“Prudence,” he said.
When no answer came from her, he caught her cheek in his hand and turned her to face him.
“I came because I like being here.”
“You shouldn’t be here.”
“Why? This is a decent bar. One of the best in the city and I’ve just finished work. I’m blowing off steam. I’m not causing any trouble. I can’t even get alcohol,” she said, holding up her glass. “See, water.”
“I promised your sister.”
The anger rose even further. She slammed her glass down on the counter and stood.
“I’m tired of that crap. I’m twenty-three, James. I’m not a child or a teenager. I can make my own decisions.” To prove her point, she moved onto the dance floor with her friends. Anya and Becky grabbed her hands.
“Are you okay?” Anya asked over the blaring of the music.
“Yes, just fed up of my sister and him trying to protect me. I don’t need protecting.” She swayed her h*ps trying to get lost in the beat of the music.
“I think he likes you more than he lets on.” Becky whispered against her ear. “He’s staring at you, Prue.”
“Do you still want him, Prue?”
She took a quick glance in his direction. They were right; he was watching her.
“It doesn’t matter. He’s out of bounds for me. I think my sister is still in love with him.”
The song ended, and they moved back to the bar. She grabbed her coat and moved around James, who hadn’t budged from his spot.
“You can’t ignore me, Prudence.”
“It is Prue, and watch me.” She pulled out of his hold moving closer to her friends. Jermaine brought her another iced water, which she drank.
“Your sister is still in love with him? When did that happen?” Anya asked.
“When I asked her and she didn’t answer my question.”
“What happened between them two?” Becky asked.
“I have no idea. I really liked him. In fact, I more than liked him. I think my sister knew about how I felt. She never said anything.” Prue rubbed her temples feeling the heat of the bar getting to her.
“I think he likes you.”
Shrugging her shoulders, she sipped her drink. A few guys walked toward them. Her two friends gave them the smiles and the giggles. Prue tried to ignore the guy hanging around her.
“Hey, beautiful. How are you?” His smooth voice made her cringe. One of his hands landed over her shoulders.
“Fine, thanks.” She pushed his hand off her shoulders.
“Would you like to dance?”
“No, thank you.” Her two friends were chatting away while this other man was trying to grope her.
“Come on, babe. Give a guy a break and dance with me.” He pulled on her hand, which made her fall out of her chair and onto the floor. Her knees hit the tiled floor sending a blast of pain up her body. Shit, she hadn’t seen that one coming.
Prue looked up at the sound of the commotion. In the short time she’d been on her knees, James had grabbed the guy by his collar and slammed him against the bar. She was shocked by the brute force with which he worked.
“When a woman says no, she means no.” He raised his fist. Leo caught him before he landed another blow.
James looked at the guy as if he was scum. Prue winced as she got up from the floor.
“You better get out of my club and not come back.” He picked her up off the floor, one of his hands going under her knees as the other went to keep her back steady. James carried her out of the main bar and down to his office. Her face was red with embarrassment. She hadn’t even looked at her knees yet. They hurt, but her pride hurt more.
The moment the door to his office shut she began to fidget in his arms.
“Put me down, please,” she said.
He didn’t let her down until he placed her on the sofa. James kneeled in front of her, pulling her leg out in front of her.
“You don’t have to look at it, James. I can go back to the club.”
“Prudence, you banged your knee on my tiled floor. I know how painful they can be. Let me take care of you,” James said.
He eased her pencil skirt up past her knee. She winced from the sudden pain.
“There is no blood. You’ve got a lot of bruising. Your knees took the full force of the floor.”
“Lucky knees.”
Did he know his fingers were caressing her calf muscles? His touch was soothing and his fingers smooth.
She closed her eyes relishing the slight touch.
“You’re bad for my business. That is the second guy in the matter of four days I’ve had to ban from my club. At this rate I’ll be out of business by the end of the year.” James joked.
Prue gazed at him.
“You don’t like other men touching me.” She blurted the words out unable to stop them.
He paused on her knee. “No, I don’t.”
The admission did nothing to ease her confusion.
“Why?”
“Because they don’t deserve you, Prudence. I know the type of men who come here, and I don’t trust them.”
She licked her lips. “Because of you being a Dom?”
“What?” He looked up at her surprised. “Did Veronica tell you?”
“No, the news did and an ex-boyfriend who liked to dabble in the lifestyle.” Why was she talking to him? She was angry at him. Mad and wanted him to leave her alone.
The way he was caressing her calf made her feel like falling to sleep.
She saw his other hand tighten on his thigh. The knuckles were white from her words.
“This is wrong,” he said.
“What is?”
“I dated your sister. I’m older than you.”
“We’re just talking, James.”
He glared at her. “Do you think I don’t see the interest in your eyes?”
Prue dropped her gaze at his words.
“I think you should go,” he said.
She eased up off the seat, missing his touch as she did. Her knees hurt, and she was looking forward to a bath.
“You need to stop sending men away, James,” she said, stretching her hands above her head.
“I saw no interest on your part. I figured they were bothering you.”
“Do you always send unwanted men away with other women in your club?”
He was silent, and her question wasn’t answered. She glared at him, angered by the way he made her feel. It was unfair that she was affected by him while he showed no signs of having any interest in her at all.