MASTER KING
This was Club Tabu, the private club she’d heard and read about in the news recently, but never imagined one day she’d step behind the forbidden walls. Filling out and signing that waiver a few minutes ago made sense. This wasn’t the typical night club she frequented with girlfriends. Gone were the frilly decorations from the earlier reception at the church, replaced with the smell of leather, incense, and the vibe of something erotic. Illicit. Scary. Strangely thrilling.
The day had started out as any normal Saturday morning for a church wedding and reception. Typical, fun, and traditional by most standards, but this additional gathering at the club was…actually, what exactly was it?
Sitting out of the way afforded some sense of security and anonymity while she killed time waiting for her plus one, the man she invited last minute because she didn’t want to attend a wedding as a single, unattached woman. Desperate, pathetic, going nowhere fast loser maybe is more like it.
Others mingled as the crowd began to break up and meander toward the remaining chairs. Good, no one will see how nervous I am being here and why I’m not socializing.
The bride wasn’t anywhere to be seen, which disappointed Bailey. She’d hoped to help with any last minute details with dressing for this extra ceremony, but it appeared she wasn’t needed. Khari was a client of Baileyssima Boutique, Bailey’s pride and joy. The shop was also her ticket to independence from family interference, namely her over-bearing, over-protective father. The past nine weeks, she and Khari had become friends. During the purchase of a honeymoon trousseau, combined with the rushed fittings, they’d talked and despite their slight age difference found they had a few things in common—specifically a mutual friend, Jared King. With the last minute invite, Bailey jumped at the possibility of running into that certain someone. At the time, she accepted because she and Jared shared a past, a love/hate relationship she’d hoped one day they could reconcile despite her confliction with him.
What was I thinking? He doesn’t like me and never will. Heck, I don’t even know if he remembers me. He evaded me just as I did him. God, what’ll I do if he wants to talk?
As the minutes ticked off, she regretted agreeing to attend the second ceremony. A moment of letting her guard down for a few giddy minutes put her here. On top of all the anxiety, her date feigned having some work commitment. Tyler bowed out of the first ceremony and texted her he’d meet her at Club Tabu. Maybe she should have considered doing the same with this one. Instead she waited patiently for him to show but began to think he’d stood her up, leaving her to fend for herself. Sitting alone at the notorious place, waiting and waiting, definitely wasn’t how Bailey expected the day’s festivities to wind down.
To add insult to injury she was conspicuously over-dressed. From the big man in the foyer, to the couple she followed into the room. They wore less formal attire, unlike her. A few guests mingling within a few feet from where she sat smiled at her or nodded, but she knew deep down Tabu was totally out of her comfort zone. Men in tuxes and ladies in pretty party dresses had been the appropriate style for the church reception in the afternoon. Leather, latex, and other interesting outfits, actually lack thereof, graced those same people at this venue. Evidently, Bailey didn’t get the memo about changing. Damn! How do I bow out gracefully? Can’t. Tyler isn’t here yet.
The wedding ceremony took place in Frisco, outside of Dallas in the late morning. The sophisticated setting fit nicely into Bailey’s sense of style, frilly with lots of flowers, lace, and flowing champagne, cake, and dry chicken dinners. Bailey wasn’t sure why the location was so far out of town since the groom didn’t live there and neither did Khari. The setting was very nice and perfect for the ceremony, but didn’t seem to fit either the groom’s or bride’s personalities. From what Bailey gathered from overhearing the chatter of others, the formal procedure was mainly for Khari’s family and friends, far and away from their normal lives. A small reception followed the traditional vows and ended by mid-afternoon. Khari had explained there would be two, but didn’t specifically give a reason. Now, I do. She sank lower into the chair.
For the life of her, Bailey didn’t know why the young woman would invite her to both and especially the second one. The only explanation dawned on her later as she drove from Frisco to the club venue. Did Jared want her there? Impossible with the way they’d steered clear of each other for years, so why today? Nothing had changed between them. Jared hadn’t been in her life since her freshman year in college. In the depths of her heart she missed him in her life. Torn between despising the ground he walked on and wanting to shower him with kisses had plagued her for years. Today, she wasn’t sure how to reconcile those feelings. Eluding him at the church wasn’t difficult. Here in this more confined area wouldn’t be so easy. She really didn’t want to explain what happened twelve years ago and prayed they’d be smart to avoid one another. The man was dangerous. Club Tabu was dangerous. I came to see him, so do it. I’ll wear my big girl panties and talk to him if he shows up. If he ignores me, I’ll be polite and at least say hello. Yeah, that’s what I’ll do.
True, she knew some of the owners of the club by reputation through tabloid articles as well as the mutual acquaintance with Marcus, but the relationship never clicked in her mind. It wasn’t exactly on her list of things to know intimately. Khari’s fiancé had explained some aspects of the friendship, like how he and his college friends formed the partnership for the club. Bailey realized they were the same group she had heard about at A & M, the same frat boys Jared hung out with. All the pieces fit together now. That thought combined with her presence at Club Tabu made her skin prickle, a nice feeling of curiosity, but uncomfortable at the same time.
Jared King, the longtime childhood friend she’d had a crush on at one point in her life. The operative word—had. Who am I kidding? I still do in a warped way. He also was someone she didn’t want to run into without preparation, which was why she wore one of the designer dresses from the shop. A girl had to look her best even if she can’t stand the guy. Right?
Frankly, she didn’t care what he thought. Despised, hated him with a passion, fit her current mood. She probably should have worn an ordinary outfit off the rack from a department store to show her distain. Keep telling yourself that girl, but you know it’s not true. That choice would have only offended her friend and her boutique’s reputation, not Jared. He’d been nothing but trouble from the day her parents brought her and her four older brothers to a party at the King Ranch. Sighing, she just knew accepting Khari’s invite had been a big mistake, despite the yearning to see him again. Why did he fluster her to the point of neurotic behavior? Why did she let him? Now was as good a time to change all that and Club Tabu would be the perfect place to show the playboy Jared King what a mistake he’d made by ignoring her all those years ago. No more running away in fear of being hurt again. No not me. I’ll show him I did quite fine without him, thank you very much. Who cares if he’s still the best man she’d ever been with and he’s still the handsomest man here? No, not me.
The day had started out as any normal Saturday morning for a church wedding and reception. Typical, fun, and traditional by most standards, but this additional gathering at the club was…actually, what exactly was it?
Sitting out of the way afforded some sense of security and anonymity while she killed time waiting for her plus one, the man she invited last minute because she didn’t want to attend a wedding as a single, unattached woman. Desperate, pathetic, going nowhere fast loser maybe is more like it.
Others mingled as the crowd began to break up and meander toward the remaining chairs. Good, no one will see how nervous I am being here and why I’m not socializing.
The bride wasn’t anywhere to be seen, which disappointed Bailey. She’d hoped to help with any last minute details with dressing for this extra ceremony, but it appeared she wasn’t needed. Khari was a client of Baileyssima Boutique, Bailey’s pride and joy. The shop was also her ticket to independence from family interference, namely her over-bearing, over-protective father. The past nine weeks, she and Khari had become friends. During the purchase of a honeymoon trousseau, combined with the rushed fittings, they’d talked and despite their slight age difference found they had a few things in common—specifically a mutual friend, Jared King. With the last minute invite, Bailey jumped at the possibility of running into that certain someone. At the time, she accepted because she and Jared shared a past, a love/hate relationship she’d hoped one day they could reconcile despite her confliction with him.
What was I thinking? He doesn’t like me and never will. Heck, I don’t even know if he remembers me. He evaded me just as I did him. God, what’ll I do if he wants to talk?
As the minutes ticked off, she regretted agreeing to attend the second ceremony. A moment of letting her guard down for a few giddy minutes put her here. On top of all the anxiety, her date feigned having some work commitment. Tyler bowed out of the first ceremony and texted her he’d meet her at Club Tabu. Maybe she should have considered doing the same with this one. Instead she waited patiently for him to show but began to think he’d stood her up, leaving her to fend for herself. Sitting alone at the notorious place, waiting and waiting, definitely wasn’t how Bailey expected the day’s festivities to wind down.
To add insult to injury she was conspicuously over-dressed. From the big man in the foyer, to the couple she followed into the room. They wore less formal attire, unlike her. A few guests mingling within a few feet from where she sat smiled at her or nodded, but she knew deep down Tabu was totally out of her comfort zone. Men in tuxes and ladies in pretty party dresses had been the appropriate style for the church reception in the afternoon. Leather, latex, and other interesting outfits, actually lack thereof, graced those same people at this venue. Evidently, Bailey didn’t get the memo about changing. Damn! How do I bow out gracefully? Can’t. Tyler isn’t here yet.
The wedding ceremony took place in Frisco, outside of Dallas in the late morning. The sophisticated setting fit nicely into Bailey’s sense of style, frilly with lots of flowers, lace, and flowing champagne, cake, and dry chicken dinners. Bailey wasn’t sure why the location was so far out of town since the groom didn’t live there and neither did Khari. The setting was very nice and perfect for the ceremony, but didn’t seem to fit either the groom’s or bride’s personalities. From what Bailey gathered from overhearing the chatter of others, the formal procedure was mainly for Khari’s family and friends, far and away from their normal lives. A small reception followed the traditional vows and ended by mid-afternoon. Khari had explained there would be two, but didn’t specifically give a reason. Now, I do. She sank lower into the chair.
For the life of her, Bailey didn’t know why the young woman would invite her to both and especially the second one. The only explanation dawned on her later as she drove from Frisco to the club venue. Did Jared want her there? Impossible with the way they’d steered clear of each other for years, so why today? Nothing had changed between them. Jared hadn’t been in her life since her freshman year in college. In the depths of her heart she missed him in her life. Torn between despising the ground he walked on and wanting to shower him with kisses had plagued her for years. Today, she wasn’t sure how to reconcile those feelings. Eluding him at the church wasn’t difficult. Here in this more confined area wouldn’t be so easy. She really didn’t want to explain what happened twelve years ago and prayed they’d be smart to avoid one another. The man was dangerous. Club Tabu was dangerous. I came to see him, so do it. I’ll wear my big girl panties and talk to him if he shows up. If he ignores me, I’ll be polite and at least say hello. Yeah, that’s what I’ll do.
True, she knew some of the owners of the club by reputation through tabloid articles as well as the mutual acquaintance with Marcus, but the relationship never clicked in her mind. It wasn’t exactly on her list of things to know intimately. Khari’s fiancé had explained some aspects of the friendship, like how he and his college friends formed the partnership for the club. Bailey realized they were the same group she had heard about at A & M, the same frat boys Jared hung out with. All the pieces fit together now. That thought combined with her presence at Club Tabu made her skin prickle, a nice feeling of curiosity, but uncomfortable at the same time.
Jared King, the longtime childhood friend she’d had a crush on at one point in her life. The operative word—had. Who am I kidding? I still do in a warped way. He also was someone she didn’t want to run into without preparation, which was why she wore one of the designer dresses from the shop. A girl had to look her best even if she can’t stand the guy. Right?
Frankly, she didn’t care what he thought. Despised, hated him with a passion, fit her current mood. She probably should have worn an ordinary outfit off the rack from a department store to show her distain. Keep telling yourself that girl, but you know it’s not true. That choice would have only offended her friend and her boutique’s reputation, not Jared. He’d been nothing but trouble from the day her parents brought her and her four older brothers to a party at the King Ranch. Sighing, she just knew accepting Khari’s invite had been a big mistake, despite the yearning to see him again. Why did he fluster her to the point of neurotic behavior? Why did she let him? Now was as good a time to change all that and Club Tabu would be the perfect place to show the playboy Jared King what a mistake he’d made by ignoring her all those years ago. No more running away in fear of being hurt again. No not me. I’ll show him I did quite fine without him, thank you very much. Who cares if he’s still the best man she’d ever been with and he’s still the handsomest man here? No, not me.
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