Cameron's Contract (16 page)

Laura promised she’d visit him at home too and that seemed to comfort him. I promised to visit Brian when next in town. It was good to see him cope with the news.

With the clinic now closing for the day, I presented Patricia with her goodbye gift—a delicate Rolex watch. She’d been my secretary for years and had always handled my affairs with professionalism. I’d miss her, not least because it was fun to guess her latest hair color, which changed more than the seasons. Today she’d gone for blue.

It was a tearful goodbye, but Patricia soon calmed when I helped secure her new watch to her wrist. She promised to be my eyes and ears at the clinic and contact me should any issue arise. I’d invested too many years into this place to give up caring for it so easily.

I headed back into Laura’s office for my final goodbye and to make sure she knew she’d be locking up after I’d sent Patricia home early.

Laura had gone to the bathroom to touch up her makeup. She had a dinner date tonight, and I had a feeling it was with her new lover.

My phone vibrated in my pocket.

“Shay,” I said. “Tell me you have good news.”

“Actually,” he said. “We’ve found him.”

“Where?”

“Adrian’s in Germany. Has relatives there. He’s laying low.”

“What’s the next step?”

“We’ll talk to him. Make sure he behaves.”

“Shay?”

“I know.”

“Don’t—”

“So, how’s the move going?”

“Good.”

“I’ll see you tonight?”

“Looking forward to it. Shay?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you, for everything. I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“I appreciate that, Cam.”

“Assign your staff to Chrysalis,” I said. “I want you to enjoy this evening.”

“That an order?”

“It is.”

I killed the call.

Whatever was going on in Germany right now was out of my control. And I hated that feeling.  

The last time I’d been in here, Zie had delivered that skewered news about what she believed was going on at Charlie’s. My gaze roamed the table, chairs, and artwork.

That session with Zie and Laura rolled through my brain like the dark memory it was, yet with all this talk of closure and moving on I felt like the one who needed resolution now.

At my feet lay that trash can I’d mused over briefly, and curiosity led me to kneel and rummage through the few papers within. Laura cleaned out her handbag each day and here lay a trail of evidence.

How remarkable that one small piece of paper—a drink receipt from the Pump Lounge in Santa Monica for two margaritas could deliver the truth. It had been there all along, right in front of me, only Zie’s presence had thrown me off from seeing it. Being on the defensive, no part of me had thought to come out fighting. I’d merely needed to see her happy again.

And happy Zie was, in her new relationship with her smart and pretty girlfriend.

Laura breezed in with the air of someone carrying the new title of director of the clinic, and I was reassured I’d be handing over the office to such a dedicated professional.

“How are you doing?” she asked.

“Everyone took it well, so there’s some reassurance.”

“You’re making the right decision.”

“Thank you, Laura. I feel that way too.”

“Mia’s okay with moving to New York?”

“She’s excited. She’s leaving behind her best friends, but I’ve promised to fly Bailey and Tara out whenever they want.”

“That’s nice of you.”

“Least I can do. Couldn’t have done this without her.”

“Sure you could.”

“She’s been my rock.”

“Look after her.”

“She’ll always be my priority. I’m reassured you’re our new director, Laura. Please, don’t hesitate to call me should anything come up.”

“I’m sure I will.”

“So dinner tonight?”

She hesitated. “I’m meeting a friend.”

I unraveled the receipt.

She stared at it.

The way Laura had stared at Zie, the way she’d touched her knee to comfort her, her blushes when Zie’s sexual past was discussed all gave her away.

“How long?” I said.

“Excuse me?”

“How long have you been dating Zie?”

She swallowed hard and blushed. “That’s very presumptive.”

“She tastes amazing, doesn’t she?” I whispered it.

Laura’s blush reached her neck. Her carotid pulse subtly quickened and her stance changed as her thoughts carried her all the way to Zie. Perhaps to last night, or this morning. Wherever her thoughts took her it caused her pupils to dilate, her nipples to harden.

I raised the receipt. “Two margaritas. One blended, just how you like it. The other straight...”

She cringed when she realized.

“Well?” I said.

“Please don’t tell anyone.”

After what I’d put Mia through I was hardly innocent, but Laura didn’t need to know that. “Laura, why not tell me?”

“Zie begged me not too. She really did need to get over you. Her love for you was affecting us.”

“So you’re both hoping to start a family?”

“It’s on hold for now. I need more time.”

“She’s a manipulator. She used you to get to me.”

“How dare you.”

“You’re too far gone to see it.”  

“You’re an arrogant ass sometimes.”

“I dated her, Laura. I know Zie very well. I know her M.O.”

“You’re wrong. She loves me.”

“So you’re meeting her for dinner?”

She gave a nod.

“Pass on a message to her from me.”

Her shrug told me she would.

“Tell Zie that if she every contacts me or my family again, which includes Mia, I’ll have a restraining order placed on her.”

“You’re an insensitive bastard, Cameron.”

“Really?”

“Yes, you are.”

 “You can’t see it, Laura.”

“See what?”

“You made both me and Mia vulnerable. An intolerable mistake.”

“How?”

“Zie used her pussy to get to me. And you let her.”

“Actually, I seduced her.”

“Yes, I’m sure it seemed that way.”

She glared. “Zie and I are perfect together.”

“Good to hear. Now tell your pussy partner to get her kitty cat claws out of my back or I will personally declaw her. And it will be bloody.”

Silence creeped in and backed me up with its intensity.

Laura stared at me. “I’ll tell Zie to back off.”

“I appreciate that.”

“I’m sorry, Cameron. I should never have had that session. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“Better,” I said. “Are you ready to run this place?”

“Yes,” she whispered. “Cameron…forgive me.”

“She better not hurt you.”

“You still care about me after what I did?”

“I can handle Zie.” I scrunched up the receipt and threw it back in the trash. “The question is, can you?”

She looked stunned.

“I’ll always be here for you,” I reassured her. “Just remember she’s dangerous.”

“I love her.”

“Call me. Anytime. We can share war stories.”

CHAPTER 25

MASQUERADE MASKS WERE worn by everyone.

The vibrancy of a Chrysalis party was well underway, with our guests donning the usual attire. Even some of the women dared to wear half corsets, with their masters by their sides. Now and again the roles reversed, with women leading men on thin chains.

From up here on the top step of Chrysalis’s staircase, Richard and I both sat side by side, surveying the guests who continued to trickle in, and those who had mingled within the foyer before setting off to explore. There would be plenty for them to see tonight—everything from dungeon play, the spanking rooms, and even a private tour of the stables.

Richard and I too had worn our finest bespoke black tie suits, our masks secured, that usual anticipation rising…

The dramatic notes of a soprano singing Richard’s favorite opera, La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi, carried from the great hall. How I loved this complex, brilliant man with a penchant for danger and the most forgiving heart of anyone I knew, other than Mia, of course.

With him by my side, I’d ruled this empire with a fierce control. The irony was not lost on me that the function of Chrysalis was to offer a safe and secure place in which complete surrender could be realized and freedom from selfhood guaranteed.

A sanctuary for the sexually elite.

Shay had increased the security and no one was getting in unless he personally sanctioned it.

Our attention was momentarily pulled to that passionate couple to the left of the stairs, their wild lovemaking against the wall having drawn a small audience.

The mood sent a crackling electricity through the air.

No one could throw a party like us. Even a few of our leather clad ponies had been set free for the evening and allowed to wander among the guests. Their tails were made out of real horsehair, and their erections stood as proud as the men who wore them. Some held hands, while others wove in and out of the crowd, making new friends and hugging old ones.

An hour ago I’d gathered my staff and delivered the news I was leaving. Most had taken it well. Though not Penny, Scarlet, or Lotte. They’d begged me to change my mind. This was not how things were meant to go.

We all knew that.

I’d created this safe haven for other likeminded members and the director leaving was unfathomable. Life had a funny way of changing plans right after you’d made them.

Chrysalis, an avant garde lifestyle I could no longer partake in.  

I’d given my final order to Scarlet and Lotte—

“Prepare Mia.”

They’d led her away and right now she’d be immersed in a sensual pampering in the spa, and, afterward, binding her in fine chains using Shibari.

Richard patted my back. “We’ve had some fun times, haven’t we?”

“The best.”

“I’m going to miss you, Cam.”

“Come visit.”

“You bet.”

“You do realize what you pulled off for me, don’t you?”

“You keep reminding me.”

“You saved us.”

“Yeah, well you saved me. We’ll be waiting for you.”

Now, more than ever, I realized how much I needed tonight. Mia had foreseen that leaving here wouldn’t be easy.

“You know what impressed me the most?” said Richard.

I turned to face him.

“Even after you believed I’d purposely lost all your money you still didn’t hate me. That was enlightening.”

“Apparently lack of sleep doesn’t look good on me.”

He leaned against me for a second. “Losing your friendship would crush me.”

“Never going to happen, buddy.”

“Dominic’s not taking it well.”

“Look after him.”

“Of course.”

I reached into my pocket and withdrew the gold key, a symbol of all I held dear, and handed it to him.

A smile slid across his face. “Never thought the day would come.”

The crowd mingled and the erotic tension rose. These stunning men and women would soon be immersed in everything from edge play, bondage, and public displays of affection that went beyond the ordinary.

I really was going to miss it.

“The Harrington Suite was always destined to be for the three of us,” he said softly.

“I know.”

“You haven’t been in there since you caught Zie…”

He was kind enough not to say the word orgy.

“Actually, I gave Mia a peek during her first tour,” I said.

“Interesting.”

“Mia wants this.”

He patted my back. “It may well be her last chance. Next thing you’ll be running for office.”

“Hardly. My hands are going to be full.”

Richard fiddled with his cufflink. “Shay’s taking the night off.”

“Yes.”

“Will he be in there?” he said. “Watching you?”

“No.”

Shay had selected a small crowd of doms and their subs to be present. Nothing too intimidating. Men and women who I had profiled and worked with over the years. My trust in their loyalty was solidified, and in their ability to know what was expected from them during a session when it was a sub’s first time on show.

“This session with her,” I said. “Now that it’s here…”

“The art of the performance,” said Richard softly. “Proving just how sacred sex really is.”

“I don’t want you in there, Richard.”

“I’m actually planning on a threesome.”

My gaze snapped to his. “Shay and Arianna?”

“You’re my inspiration.”

“Let Shay win sometimes.”

“I’ll take it under consideration.” He nodded toward the foyer. “Here’s your girl.”

Blinking into the darkened foyer, I spotted that iron cage being wheeled through, my submissive locked inside and stunningly bound in fine gold chains over her naked body. Her face was masked and her eyes scanned the crowd. Perhaps looking for me.

I patted Richard’s shoulder.

And then re-secured my mask.

Pushing myself to my feet and descending the stairs, I took my time to savor this ritual of initiating a new submissive.  

The entourage of ten doms, all wearing tuxes and masks, led the way into the vast ballroom that was the Harrington Suite.

The cage was lifted up and placed on a low table in the center. There was a womblike feel in here, with the drapes drawn and the deep red lighting flooding down from the long line of chandeliers.

Although aware of the small crowd who took their place not that far away, my focus rested on Mia. Beneath these lights, she looked ethereal—a stunning vision of blonde locks and beautiful eyes hiding behind a mask.

I approached her. “Told you I’d get you in a cage.”

Her gaze flittered toward the others—all ten masters with their subs now sitting at their feet. All of them seasoned, quiet, and respectful.

Song of Sophia
by Dead Can Dance oozed from hidden speakers, turning the heat up on this splendorous erotic tension.

Mia’s fingers tightened around the bars.

“Keep your eyes on me, Mia.”

To the left, a velvet drape hung over the table, and upon it was a selection of the toys I’d be using. That violet wand was ready to deliver high voltage sensations for sensual pain play, and that multi-speed wand was plugged in and ready. There were nipple clamps, and my favorite—labia chains to completely expose Mia and showcase the beauty of her sex.