KNOX


    I watch from behind the one-


    way ss as the new recruits take turns being interviewed for the private exotic dance sessions. Most of them try too hard. A few don''t try at all. And then there


    are the ones who know exactly what they''re selling-


    and exactly who they''re selling it to.


    The girl on the pole now is one of those. Sparkling lingerie. Legs toned. She''s upside down, her thighs gripping the metal with skill. Her head is angled like she''s weightless, and her hair brushes the stage floor.


    I don''t know why I''m even here. The judges are more than capable of handling this process without me breathing down their necks. I haven''t sat in on a recruitment in months, maybe years. Yet here I am, arms way mirror. I could say it''s just a quality control check.


    But that''d be bullshit.


    I know why I''m here.


    Sloane.


    The woman with short hair and blunt bangs who promised to meet me two hours after work. I check my watch again. Maybe for the millionth time. An


    hour more.


    That stubborn woman won''t just move in and put me out of my damn misery.


    And maybe it''s


    got something to do with Jade still camping out in my house. Wouldn''t me her. He''s been pissed off at the worldtely, throwing punches around. Hell, he''s clocked more defaulters in the past two weeks than fast those fists of his move.


    "Going somewhere, boss?" my number two club manager, Levi, asks from where he''s standing beside me.


    I nce at him. "Why?"


    "You''ve been staring at your watch like you''ve got somewhere to be."


    "I have a date."


    His eyebrows lift. "With your girl?"


    "Yeah."


    "That same one?"


    "Really?"


    He holds up his hands, grinning. "I''m just saying...


    you screwing Jade''s wife''s daughter seems kinda incesty. You and Jade are like brothers."


    "I don''t think you understand the concept of incest, Levi. It would be incest if I were screwing Jade. That''s if we''re going with


    your statement about him being my brother."


    "So what should I call it then? Keeping it in the family?"


    "It''s called a rtionship."


    "Ha! Who would have thought." He nudges my elbow. "When are you gonna bring her over here, boss? Show her around, Scard her a little, fugte thos cute bangs of hers". "Not happening."


    "I don''t think that''s a wise idea," he says, shaking his head. "See how it turned out for J7 Man''s in shambles."


    "Unlike Jade''s wife, Sloane knows what this club is."


    "It''s one thing to know. It''s another to see and still ept you. All my first dates were here."


    "It''s no wonder you can''t keep them past the first date."


    He grins. "Why would I want to keep a girl who doesn''t like what I do for a living? I bet you haven''t told her about the times you used to indulge, fight? How you got the old man to sell this ce to you?"


    "We''re not having this conversation, Levi."


    "You''re gonna regret it."


    I turn to leave. "I''ll be in my office."


    As I walk, I can still feel Levi''s words


    circling my head like flies around a carcass. And the worst part? Some of them buzz louder than I want


    them to.


    Sloane hasn''t freaked out about


    the club. Not once. Whenever it''s mentioned, she stays neutral. Calm. Unbothered.


    But what if she just doesn''t know what she''s supposed to be bothered by?


    When people hear sex club, they picture dim red lights, sweaty orgies, backroom sleaze. Leather and chains and creepy dudes in masks.


    But then there are sex clubs-


    and there''s Obsidian. Whole different animal. This ce isn''t just exclusive. It''s legendary. There''s a reason half the city whispers the name like it''s some underground cult and why security stays busy handing


    People don''te here for


    champagne and tamep dances.


    to bleed their desires


    Theye to


    out. Every filthy fantasy, every unspoken kink they''re too afraid to name out loud anywhere else-this is where theye to live it. And yeah, sometimes they take it too far. Push too hard. Forget there''s a line. That''s when fists fly. That''s why Obsidian stays Obsidian.


    What if I actually brought her in, let her see it all? Not the cleaned-up


    version, not the sugarcoated pitch, but the real Obsidian. The heat. The shadows. The twisted beauty of what we do here. Would Levi be right? Would she look at me differently? Flinch? Walk?


    Even if I wanted to show her, I can''t. Not yet. Not unless I''m damn sure she''s madly in love with me. Because if I open that door and


    she leaves, I can''t be a grown man going through a heartbreak.


    I reach my office, swipe my card, and step inside. My chair creaks under me as I sit.


    A buzz vibrates in my pocket.


    I pull out my phone and see a message from Sloane.


    Sloane: ''Can we move the date toter tonight? I''m having dinner with my bosses.''


    I groan out loud.


    My secretary booked that restaurant a week ago.


    Me: ''Your bosses? When did you start having dinner with your bosses? Can''t your ditch them? Say your stomach hurts?''


    Sloane: ''They''re thinking of promoting me. Talking about cramps is just going to remind them why they don''t like putting women in power, I have to go, Knox. I''ll meet you at your ce after work.''


    Goddammit.


    This has Hunter''s name all over it. That smug bastard. He probably wasn''t kidding about that apology letter after all. At this rate, I might just scribete: some half-


    assed sorry just to make him stop. Or better yet, find him at that cigar club of his and settle it the old-


    fashioned way-no paper, no signature Just two men, a room, and fists.


    God, what''s wrong with me?


    A promotion''s not a bad thing. On


    paper, it''s a win. But I know how this


    city works.


    I''ve seen what the top


    the


    floor does to people, especially. ones with titles thate with corner offices and 80-hour weeks.


    These 9-5 warriors barely sleep. Some of them stumble into Obsidian after midnight begging for massages that end in orgasms, just so they can feel like humans again. If Sloane climbs thatdder, she''ll be gasping for air before long


    And me? I''m already


    busy as hell. If she starts clocking those hours, Hunter gets what he wants-


    distance, Silence. Weak spots.


    Im the phone down.


    A whileter, while I''m going through some files, there''s a buzz.


    Again.


    Hunter.


    Hunter: ''Howdy there, Knox boy. Did your girlfriend tell you she''s about to get promoted? Oh, don''t panic. She''s in the right hands. I''ll have her meeting with the top people in the country who''ll steal her away fro on for corporate men.


    I grind my teeth. Hunter and his petty games. I''m going to kill him.


    Me: ''Is this about your stupid apology letter?''


    Hunter: ''We''re way past that now, buddy. You had your chance. Just a sec. Sending you a pic of herughing with our biggest shareholder. Your girl''s


    ambitious.''


    And then ites.


    A picture.


    Sloane,ughing across a table at some upscale restaurant. She''s in profile, face tilted slightly toward the camera. Definitely Hunter''s camera, as he isn''t in the picture. The man beside her has on dark sunss tipped cane between his knees.


    Wait a minute.


    I zoom in.


    It''s T-Bone.


    "What the hell?" I say out loud, sitting up.


    What is Mateo doing acquiring shares in a tech firm? Not just any firm—


    Sloane''s firm. No. This isn''t a coincidence. Not after that weird, clipped run-


    in we had at the kickboxing club. That son of a bitch is up to something. And I''m pretty sure I know why.


    I forward the photo to Aaron.


    Me: ''Get someone to ID that restaurant. Now. And run a background check on a man named Mateo Torres. This is him in the picture."


    I grab my jacket, phone in hand, and storm out of the office, hurrying to the elevator.


    Sloane doesn''t know what Mateo is.


    But I do.


    And if he thinks he''s going to worm his way into her life with revenge in mind, he''s got another thinking