Unbound pulsed around me. My dress was short and tight, held in place with tape over my breasts and thighs that shifted every time I took a step. I sipped at my whiskey while Jax, the bartender, served other members. When he saw me staring, he winked. I flipped him off and turned to the dungeon floor. There was a woman on all fours being held by a collar and leash while her dom fingered their other partner in front of her. After a few seconds, he tugged on the leash, and the woman brought her mouth to the other girl’s pussy. Their dom watched, his erection growing. The thin material of his pants strained against its outline.

He caught my eye and nodded hello. I plastered a smile on my face and left him alone. Maybe another day I would’ve joined them if he’d invited me, but I wasn’t interested in subbing tonight. Lately, my domme side had been the one I indulged. I flagged Jax down and ordered a water. He set it in front of me as a rowdy group burst through the doors, their laughter bouncing off the walls. Some of the couples in the dungeon stopped what they were doing, but most were so engrossed in their own intimate moments that they barely noticed.

The group made its way to the bar. Women clung too close to the men, their furtive glances failing to mask their jealousy and insecurity. I rolled my eyes and turned away. I wasn’t competing for anyone’s attention tonight.

Suddenly, an uneasy feeling grew in the pit of my stomach. Oh no. Not tonight.

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t little Ari,” Jamie sat down next to me and leaned in close until his lips almost brushed my ear. I suppressed a shiver. Jackass. “I learn something new about you all the time.” He gestured to Unbound and the full dungeon.

I turned to look at him—his smug expression, secretive gray eyes, black hair tied in a bun at the back of his head, gaggle of women ready to fling themselves at his feet. He’d dressed in a casual gray suit with no tie, his light blue dress shirt open three buttons at the neck.

“Hello, Jamie. Pulled yourself out of my dad’s ass long enough to go out for the night?” I asked, watching his smile falter. He recovered quickly.

“Always so sweet. If you must know, we are working our asses off to prepare for Killian’s opening. We’re going to do a live special for the launch.”

Huh. It was the first I’d heard of that, but then again, I tried to stay out of my dad’s business outside of stopping by to eat with him once a week at Sinclair, his upscale American steakhouse. Killian was his new restaurant, one that returned to his Irish-American roots and offered a fresh—and expensive—take on classic Irish fare. Jamie was his protégé, the young talent who came to live with us when I was fifteen and stayed through culinary school. He was the Canadian intern who never left. Now he worked for my father and was prepping to be the head chef at Killian.

About the same time Jamie came to live with us, my dad was chosen as one of the stars of Deep End, which was about chefs who were starting their own restaurants. The show chronicled their successes and failures. Most of the ventures failed, but Sinclair thrived, and within a few months, business skyrocketed. My father and Jamie became household names. I preferred to stay out of the spotlight and threw myself into art and business. Both paid off.

“I’m thrilled for you, Jamie, truly I am. I trust that this stays between us, correct? The last thing I need is for you to discuss our adventures here with Chef Sinclair.” I gave Jamie a pointed look. He might work for our family but I liked my privacy. At Unbound, I got it.

He agreed, for once not arguing with me.

“What’re you here for anyway? Looking for some kinky fun?” I asked. I hated those kinds of members. Sam, the majority owner of Unbound, was adamant that we give out passes for interested parties to prove that they could handle the responsibility of being here even if they didn’t know a current member. Judging by the white wristbands Jamie and his friends wore, they were here on a group guest-pass. Wonderful. While I wasn’t a shareholder and didn’t have a say, I spent a lot of time and money here and was friends with Reyn, the other owner, and Sam, so they typically asked my opinion. We agreed to disagree on visitors.

“Hell, yeah. I’m here to give my dominant skills a try. Want to submit to me?”

God, Jamie never changed. Of course he’d think that I wanted to be his bottom for the night. Arrogant moron. 

“Absolutely not. Take one of the little groupies you have here. I’m sure they’d love to be on the receiving end of your whip,” I said.

Jamie’s eyebrows rose before he smirked. “Good call, Ari. See ya out there!” He tugged my braid and hopped off the barstool. He straightened his suit jacket and snaked his hand around the first bubbly blonde from his group and pointed to the dungeon. She tossed her hair over her shoulder and laughed, taking Jamie’s outstretched hand and following him in there.

There was no way in hell I was going to bail him out when this failed. He had no idea what he was doing. Sam stopped them at the dungeon doors and gave them a rundown of equipment and pointed out the monitors in case they needed assistance. I doubted that girl wanted anything more than to sleep with him. She was brave giving him control like that.

Sam caught my stare and waved me over. “Hey, Aries, how’s it going?” he asked.