On the surface she was everything he loved about women. Not a hair out of place. She was dressed in an angelic white corset and a tiny thong that showed off a set of legs that seemed to go on for miles. She was perfectly tanned, her breasts a nice size and likely extremely firm because he was pretty sure they were like the rest of Starr—utterly fake.
She showed no expression as her Master led her along. She simply obeyed and when Master Will stopped in front of them, she sank with perfection to her knees beside him, her eyes cast down.
Perfect nails. Perfect body. Perfect submission.
Why did she leave him cold?
“Karina, have you heard the news?” Master Will’s eyes had softened, his voice going low as though he handled all the subs with the most delicate of hands.
Karina stopped and he could tell from the sudden flush of her skin that she’d gotten emotional. About Amanda. He wasn’t sure what she’d told anyone about her connection to Amanda so he kept his mouth shut, merely standing behind her and placing his hands on her shoulder in a show of support—and a caveman-like “girl is mine” gesture. Yeah, that was in there, too. Master Will looked to be in his early thirties, fit, and not unattractive. Hell, the subs at Sanctum would likely be all over the guy. But Karina wasn’t going to be.
“News?” While her skin had flushed slightly, her voice was cool and composed.
Yes, she could definitely handle herself and he wasn’t going to play poker with her anytime soon.
“Sweetheart, you need to watch yourself. I think someone’s working the club circuit. According to some of my cop friends, there have been several females killed in the last couple of months who attended clubs like this one.” The big Dom put a hand on his sub’s head as though trying to comfort her. As far as Derek could tell, Starr didn’t need comfort. Her expression never changed. She simply stared down at the floor. “I’ve talked to some of the Doms here and we want to institute new rules. The management here sucks and we all know it so the new bartender and I decided we should make sure the subs all have an escort into and out of the club, and then you should have a Dom you can call when you make it home all right.”
Sean was the new bartender, and he’d just instituted one of Sanctum’s most rigidly followed rules.
He didn’t even like to think about what happened if a sub didn’t follow the rules at Sanctum. That would not be an erotic spanking. Despite Sean’s best intentions, it might be harder to implement here.
O’Donnell and the Brit split duties escorting Karina when she was playing at Sanctum. What would it feel like when their contract was done and he wasn’t the guy taking care of her?
“That sounds like a good idea.” There was a smile in her voice. She would be encouraging the poor kid. Who hadn’t thought of a couple of problems with the scenario.
“How well do you know the other Doms?” Derek asked.
Will frowned. “They seem like great guys.”
Amateur. “So did Ted Bundy. As for that, I don’t actually know you so I don’t think I’ll have you escorting anyone. How do I know this isn’t a ploy to get a sub alone? The parking lot out there doesn’t even have security lights. You could get a sub in the dark and do what you like with her and all in the name of protecting her.”
Will’s shoulders squared. “Who the fuck are you?”
“I’m Karina’s Dom.”
“I thought you said you didn’t have a Dom.”
“She lied.”
Karina shot him a look that could have peeled paint off the walls. If they had thought to actually paint the walls anyway. She turned back to Will with a gracious smile. “He’s my ex. My current. Gosh, I don’t even know how to classify us half the time. We’re one of those crazy on-again, off-again couples who can break up faster than we made up.”
Yep, there was a warning in there that didn’t actually scare him in the slightest. She could get as pissed as she liked. He knew what made her melt. He touched the nape of her neck, just a tiny reminder, and sure enough she shivered a little. “We’re on again and it’s going to stay that way. I’m Derek.”
“You a cop?” Will asked, his eyes narrowing.
It was interesting that he went there, though Derek had to admit EMTs worked with a lot of cops. EMTs, firefighters, cops, they were a little community and it wasn’t surprising that an EMT could peg him as a cop. “I used to be. I work for private security now. Got tired of getting my ass shot at for nothing.”
A hint of the truth was always the way to go.
“You know what they say.” Karina seemed to be doing her level best to smooth things over. “Once a cop, always a cop. One day he’ll learn some manners.”