Inside the Lines: Without a Trace series, a contemporary erotic romance novel Read Free Page B

more of that uneven grin. “Aye, well, that might’ve been me.” He scratches the back of his neck. “Stephen said ye needed a bit of help tonight.”
    And with that, I remember how pissed I am. “Stephen is a goddamn asshole. Do you even know what you’re doing here tonight? Did he give you the details?” If there is one thing I’m sensing, it’s a distinct lack of kink. Fin looks like he should have a blonde wife, 2.5 kids, and a house with a white picket fence.
    “Well, he wasna very specific with details, but he did mention that ye needed a cock.” His eyes crinkle even more at his bald language, his face turning brighter pink. “Seein’ as which I have one of those, I should be able to help ye.” His brogue thickens with his embarrassment.
    “Christ. I’m glad Stephen narrowed the whole evening down to a male organ.” I glare at Fin. “Men.” I turn and storm away, leaving Fin to follow. I feel like I have an enormous shadow behind me, and I realize I have to have this conversation away from the room’s door, or Ari will hear it. So I turn on my heel and confront him mid-hallway.
    I crane my neck to make eye contact. “Never mind. Just go home. I’m canceling this nightmare before it gets out of hand.”
    He lays a hand on my shoulder as I turn away, his heat searing my bare skin. “Wait, now. Look.” He drops his hand and stops a beat until I meet his gaze. “I ken I’m not the charmer Stephen is, but I ken a fair bit about what he does. I think I can handle it. And he mentioned that ye were a Dominatrix, and that ye’d be runnin’ things, so ye can just tell me what to do.” He bites the inside of his lip. “I’ll do it.”
    The cheer in his eyes pisses me off. “This is a joke to you. You can barely keep from laughing.” I shake my head at him, my temper undoubtedly turning my own skin pink. “This is not funny. The woman on the other side of that door,” I point down the hallway, “is terrified of letting herself go. She has a hard time enjoying sex because of assholes who ridiculed and abused her rather than making her feel beautiful and aroused. I will be damned if I will let you anywhere near her. Not when you think this is some kind of goddamn joke. You are—”
    “Lux, I’m sorry. I wasna laughing at ye or anything about this.” He steps closer, and I get a whiff of some kind of creamy, spicy cologne mixed with...him, probably. And it’s delicious. “But ye have a feather here,” his hand reaches towards my hair and plucks something from it. “And it wiggles, the angrier ye get.”
    I glare at the offending feather and snatch it from him. It’s from one of the props I brought with me, and the delicate fringe crushes easily in my palm. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. If I cancel this, Ari will be heartbroken. I’ve fielded half a dozen texts from her already this week, thanking me for doing this and asking nervous questions. After six months of meeting with her, we’re finally at the point of fulfilling her deepest fantasy. And there are worse-looking men to have in your fantasy than this one.
    “You cannot, I repeat, cannot fuck this up. You listen to me, you do exactly what I say, and you never step a toe out of line. Am I clear?” Even to my ears, I sound like a total ass, but surprisingly, Fin only nods.
    “Aye.”
    “You will call me Mistress Hathaway, as none of my clients know my real name.”
    “Of course.”
    “You’ll strip down to your underwear when we get inside, and you will not approach the bedroom or Ari until I say so. Got it?”
    He nods, his face solemn, though I can still see the laughter in his eyes. “After ye, Mistress,” he says with a small bow.

Chapter 4
    Three’s a Crowd
    After I’ve briefed Fin on his role in tonight’s scene—with hopefully less ire than I displayed in the hallway—I retire to the bathroom to change into my own garb. I selected a deep scarlet corset with black thigh-high nylons and black stilettos. I