Page 56 of Embers of You
“No, he rides a motorbike.”
“Of course he fucking does,” he mumbles, turning off the highway to Virginia Beach.
I pull my phone from my purse and call Drake. The call rings off, and I hit dial again. This time he answers.
“Kennedy, everything okay?”
“Jesus,” I breath out with a sigh.
“I was in the shower. What’s the matter?”
“Ash and I are on our way to meet with Stu and this guy Jonathan, but we have a tail.” When I messaged him last night, I gave him a very short message about meeting with Stu and his contact with no other details because I planned to meet with him after.
“Put me on speaker,” he tells me, and I do as he asked. “Asher, do you know where the Tainted Night is?”
“You’re fucking kidding me?” he says, shaking his head.
“No, I’m not. Just get there. I’ll let him know you’re coming.” He ends the call, leaving me staring at Ash in confusion.
“How do you know the Tainted Night?” I ask apprehensively knowing just who owns the Tainted Night. After getting the job at The Boulevard and my conversation with Penn about Jason and Luke, I did some research. It turns out that Luke’s brother owns not only a casino but also a high-end club called the Tainted Night. I didn’t find much because it’s exclusive, members only, but I did discover it’s not your usual club.
“Not how you think,” Ash says, glancing at me, gaging my reaction and trying to determine just how much I know about the place.
We turn down the next street, and I watch as the car behind us comes into view a minute later. As we reach the end of the street, I wonder where this place is when Ash veers off to the right, straight into a large parking lot. At the very back is a huge warehouse, or what was once a warehouse. The sign outside makes it very clear it’s no longer that.
Driving down the lot, Ash parks a few feet from the entrance just as the door opens and a man in tight black jeans and black t-shirt steps out. He has his long light brown hair tied up in a messy top knot, both arms are tatted and jacked as all hell. Holy shit!
I look behind to see the car following us turning around just inside the entrance to the lot before speeding off back down the street. My door opens and Ash holds out a hand for me. I step out and he pulls me tight against him as we walk to greet, who I’m guessing, is Luke’s brother, Dom.
As we reach him, Ash steps forward, holding out a hand. “Long time no see, Dom,” Ash says, as Dom takes his hand and pulls him in to bump shoulders.
“You got that fucking right, Ash. Trust you to turn up on my door when trouble is fucking following you too,” Dom admonishes lightly, and I pick up on an accent— Irish possibly. He turns to me as he steps back. “I’m going to hazard a guess and say you must be Kennedy.” I frown but nod. “Seems you’ve made quite the impression on my brother and Jason down at The Boulevard. Let’s get inside. Drake’s on his way.” He steps to the side, holding out an arm for us to go first.
Ash wastes no time in stepping through the open door, and I’m going to fucking guess he’s been here before. The thought leaves a slightly sour taste in my mouth. As if he knows what I’m thinking, he leans into me, and whispers, “I told you, it’s not what you think, Kenz.”
“Okay,” I say, but there’s no conviction there. I’m struggling to believe that a man like Ash, a man who likes to dominate in the bedroom hasn’t played here before.
“This ain’t his jam, Kennedy,” Dom says, as he passes us, leading us through the club.
My eyes snap to Ash, who mutters, “Asshole.”
Dom’s reply is a deep from the gut laugh. “He’s a fucking pussycat. But if you’re interested, Kennedy, I can hook you up—”
“Fuck you, Dom!” Ash growls, darting toward Dom, who lets out another deep laugh as he steps back, holding his hands up. “Come on, man, you know I’m just kidding.”
I ignore them both as Dom steps behind the bar, placing two bottles of water on the top. I look around and can see how stunning this place must look at night when it’s in full swing. Swing being the operative word here. This place is for those who like a little pain or degradation with their pleasure, or even an extra person or two.
The ringing of my cell breaks my exploration of the place, and I quickly answer it.
“Kennedy, where are you?” Stu demands as soon as I answer.
Not wanting to tell him where I really am, I explain about the tail and tell him we stopped at a coffee shop. Deciding it’s not a good idea to risk meeting with Jonathan, he agrees to convince Jonathan to share what they know some other way.
Drake arrives in just under an hour and looks pissed as he stomps through the club to where we are seated in a corner booth with Dom trailing behind.
“You didn’t think you should have told me what you were up to this morning?” he demands as he reaches us.
“I didn’t find out till late last night, and I sent you a message, Drake.” I snap back at him, narrowing my eyes.