Ripple Effect, page 20
part #1 of Effect Series Series
Brandt didn’t comment as we walked toward the security office. He knew I was right, but he liked hiding behind the work versus dealing with what was really bothering him—Nikola.
I was leaving the interviews for the security position. We had one good candidate out of the four we had talked to. Matt had a background in law enforcement. The ones from the staffing agency had been a no go. The agency said they had a few more for us to talk to, so we would see what we ended up with for potential employees. At least we would have someone, so I wouldn’t have to deal with that shit when Brandt couldn’t do it again.
I looked at the clock. Ainsley should be off work and on her way over by now.
Between what had happened with her mom, her studies, and watching Emilyn a couple of times this week, we hadn’t been at the club together in over a week. I still couldn’t escape the name man friend from Emilyn, Nora, or their mom, Nancy.
Getting back to our new room, I put Ainsley’s congratulatory gift on the bed. Technically, it was for me, too.
My phone vibrated. It was Ainsley.
Ainsley: I’m on my way. Had to stop and get something. Be there in ten minutes.
Me: What did you stop and get?
Ainsley: A surprise for you. I hope my Pleasure Buddy is charged up and ready. I’ve missed being at the club.
Me: Hell yes, I am. Hurry your sweet ass over here.
Ainsley: Yes, sir!
Her calling me her Pleasure Buddy reminded me of when we’d first gotten together. Things had definitely changed. I positioned the champagne bucket off to the side of the Tantra Chair. Then, I grabbed the silk piece of cloth and put it in my back pocket. Giving the room one last look, I was pleased with how it had turned out. Ainsley deserved to be treated special.
Walking toward the exit, I glanced into the lounge area. Trigger was helping arrange tables as Honey Pie was trying to hang all over him.
He looked my way. “Hey, Adam. Snake should be at the door in a second. Nora needed help in the cooler, and asked if I could help with the tables. Snake locked the side entrance since no one was there. He has the handheld monitor if anyone does come.”
Trigger and Snake knew I liked someone at the door all the time. They had received an ass chewing for not being there the night Ainsley had a near run in with the drunkards. I checked my pocket for my keys in case Snake wasn’t there yet when we came back to the door.
“Sounds good. I’ve got my keys. I’m going to get Ainsley. Consider me unavailable unless it’s an emergency.”
Trigger gave me a cocky grin as Honey Pie’s hands were getting higher on the inside of his leg. I had never messed with her as she was one who wanted multiple partners. As I thought about it, most of my partners no longer came here once we had gone our separate ways even though they were welcome to.
Grabbing his walkie-talkie out of his back pocket, Trigger said, “I’ll let them know, but I’m pretty sure they figured that one out.”
I shot him the bird, and he laughed.
Bastard.
As I walked out the door, Ainsley was getting out of her car across the street. I wished she would park closer, but I wasn’t going to press it. She gave me a little wave before pulling out a gift bag with that tissue paper stuff that people put in presents. She walked over and met me. Her blue eyes pierced me. The outside world and traffic faded when she came near me.
I gave her a kiss. “What’s in the bag?”
“A present for you. You can open it when we get to our Afterburn room tonight.” She gave me a wink.
Little did she know we were headed straight to our own room.
“Congrats on finishing your classes. Are you ready to celebrate?”
She nibbled my lip as a familiar Ford Explorer pulled into the parking lot. My arms were around Ainsley, and her back was to the parking lot as I brought my mouth to her ear. Right before I spoke, I recognized who was driving. It was my sister, Jessica.
Fuckity, fuck, fuck.
I didn’t want her to meet Ainsley yet. I wasn’t prepared for Jessica to go back home and blab to the family that I had a girlfriend.
I tried to sound unaffected as I softly said, “Let’s get inside.”
Ainsley took my hand and started leading us to the door. I looked back. Jessica had parked, and she was getting out of the vehicle as Ainsley and I cleared the entrance. Snake was there.
“Baby, hold on. I need to talk to Snake for a second. Will you wait for me by my office door? Don’t go in.”
Ainsley gave me an adorable grin and shook the bag with my surprise as she walked backward. “Sure. Your surprise will be waiting.”
“I’ll be right there.”
The moment she was out of earshot, I spoke to Snake, who had gotten off the bar stool, “Jessica is outside. Hold her at the door, and I’ll be back in a minute.”
“Will do.”
Shit. I do not want to have this conversation with Jessica tonight.
I jogged back to the office where Ainsley was waiting outside.
“Is everything okay?” she asked.
A few stray pieces of brown hair had escaped her ponytail, and I tucked them behind her ear. My mind was going a million different directions.
I readjusted my baseball cap. “I have a small issue to handle, and then it’s me and you, baby. Will you wait for me at the bar?”
Ainsley was watching me closely. “Would it be better if I came back later? I don’t want to get in the way of your work.”
“Fuck no. Just give me five minutes, and then it’ll be us for the rest of the night.”
She leaned up on her tiptoes and gave me a kiss. “Now, that sounds like a fair trade-off. Take as long as you need. I’ll talk to Nora. I don’t want to be in the way.”
We started walking to the bar. The place was starting to fill up. I looked over and saw that douche bag Tyler was here.
Shit.
This night was not going as planned. We should have been in our room. I gave Tyler that don’t-you-dare-think-about-it look and then turned to give Ainsley a quick kiss.
“I’ll be right back.”
She smiled. “I think you’re going to owe me an extra orgasm for making me wait. Did I mention I don’t have any panties on?”
Nora started coughing, and Ainsley’s face reddened when she realized her friend had overheard what she said. My dick was hardened. Ainsley was about to see what happened when you stoked the fire.
Loudly enough for Nora to hear, I responded, “This man friend is good for at least two extra orgasms after making his girl wait.” More lowly for only Ainsley to hear I said, “I’ll be exploring to see if you’re telling the truth when I get back.”
Ainsley pushed my shoulder. “Stop. Go. Hurry.”
She was giggling. As I walked away, I heard Nora say, “Well, hot diggity dang, someone is getting lucky tonight.”
I smiled to myself as I walked up to the side entrance.
Yeah, we’re both getting lucky tonight.
Snake nodded. “She’s right outside.”
Slapping Snake on the shoulder, I said, “Thanks, man.”
I walked outside as the sun was starting to set in the late afternoon. Jessica was leaning up against the wall. Her long brown hair was pulled up into a messy bun on top of her head. She was wearing a casual red summer dress.
She pushed off the wall. “Hey, how are you doing? I know you’re busy, but I need to talk to you.”
My sister was sweet and always tried her best to keep the peace in the family.
“Hey, I’m good. I know I haven’t gotten back with you on the anniversary party. I will soon, I promise.”
She checked her phone. Her brows crinkled. She was upset about something. “I’m meeting some friends in ten minutes for dinner a couple of blocks away. I saw you standing outside, and I figured I’d tell you the news in person. I’ve been debating on how to tell you all day.”
Cautiously, I prompted her to continue, “Okay, I’m listening.”
Jessica began chewing her lip. “We have a mess with the family on our hands.”
“Are Mom and Dad okay?” My mind began trying to go in a million different directions, and I willed it back into focus. It never did any good to react with emotions until I had the complete story.
She nodded. “Yes, yes, they’re fine. They’re trying to talk some sense into Jake.”
The mention of his name made me mash my teeth together. I took a deep breath. Jessica knew how I felt about even mentioning him.
Jessica looked me in the eyes. “I know you don’t like to talk about him. You know I don’t agree with what he did, but he’s still my brother. Anyway, Selena’s pregnant, and he’s left her, claiming the baby isn’t his. Mom and Dad are beside themselves. Selena is calling everyone to help her. Jake isn’t taking anyone’s phone calls. It’s a mess. I wanted you to know what was happening.”
I massaged my temples. Selena was pregnant and probably with Jake’s baby. I was trying to process all this information, but the anger and hurt I’d expected never came.
“Jake is an asshole. He always has been and always will be. I don’t know what to tell you, Jess. Selena made her choice. I have no influence on Jake at all.”
Jessica kicked a couple of rocks around. “I know. I guess I needed someone to talk to about it. Selena asked that I reach out to you for help. She’s going to be a permanent part of the family now with the baby. I’m trying to help. I don’t want Mom and Dad not to know their grandchild.”
Grabbing Jessica, I gave her a hug. “I’m sorry, sis. I hate that you’re in the middle, but don’t get me involved. I don’t want that for Mom and Dad either, but you can’t fix this. Don’t mention to Selena that we talked. There’s nothing I can do. I hope they figure their shit out, but that’s it.”
My sister pulled back, and the stress in her face was evident. “I like to fix things. You know that. You seem different, Adam. I thought this would hurt you deeply, and I wanted you to know before you found out through the grapevine. You seem like you’re moving on though. Are you seeing the woman I saw you with when I pulled up? Is she an actual relationship or the same ole, same ole?”
After giving her a chaste kiss on the forehead, I pulled back and started walking toward club. “I have a situation brewing in there. Have fun at dinner. This is Jake’s problem to fix. He needs to own up to his shit. I hope he does.”
She called after me, “Thanks for letting me talk to you. Love you.”
“Love ya, too, sis.”
I turned and jogged back into the club.
How the hell did Jessica pick up that I am moving on?
The thought of Jake knowing about Ainsley caused my heart to start clenching in pain as I thought about him taking Ainsley from me. He had succeeded in doing it before, and I wasn’t prepared to go through that heartache again.
I entered the club. As twilight set, the club lighting became more pronounced with the different colors coming through the frosted glass. There weren’t any windows. It was an auto setting we had put into place.
My mind was racing with all this new information Jessica had told me.
Selena is pregnant. Jake abandoned her.
Jake is available now. Selena is available now.
Shit.
Regardless of what they had done to me, that was a shitty hand to be dealt to Selena, but that mess was for them to figure out.
I wanted Ainsley and no one else. I needed to get my head into the game and give her the night she deserved.
Ainsley was still at the bar, chatting it up with Nora. Ainsley needed to know about Gerald, and I wanted to tell her before we got to the rest of our evening.
I walked up behind her and wrapped my hands around her waist. Nora went to a customer who had just walked up to the bar.
“I need to tell you something.”
Ainsley turned and looked at me in concern.
I continued before her mind had a chance to race out of control, “It’s nothing bad. Everything has been handled, but your dad called, wanting us to hire them back.”
Fear shot through her eyes.
“I’m not hiring him back. He asked why I had let them go. I told him it was Brandt’s decision and that I support my partner. Brandt knows, and he is going to go along with it. He wanted those fuckers fired anyway. Nothing is going to come back on you.”
She swallowed hard. “Did he say anything else?” Her blue eyes searched mine.
“He tried to prod my thoughts about your run-in with him at the party. He blamed it on the divorce and said you were having a hard time adjusting to it. I said that divorce was a hard adjustment and left it at that. Ainsley, I promise you, everything is okay. He’s already called Brandt.”
She let out a big sigh. “I trust and believe you. Thank you.”
I needed something to take the edge off after dealing with Gerald and now my latest family drama. “Want to do a shot before we head back?”
Ainsley tilted her head to the side. “I’ve never done a body shot before. Should we try it?”
I gave Ainsley my answer as I ordered, “Two shots of tequila, limes, and salt, Nora.”
Nora responded with a teasing tone, “You’re good, Ainsley. Coming right up, boss man.”
Ainsley giggled as I looked around to make sure we didn’t have any direct onlookers. We were in the dark part of the bar area. I spun Ainsley around to the side facing the wall as Nora set down the salt, limes, and two shots of tequila. Ainsley took the shot, downed it, and then sucked on the lime. She scrunched up her nose as the alcohol burned her throat. I couldn’t help but laugh.
“You forgot the salt, baby.”
She started coughing a little bit. “Ugh, that is harsh. Oh, gosh.”
Nora came up and handed her a napkin. “I have done a disservice to you, my friend. You need shot practice. It gets better with time.”
Ainsley took the napkin. “The problem is enduring the time it takes to get used to it. Oh, I forgot how gross tequila is.”
“Oh, give your man his body shot, so you can get to those orgasms he promised you. Be prepared for shot lessons soon.” I gave Nora a look to give me privacy. She winked at me and turned her back and went to tend to another customer on the other end of the bar.
Ainsley and I were semi-alone now.
“Are you ready, baby?”
In response, Ainsley dipped two of her fingers into the tequila. Delicately, she ran it from the middle of her cleavage to the jawline of her neck. Her nipples pebbled underneath what had to be a thin bra. She had on a low-cut tight shirt and a short skirt that flowed out.
Damn.
Her mouth was slightly ajar as she grabbed the salt and covered the path of the tequila with it. I placed my hand on the inside of her leg, and I was tracing small circles as I made my way up higher on her inner thigh. She raised her eyebrow, challenging me to check. Oh, baby, I’ll be happy to oblige. I looked around again, and everyone else was otherwise engaged with their fuck choice for the night. I noticed Tyler was with Jasmine again.
Ainsley looked me in the eyes. “I hope you’re ready to take me to the Afterburn room after this. I’m in need of some serious attention.”
My hand went up her skirt and I felt that she was bare like she had said. “I think you need a little attention right now, while we do the shot.”
She gasped as I made contact with her clit. My hand began playing with her folds as she tried to encourage my hand to go inside her with small squeezes from her legs.
“Finish setting up the shot, and we’ll be on our way.”
“Wh-Wha-What?” she responded.
The more we were together, the faster Ainsley was letting go of her mind and putting her body in command instead, ultimately letting me take control. It was one of the ultimate signs of trust. I treasured the feeling.
Her eyes were cloudy and I repeated, “Finish, setting up the shot and we’ll be on our way.”
I pushed against her clit harder as she grabbed the tequila shot, nearly dropping it as her mouth opened in an O. I let up on the pressure as she put the shot in between her breasts. Ainsley placed the lime in her mouth. My finger began barely touching her and she leaned her head back against the stool, opening up her neck for my lips to touch. The pulse in her veins was chaotic. The club music was low, but added to the ambience of carnal need. I leaned down to start sucking the trail of salt on her skin up to her jawline. Ainsley was making small little noises as the intensity of my touch continued to increase minutely every few seconds.
As I finished tasting her sweet skin, I moved to the shot between her breasts. In the same moment, I stood and downed the shot while my fingers plunged inside her, giving her more. She let out an audible gasp around the lime as I continued to finger-fuck her in the corner of the bar while I watched her become clay in my hands. My thumb was pushing on her clit while my middle finger was stroking her walls while I put the shot glass back on the bar.
She was close to coming and I pushed her sweet spot just right. That made her bite down on the lime and I encapsulated her mouth with mine, sucking it dry. Her orgasm was rolling through her body while I continued to massage it out. I loved feeling her around me while she came.
I pulled back and discarded the lime on the shot glass. “Did that take the edge off?”
Ainsley was still in the aftereffects of her high as she responded, “Yes. Did it for you? You seemed a little edgy.”
“I’m more than good. I’m going to blindfold you now, Ainsley. I want to surprise you with something.”
A smile spread across her face as she picked up the gift bag she had brought into Club Envy. She gave it a shake, reminding me that I had a surprise, too. “Okay.”
I took the black silk blindfold out of my back pocket and placed it over her eyes. “Can you see anything?”
“No. I love the feel of silk.”
“I know you do. I’ll take it slow.”
Grabbing her hand, I walked us back to my office, locked the door, and then led her into my bedroom—our bedroom now.
“Are we in your office? It would have taken us longer to get to the Afterburn room.” Her voice was inquisitive.
My ever analytical girl.
