With a chest so heavy he had to force himself to breathe, Aidan jerked his gaze away and shut his eyes. His last committed relationship happened swiftly, knocking him on his ass. Lily had been everything he’d wanted in a woman. A submissive who was spunky with a side of sweet.
She began working for him as a law clerk when he completed college and worked in his father’s law firm. After a late night at work, a drunk driver decided to get in his car and go down the same street as Lily, ending her life.
When she died, he died, too.
He had lived with that pain for five years. His gut twisted, thinking that Cora may have experienced such darkness. But that was the problem. He had no idea what caused her to plummet into misery.
Pulling him away from his thoughts, Dmitri said, “Go and find Cora. Please make sure she’s all right.” Aidan looked to them as Dmitri pressed a kiss to Presley’s forehead. “Tell her to wait in the living room for me. I want to make sure she’s not suffering sub drop and her head is in a good place before she leaves.”
Aidan’s muscles quivered in a demand to refuse that order. Cora was his to care for, although she’d just run from him. Christ, he did not want to make this any worse. Dmitri was the better choice for that discussion, and with a long breath he pushed away the tension.
Presley stood on her tiptoes to reach Dmitri’s lips with a soft kiss. When she lowered, she said with her sweet smile, “Thanks for understanding.” She took two steps forward before she stopped. She glanced over her shoulder and said to Aidan, “Just so you know, I don’t like that—not telling you things.”
“I know, Presley.” He smiled in hope of comforting her. She was a loyal friend to Cora, and he respected that. “Master Dmitri’s right. It makes you a good friend, regar
dless that it might annoy me.”
She grinned at him before she hurried off through the dungeon, almost as fast as Cora had. Aidan dropped down onto the couch and rubbed his hands over his face. When he lifted his head, Dmitri sat on the glass coffee table, resting his elbows on his legs.
With a steady gaze on Aidan, Dmitri steepled his fingers under his chin. “I saw Cora not too long ago and she looked fine. She was red-cheeked, glossy-eyed, and satisfied.”
Aidan nodded in agreement. “That’s how I left her.”
Dmitri’s brows furrowed, then released. “If Cora was in danger, Presley would’ve told me. She respects her friend’s wishes, but only to a point. She wouldn’t let anything bad happen to anyone. I’m sure Cora’s okay.”
“No, she’s not.” Aidan shook his head, shutting his eyes and remembering how she looked in that moment. “It was her eyes …” If he couldn’t get rid of that darkness he saw in her, it would haunt him. “It concerns me.”
He opened his eyes, looking directly at Dmitri, a friend he’d been close to since they met at a public BDSM club, Chains, more than eight years ago. Their friendship had been one of the reasons Aidan came with Dmitri when he opened Club Sin. With a dry mouth, he said softly, “I’ve never seen her that way.”
“What way?”
Aidan glimpsed down at his brown leather boots with the scuffs on the toes. The sensual sounds around him stirred nothing but the desire to flee. He wanted to think. He craved silence. Lifting his head to Dmitri, he replied, “She’s always been so confident and so strong in her choices.”
He loved playing with Cora for that reason. He could push her and know she wouldn’t crumble. “Tonight bore the markings of a woman with a broken heart.” His jaw clenched as he rubbed the ache in his temple. “I don’t like it.”
“Ah, I see,” Dmitri said with a knowing twinkle in his gaze.
“Don’t go there.” Aidan snorted, heaviness coursing through his body. “She’s my friend and I’m concerned about her.”
Dmitri had told Aidan, more than once, that he thought something deeper lingered between Aidan and Cora. Aidan wasn’t in the mood to defend his actions. He was content in his D/s relationship with Cora.
That conversation was old.
“All right.” Dmitri cupped Aidan’s shoulder. The dance in his eyes had vanished, and warmth exuded in his expression. “What do you need from me?”
The submissives giggling on the far side of the room drew Aidan’s gaze. He pondered. Should he leave this alone? Was it any of his business? A submissive didn’t need to tell him personal thoughts outside of the dungeon.
Cora’s personal problems shouldn’t interest him.
Yet they did.
What kind of friend would he be to simply ignore that and let her suffer through her despair alone? Not a friend he could live with. Her look churned inside him. A swell of hot possession sent him into a flurry of need for answers, and he needed them now.
“She’s hiding something.” Hollowness struck Aidan in his chest. “Whatever it is, it isn’t good.” His responsibility to Cora and his care of her helped make his decision an easy one. “Not that she’ll ask to play with another Dom, but I’d like to keep her under my protection until I find out her pain.”
Dmitri smiled. “That determined, are you?”
Aidan sank back against the couch and folded his arms. “Cora should know better, I’m a lawyer—hunting down the truth is what I do best.”