Page 1 of Lesson In Honesty

Chapter One

Liam

“Good morning, everyone. Please, take a seat and make yourself comfortable.”

Already seated at the large octagonal conference table, Liam glanced to his left, checking on his submissive as people began taking their places around them. He wasn’t the only Dom who’d brought his significant other, thankfully, andSierra was dutifully keeping her social anxiety under control by sewing together the flat carcass of a stuffie with intricate little stitches.

Directly across from him, Evander and Elias commandeered the ‘head’ of the eight-sided table. Sandwiched between them, their wife tapped away on her laptop, no doubt writing her next bestselling book, with wireless headphones stuffed in her ears.

Beside them, Rory McCabe—more commonly known as Grit—took his seat as the new head of security. The guy looked insanely relaxed, which was probably due to the white-blonde pixie sliding onto his lap. He’d been through the kind of hell Liam was intimate with, only the outcome for Grit turned out to be a lot happier.

As everyone finally chose their seats and settled in, Liam studied the selection of Dominants with curiosity. He counted an additional ten strangers; six men and four women, all exuding the same powerful aura.

Liam checked on Sierra again, knowing she’d feel it pressing down on her.

Steadfastly, she pushed the needle through the material, drew the thread through, and repeated the process. If the number of new faces around them bothered her, she hid it well.

Elias remained standing, looking elegantly British in a charcoal gray suit and tie. As Evander’s right-hand man, he always dressed to perfection during business hours. “This is an exciting time for us all. We’d like to thank each and every one of you for being a part of Club Serenity as we transition from dream to reality. In just forty-eight hours, we open to the public.”

A pleased rumble hummed around the table.

“Many of you were able to attend the party we held at the weekend. Membership applications have jumped considerably in the following days, and we’re optimistic for a successful opening weekend.” Sharp blue eyes swept around the table.“Before we get into the pertinent details, we’d like you all to introduce yourselves; you all know us and how Serenity has come to be. Grit, would you like to start?”

“Um, sure, I guess.” Rubbing a hand over his beard, Grit cleared his throat. He looked less haggard than he had only a few days ago, but there were still hard signs of the strain he’d suffered for months. Silver was sneaking through his dark blond hair, his beard, giving him an edgier appearance. “I’m Rory McCabe, but just about everyone calls me Grit. This is my fiancée, Tabitha.”

Although she was comfortably settled on her lover’s lap, Tabitha’s eyes scanned the group with the intense scrutiny of what she was—a killer. After a scary few seconds, she relaxed and lifted her hand in silent greeting.

“We just moved from Phoenix,” Grit continued, although it was a half-truth;he’dmoved from Phoenix while Tabitha was making a proper home for the first time in her life. “My background is mainly in security; I’ve got over twenty years’ experience, the majority of which was spent at my last place of employment. If you’ve got any issues, come see me.”

Well, that was short and sweet, Liam thought. Obviously, Elias thought the same as his mouth twitched to repress a smile.

“To the point as always,” Eli said, then gestured to the silver fox on Grit’s right. “Merrick, if you please?”

Liam listened with half an ear as the introductions continued. He preferred watching facial expressions and body language to gauge a person. So far, he didn’t get any weird vibes off anyone.

They went through Merrick, a guy called Levi, two women named Felicity and Ericka. When Eli gestured to him, Liam sighed and turned on his bartender charm. “I’m Liam, this is Sierra.” He patted her thigh to get her attention; she lifted her head, eyes slightly unfocused, and gave everyone a nervous smile before lowering her gaze again. “We’re also transplantsfrom Phoenix. I’ve been the general manager and bartender at a club there for, hell, seems like most of my adult life. Personal circumstances dictated that we take a working vacation; thanks to Evander and Elias, we landed on our feet here. I’ll be training a permanent bartender and the staff over the next few months before we head home.”

A slightly built man on the other side of the table snickered. “Catch your fingers in the cash register?”

Sierra’s spine slammed straight with the insult. Before she erupted, Liam rested his hand on top of hers, turning his gaze on the speaker. “Excuse me?”

“Isn’tworking vacationusually code for being on the lam?” The guy threw his hands up in the air when tension seeped into the previously relaxed atmosphere. “Oh c’mon, take a joke. I mean, you’ve got the perfect accomplice, right? Send her in,” he said, chuckling as he pointed to Sierra, “let her rob the bank, then just rip the beard off so she blends into the crowd.”

For a moment, the room was quiet. Quiet but not restful. There were too many emotions starting to stir and boil over, many of which were Liam’s. Determined not to cause a scene, he squeezed Sierra’s cold, still hand and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, what’s your name?”

Evander rose, started to speak, but Liam just raised a finger.

“Blake.”

“Okay, Blake, let me walk you through a little scenario here. Let’s say you’ve just walked into my bar. My pride and joy, where the love of my life spends a great deal of time. You walk in and make a crack like that about a woman you don’t know, you’ve never met.” Struggling to keep his voice even, Liam saw Tabitha trying to slide off Grit’s lap. “What do you think happens next?”

Smirking now, Blake shrugged. “I get my ass handed to me by a stereotypical bouncer?”

What was this guy’s problem? There was a vein of hostility throbbing between them, which was ridiculous considering Liam had never seen the man before in his fucking life. Rather than wasting time deciphering the fuckwit’s motives, Liam just grinned.

Grinned like a sadist about to be let off his leash.

“Iamthe bouncer.I’m the man who makes the rules in my own fucking space, who enforces those rules to their limit.” Fists on the table, Liam stood slowly, allowing his darker side to bristle and flash in his eyes. “You’d be damn lucky to walk out of my goddamn bar with your legs and teeth intact.”