Why am I hesitating then? I don't work for Mrs. Caldwell anymore. I just raised three million dollars for the community health center. Patricia’s not going to fire me.
Ben’s words from earlier this week echo through my mind. I can’t spend my entire life waiting for the other shoe to drop. The worst-case scenario isn’t always going to come true. I control my own happiness.
Julian’s waiting for me to answer. “Yes,” I say before I can change my mind. “I’m in.”
“Good girl,” he murmurs, his voice a seductive purr. “The club has rules. Things are more formalized now. You’ll start by filling out a checklist of your hard and soft limits. That way, a monitor will know to check in on you if they see you do something you’ve marked as a limit.”
BDSM has been in popular culture lately, and Julian's words don't take me by surprise.
“Okay.” If I sound breathless and needy and aroused, it’s because I am all of those things. The promise of tomorrow sends a shock of anticipation through me.
“I look forward to spending all night learning what turns you on, Sophia,” he says. And then, before I can make my sex-addled brain form words, he hangs up.
How am I supposed to focus on work after that conversation? I shake my head dazedly and get up to splash some cold water on my face. Maybe that’ll help douse the fire running through my blood.