Page 11 of Entangled
“Hello?”
“Rowan, baby, is everything all right?”
I tilt my head to the side. “Yes. Why do you ask?”
“I was out of the office yesterday, so I didn’t get my messages until this evening. There were several from Mr. Maximus, expressing his concern for your safety. He said you screamed bloody murder, then disappeared off-screen and never came back. What happened?”
Oh shit.
Access to River Myst, The River’s elite cyber network, is only awarded to vetted members of the club’s BDSM realm, Glacier. Mr. Maximus, which may or may not be his real name, is one of my regular viewers. When I logged on for my performance, he requested a private show.
“Well, um, there was a bit of an incident during my morning broadcast.” I chew my lip, embarrassed to confess my fuck-up.
Cam girl rule number one: be cognizant of your surroundings. As in, don’t leave your door unlocked—with a freaking welcome note on the knob—when you’re dancing for a River Myst client. Especially since confidentiality is a big part of keeping the network secure. No one outside of Glacier is supposed to know the cyber realm exists. Not even The River employees assigned to other realms. Which means I’m in deep shit.
“What kind of incident?” Esme probes.
“Someone, uh, walked in on me.”
“Can you please be more specific, so I can provide the necessary details to the security team?”
“He was a delivery guy.”
“Why didn’t you call the club?” Annoyance replaces her voice’s usual sultriness, making my insides shrivel.
I’ll be crushed if she fires me. Even though I don’t need my job at The River, I cling to it like a life raft. I don’t dance for the money. I do it for my mental health. Dancing is how I combat loneliness. My River Myst broadcasts are the only human interaction I get, outside of my father, his aide, and whomever happens to deliver my packages.
“He didn’t see anything. Just me in my costume.”
“As we went over during your orientation, it’s crucial that you reportanythingwith the potential to compromise Myst. If I’m not available, reach out to Darius or Indira.”
Darius King and Indira Kalpana are two of Esme’s silent partners. Darius is head of The River’s security team. Indira handles the club’s technology and cybersecurity. Myst is her pet project.
“I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”
“Good. Now that we’ve got that settled, is there anything you need from me?” Warmth has trickled back into her tone. “I can order different costumes if you’d like.”
“Thanks, but I’m fine. I have quite a few. I can always—” A series of thunderous knocks echo through my kitchen.He’s here.My insides flutter with excitement, shoving aside the shame from moments earlier. “Esme, I need to let you go. I’ve got company.” I don’t dare tell her he’s the same man as yesterday.
“All right, baby. Enjoy the rest of your evening.”
“You too.” I hang up and abandon my phone on the counter. “Coming,” I call, making my way across the kitchen on shaky legs.
He pounds the door again, harder this time. “RPS. You have a package.”
I yank it open to find my grumpy delivery man standing on my apartment’s threshold with a cardboard box tucked under his arm and a scowl on his sexy face.
Good God, he’s even hotter today.
I prop my hands on my hips. “IsaidI was coming. You don’t need to bang down my door.”
He points to the hinges with his free hand. “Pretty sure it’s still hanging.”
“What is your problem,” I glance at the name on his jacket, “Flynn?”
“It would be nice if someone plowed you.”
You can plow me anytime.
