But then again…the fourth rule—you pay, you play—meant if she came to the club on a regular night, then she was expected to participate.
Oh hell yeah. He could totally push that rule if it came down to it.
“I don’t like the gleam in your eye,” Murphy half-snarled.
How could Murphy see that? Because Ben couldn’t take his eyes off the intriguing Angel. Hot damn. The sensual way she moved screamed of a submissive enticing a Dom, not a confident Domme luring an entranced sub.
“Bennett?” Murphy prompted. “Are you even listening to me?”
“Yep.”
“But?”
Ben drained his beer. “I wanna play with her.” It’d been years since he’d had such an overwhelming urge to possess a woman. To tempt, to treat, to teach, to punish…all at the same time.
“The gold bracelet she’s wearing means I can’t let that happen.”
Colored rubber bracelets were how members differentiated their designations. Gold bracelets denoted a dominant and required proof of previous experience as a dominant. Silver bracelets signified a submissive. A white bracelet meant the member was a switch—ready to play either role. A black bracelet meant in a committed relationship and off limits.
However, any member could request to change their designation, after discussing the reason for it, with either Murphy or Cody, the only two officially designated Masters at the Rawhide Club.
“I’m aware of what the bracelet means, Murph.”
“Are you?”
“Yep.” Ben slipped the bracelet over his hand and slid it across the bar top. “Give me a white bracelet.”
“Fuck no. This is ridiculous. Come on. What’s the deal with you tonight?”
Cody and Sully sensed tension and joined them at the bar, flanking Ben on either side. Cody spoke first. “Problem?”
“Only that Bennett wants to exchange his bracelet,” Murphy said.
“Christ, Bennett, you’re that bored with the selection of subs tonight? You’re willing to let one of these guys beat you and fuck you?” Sully asked with an edge of sarcasm.
“Fuck no.” He rested his elbows on the bar and they followed suit to keep their conversation private. “I don’t need to point out the woman wearing the gold bracelet, since she’s the only woman I’ve ever seen with a gold bracelet in this establishment. But I know better than to violate club rules and publicly question her right to wear it. So I asked Murphy to clarify why she deserved that status and he refused to provide details.”
Cody nonchalantly cast a glance over his shoulder. “I gotta agree with Bennett on this, Murph. The woman is out of her element, and I’ll eat my fucking keg tap if she’s got any real experience as a Domme.”
“Better give us the basics on her,” Sully added.
The big man stroked his fingers through his long black beard and looked at each one of them in turn, but spoke to Ben. “I told you. Angel is a friend of Layla’s. She’s here to see if this type of club would be a good fit for her.”
“She’s been involved in other clubs like this?”
“According to Layla, yes.”
“If that’s the case, then where does her previous Domme experience come in?”
Murphy sighed. “I argued with Layla about this, especially after she told me Angel’s only Domme experiences were in a controlled setting where she…ah…paid the dude so she could be in charge.”
Silence.
“So you’re telling me this woman waltzed into my club, expecting to be given the gold stamp of approval because she paid some dude from a male escort service to let her boss him around for a few hours?” Cody asked tightly.
Murphy nodded.
“So much for being the master of your house.” Sully snickered.
“Layla assured me that Angel only wanted the Domme designation as protection; she didn’t intend to use it besides to observe.”
“That’s an even worse reason for bein’ here. She’s a poseur,” Ben said. “She ain’t gonna get any real idea if she can handle this, even on a casual basis, if she can’t be honest with herself about what she is.” For Christsake, she’d worn a freakin’ disguise to the club. “I’ll bet you each a thousand bucks she’s submissive.”
A bet no one took, because in six years, Ben hadn’t been wrong even one time.
Cody pointed at Murphy. “You know we can’t let her in the club if she ain’t gonna play. How the fuck did you ever agree to breaking that rule?”