Chapter 14
Zane
I was beyond irritated as I stepped into the restroom. The Bobbsey Twins had met me at the door to the club when Sam had dropped me off. The bald one had claimed they were going to be my ‘escorts’ for the night, and there hadn’t been a word spoken by either of them since. At first, I assumed they would stand in the background like regular security guards and watch over me. Instead, they glued themselves to my sides like parasites or giant tumors growing out of control.
Sam’s hired help hadn’t left me alone for as much as thirty seconds, and I was having to play it off like I wanted them there to keep my patrons from freaking out. They wouldn’t even relax, standing at attention with arms crossed and glaring scowls, and that just pissed me off. They looked like goons, a couple of big guys fresh out of prison looking for a brawl, and it intimidated the club goers. I told some of my regulars they were pro wrestlers doing a publicity stunt, and that we were going to do a ‘smackdown’ commercial later, hoping to get some laughs and spread a rumor that would set the crowd’s mind at ease.
After an hour, I tried asking them to at least blank out their facial expressions. If they couldn’t at least pretend to blend in, they didn’t need to play King Kong and look like mindless apes. They didn’t say anything, and their faces didn’t even twitch, but something about their silence still told me they didn’t appreciate my reference to the gorilla, and I knew things weren’t going to get any better.
Worse, with the goons looking over my shoulder, I hadn’t even been able to call or text Kathryn as I’d planned. I knew she’d be getting anxious to hear from me, and I needed to hear her voice. But I couldn’t do that, couldn’t even send a ‘thinking about you’ text without drawing their attention. It was maddening, and I grew tense, having a hard time interacting with my patrons without coming across as distracted or irritated. I just wanted to talk to Kathryn briefly, but I was never going to be able to slip away.
And as a result, Kathryn had showed up here tonight, making this whole situation far more dangerous and difficult to control. Alone, I had myself to worry about, and I could calculate my own actions, but I could never be sure what someone else was going to do. Kathryn especially was a wild card. I was sure she was upset that I hadn’t called, and now, I couldn’t even risk letting her come talk to me.
I had tried to tell her to leave, but I couldn’t say anything, and I could barely get her to understand that she couldn’t come talk to me like we were friends or anything else. One or both of us might slip up and say something that gave us away. At the very least, she would be under suspicion simply for knowing me so well.
And Kathryn didn’t fail to prove just how stubborn she could be. Instead of leaving, she had sat at the bar and watched me, and I felt horrible for having to ignore her. This was disastrous, and I didn’t know how to fix it. I would have to find a way to talk to Kathryn at some point, even if I had to call her in the middle of the night after Sam was asleep. I probably wouldn’t get the best reaction, but I had to assure that Kathryn knew I hadn’t meant to blow her off. By then, I was sure I could find some explanation for my actions.
I looked my reflection in the eye, loathing the man Sam forced me to become, and said out loud, “Get it together, Zane. You’re a grown man, and you’re smart. Sam can’t control you forever, and you can find a way out of this mess. You’ll figure this out and get through it.” I cleared my throat a couple of times, fixed my sleeves, and pushed open the door, resigned to being with my convict babysitters all night.
And as I looked up, I stared right into Kathryn’s gorgeous brown eyes.
My blood ran hot and cold. I wanted to run and hide, but I also wanted to grab her and pull her into a sensual kiss, right there where everyone could see.
I panicked. I glanced toward the goons, relieved to see that neither of them were looking, and I grabbed Kathryn’s arm, yanking her into the janitor’s closet at the end of the hall. I was none too gentle, and I regretted how tightly I’d grasped her arm and how hard I’d pulled as I let go and saw the red mark I’d left. As she rubbed it with a bit of a scowl, I mumbled, “I’m sorry.”
I didn’t know what I’d been thinking, pulling her in here. It wasn’t like there was a window to escape through, or another door that would magically appear and take us to Narnia or something. And I had to get back out there soon, or I’d end up with a couple of goons searching for me and calling Sam to tell her I’d disappeared.
“You shouldn’t be here,” I told her in a hushed voice. It was loud out there, but I didn’t want to take any risks.
“Why not, Zane? I haven’t heard from you, and you weren’t at the Purple Dragon.” Her tone was accusatory, and she had every right to be suspicious. Or worried. Or both. In fact, if I was in her shoes, I probably would have just slapped me and left, and then I would have gone home and blocked my number.
But none of that really mattered to me. I needed her to see the current problem and do what I told her to keep both of us from getting in all sorts of trouble. “Those two guys out there are looking for you. The only reason they haven’t placed who you are yet is because they think Crystal is you.”
She looked confused, and I realized how muddled that sounded. Trying again, I said, “They’re looking for you, but they’re expecting someone that looks like Crystal.”
Her eyes widened, and I didn’t know if she thought it was an insane story I’d made up or if she was terrified. “Why? Why are they looking for me? Zane, you have to tell me what’s going on. You keep hiding things from me, and when those things finally come to the surface, everything gets better. Just tell me everything. Are you in some kind of trouble? Am I in trouble? And how would Crystal be involved? I keep feeling like there’s something you’re not telling me, and now I know you’re hiding something big. What do those guys want with me, Zane?”
I didn’t have time to explain anything, and I didn’t want to call attention to Kathryn when she stormed out of here because I’d told her the truth about my personal life. I was going to come clean with her eventually, but that was going to be in a controlled situation, where I wasn’t rushed and could explain the circumstances. And it would be after I’d guaranteed we were secure against anything Sam could threaten or carry out.
I cleared my throat, trying to ignore how hard it was to be this close to Kathryn without touching her. The smell of her skin was already driving me wild, and I couldn’t think clearly through the haze of arousal. It was bad enough in the hall, but in this small, enclosed room, the air swam with her scent.
“Look, there’s someone that doesn’t want us to be together, Kathryn. It’s making things really complicated on my end, including running the club. I’m stuck with that entourage because of it. But I’m handling it, and I need you to just trust me until I can make it go away. Then, I’ll explain everything. You should leave.”
She shook her head. “Zane, I need to know what’s going on. With us, with all this. Please.”
She pleaded with me, and I was desperate to touch her, taste her. I knew it was a bad idea, with my body responding to just her nearness, but I couldn’t help myself.
I grabbed her face and kissed her hard, bruising my lips as I plied hers and devoured her mouth. I could smell sex in the air as she was instantly turned on, and my groin tightened painfully. I thrust my hips forward, pressing my hard-on against her, and she moaned into my mouth.
I lost myself for a moment in the way she tasted, and before I knew what was happening, she had my fly open. She reached into my pants and grabbed my shaft. I grunted and shivered at her touch. There was no time for this! But I couldn’t seem to stop. It was like the connection between brain and muscle function had been cut, and the wiring to my actions connected to Kathryn.
She pushed me away, and I gasped for air, but I barely had time to breathe. She shimmied her panties off and hung them on the light switch. The view of her bared from the waist down was too much, and I was on her again instantly. I grabbed her ass, squeezing as I lifted her and pressed her against the wall, and she encouraged me, wrapping her legs around me and pressing at the small of my back as she rubbed her moisture on me. I hissed and found her center, thrusting in with brute force. She came instantly, her inner walls convulsing, and I had to cover her mouth with my hand as she started to cry out.
I would have stopped, but she used her legs to ride me, and I moved with her out of pure instinct and male sex drive, my pace fast and heavy. I didn’t care if it was over fast, and I didn’t care what awaited me outside the door at that moment – I had to have her, and she seemed to be on the same wavelength. I bit my lip as she peaked again, and I couldn’t hold back any longer. I exploded and buried my face in her neck to keep from crying out with the utter euphoria that encompassed me from head to toe.
I had to force myself to move. A part of me didn’t care if the spies busted down the door while I was still inside Kathryn. But the rational part of me took control once again. I didn’t have time to revel in the release or the feel of Kathryn wrapped around me in every way. I let her down and handed her the panties before tucking myself in and zipping up my pants.
I stopped and looked at her, the hooded eyes and flushed cheeks tearing me to pieces. I didn’t regret the quick, passionate sex at all, but I did regret that I couldn’t stay and cradle her in my arms for a while. My resentment toward Sam and her control of me tripled.
I had to get out of here, but I couldn’t walk away without some sort of closure. I kissed her one more time before clearing my throat and righting my clothes. “I have to go. Wait five minutes, and get out of this room. And leave, Kathryn. Go home, where it’s safe.”
She gave me a short nod of acknowledgement, and I focused on her swollen lips for a second with the most painful longing I’d ever felt. Then, I stuffed my emotions into a box inside my chest, locking it up with a key and a combination, and I peered out the door to make sure the goons hadn’t gotten restless. Like ugly gargoyle statues, they hadn’t even moved, and I slipped out without glancing back at Kathryn. I didn’t think I’d leave her if I saw her face again tonight.
“Gentlemen,” I said as I approached the goons. I was in a far better mood that I was sure would last, if I could distract them long enough for Kathryn to get out of here. “Come on, let’s get back out there and have a good time. I’ve never had such exciting guests before as the two of you. I say we stop at the bar, and I’ll buy a round of shots for the three of us. Then, we can get out on the dance floor and see about getting the two of you laid.”
They didn’t laugh or smile as I started to shoulder my way through the crowd, and I wasn’t surprised.