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“No, you are right. She is no monster,” Soren said, turning his attention to the door. Zach followed the priest’s gaze. Unlike all the others the knob on this door was painted white and from it hung a familiar-looking riding crop—black with white braiding. And from within the room came a faint sound, a whimper of pain both poignant and plaintive like the cry of a child. Zach found Soren’s eyes on him. “But she is no saint, either.”

22

Zach heaved a sigh of relief when they returned to the bar at the end of his tour of the 8th Circle. Soren led him to a table elevated on a platform at the corner of the room farthest from the balcony. Clearly it was the best table in the house and reserved for Soren alone. When he and Zach took their seats, a small army of attendants, Griffin included, rushed the table to serve them.

“Care for a drink?” Soren asked as he reached out to casually stroke the hair and collared neck of the lovely young woman who waited at his feet.

“I’m afraid I’ve reached my two drink maximum.”

Soren gave him a slight smile. “I do have some sway here.”

“Another G&T.”

“Of course.” Soren leaned forward and the young woman rose up on her knees. He cupped his hand around her face and whispered something in her ear. She blushed, smiled and whispered something in reply. Soren paused and seemed to consider her words. He turned his head, whispered again and the girl rose and hurried to the bar.

“May I ask what that was about?”

“Simply giving her our drink order.” Soren snapped his fingers at Griffin and pointed to the floor. Immediately Griffin went down on his hands and knees at Soren’s feet displaying for them a perfectly flat back.

“Giving her our drink order required hushed whispering?” Zach asked.

“Not at all,” Soren said with dark amusement glimmering in his steel-colored eyes. “But even a drink order can be an intimate act when done properly.” He raised his legs, resting his feet on Griffin’s back. The girl returned with Zach’s gin and tonic and a glass of red wine for the priest. Soren took the glass from her hand and pressed a kiss inside her palm. After another brief exchange of whispers, the girl floated off. Zach raised an eyebrow at him.

“Just saying a simple thank-you,” Soren explained.

Zach glanced down as Griffin looked up at him and winked. He started to argue with Soren—nothing about him seemed remotely simple—but at that moment Nora entered the bar through the side door and strode toward their table.

Rarely in his life had Zach been so glad to see someone. He ran his eyes up and down her—she seemed completely unharmed by whatever activity had distracted her for the past hour. She gave Soren the most perfunctory of curtsies and stepped onto the platform, ignoring Griffin’s attempts to bite her ankles. She collapsed dramatically onto Zach’s lap and Zach wrapped an arm around her waist. Such possessive alpha male maneuvers were never his style, but he couldn’t resist showing Soren that he and Nora weren’t completely in his thrall.

“Where have you been, my dear?” Zach wanted to see how Soren would react to outright flirtation. He dropped a kiss on her bare shoulder.

“Sorry that took so long.” Nora took a quick drink of Zach’s gin and tonic. “Had to do a favor for a friend.”

Zach breathed in and recognized a sweet and heady scent on her skin—a familiar scent that Grace’s skin had carried after they’d made love. She hadn’t been with Soren, he knew. Or Griffin…Zach remembered the lingerie in his pocket and wondered if she’d run off with another woman.

“Quite all right, Eleanor.” Soren dipped his middle finger into his wine and delicately ran the wet tip slowly around the rim of the glass. “I kept your guest entertained in your absence.”

Nora shot Griffin a dirty look, but Griffin only shrugged a helpless apology from the floor.

“Well, Zach and I both had a long night then,” she said to Soren. Leaning back against Zach’s chest, she asked, “You ready to go?”

“Absolutely,” Zach said and stared at Soren. Zach saw no jealousy in Soren’s eyes, but no mercy, either. Zach realized he could never win in a game with this man, especially not on his territory.

“With your permission, sir,” she said to Soren.

“Of course. I will show you out.”

“That won’t be necessary.” Zach stood by Nora and took her hand. She moved her fingers in his grip, wrapping them tightly around his thumb.

“I insist,” Soren said. Nora squeezed Zach’s hand in a warning. Apparently Soren was not to be denied.

Soren stepped to the floor and set his glass of wine on Griffin’s back, balancing it on the flat plane between his shoulder blades. “Stay,” Soren ordered Griffin who stayed stiff and motionless on the floor. Soren offered Nora his arm and Zach was pleased to feel her reluctance to let him go.

Soren and Nora led as Zach followed closely behind. They went back down the elevator and across the pit where the play had grown louder as more Circle denizens had joined in. Zach expected Soren to leave them at the elevator, but the priest entered it with them, taking a key and inserting it under the down button. The doors closed and the elevator ascended. The door opened onto the first entry hallway and Zach stepped out.

“Excuse us, Zachary,” Soren said, still inside the elevator. “I need another word with Eleanor.”

Soren flicked his wrist and the doors closed once more leaving Zach alone in the empty hall.

* * *

“Soren, let me out,” Nora demanded. “Zach and I want to get home.”

“He can wait. We have things to discuss.”

“We have nothing to discuss.”

“Not even Michael?”

Nora sighed. There was no point in fighting Soren.

“Yes, of course. Michael was lovely. Thank you very much.”

“You are certainly welcome. I take it Michael is no longer a virgin?”

“No, of course not.”

Soren nodded. “How funny.”

“What is?” Nora said, exasperated.

“Tonight you took the virginity of a boy you’ve never met…and yet you still think you can keep Wesley safe from you.”

“It’s different. Michael’s obviously one of us. Wes is vanilla. Michael’s a sub. Michael was born—”

“Michael was born fifteen years ago.”

Nora could only gape at him.

“You gave me an underage boy for our anniversary?” she breathed in shock.

Soren smiled and moved closer to her. She backed into the farthest corner of the elevator.