The door clicked shut behind us, muffling the bass-heavy music and muffled chatter from the main room. Suddenly, it was just us, cocooned in shadows and a heat that seemed to radiate from nowhere but him.

I leaned back against the wall, trying to steady my breathing. My chest rose and fell too fast, as though I had sprinted across the floor when in reality, I had only walked a few steps into this velvet-lined house. The space was dim and intimate, lit by a low red glow that painted everything ...