Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 146392 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 146392 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
Because then she’d been with Cooper all the time, working or at the club. She talked about cutting him out of her life, but the last few years had simply drawn them closer together.
“Think about it. We could take some leave, hit the British pub scene,” Kala mused. “Or Italy. Maybe someplace tropical. We could run through all the hot tourists.”
“I think I’ll pass.” She wasn’t sure why, but this conversation bugged her. “This isn’t about sex.”
Kala’s head shook. “But it is, and the last twelve hours should have proven that to you. I know it proved it to TJ. He’s never viewed you as his physical equal. He’s seen you as sweet and fragile, and the truth of the matter is you never viewed him as your mental equal. He was a cuddle bug to you. Cute and happy and he made you feel good. It was puppy love. What happened today was full-on adult dog something.”
She had a way with words. “It was sex. It wasn’t all that important. We both got emotional.”
Kala obviously wasn’t having it. “I could buy that the first time. Explain the conference room to me.”
“That was… I don’t know. I guess I hate the fact that no one thinks I’m a physical being. Everyone assumed TJ had made me do something and not that I took hold of his head and forced him to…do that.” It still rankled.
Kala snorted. “I know you have physical needs. I also know damn well you didn’t shove your pussy in his face and tell him to eat his fill. You are way more subby than that. Again, something he didn’t take into account. There’s a difference between being sweet and being truly submissive. Needing a dominant sexual partner to bring out your nasty side. Oww.”
Kala leaned forward because her dad had gently smacked her with a rolled-up newspaper.
Big Tag frowned down at his daughter. “No using the word sexual in my presence. Bad Kala. Bad.”
He kept moving toward the back of the plane.
“That’s right. Run away, you crotchety hypocrite,” Kala shouted.
“I should have brought my water spray bottle,” Big Tag shouted back. “All the puppies need training.”
Kala growled. “If he wasn’t my boss…”
“He’s your dad.”
“Wouldn’t matter,” Kala replied. “He did teach me the fine art of survival of the fittest. I would take him out in a heartbeat.”
She wouldn’t. Kala loved her dad, but the obnoxiousness was one of their ways of communicating, and she wasn’t going to let that get in the way of this seemingly important discussion. “We don’t know that I have a deeply submissive sexual side. All of my play at The Hideout has been for demo purposes only. It never got emotional or really sexual. I never found a top I wanted to do more with. I guess it seemed weird to even try to play in front of TJ. He didn’t play in front of me, though I know he does at the other club.”
“I think he blows off steam at Lodge’s place, and he tries to make sure Seth doesn’t get murdered. Seth has a love-hate thing with Chloe Lodge. I can’t tell if he loves to hate her or hates to love her. Either way, he could die.”
Chloe Lodge was the daughter of the infamous Julian Lodge. Who might or might not have mob ties. Probably not. He probably put that out there to scare the crap out of everyone, but he was an intimidating man, and not in the lovable Big Tag way. The fact that Kala’s brother had a weird thing for her was interesting. “I’m voting on death wish. But that doesn’t change the fact that he does play. Do you know if he’s ever had a sub?”
“No,” Kala answered. “TJ never plays with anyone for more than a couple of nights from what I’ve gotten out of Seth and Lucas.”
And that was what she really wanted to know. “So you watch TJ to make sure he doesn’t hurt me. Kala, you have to stop that. You have to let whatever happens happen. I need to know that you’re not going in behind my back and threatening the guys I date.”
“I haven’t done that since high school.”
Lou stared at her.
Kala sighed. “Okay, college. But nothing since then. I showed remarkable restraint not introducing myself to that douchebag professor you were seeing that first year teaching.”
He was only partially a pretentious blowhard. But they’d had so much in common. He’d understood her when she talked about abstract mathematical structures. He got her science jokes. He’d been her intellectual equal in every way. So why had he bored her? And she wasn’t a fool. She’d known why Kala hadn’t pushed to meet him. “You knew it wouldn’t last long. You knew you were close to getting your team and bringing me on. Did you have a single doubt I wouldn’t leave everything I’d worked for to follow you?”