at Dean. He steps closer to Dean, sticking out his hand for him to shake. “Bishop’s here. Would you like to meet him?”
My eyes widen as I stare at Dean, waiting for his move.
“Where is he?”
Eddie nods toward the front door. “The man with the black mask.”
I study Bishop for a moment. At long last the man I’ve been searching for. Part of me wants to rush over there, put my knife through his skull. Another part of me can’t remember what to do.
It’s finally all happening.
I edge toward Bishop’s direction, but Dean holds me back, keeping it unseen from Eddie’s eyes. Every cell in my body vibrates toward Bishop. The man who ruined me. The man who steals women from their homes and ships them to a new world and sells them into sex slavery. This man doesn’t deserve to live.