Unconditional (Masters and Mercenaries #5.5)(4)

“He doesn’t actually have to approve. You do understand that she’s an adult?” Taggart watched him through half-closed eyes as though the proceedings were about to put his ass to sleep. “She’s perfectly capable of making her own choices. Ryan is aware that if the chance for her to explore came up, I was going to offer it to her. Ryan knows what his sister-in-law’s problems are.”

Ashley’s problem was that she was too sweet, too gorgeous. Being in the same room with Ashley got him hard as hell. Fuck, just thinking about her was causing his dick to stir.

Ashley was also far too young and needed way more than he could give any submissive.

Ashley needed a husband and that was so not going to be him. He knew it and he’d stayed as far away from her as possible. He walked out of a room when she walked in. When she was working the bar here at Sanctum, he suddenly wasn’t at all thirsty.

“I don’t think it’s going to work.”

Now he had Ian Taggart’s attention. “Really? So you can’t flick a whip unless your heart’s engaged? Or do you only like to top attractive women? Is it because she has a few pounds on her?”

Keith kept his temper in check. He wasn’t stupid. Taggart was going to push him, prod him, try to get at his soft center. He knew it because it was exactly what he would do were he in Taggart’s shoes. His first instinct was to go over to the desk and explain to the f*cker that there was no way Ashley was anything but perfect, but then Taggart would know far too much about him. “I think she’s a lovely girl. I simply worry that she’s my friend’s sister-in-law.”

He could practically see the wheels in Taggart’s brain working, looking for a weakness he could exploit. “I wasn’t aware you and Ryan were that close. I know you had lost touch for a couple of years.”

Because Ryan had gotten into trouble and wouldn’t let anyone help him out until very recently. There were other reasons he and Ryan weren’t as close as they had been when they’d worked together. Ryan was married and already talking about kids. Ryan was going to a place that Keith was never going to go.

Never again.

He liked being married to his job. His job never told him he was inadequate. His job didn’t lie to him. His job wouldn’t die on him if he f*cked up.

“We’re as close as I get to anyone, Taggart.” He wanted to play here. Sanctum was by far the best club in Dallas, but he wasn’t going to open his head and let Taggart play around in it. “Ryan has referred me for membership. If you’re not accepting anyone right now, I would prefer you told me now so I don’t waste my time.”

“Touchy. I didn’t say I wasn’t going to let you in on a provisional basis. I was just trying to get a feel for how close you are to Ryan. Sanctum is a place for my friends and family to play, to relax. Ryan has become a friend, so I’m willing to give you a test ride, but I want to see how you work with subs. We’re more on the play end of the lifestyle. What type of sub are you looking for?”

“I’m looking for a casual play partner. That’s all. This is how I relax.” He spent all his time at work, buying and selling companies, stocks, funding new ventures. It was high pressure and stress. He needed to blow off steam, and D/s was how he did it.

Though the first time he’d seen Ashley, he’d thought about what it would be like to have a woman living in his house again, knowing that she would be waiting for him at the end of every day.

“So you’re not looking for any kind of permanent relationship with a sub?”

“No. If you’re trying to pair me up with a sub, you should know that I don’t believe in marriage. I’m not that man. I want a casual relationship.” It was all he could handle. It was absolutely all he deserved.

Taggart slapped his hand on the desk, the sound echoing through the office. “Excellent. All my guys are mushy *s. They’re all getting married and spitting out kids. It’s disgusting. We need some manly men around here.”

“Didn’t you just get married?” Ryan had told him about the collaring ceremony the big boss had participated in with his wife a few months back. It had followed some kind of vow renewal.

A little groan came out of Taggart’s mouth before he sipped his coffee. “Nope. I got married a long time ago. I was way stupider then. I got lucky because she died, but then she came back. What the hell am I supposed to do? The only reason I let her back in is she buys me lemon donuts.”

Keith was pretty sure the guy was f*cking with him, but with Taggart, he couldn’t be certain. “Well, I’m not interested in getting married.”

“Good because once my guys got married, they handed their balls over to their subs, and now I have the distinct problem of needing a couple of Doms who are available as play partners. I expect to lose Jesse at any moment. All a sub will have to do is offer him a sandwich and he’ll be hers forever. Seriously, the kid can eat and he’s got attachment issues. He attaches to everyone, and we can’t get rid of the little f*cker. We have five regular subs who like to play and struggle to find a Dom for the night. Simon can’t tie them all up and Damon won’t work with more than one at once. Claims he can’t pay them proper attention or some shit.”

“If you’re looking for someone to play with the regulars, why are you asking me about Ashley? She’s not a submissive, much less a regular.” Now that he really thought about it, Taggart wasn’t making a lick of sense. The couple of times he’d come in as Ryan’s guest, he’d watched her and she’d never left the bar. “I’ve never seen her play so why is she involved at all?”