Victorious(61)

“How come?”

“We want everyone clearheaded for any activities they might decide to participate in. No one is allowed to get drunk here.” He glances at me, his eyes soft but serious. “There’s no place for large quantities of booze in a safe, sane, consensual environment.”

“Makes sense.”

We’re interrupted by the arrival of a tall, gorgeous woman I recognize instantly as Cresley Dane, the supermodel.

“Is this the famous Natalie who took our friend Flynn off the market in such dramatic fashion?” she asks with a warm smile for me and a hug for Flynn.

“Cresley, meet my wife, Natalie.

Cresley surprises me when she hugs me, too. “It’s so great to meet you. I’m an admirer.”

“Oh. Thank you. That’s nice to hear. Likewise.”

Hayden joins us, slipping an arm around Cresley, who leans into him. “Nice to see you here, Natalie,” he says.

“Nice to be here.”

“You ready?” he asks Cresley, who nods in response.

“Let’s go.”

“See you later?” Cresley asks us.

“We’ll be here,” Flynn says. “We may even watch.”

“Good,” Cresley says with a smile that encompasses both of us before she lets Hayden lead her away.

“Where’re they going?”

“To the dungeon.”

I’m surprised by the pang of distress I feel in the area of my heart at knowing Hayden is going to have sex with Cresley when he’s so obviously in love with Addie. “What will they do there besides the obvious?”

“He’s a practitioner of Kinbaku, the Japanese art of erotic tying.”

“What does that mean? Tying?”

“Ropes. It’s an intricate practice designed to stimulate all the pleasure points.”

“Could I see it?”

“Sure, we can go in there later. They’ll be there for hours.” He glances down at me, taking inventory in that intense way of his. “What’re you thinking?”

“I just wonder how he can spend hours having sex with Cresley when he cares so much for Addie.”

Flynn exhales a long deep breath. “It’s complicated for him. He and Addie are really close friends, and he’s not willing to risk what he has with her by exposing her to this. If she were to reject it—and him—the way Valerie did me, he’d never get over it.”

“So he refuses to even try.” The reality of Hayden’s predicament saddens me.

“Yeah. We’ve talked about it a few times recently, and he’s adamant.”

“It’s sad.”

“On that we agree. I don’t think he’s giving Addie enough credit.”

“Do you think she’d be upset to find out about this? About the fact that all of you are involved and she doesn’t know?”

“I have no idea, but it’s not something we share with just anyone. Other than you and my partners in Quantum, there’s no one I’m closer to than my parents, my sisters and Addie, and none of them knows.”

“Can I ask you something else?”

“Anything.”

“Were you ever going to tell me that you were once with Marlowe?”

“I told you that.”

“Um, no, you didn’t. She did. She assumed I already knew.”

“Oh. Shit. Are you pissed? It was years ago, before I married Val. And it was brief. We quickly discovered we’re much better friends than we are lovers.”

I gesture to the room around us. “Did you do this with her?”

“Some of it. We were all new to it then and in training. We practiced on each other on occasion. Does that make it weird for you with her?”

“No, not really. Like you said, it was a long time ago, and I know you had a life before me. A busy life.”

He roars with laughter and tweaks my nose. “Cute.”

“True. What about Cresley?”

“What about her?”

“Have you been with her, too?”

“I have, but only in threesomes with Hayden.”

I take a drink of my wine, seeking fortification. That’s what I get for asking—the painful truth. “She’s beautiful.”

“Yes, she is, but she’s no Natalie Godfrey.”

“Right,” I say, laughing. “She’s a freaking supermodel.”

“Did you look at the stack of inquiries from Danielle that I left in the kitchen?”

“What about them?”

“There’re about ten offers from some of the top modeling agencies in the country, along with cosmetic companies, couture houses and advertising agencies, all of whom are drooling over the idea of landing Natalie Godfrey to represent their products.”

“They are not.”

“They are, too! I told you to look through the stuff I left for you.”

“I thought you meant my test results.”

“That was only one of several things I left for you. Did I also mention the interest from the casting directors? Ever since the Globes, Danielle has been overrun by them, too.”

“It’s insanity. What do I know about any of that?”

“Maybe nothing, but they know true, raw beauty when they see it.” He kisses me. “And so do I.”