“Fuck you.”
“It’s been awhile since you had a regular sub, or any sub at all, really.”
“My Domination habits are none of your business.”
“He’s right, you know,” Jennifer appears with two fresh drinks. “It’s not good for Doms to go too long without a soft little sub to take care of.”
I stare at her, shocked that she’s just blatantly intruding on our conversation, and then I look at the drinks.
“I didn’t order these,” I manage to say.
“On the house, boys,” she winks. “No offense, but you seem like you could use them.”
She heads off again, and I look at Zack, confused.
“Seriously, who the hell is this girl?”
He just shrugs and sips his fresh beer. “Magical, if you ask me.” He sets the glass back down. “You know, you could explore some other career options. There’s nothing wrong with changing your path.”
“What? And work in real estate with you?”
“Oh, we could have fun with that, but I don’t think you’d like it.”
“No?”
“It’s too quiet for you,” Zack says thoughtfully. “You need a rush. You need something fast paced, something that will keep you busy.”
“I know you’re right. I don’t want to say you are, but you’re right. I’d make it a month in property law before I pulled my hair out and went to live in an isolated cabin in the woods.”
Zack just chuckles. He knows me well. We’ve been friends for fucking forever, after all. He holds up his drink and smiles.
“To you, brother. To your future. To happiness.”
“To finding a way through the darkness,” I say.
I’ll drink to that.
Chapter 3
Macie
“I don’t know if I’m comfortable with this,” I whisper, staring at the ship in front of me. Oh, technically it’s not a “cruise ship.” It’s a “mini-cruise ship,” but I’m not convinced there’s much of a difference. It’s still big, and intimidating, and scary.
From the outside, the ship Anchored looks like it’s some sort of fancy restaurant or even a hotel. The parking lot is clearly labeled private, though, and even if someone did decide to wander up to the ship, they wouldn’t be able to get inside without a special key.
The problem is that I know this ship doesn’t house the best seafood in town. I know this place doesn’t have overpriced hotel rooms. I know this isn’t a bed and breakfast. I know, and that knowledge terrifies me.
“It’ll be okay,” Christina says comfortingly.
“Yeah,” Lily agrees. “You don’t have anything to worry about. Trust me: I was totally scared my first time, too, but Christina and Zack really put me at ease.”
“You came with Christina and Zack your first time?”
“Yep.”
“And it wasn’t…you were okay?”
“She was more than okay,” Jaxson Thorn, Lily’s husband and Dom, drapes an arm around her. “She was perfect, and you’re going to be fine, too.” His eyes soften as he looks at me. He lifts my chin with a finger and says, “Hey, we’re all going to be with you. Even if you decide to want to sit at the bar alone for a little while, or you want to talk to someone, we’ll always have eyes on you, okay? Nothing bad is going to happen to you.”