Tori’s POV
I couldn’t get to sleep that night, even though I’d already picked out the outfit I was going to take: a black corset with burnt orange bows. Was this a test of my sensibilities, or something more sinister? I really hoped not to have to participate.Wondering if Naomi would be attending, as well, I dozed, only to be woken by Ellie, who was stumbling about in the dark. I knew we had agreed to save on electricity, but this was ridiculous.Then I began to wonder if it was even her. If only I had a baseball bat to hand.The mini crisis set my adrenaline flowing but it was a false alarm as I found out when the thumps and bangs ceased and she came into my bedroom by mistake, instead of returning to hers after a bathroom visit.I switched the light on.“We must stop meeting like this,” I said.Because it had happened before.“Sorry, Tor,” she mumbled. “I was hoping not to disturb you.”“Was it as bad as you were expecting?”She nodded. I saw the smear of what looked like toothpaste on her cheek but decided not to mention it. Meeting her sister, who was the world champion at moaning, always did this to her.“Val’s been a bigger bitch than usual,” she said. “Mom just can’t see it.”“I’m here for you, hun,” I whispered. “Want some cocoa?”She nodded and we ended up sitting and talking until it was time for me to hop in the shower. As I had hoped, her shift wasn’t due to start until later and she would be driving me to town.I didn’t mention the corset. Ellie would only tease me about it.I’d opted for a pants suit just to make a point, yet aIso took a pair of lace-topped stockings with me. Fortunately my tote bag was big enough to hold everything discreetly. I mean, what if he’d been joking and it somehow got lost in translation?Wondering if I would be watching or participating had me on edge the whole way. She caught hold of my hand as I was about to get out of the car.“Promise me you won’t let him get to you,” she said.Too late for that.Naomi opened up, as usual. This time, she wasn’t alone.“Morning, Victoria,” she said. “This is Travis, our Delta.”He grinned, showing his impressive canines. “You must be the new number cruncher. The pleasure’s all mine.”Was he flirting with me? His dark blue shirt showed off his chiselled abs and I noticed a small lizard tat on the side of his neck.“Behave.” The Gamma tutted. “Whatever would Melanie say?”“Gotta run now, but I’m sure we’ll be seeing a lot more of each other later.”Did he mean – ? I decided not to overthink it.He was careful not to touch me as he left the premises. Given that I’d expected him to brush against me on purpose I supposed that was something.“Come on up, Tori. You’ll be based in Calvin’s office today. Well, for some of it anyway.” She must have seen my face. “Don’t look so scared. He’ll ease you in gently.”“Pardon?”“I put that very badly, didn’t I? He wants you to be honest with him regarding if he’s paying people too much. Seeing them in action is a good way to start.”So why hadn’t she disclosed that last night? It would have saved me from worrying.It sounded like a way too convenient excuse to see me in lingerie, or was I being tested?“Why me?” I asked.“Fresh pair of eyes. And, just to warn you, the sessions tend to run over. You could still be here after six.”Would it be dark by then? I found I couldn’t think straight.“Are we on for lunch?”“That’s a lovely idea, but you may not get a break.”“Surely he’s not intending to starve me?” I joked as we reached Alpha Calvin’s office.The door was flung wide even before I’d finished my sentence.“Now where would you get hold of a notion like that, Miss Culpepper?” he asked, arching a brow.I wasn’t sure if that was his sense of humour or not. And why was he being so formal?Attempting to laugh it off I said, “Don’t mind me. I could do with losing a few pounds.”It was a mistake. He took the opportunity to appraise me fully and I felt uncomfortable not to mention unworthy.“You need to eat at least three proper meals a day. No making do with yogurt pots at noon. And it’s vital to keep hydrated, as all my subs know.”“But I’m not – I didn’t sign up for that.”“Interesting. She knows what the word means, Naomi. Been doing a bit of extra-curricular research, have we, Vicky?”I swallowed, fighting to say it, even if it ended with my dismissal.“Please don’t call me that, Mr Phillips. I hate it.”Suddenly my bag felt too heavy and I set it down on the carpet runner.“Not a fan of symmetry,” he commented, reaching down and taking possession of it. Apart from obsessive compulsive disorder he was such a control freak. “Do we have a problem, Tori?”“No, sir,” I told him.“Did you bring the appropriate gear?”That was when it dawned on me. Would I be able to fasten the corset by myself? I hadn’t laced it fully at home. It was a different matter when someone was threatening to hurt you if you didn’t hurry, but that was hardly the case here.Deciding to be totally honest with him, I admitted, “I didn’t disobey your request but I’m beginning to think I made a poor choice.”“Show me,” he said, gazing at my blouse and giving an unmistakable gesture.The sign language of dominants must be universal.“I’m not actually wearing it, Alpha.” Silently, he handed me the bag. “It’s a corset,” I blurted, “and I’d need assistance.”“I can help with that.”The smirk was so typical of his kind.“On this occasion I’d prefer to go with something in-house,” I said.“Fine. But I get to choose. Eye candy in lieu of bonuses for my trainers. How does that sound?”“From a financial or a personal point of view?”Calvin threw back his head and laughed. His amusement was genuine and in no way sinister. A tiny part of me wondered what it would be like to be controlled by this man, to submit to him totally and willingly.In a parallel universe, maybe. I forced myself to focus.“Show me.”With a glance at Naomi, I unzipped my tote and took out the opaque carrier bag from a famous department store.“It’s not from Juju’s,” I told them, hastily. “Just a local boutique.”I fumbled with the bag, regretting choosing that as well. It had been a snug fit, much as the corset itself might have been on me.When I finally held it up, I couldn’t bear to look at him for long.“Did you bring stockings?”I fished them out, too, convinced I must be beet red by now.“Good girl,” Calvin said, testing the quality of the fabric between his thumb and index finger.“Are you okay, dear? You seem a bit flushed.”“All this is new to me,” I lied.And all at once I had an overwhelming urge to throw up.Tori’s POVIt turned out I’d fallen asleep in the middle of making my statement to the WA investigator. That was a relief. I didn’t really want to share our special moment with anyone, not even my bestie and her mate-to-be.Calvin told him we’d continue this another time but I was determined to see it through and answered all his questions. I’d even impressed myself.Then we were on our way home, to the flat at ‘Remus’. I could hear the distant sounds of clubbers having their special kind of fun down below as we made our way upstairs via his private entrance.“I’ll tell them to close up early, shall I?” he asked, not even bothering to glance at his watch.“Don’t do that. I’m tired enough to sleep through anything.”“I noticed.”I told him about my weird dream and he seemed amused. Then he received a phonecall which put a dampener on everything. Isabel hadn’t made it through the night. I couldn’t believe it. What must he be feeling?“I’m coming with you to the hospital,” I said.“She’s
Tori’s POVI kept reassuring Ellie she had a decent figure. We even giggled about the nipple pasties and barely-there thong she shouldn’t have to reveal if she took it slowly as we rehearsed.“Travis is going to get the shock of his life,” she said.That answered that one. Not that I’d ever wondered about the contents of her lingerie drawer. As for her sometimes hard-to-believe superstitions, I rarely paid attention to them. My own thoughts were that the Moon Goddess either favoured you or didn’t, yet I couldn’t believe Selene would have a down on someone all their life.I felt my luck was about to change and was in a buoyant mood as I joked around with her backstage.Alpha Tobias had nodded to me but chosen not to approach. Perhaps that was something to do with my frosty glare. A little guilt courtesy of yours truly couldn’t harm before I told him I forgave him for his part in my near downfall. And Calvin’s.The mesh dress didn’t make me self-conscious in any way given that I was goi
Calvin’s POVI still couldn’t believe Rhodes had achieved bail. Then I realised in all the confusion nobody had actually accused him of being behind the destruction of Black Gold. My bad. I’d been more concerned with Tori’s welfare and Issy’s condition.Rose had done a disappearing act after giving her statement. I was still hopeful of finding her or that she would make her way to us. I knew Tori was fretting about it.To say I was glad she wouldn’t be stripping – a one night only trial venture we’d persuaded Toby to stage in an attempt to lure him out of hiding – was an understatement. From now on I wanted my Luna under wraps and all to myself.I thought she was going to have to step in last minute when our proposed lookalike caught a bug. As we were having a heated debate the night before, Ellie came up to us.“Can I have a word, please, Alpha?”I froze, my thoughts going instantly to my sister.“Please tell me she hasn’t deteriorated.”“Isabel’s improving day by day.”“Then what is
Tori’s POVI couldn’t believe ex Alpha Joseph hadn’t grasped that fact already. What exactly had Calvin said to him down at ‘WAX’? Something about me switching packs and nothing more? I have to admit I was out of it at the time, surviving on instinct and adrenaline alone.Did he have selective memory, or was it simply because the one who held a weapon could reinvent the world his way?Maybe it was his final attempt to make a power play given all that he had lost. Security certainly didn’t have him on a blacklist as he wasn’t deemed to be a threat.For similar reasons I was still wary of Alpha Tobias, Jason less so.But neither of them were about to shame me in public.Not if I could help it!Yet the former leader of Waning Moon held all the aces.We must tighten security if nothing else. At least this may convince Ellie finally to switch packs. I’d said to her she ought not to be around Lance too often but that didn’t seem to work.What must she think of me now?I found out in the nex
Calvin’s POVI hadn’t seen fit to tell Tori we would be in sole charge of the club on this occasion. There was no way Naomi was in any state to open up and my security guys had never doubled as Doms. I’d considered remaining closed for the night and then I thought, what the hell. We needed to loosen up, not necessarily performing a scene, but just keeping a watchful eye on things.I’d told her we wouldn’t be going downstairs but was hoping she would consent.I doubted I would see Moore for a day or two. Oscar and Travis were excused though would have obeyed my order had I seen fit to issue one. So this would be a night for the members and occasional visitors. Plus, I wanted to see once and for all if my decision to surrender control was a wise one. Maybe my mate and I needed this, to let off some steam now and again.Of course we could always do that anyway. I wouldn’t be barred from my own club. I knew I needed to sound her out about this, too.First things first.We went in the back
Tori’s POVI was chewing my lip now, hard enough to draw blood. Calvin discouraged me with a comment before continuing, “Hit me with it.”“I need to be bait again. Before our mating ceremony. That should give your sister time to recover.”“I hope so,” Guy said. I’d forgotten he was there, he was so quiet. And those eyes were the closest to amber I’d ever seen.“Me too.” I felt shy suddenly, wondering if he was the kind to judge me for my past.His next words went some way to reassuring me. “You are so brave and unselfish, Victoria.”“Thanks,” I said. “But I’m a weakling really. I just punch above my weight occasionally.”“Don’t believe her,” Calvin told him. “She’s in denial about her own qualities but we’re working on it. Aren’t we, princess?”I wasn’t sure how to take that so I shoved him, playfully, hurting my wrist. I’d forgotten how rock solid he was. I made a joke of it.“Have you been working out?”“Some,” he admitted.“On your own, I hope?”“I’m the faithful kind. I haven’t be