she hoisted herself onto the barstool and thrust out her hand. "an-angel."

the dark-haired devil clasped her fingers, lowered his head and kissed her knuckles. "a pleasure, angel. i'm bennett. would you care for another drink?"

"no. thank you."

she looked at him.

he looked back at her.

awkward.

"before we get down to business, can i just say that you have the prettiest skin?" he wasn't content with that verbal caress. he dragged a rough-edged fingertip from the inside of her wrist beneath the bracelet to the bend in her elbow and back down.

goose bumps danced up that limb, fanning out across her shoulder. bennett scored points for his seductive touch but lost them when she noticed his smirk.

"so let's set the parameters for tonight's play."

"is this a negotiation?"

his teasing eyes turned shrewd. "talkin' about expectations is a club rule, in every club i've ever been in." his gaze lingered on her gold bracelet. "haven't you found that to be true?"

"of course i know to discuss the play rules." the lie warmed her cheeks.

his expression didn't change.

he kept watching her. "stop staring at me," she said crossly.

he lowered his eyes with a murmured, "sorry."

when another bout of silence stretched, she knew if she didn't get a handle on this situation now, she never would. "can i ask you something, bennett?"

"anything you wish."

"why the dual role of submissive and dominant?"

"for variety, i suppose. how about you? why the dominant role?"

"it's a power thing."

"hmm."

she didn't like his half-cocky hmm. "what?"

"if that's the case, i find it odd you're a domme." bennett raised those compelling blue eyes to hers. the heat and intensity packed a punch so potent she nearly toppled off the barstool.

way out of your element, ainsley.

"see, the true power in a dominant and submissive relationship lies with the submissive. because the sub cedes all control, it's up to the dom to make sure all the sub's needs are being met. to give the sub what she-or he-wants."

"what do you want?"

bennett let his gaze slowly slide down to her cleavage, then back up to her mouth. "i want to please you."

had any man ever said that to her?

"in that i'll gain my own pleasure. but since you brought up my dual sides, i'll admit i'm not a switch very often. in fact, i'm the lone switch here right now. so if you want to play tonight, i'm your only choice."

and what a fine, fine choice. she tempered her eagerness with an offhand, "i suppose that'll work."

"good. but there is a catch. you're planning to be here two nights so i'll make you a deal."

"i'm listening." god was she ever listening. his deep, rich voice was as mesmerizing as his deep, rich eyes.

"if i agree to let you be my dominant tonight, then i want you to agree to be my submissive tomorrow night."

oh no. oh hell no, automatically popped into her brain.

stop lying to yourself. isn't this what you were secretly hoping for? to find a man who could see beyond your facade?

here was her chance to experience both sides. to see if one really fit her better than the other-or not at all. one weekend out of her life. what would it matter? they'd probably never see each other again anyway. "i accept your terms."

bennett brought her hand to his mouth and kissed the inside of her wrist. "thank you. let's get hard limits out of the way."

ainsley had no idea what that meant. "you first."

"no other guys in the play. no kissing guys, no blowjobs from guys and definitely no sex with guys. not that you'd probably get any offers of men in this club wantin' to do me anyway."

"anything else?"

he scratched his jaw. "i wouldn't be crazy about you donning a strap-on and shoving it up my ass."

geez. that possibility hadn't crossed her mind. at all. she tossed off a breezy, "i'll take that into consideration."

"thank you."

bennett appeared to be waiting for her to lead the conversation. "layla mentioned you're a switch because occasionally you want pain. and i'll be honest, i'm not comfortable with that."

a dark brow winged up. "ever? that seems unusual for a domme."

rookie mistake. "not ever, but definitely not on the first play date. so if you're looking for someone to take a cane to your butt...i'm not your dominant tonight."

"what about usin' restraints?"

"is that what you like, bennett?"

"no. i prefer to be the one doin' the tyin' up."

now there was an idea. tying him to the bed and utilizing his very fine body as her personal sexual playground. "so using restraints is a hard limit with you?"

bennett gave her a considering look. "no, i guess not. with the exception of you tyin' my junk up in knots. i ain't down with that at all."

she permitted a sly smile. "good to know. any other hard limits?" she mentally scrambled to remember specific scenes in the bdsm books she'd read. "hot wax?"

he shook his head.

"nipple clamps?"

"not my fave, but not a hell no."

think. what else? "anal beads?"

wariness entered his eyes. "no way."

"ice, feathers, a blindfold?"

"ice? yes. feathers? yes. blindfold?" bennett's molten eyes drank in every nuance of her face. "no. i'd rather not wear a blindfold because i wanna watch you dominate me. bein' at the mercy of a beautiful woman is a total fuckin' turn on."

her belly gave a little flip.

"now lemme ask you something, angel. how would you like me to address you?"

"how do your subs address you?"

"bennett. or sir."

"not master?"

he scowled. "no. only two masters at the club. and i don't reckon i'd like bein' called that. ever."

"you can call me angel or..." mistress sounded as pretentious as master so she said, "ma'am."

"yes, ma'am. that'll work fine."

needing a break from the sexual tension arcing between them, she turned her attention to the crowded room.

she'd expected the club would be comprised of young, thin, beautiful people. but the members were an eclectic mix. although it appeared none of them had dressed incognito as she had.

a striking redhead flirted with the suit-and-tie-wearing guy up at the bar. murphy and layla filled drink orders side by side. the owner worked the door and ainsley knew he was aware of every single thing that went on inside this room. and wow. some interesting scenarios were developing.

action behind a privacy screen, which didn't provide much privacy at all, snagged her attention. the low glow of the lights provided a silhouette of a couple in the throes of a passionate tryst. the woman's head was thrown back and she slowly moved up and down. arching as the man buried his face in her chest. their faces blurred together as they kissed. when she tore her gaze away, she realized bennett had been studying her. "what?"

"i wouldn't mind that. you ridin' me slow. or fast. i bet this angelic face of yours looks beautiful by candlelight."

ainsley held his gaze. "are you always like this?"

"like what?"

"smooth."

his finger followed the curve of her jaw. "make no mistake, i'm a very rough man. and if i had to venture a guess, i'd say you'd prefer to see that side of me." he briefly pressed his finger across her protesting lips. "but not tonight."

chapter four

"how about if we head to the back rooms?" bennett suggested.

none of the sexual tension between them had eased in the last fifteen minutes as they'd watched several scenes and negotiations taking place. she stood, butterflies flapping in her belly.

he invaded her space until they were nose-to-nose, belly-to-belly. "what's wrong?"

ainsley exhaled slowly, trying not to get sucked into the depths of his blue eyes. "i'm not familiar with the club layout so you'll have to lead the way. will that be a problem?"

the slow, sexy unfurling of his smile was a sight to behold. "takin' the lead has never been a problem for me." he clasped her hand in his and maneuvered through the throng of people.

she attempted a sort of clinical detachment as she watched the couples engaged in various stages of foreplay. dancing, kissing passionately, groping, hello-one woman was on her knees, hands secured behind her back while her partner twisted his hands in her hair and slid his cock in and out of her mouth. pausing to trace the outline of her lips with the tip, then gliding back in. he varied the pace, which caused the woman to groan in disappointment when he only teased her lips.

"you wanna stay and watch this one?" bennett murmured in her ear.

yes please. "ah. no. why?"

"because you stopped."

the warmth of his chest heated her spine from the top of her butt to her shoulders and she wanted to rest her body against his fully.

do it. he's yours to command for the night, isn't he?

the millisecond she eased back, bennett's hands circled her hips, bringing their bodies closer. "i like the feel of you," he murmured.

no one seemed to care they were watching this guy's blowjob. in fact, two other couples joined. one man played with his woman's breasts, murmuring in her ear while she writhed against his groin. the other woman fell to her knees, ripping open her partner's jeans and greedily stuffing his dick in her mouth.