Mercy (Salacious Players Club, #4)(95)

I reach for her hand, and when she sees my smile fade, hers does too. “Mom, I have to tell you something.”

She rests her fingers in my hand, and I give them a comforting squeeze. “Maggie is going to Phoenix in a few days to open the new club they bought there.”

My mother’s brow pinches inward as she waits for me to elaborate.

“And I’m going with her. To stay.”

The expression melts off her face, and I’m pierced by shame that I’m bringing my mother so much pain. I don’t say anything for a few minutes as she contemplates this news, her eyes dancing from my face to a blank spot against the wall and back.

“Mom, say something,” I plead when it feels like a full minute has gone by.

“I’m…happy for you.”

My body tenses at that response. “What?”

“Baby, you’ve been stuck since you graduated high school, and I’ve been wishing you would do something big like move or get married or go to college. Something to get you out of this rut, so I can ignore the part about there being another club involved. I just want your life to begin.”

I’m speechless. I expected an all-out fight over this, and she’s basically giving me an about damn time response. I’m not complaining, but still…it’s weird.

“Thanks, Mom,” I reply, and she squeezes my hand.

“I’m gonna miss you, though.” A tear slips over her lashes and she quickly swipes it away.

“I’ll miss you too.”

I notice someone pop their head into the room, and I turn to see Maggie standing in the doorway, waiting to see if it’s safe to enter. She looks at my mom with a guarded expression.

“I brought you some of your things,” she says carefully.

“Come in, Maggie,” I say, releasing my mom’s hand. To our surprise, my mom moves from her chair next to my bed and gestures for Maggie to sit.

“Yeah, come in,” my mom adds. “I think I’ll head out anyway and let you get some rest.” As she leans over to kiss my forehead, I pull her in for a quick hug. “Just keep me updated when they discharge you. I assume you’re going to…”

“Yeah, I’ll stay at Maggie’s,” I reply quickly.

My mom only nods, kissing my forehead again. After saying a quick and awkward goodbye to Maggie, she slips out of the room, and I feel as if I can finally breathe easily.

“How did that go?” Maggie asks as she sits on the edge of my bed instead of the plastic chair.

Letting out a sigh, I nod. “It went a hell of a lot better than I expected.”

“Good,” she replies, leaning forward to kiss me, and I use the opportunity to drag her down until she’s lying on the bed next to me, her head using my shoulder as a pillow. If the mean nurse comes back and tries to yell at me for it, I don’t care. There’s only one woman I listen to anyway.





Rule #38: A good Domme knows exactly what her brat needs.





Maggie





“The club has been really quiet all week,” Hank says. He’s sitting in my living room, our temporary boardroom while I’m here with Beau during his recovery. Everyone is here—Emerson, Charlie, Garrett, Mia, Hunter, and Drake. Even Isabel is nestled into the corner of my couch, rubbing her belly as we all listen to Hank, who dropped by to check on Beau.

“Yeah, there’s definitely some concern among members. People are still coming, but the vibes feel off,” Mia says with a contemplative look on her face.

“We’ve increased security, made a public statement to members, and handed over all the security footage. What more can we do?” Garrett asks.

“It’ll get better with time,” I say.

“She’s right,” Emerson adds. “We stand our ground. We’re not going to close our doors or scare easily.”

“Besides, he messed up when he resorted to violence. No legal action against the club will stand in court now,” I reply.

Emerson nods in my direction. Next to him, I feel Charlie’s eyes on my face. I haven’t officially spoken to her since the news broke about me and Beau. The attack sort of drowned out that scandal, which I guess is a silver lining. But I do catch her studying me like she is now.

I wonder if she’s curious about our relationship, knowing what she knows about me and my kink results. Perhaps she’s imagining me whipping him in the BDSM room. More than likely she’s realizing why the two of them never really worked, two subs looking for guidance. Either way, I’ll never know because that would be far too awkward of a conversation to have.

Suddenly, my phone rings in my pocket, pulling me from my deep thoughts. I glance down to see Fitz’s name on the caller ID. It’s weird that he’d call me and not Emerson, but I quickly excuse myself to answer it.

“Hello?” I say as I enter the kitchen.

“Hi, Maggie. I’m calling to let you know there’s been arrest made on the man who attacked Beau.”

“Oh, thank God,” I reply, dropping onto the chair in relief. “Emerson’s here. I’ll let him know.”

“Okay,” Fitz replies, “I appreciate it. I wanted you to know first.”

I smile down at my coffee as I stir in the creamer. “That means a lot. Thanks for everything.”