Grace’s eyes slid submissively to the floor. “I am sorry, Master. I would get on my knees, but I might never get back up.”
“Forgiven, love.” He sank one hand in her hair and his other went to the swell of her belly. He leaned in, their connection palpable. “You know why we haven’t been here. I’m worried about the baby and you. I’ll talk to friends while you deal with my brother. And maybe we can walk the dungeon when you get out.”
Grace’s face lit up. “Thank you, Master.”
Sean took her hand in his. It was obvious he wasn’t going anywhere until he absolutely had to. Jake wondered what it felt like to be that connected to a woman. Grace wore Sean’s ring, and a delicate gold chain around her neck marked her as his submissive. What would it be like to have a woman trust him the way Grace trusted Sean?
He must be getting old. He tried to get his brain back in work mode since it seemed he wouldn’t be playing tonight. Jake turned to Grace.
“Who is this Serena person?” Jake asked. He didn’t want to walk into that room without knowing a thing or two. Grace had been the one to bring her to his office, the unholy gleam of a matchmaker in her eyes.
Grace shrugged. “I don’t know. Ian sent me a message this afternoon that I should prepare the VIP treatment for her, but she’d already come and gone by then. I tried calling her place and leaving a message asking her to come back, but I got voice mail.”
Alex, Eve, and Liam walked past them, filing into what seemed to be the conference room.
Adam stayed behind. “What do you know about her? She said she was a writer. Have you heard of Amber Rose? I didn’t get a chance to look her up yet. She said she writes romances.”
Jake hadn’t had time to look at her work either, but he could bet they were sweet little books about true love where the couple consummated their union with a simple kiss. Amber Rose would never go for what they wanted. She would be shocked and horrified. It was their burden to bear that a woman like Serena was exactly what they wanted and exactly the type who couldn’t handle them.
Grace stopped and looked like she was about to hyperventilate. Her face flushed, and her mouth dropped open. “Serena Brooks is Amber Rose? Are you kidding me? Oh, my god! I have all her books.”
Sean’s brows rose on his face. “Amber Rose—as in Texas Sweethearts?”
Even the title was sugary sweet. “She writes a series called Texas Sweethearts? Is it an old-fashioned western?”
Grace shook her head. “No. It’s amazing. I’ve read them all at least four times. Sweetheart in Chains is my favorite. I’ve heard that Their Sweetheart Slave is coming out soon. I can’t wait. It’s Alexa, Caden, and Duke’s story. I’ve been waiting for it forever.”
“What?” Adam said, leaning in. “Are you telling me that sweet little woman who was in my office this afternoon writes porn?”
Sean winced. “Dear god, don’t call it porn.”
Grace frowned, a single finger pointed straight at Adam. “It isn’t porn. It’s erotic romance. There is a huge difference. Amber Rose writes hot love stories. And if you can’t handle it, then I don’t care. I love her books, and I wish I had known who she was when I met her. Erotic romance helped me figure out what I wanted.”
Jake shook his head. Grace read some rough stuff. He’d never actually read them himself, but he’d glanced through them when Grace had been under investigation. “Are you serious? Those books you read are all about BDSM.”
It was a little incomprehensible, but according to Grace there was a whole category of books that claimed to be BDSM romances. Female fantasies about bondage and pussy Doms who fell to their knees and let their subs walk all over them. Yeah, Jake hadn’t read those.
Grace nodded. “Yes, they have BDSM elements.” A little smile crept over her face. “And she also writes a lot of ménage.”
Sean laughed. “I forgot about that. Wow. That’s interesting.”
“You’ve read these books?” Jake asked. Ménage? There was no way. This was a joke.
Sean shrugged, his face flushing slightly. “I wanted to know what my wife reads. I will admit Amber Rose’s books are actually kind of good. There are several of those authors who write some pretty hot stuff. It’s very different from what I imagined. Not my bag or anything, but the books have actual plots and stuff. Along with some pretty freaky sex…loving, freaky sex.” He grunted as his wife elbowed him. “You are going to get so tied up after this baby is born. I’m keeping a running tab of all your punishments.”