“Hey, there,” he said when he was close enough to speak. “Sorry I’m late. My business partner’s having a minor meltdown.”
Sophia quirked a brow. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, yeah,” Nick said easily, bending down to give her a quick kiss as he tried to ignore the anxiety in his gut. “It’ll blow over, I’m sure.” Except that he wasn’t sure. The Cabot deal was huge, and they’d been working on it for months. If it fell apart now… Stop it. This is more important than work.
Whoa. Where the fuck had that come from? For Nick Kincaid, nothing was more important than work.
Still, this was the first time in a zillion years he’d taken any substantial time off, and damn it, he was going to enjoy it. He quashed his lingering anxiety. Brian would send him the details and he’d work on putting out fires later. Right now, he wanted to focus on the lovely woman sitting before him.
They passed the meal pleasantly, keeping the conversation light as they ate the delicious food. There was an early party at the dungeon, before the free play that would start at ten or so. The party involved BDSM parlor games, whatever those were, and Sophia had suggested they check it out.
They entered the dungeon together. There were already twenty or so people there. The young Brad Pitt lookalike who called himself Master Ryan was there, along with his red-headed slave girl. For a moment, Nick tried to imagine living a Master/slave lifestyle 24/7 on an island dedicated to the scene. No. He would miss his work too much. He would miss the constant excitement and opportunity of living in the greatest city in the world.
But for a week, it was fucking awesome to be there, and he planned to make the most of it.
Master Ryan called the guests into a circle. He stood in the center and explained, “Our first game is called Musical Doms. It’s a great way to meet new people. All the Dominants please step forward.”
Half of the group, most of them male but a few female, took a step forward, creating a smaller circle within the larger one.
“Good,” Master Ryan said. “Now, turn so you’re facing the sub standing behind you. When the music starts, the subs will walk in a circle. Doms, you stay where you are.” He looked toward the outer circle. “When the music stops, whoever you’re standing in front of is your Master for the next fifteen minutes. You’ll engage in a quick scene of your temporary Master’s choosing, and then we’ll do it again. Any questions?”
Nick caught Sophia’s eye. “This all right with you?” he asked softly. He would have rather just taken her up to his room, but if she wanted to play in the dungeon a while first, he would go along.
“Sure,” Sophia replied with a toss of her head. “It’s good to do a little comparison shopping.”
“Ouch,” he said with a laugh. “Hope I measure up.”
The music started and the subs began to walk around the Doms. There were several very pretty women in the circle in various states of undress, but he found he wasn’t especially interested. Maybe he’d get lucky, and Sophia would be the one to stop in front of him.
~*~
Sophia walked in the circle as the music played. This party was a good thing, she reminded herself. Nick and she had been moving awfully fast. There was an entire island of Doms to be explored. It would be crazy to limit herself to just one guy the whole time.
Especially a guy who was as driven in his career as Nick. From their casual conversations, she’d gotten the strong impression he lived and breathed real estate development. He was constantly putting together huge, complicated deals involving millions of dollars. He was still conducting business while on the island, for heaven’s sake. A sole proprietor herself, she understood that your business didn’t take a vacation just because you did. But she really didn’t want to fall for a guy whose work consumed him. She’d been there and done that, and had promised herself she wouldn’t do it again.
When the music stopped, she stood in front of a tall, heavyset man of around fifty dressed from head to toe in black leather, sweat gleaming on his broad brow. He grinned at her from beneath a thick mustache. “Hey, pretty lady. Looks like you’re mine for the next fifteen.” He moved toward her, circling her upper arm with his large, slightly damp hand. “You may call me Lord Larry. Let’s go to the pillories. I’m going to spank that ass of yours until you squeal.”
Oh, goodie, Sophia thought with an inward groan. Why had she thought this would be fun? Oh, well. She could handle anything for fifteen minutes.
She glanced toward Nick. His partner was a tall, willowy blonde in a black bustier with garters, a tiny thong barely covering her mons. She had small, high breasts and long legs capped by very high heels. Shit. She was fucking gorgeous. He was smiling at the woman, who was making a simpering face back at him.