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They all stepped away from the desk, making way for another group waiting to get their bands and likely listen to a similarly entrancing speech from the horned woman. There was something unique about her voice, perhaps a compulsion to make sure patrons paid attention.

“Are we ready?” Rima beamed as she turned toward Aivey and Vesta.

No.But Aivey never let the word leave her tongue. “As I’ll ever be,” she replied instead. That much was true. The first step was the hardest sometimes, and if she could just get inside, hopefully her worries would slip away. Until then, Aivey let her mind drift to her beloved Crathian mountains. With its soaring peaks dusted in pale purple snow, crisp air, verdant trees, and unique wildlife, there was no more peaceful and beautiful place in all of the galaxy. Which is why she’d made the mountains and their conservation the focus of her studies at the academy. Just the thought of it settled her.

“Which door do we want?” Vesta tossed her blond hair and drummed her black nails against one cheek. She’d gone simple and elegant with her look, sporting a sleeveless and short black dress in a similar style to Aivey’s shimmering silver one that highlighted all of Vesta’s generous curves.

“Actually…” Rima pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and wouldn’t quite look at her two friends.

Rima uncomfortable? Aivey closed her mouth before she gaped too long at her friend. She was never shy, not from the moment they’d met at orientation day when she’d marched straight up to Aivey, wrapped her in a hug, and proclaimed that she just knew they were going to be the best of friends. She had been right, after all.

“Do either of you mind if I pick a different one from you all and go on my own?” Rima continued. “It’s just, it’s hard to explain, but in all my dreams I’ve come alone, and I feel like I need to do this, you know? Live it out just like in my imaginings?” She continued to ramble, the words spilling out so fast Aivey nearly lost track.

“Rima…” Vesta whined, her shoulders drooping.

Splitting up, at least at the start, was not part of their plan. But now that Aivey looked closer, Rima had her hand tucked behind her back, her Incandescence bracelet out of sight. There was something about her selections she didn’t want her friends to see, even with their promise to uphold the club slogan once they got back home.

“Yes, of course that’s fine,” Aivey said, interrupting Vesta’s complaints. “We’re good.” She looped her arm through Vesta’s and started to turn her away.

“But—” Vesta began.

Aivey cut her off and kept them moving. For once, Aivey wasn’t the only one nervous, and from her extensive knowledge of the sensation, she knew there was nothing worse than other’s pointing it out or lingering over it. Her friend wanted privacy and space to sort out her desires? She could give that to her. With a wave back at Rima, she said, “Have fun! We’ll see you tomorrow!”

All trace of apprehension slipped away from Rima to be replaced by a blinding smile. “Tomorrow. Be back to the room by mid-morning or I’m going to worry. And we don’t want to miss our check-out!” She bounced on her toes and waved before hurrying off toward the far door.

“Seriously, what was that about?” Vesta asked as soon as they passed through their door. A long hallway stretched out before them, colorful dancing lights and thumping music flooding in from the other end ahead.

Aivey shrugged and released her friend. “If she wants to do this on her own, let her. It’s a safe environment. Besides, it’s not like we’re aiming to share.”

“Speak for yourself.” Vesta held up her bracelet with its golden band. “I’m hoping for at least a threesome. I mean, if we’re gonna do this, let’s go all-out, right?”

Aivey rolled her eyes. “You know what I mean. I don’t think you want me in the room when you enjoy,”—she gestured around—“all that.”

A wicked smile stretched across Vesta’s face. “I plan to be so full of cock that I won’t know or care who’s there.”

The beat of the music grew as they neared the end of the hallway, pulsing through Aivey’s chest and easing some of her nerves. This was just a club. She’d been to dozens of those. No big deal. And if she found some male to enjoy the evening with, great. Aivey sucked in a deep breath of the strangely crisp air that, in a way, almost reminded her of the mountains. She could do this.

The hallway ended in a massive room with multi-hued lights illuminating a number of figures dancing just before them. That was normal enough, but it was the raised platforms jutting up amid the dancefloor that Aivey couldn’t tear her gaze away from. People engaged in varied forms of public play for all to see. A blue-scaled Angrosian took an Earthean man from behind while he pleasured another with his hands. To the left, a female Taren rode both cocks of the massive figure lying on the platform below her. In the dancing lights, even more couples and groups played beyond them.

Nope. She was wrong. This was unlike any club she’d ever been to, and she’d only gotten her first glimpse of it.

Aivey’s mouth gaped open as she caught sight of the ceiling, or lack thereof. Spanning the width of the room was a clear floor atop of which others played in a separate area a level above.

“Wow!” Vesta exclaimed above the music. “And I thoughtIwas bold.”

With effort, Aivey tore her gaze away from the spectacle and glanced at her friend. It wasn’t shock or surprise glittering in Vesta’s eyes, but something much closer to envy.Stars.Thank goodness Aivey hadn’t mentioned being nervous, even though she had a right to be. Vesta probably would have laughed until her sides hurt.

“Well, should we grab a drink first?” Vesta suggested.

That was something familiar, something she could do. “Yes. A drink. Let’s do that.”

chaptertwo

With a little boozein her system and the newness worn off, Aivey finally didn’t feel like rushing for the door at every moment. Two long and sweeping bars lined either side of the main room. Toward the back, hallways branched off, weaving around smaller rooms with lounges, slightly less public displays, and some locked private rooms. Aivey even enjoyed watching a couple entangled in a swinging contraption on the stage in one of the lounge rooms.

Not that she was ready to run off with anyone herself yet.

Hooking up was never exactly easy for her. Okay, it wasn’t easyat all. There was always that fear that a stranger, or even an acquaintance, might leave her feeling less than satisfied or with morning-after regrets. In fact, she regarded hookups a lot like one of her favorite treats, Sweetened Duran Milk. On the surface it seemed incredibly enticing, promising something sinfully sweet that would tingle through her veins, flush her cheeks, and have her pressing her lips together with barely contained glee.