There’s a new Dom, and I see the way he looks at me. I think he’s following me.
I think he wants to kill me.
Sometimes she wished she’d never found her sister’s notebook, never read the last few months of entries. Then she could have simply mourned her and tried to move on.
She could have believed the police reports about the accident.
She would never have known that her sister had been murdered.
“Of course.” Dani stood up and straightened out her skirt. “Julian is a sweetheart once you get to know him. I wish you would let me put you up here, but I’m willing to be patient. What I’m not willing to do is throw that reception without you. We need to find the perfect dress.”
She wanted to argue. God, the last thing she wanted was to be in a room with Hollywood hotshots. The reception was still weeks away. Maybe she would find her sister’s killer and potentially cause an even bigger scandal than she had before and get her ass fired. Julian Lodge might find out she was trying to prove one of his powerful club members killed her sister, and he would bury her. Problem solved.
It was the way her world seemed to go.
She gave Dani what she hoped was a conciliatory smile. “All right. I’ll consider it a work expense.”
“No, you won’t. It’s a uniform. I’m paying.” Dani started for the door. “Let’s have lunch tomorrow. I want to hear all about the training Dom Julian found for you. He’s being all secretive about it. I’m kind of excited.”
Vanessa nodded. “Absolutely. I’m excited, too.”
“I can tell.” Dani gave her a wave and was gone.
And they called her a bad actress.
Vanessa sat back with a sigh. She had a couple of hours before she had to meet the man who would walk her through the world her sister had occupied.
The world that had cost Nicki everything—including her life.
It was a world she would take down if it was the last thing she did.
Chapter Two
Michael stepped inside the dungeon and had to appreciate the differences between The Club and Sanctum. It reflected the differences between the owners, and probably the people who frequented each.
Sanctum had an industrial feel and a loud, vibrant energy. The Club was old-school beautiful, with elegant lines and an edge of danger that matched Julian Lodge. Though it wasn’t technically open right now, he could imagine a hushed, reverent crowd in this place.
“Have you ever been here before?” Julian stepped out of the elevator that had brought them from the lobby to the dungeon. It was a private elevator, and there had been a security guard who had tipped his head as Julian had approached. If it had been anyone but Julian, the guard would likely have reacted differently.
Security was tight here, but it potentially hadn’t kept out a thief. Julian had indulged his wife and perhaps let someone into his home he shouldn’t have.
“I’ve been in the building, of course. I haven’t been in the dungeon. It’s nice.”
“I’m sure Ian would say something like it looks like a French brothel. Well, he would use a coarser word. He says French because it’s the most elite descriptor he can think of and therefore some kind of insult, but the man literally met his wife in Paris, so don’t let him fool you.” Julian started down the hallway where they were met with another security guard at her post. “Ellie, how are you, dear?”
The pretty redhead gave Julian a bright smile. “Excellent, Master Julian. Your appointment is already here. I showed her to the conference room. There’s tea and some snacks. Mr. Malone, is there anything I can offer you during your meeting?”
“Tea is fine.” He needed a Scotch to get through this, but that wouldn’t do when he was supposed to be a stern, in-control Dominant. Or a charming one. He would have to assess what was needed to get the best hold on the target. Mostly what he thought would attract her was his family name and money. But first he had a question. “Jones? She’s going by her maiden name again? I would think she would hold on to Benedict as long as she possibly could.”
He’d dressed for this first meeting in one of the slick suits he kept around for more formal occasions. He didn’t need a suit in the office.
But he was going undercover, and that meant dressing the part. Including the Tiffany and Co. cufflinks he rarely wore and the Rolex his parents had bought him last Christmas.
“I think you’ll find Ms. Hale has gone through a bit of a metamorphosis since she left Houston,” Julian allowed as they continued down the hall. “I believe she’s trying to reinvent herself.”
He decided to ask the question no one had asked yet. “Julian, if you don’t want her here, why hire her in the first place?”
Julian stopped and turned his way. His dark hair was slicked back, and there was a hint of gray at his temples. He was dressed in all black, from his three-piece suit to the loafers Michael recognized as Gucci and ridiculously expensive. In the low light, his dark eyes seemed obsidian. It was easy to see why some people referred to this man as the devil himself. “I didn’t hire her at all. Danielle did, and she did not ask for my input. I’m afraid over the years my wife figured out how intelligent and independent she could be, and she does not compromise when it comes to her own business any more than I would.”
“But you funded her business,” Michael pointed out.
“No, I invested in her, and it paid insane dividends. Investing in Danielle has paid off in ways that have nothing to do with money and everything to do with peace and joy and light in my world.” There was passion in the man’s voice, and Michael realized that even the devil could love someone. Or in Julian’s case, two someones.
“She also makes a lot of money,” a lighter voice said. “She started out with one spa in a tiny town in East Texas. It catered to kinksters. She’s moving into the big time now, and that’s what our husband is worried about.”
Finn Taylor was waiting in front of what was likely the conference room the guard had mentioned. He was shorter than Julian, light to the man’s dark. From what Michael understood, Finn had once been a small-town kid. He looked very much like the high-powered attorney he was today. He also had that smile on his face that Michael didn’t understand, the one his brother got when his sister-in-law walked in the room. The one his dad still had around his mom.
Julian moved in, crowding Finn and reaching around to cup the back of his neck. “You know why I worry.”
Finn’s face turned up, his smile slightly impish. “You’re worried our wife will find out you’re plotting behind her back, and then you’ll be in for it.”
Julian lowered his head to touch Finn’s and breathed the man in like he was pure oxygen. “Perhaps. But I also know there’s money missing from Danielle’s accounts, and that started when Ms. Hale showed up. She’s got a bad reputation.”
“So do you,” Finn whispered. “And she wants to be referred to as Vanessa Jones. It’s her legal name. Master, I know you’re worried, but don’t be less a man than you are because of fear.”
“Ms. Jones, then.” Julian kissed Finn’s forehead and then sighed and straightened up. “Is she ready?”