Tied to the Billionaire(64)

But there was one way to help sort her brain out, and that was to switch it off for a while. As she crossed the lobby to the restaurant, she could already see the others standing at the buffet, and she quickened her pace.

Jade chose not to tell where she had spent the night over the breakfast table. As the only one not hopelessly hungover, she kept the conversation on lighter topics. Leonie and Shaundra still wanted to go shopping, while Piper was still keen to spend the morning in the casino—the afternoon was booked up for a hair and makeup trial run, although by the look of Leonie in particular it would take a lot of foundation to make her look human.

Piper had recovered sufficiently after her pancakes to be quite chatty on their way into the casino. As they settled at a pair of slot machines, Jade took a deep breath and said it.

“That guy in the bar last night? He was Will Vandenmeer.”

Piper paused for a moment, then her eyes widened.

“Will Vandenmeer? As in Vandenmeer Hotels?”

“That’s him.”

“And I take it you two—”

“Yeah.”

Piper whistled approvingly. Jade gave a casual shrug and turned back to her machine. It would take a few minutes for Piper to process it, she knew.

After several more quarters had dropped, Piper spoke again.

“Are you going to see him again?”

“I don’t know.”

“Do you want to?”

Jade paused for a moment, thinking. Before she could answer, Piper broke into her reverie.

“Isn’t he the one who’s into BDSM?”

“Yeah, he is,” Jade answered a little too quickly.

Piper raised an eyebrow. “Oh yes? Does that mean he—?”

“A bit.”

Piper whistled again, this time in amazement. “No wonder you’re not sure. I don’t think I’d want that.”

“It wasn’t—” Jade tried to think of the best way to frame it. “It wasn’t scary or anything. Or hardcore. It was different, but nothing I couldn’t handle. I’m just not sure if I want any more of it.”

“Do you like him?”

“Yes.”

“Well, that’s a good starting point.”

Piper dropped another quarter into her machine, and Jade turned back to her own, biting her lip as her thoughts began to untangle themselves.

I’m not sure if I want any more of it.

And there was the problem.

She did want more of it.

But did he want more of her?



* * * *



“You know, you have beautiful hair. It’s such a shame you have it in this style. It’s harder to work with.”

Jade exchanged glances with Piper, who was sitting in the stylist’s chair to her left. The girl behind Piper was creating a complicated up-do with pearl-topped pins, folding sections of hair into a criss-crossing design. Jade’s stylist was standing with arms folded, obviously stymied by her mohawk.

“Just pin back the front in twists and do the rest in spiral curls,” Leonie suggested from her other side. “Then it leaves space for the fascinator.”

From the expression on the girl’s face, she was unimpressed by both Leonie’s idea and the peacock feather fascinator that stood on the counter. Jade bit back a grin as the stylist reluctantly reached for the curling iron.

“You wanted your eye makeup in shades of green to match it, didn’t you?”

“Yes,” Jade confirmed. “And a black-tulip lipstick if you have it.”

“I’m not having an up-do either, Jade,” Shaundra added from the other side of the room. “You won’t stand out.”

“Only because your hair is diagonal.”

“It’s asymmetrical, thank you very much.” Shaundra returned her attention to her stylist. “Make sure you straighten it properly or the cut’ll look wrong.”

Jade turned back to the mirror, letting her mind drift as she felt the heat of the curling iron next to her head.

What was she going to do about Will?

Of course, she didn’t know if he was even in the hotel. He might have checked out this morning. But even if he hadn’t, maybe he would be out on the town tonight. She could sit in the bar all night and never see him.

But she could go up to his suite.

The thought sent her gut spiralling. Am I afraid of what might happen? No—she already knew the answer to that question.

She wasn’t afraid that he might have left. If someone else was in the room, she’d be embarrassed briefly, but would never see them again.

Was she afraid he might reject her? Maybe a little. But that wasn’t it.

It was anticipation. She wanted to see him again. She wanted him to command her, to dominate her, to…

Why?

I knew he wouldn’t hurt me. He made me feel protected. Safe.

Every order he had given, she had wanted to follow. Everything he had done had been for his pleasure and hers. Not what she had imagined at all.

And she wanted more. She wanted to know where else he could take her. How far he could take her.

In fact, it almost scared her that she wanted it so much.

“Close your eyes,” said the stylist behind her, and Jade obediently closed them, at the same time hearing the words in Will’s voice.