Filled with indignant temper, she stood. “Then I’m going to find a Dom to play with.”
“Good for you,” Tilly said. She stood with a groan. “And I’m going to get back to work.”
***
Alex was feeling guilty and he didn’t like it. At all. He had no right to jump down Tara’s throat the way he had. He was just mad at himself for moving too slow. Now it might be too late to make his intentions clear.
He’d had a long think after dropping her home the other night. Alex hated that she lived in that crummy apartment in such a dangerous area of town. He wanted her living somewhere safer, and he had the perfect place in mind. He owned a fully-furnished apartment in a much safer area of the city—that also happened to be closer to where he lived. He just had to convince her to move in. He didn’t want a relationship, but he did want Tara—he wanted the right to look after her…protect her…fuck her. It could work, so long as they kept their emotions out of it.
Right now, though, he needed to find her and apologize.
Twenty frustrating minutes later, Alex found himself standing in front of the women’s changing rooms. One of the other subs had seen Tara inside getting changed.
The door opened and out stepped Carin.
“Master Alex,” she purred. “So good to see you.”
She walked her fingertips over his arm and he barely refrained from shuddering.
“Carin. Did I give you permission to touch me?”
She wasn’t someone he would ever be interested in. Oh, she was gorgeous, but it was all superficial. On the inside he’d bet she was cold as ice. He didn’t like the way she manipulated everyone around her. In fact, she reminded him of his ex-wife.
She was the complete opposite of Tara.
Carin stuck her lower lip out in what she obviously thought was a cute pout. He just found it fake and annoying. “But I was hoping you’d play with me. I’ve been very, very naughty and I need to be punished.”
God, did other men actually like this nonsense? He couldn’t believe other Doms fell for her crap.
He took a step back. “Is Tara in the changing rooms?”
Her eyes grew cold before she managed to recover herself. “Tara? She might have been, I didn’t really notice. Not very memorable, is she?”
Alex frowned. “That’s enough. Go back into the club and I’d better not hear you talking down about any of the other subs again, got it?”
“Ooh, so powerful,” she said, walking off with a sniff.
Alex shook his head. That woman didn’t need a Dom, she needed a personality transplant.
The door opened and out stepped Tara, a bag over her shoulder, her gaze on the ground. She was dressed in worn jeans and a sweatshirt that looked three sizes too big. He frowned as he noted her slumped shoulders. She looked dejected. Had he done this to her?
“Tara?”
She kept her gaze down as she tried to step around him. He reached out and grabbed her arm. She shrugged him off, stepping back so quickly that she stumbled. He grasped her shoulders to steady her.
“Don’t touch me!”
“Tara, what is wrong with you?”
“I said don’t touch me.” She pulled away again and this time he let her, but he refused to move out of her way.
“Look at me.”
“No,” she said stubbornly.
“Look at me, sub.” He kept his voice low, commanding.
She glared up at him and he was shocked by her swollen eyes, the tears filling them.