Club Helix: The Power Games by Brynley Bush Read Free Book Online Page B

should treat her Dom with respect at all times. I let your insolence slide once already. It won’t happen again. Now, are you going to tell me why I should call you Ava instead of Avalon?”
    “No,” I say defiantly. I try to turn my face away, but he won’t let me. He grabs my chin again, forcing me to look at him. His gaze is inscrutable as he rubs his thumb across my bottom lip. “Are you always this stubborn, Ava ?” he asks softly, his voice raspy.
    “Are you always this domineering, Sir ?” I counter.
    His laugh is a short bark as he drops my chin and turns away, running his fingers through his short dark hair before turning back to face me.
    “Why are you here?” he demands. “Do you want to stay in this competition? Do you want to win?”
    Anthony’s face looms in my mind, and I feel the familiar churn of hatred and disgust at all that he’s done and all that he’s taken from me, coupled with a newfound sense of retribution and the knowledge that there is finally something I can do to make him suffer, even a little.
    “Yes,” I say, my voice soft but resolute. “I want to stay, and I want to win. More than anything.”
    “Then you’re going to have to trust me,” he says matter-of-factly. “Beneath the trappings of floggers and handcuffs, D/s is all about trust. We can’t win if you don’t trust me.”
    I’m sure what he’s saying is true; Emmett has said the same thing. But how can I explain to Roman that I can’t trust anyone? That the ability to trust was completely and irrevocably ripped away from me two years ago. I decide to go with the more acceptable explanation, which is also true.
    “How can I trust you when I don’t even know you?”
    He studies me thoughtfully for a long moment, and then he takes a deep breath. “I see,” he says. “In that case, will you go out with me tomorrow?”
    “Like, on a date?” Surely the tough and forbidding Dom isn’t asking me on a date.
    He nods. “Yes.”
    “With clothes?” I clarify suspiciously.
    His lips twitch slightly. “With clothes. I’ll even let you choose them.” As an afterthought, he adds, “This time.”
    “Okay,” I say with a small smile.

Chapter Five
    Ava
    When I wake up the next morning, Roman’s gone, but he’s left me a note and a covered platter that’s filled with scrambled eggs, toast, oatmeal, and an assortment of fruit.
    I’ll pick you up at ten o’clock. Dress casually. I like punctuality. Don’t make me wait , I read.
    I’ve never met anyone so bossy before. He’s lucky he’s gorgeous as sin, or he’d probably never get a date. Maybe that’s why he’s on the show. Then I remember the way he kissed me, and the way fire seems to roar through my veins when he so much as touches me. On second thought, I doubt he has trouble getting any woman he wants.
    He hadn’t touched me again last night. He’d told me to make myself comfortable and get some sleep, and then he’d left. To my relief, he didn’t have one of the suites with the cages built into the bed, and I’d gotten ready for bed and slipped under the satin sheets alone. But he must have come back at some point because there’s a slight indentation in the bed next to me, and I can still faintly smell the clean, woodsy scent that is distinctly his.
    I eat, shower, and get dressed, and I’m ready to go when he lets himself into the suite promptly at ten o’clock.
    The sight of him makes my heart stop. Although it’s been less than twelve hours since I’ve seen him, I’d almost forgotten just how gorgeous he is with those intense blue-gray eyes and perfect bone structure, and how he dominates a room simply by being in it. The air fairly crackles with his presence. He’s dressed more casually—no expensive, tailored suit today—but he still manages to look pretty formal in dark slacks, a fitted T-shirt, and a blazer. I look down at the white denim shorts I’m wearing with a silky olive-colored tank top and sandals, and wonder if I