Absolute Silence

20

Pain blossomed. I gasped, and my inner muscles squeezed around him viciously. Filip groaned as he released me, standing us both upright before determinedly pulling up his pants and avoiding my gaze. When I turned and our eyes collided for an instant, he cursed again under his breath. “Is everything okay?” I asked, confused. He exhaled loudly and ran a hand through his tousled hair. “I’m sorry about that. I got carried away.” His gaze lingered on my shoulder before shuddering, all traces of his irritation locked securely behind a stoic mask. “Don’t be sorry. I liked it.” “I’ve got to go.” He snatched his shirt off the ground. “I’ll walk you out.” What the hell just happened? Filip was the most mercurial man I’d ever met, and it was contagious. After only a short time around him, I was such a bundle of competing emotions that I didn’t know how I felt. Excitement? Relief? Anxiety? Anger? I slipped on my dress, and Filip helped with the zipper. “That won’t work,” he ground out before attacking my updo and releasing my hair to cascade over my shoulders. He stalked around me and studied his work. “The mark can still be seen, but it’ll have to do. Come on.” He was trying to hide the bite mark? What did he care if someone saw it? I was so confused. Filip led me into the hallway, but I yanked my hand from his when we passed the main gathering room. “I’m not ready to go home. I’d like to have a drink and relax for a minute first.” Just because he needed to leave didn’t mean my night had to end. He eyed the doorway where pulsing music was the backdrop to an erotic orchestra of sounds. “No. You don’t have anything on under that dress, and you have no reason to be in there without me.” He was clearly agitated. I didn’t know exactly why, just that our time together continued to upset him. I eased close to peer up at him, speaking softly just for his ears. “Please trust me, Filip. I won’t touch anyone, and I won’t let anyone touch me. One drink, then I’ll go home.” His piercing stare blasted me with frustration and pleading, then confusion and surrender. “One drink,” he bit out. My face lit with a hesitant smile. Dante chose that moment to come strolling off the elevator. “Everything all right here?” “Yes,” I assured him. “Filip was just heading out, and I was going to have a quick drink at the bar.” Dante glanced at Filip as if for confirmation. Filip merely grunted and stalked to the empty elevator. Well, that was interesting. I shook my head, bewildered. “Care to have a drink?” I asked Dante. “That sounds perfect.” We zigzagged through the bustling room to the bar and snagged two seats. “It’s been a while,” he mused. “I was starting to wonder if we’d scared you off.” “It’s complicated.” Dante smiled. “Always is. Everything okay between you two?” His eyes traveled down to where I’d inadvertently exposed the bite mark on my neck by tossing my hair over my shoulder. I replaced the curtain of hair to regain some semblance of privacy. I realized Filip hadn’t been so unreasonable with his desire to hide the mark. He’d done it to save me from this precise feeling of awkwardness. I hadn’t considered I’d see anyone I knew well, and I didn’t think Dante would judge me, but it still felt personal. Intimate. What had happened between Filip and me wasn’t meant to be shared with the world. “Everything is fine, promise.” I infused a healthy dose of reassurance in my smile. “Okay, but if he gets too rough, you know you can always come to me. You should always enjoy what’s being done to you, even punishments.” We placed our drink orders and watched the bartender as she quickly threw together our drinks. “The physical aspects aren’t an issue. It’s understanding how to manage this type of relationship that’s the struggle, if that makes sense,” I tried to explain. “Absolutely.” He sipped his gin, ever the consummate gentleman, allowing me the chance to speak rather than offering solutions or mansplaining. “I thought joining the club would mean casual s*x with no strings attached. With Filip in the mix, that’s changed. He insists on exclusivity both in and outside the club, which implies a certain degree of commitment, so I’m not sure where that leaves me. How do you not form a bond with someone you are intimate with exclusively?” I finished airing the jumbled thoughts swirling in my head and turned to Dante. His features were inscrutable. Blank. “Filip instituted a mutual exclusivity between you?” Had I said more than I should have? Suddenly, I wished I could gobble all those words back in my mouth. “Yes? He implied that was normal for him.” Dante raised a single brow. “Is that so?” Was that not true? Had Filip lied? Why would he do that? I’d never implied a need for exclusivity. In fact, he was the sole ardent proponent. None of it made any sense. A large hand settled warmly over mine, and Dante’s features softened. “I didn’t mean to imply anything. I only want you to be comfortable here. Filip can be … intense. When I offered my help in handling him, I meant for any physical and emotional issues that might develop. If you came here to explore yourself, there’s no reason he should limit you. He may be a bit of a bully sometimes, but I assure you, I have no problem standing up to him.”