Page 29 of Ashes

Victor takes me to an empty sofa in the back.

I keep looking around, but I don’t see any familiar faces, which isn’t a surprise.

A man is watching me, a glass in his hand, while a naked woman who’s kneeling between his legs gives him a blow job.

Everyone in here is in various states of undress. Some are just drinking and talking. Some are having sex.

A tingle surges through my core as I watch a naked couple making out.

As Victor and I take a seat, everyone’s attention turns to something else.

Maybe this isn’t as bad as I thought it’d be.

“Hello. Welcome to Gianni’s Pleasures,” a man says as he places a bottle on the table in front of us. “Since you’re new here, I think you might be interested in our special event.”

The man hands Victor a flyer.

I lean closer to Victor so I can see what it says, and he glances at me.

“There’s going to be a competition,” he says. “It’s like some kind of game. We have to do something, and each performance is rated by everyone who’s participating. The winner gets a special membership and access to the VIP area.”

“Does that include a meeting with Gianni?”

“Apparently, yes, but it’s intended to be a business opportunity.” His gaze lifts to mine.

“That’s exactly what we need, isn’t it?” I keep my voice low, so I have to lean even closer to him because the music is loud and there are so many other sounds.

“What will we have to do?” I ask.

“It doesn’t say.” He hands me the flyer and I take a closer look.

It’s a competition that includes more than one task.

Actually, it stretches over a few visits and not just one.

Shit.

How are we going to win?

We can’t even prepare for it because we don’t know what to expect.

It’s not going to be easy, but at least we can try.

I want to ask Victor if there’s a way to find out what we’ll have to do, but his gaze is trained on a couple across the room.

His jaw is clenched.

Something’s wrong.

I watch the guy Victor is staring at as he fucks a woman who’s bent over the arm of a sofa. He holds her hands trapped behind her.

But then my gaze lowers to her face.

Blank.

Her gaze is focused somewhere far, far away, and I don’t know if it’s because she’s drunk or high—I saw someone snort cocaine too as Victor and I passed them by.

Or because she’s not here willingly.