Page 15 of Tell Me Your Desires
Jaime’s stomach dropped, and she fought to keep her unwarranted anger in check.
She picked up the beer the bartender had deposited next to her and took a long, slow sip.
“Now, I said I wasn’t here on official business.
However, I can be. I have my badge and gun if needed.
I will come back in here flashing that shield to every fucking customer you have in here, asking extremely uncomfortable questions. Unless you find an opening for me.”
She was abusing her power. She knew it, and she was pretty sure Frank knew it. But he had enough wariness in him that he didn’t call her bluff.
“There’s no need for that. We can work something out.” Frank motioned for Jaime to follow him. “Prices depend on what you want. Full-service is…” He glanced back at her. She was wearing jeans, a V-neck tee, and a blazer with worn boots that had seen better days. “Probably above your pay grade.”
“Just give me a fucking price list. I’ll determine what I can and can’t afford. And I don’t want my name used. Or for her to know it’s me.”
Frank stopped abruptly. “I ain’t letting you ambush her.”
“Fuck, Frankie Boy, are you this paranoid with everyone? Or just the ones you think can’t pay even the minimum package?
” Jaime shook her head. “I need this to be anonymous, man. I’m sure you can understand the need for discretion.
And if she knows it’s me, she might refuse to let me in.
I was kind of a prick to her the last time.
I at least want a chance to apologize before she kicks me out. ”
Frank relaxed somewhat. “Yeah, fine. We can assign you a number.”
They got to his office, and Jaime placed a palm firmly on the door when Frank tried to close it. “This is enough privacy with you,” she said coldly.
He shrugged as much as he could and tossed her a sheet of paper with prices.
The ‘Full Package’ would run her a few months’ salary.
But it wasn’t sex Jaime was looking for.
She wasn’t ready to dig herself in that deep.
Not tonight, at least. She pointed at a mid-range package that included “’torture apparatus’ and touching but no sex.
“This one.” Doing this, choosing the amount of pain and torture you’re willing to go through with Frank looking on, was humiliating. Then again, so was wanting to fuck the prime suspect in a serial killer case.
Frank grinned a nasty grin. “Good thing you didn’t bring your handcuffs. Lady A has her own. They’re…special.”
“Just tell me how to pay and how long it will take to get back there.”
“Cash or credit. If you want to keep your name out of it, you’d best do cash.
There’s an ATM out on the floor. Lady A has a client with her now.
” Frank looked at his watch. “Probably another hour or so. You’re welcome to gamble or watch the titty show while you wait.
But first, I will need two thousand dollars to hold your spot. ”
Jaime clenched her jaw, willing herself not to reach out and punch the smug look off Frank’s face.
Keep it up, Dough Boy. Karma will be around soon.
“Fine.” She took a wad of money out of her pocket.
That was enough proof to herself and Frank that she was serious about doing this with Lady A.
“There’s half. You get me in there in the next thirty, I’ll give you a fucking tip. ”
"Number nine eleven!”
Jaime rolled her eyes at the number she was assigned. But, as she checked her watch, she saw Frank had made it right on the thirty-minute mark. Damn. Now I owe him a fucking tip. She raised her drink to the young woman who called out her number before downing it.
“Nine eleven?” the woman confirmed.
“Yeah, that’s me.”
“Follow me, please.”
Jaime scrambled to get up and follow the scantily clad woman back toward Lady A’s chambers.
Yeah, she remembered the way. She had thought of that room many times since.
And the woman behind those doors. Doors Jaime was now walking through again for a completely different reason than the last time she was here.
Her body felt that difference. Before she was confident, pissed, and on the job.
Now she was unsure if she was doing the right thing, her stomach wouldn’t settle, and it was Lady A who was ‘on the job.’ To say Jaime was unnerved was an understatement.
“You may disrobe in there,” her escort said, pointing to a red door.
“D-disrobe?”
“Yes. If you’re shy, you may put on the robe that is provided. I will be waiting.”
Jaime frowned with confusion. “You’re…staying?” This was supposed to be Jaime and Lady A. Not ‘One Night Only’ with a fucking audience.
“Only to get you set up for Lady A.” She nodded again at the changing room. “She doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”
Jaime took a breath, scanning the room before disappearing behind the door.
Her quick scan did nothing to calm her nerves.
The ‘torture apparatuses’ were on full display, and Jaime wondered if she had made the biggest mistake of her life.
You can always turn around and walk back out the door.
No! She was doing this. She had to do this…
for her sanity. She scoffed. How fucked up was that?
Jaime stood in front of the full-length mirror and began taking off her clothes.
She eyed the robe, contemplating. Jaime wasn’t shy about her body.
Hell, she was proud of it. Her five-foot-ten frame was slender and athletic.
An advantage in her line of work. Her bouts with the punching bag—something that happened more often than not these days—had given her body the definition it had lacked when she was happy with Taylor.
Still, she wasn’t sure she wanted to show it off to perfect strangers.
So, Jaime grabbed the silk robe and draped it around her before walking out again.
“Now what?”
The woman motioned for Jaime to come to her. “Hold your hands out, please.”
Jaime saw the handcuffs that were connected to a chain. “Uh.”
“You bought the Masochist Package, yes?”
Jaime was sure she was blushing from head to toe. Talk about willingly humiliating yourself, Baros. “Y-yes.”
“This is included. You may ask Lady A for permission to be released if you are uncomfortable, but it comes with punishment.”
Jaime held out her hands, flinching slightly when the cuffs were snapped around her wrists.
The woman then pressed a button, and the chain began to lift Jaime’s arms above her head.
Again, Jaime was reconsidering her decision.
Had she known this was part of the package, would she have picked it? Yes.
“Please bend your head down.”
Jaime lifted a brow but complied. Her much shorter ‘helper’ reached up and placed a blindfold over Jaime’s eyes. Fuck. She needed to see Lady A just as much as…whatever else was going to happen to her.
“Is the blindfold necessary?”
“Yes. You may ask Lady A for permission to remove it, but…”
“There will be punishment,” Jaime finished for her. “How long will I have to wait for Lady A like this?”
Jaime heard the faint click of a door as an answer.
She resisted calling out to see if anyone was there.
Instead, she focused on her sense of hearing.
It was quiet, but not silent in the room.
Soft crackling of a fire caught Jaime’s attention.
She hadn’t seen a fireplace, nor was it cold enough outside to warrant one.
Candles? She sniffed the air, catching the muted aroma of jasmine.
Jaime remembered that scent from the last time she was in here. Was that Lady A’s signature scent?
The air around Jaime was electric. And chilly.
She wondered if Lady A kept it this cold on purpose.
It put Jaime on edge. It wasn’t cold enough to be unpleasant, but her nipples certainly responded.
She heard a rustle. Or did she? Jaime couldn’t tell if her mind was playing tricks on her.
How long had she been in here? It was only a few minutes, right?
Was time standing still? Or racing? Where was Lady A?