Aliyah’s p.o.v

It was either this or I’d get kicked out of the club. Sex wasn’t supposed to be a big deal to me. I’d done it before with Michelo,it was never exciting. Even if this hulk of a man wanted to have his way with me, I feared I’d just let him… all for Julia.

The masked man towered over me again as he rose from his chair, moving toward the desk but still keeping his distance. When he had stepped close to the dim bulb earlier, I’d locked eyes with him. Recognition had struck me.

Those brown eyes,the only visible part of him were familiar or so I thought

I’d seen this shade before. Hell, I’d seen them this morning. They reminded me so much of Ottavio, but I dismissed the thought. Ottavio’s voice carried a layered Italian accent, lined with something else I couldn’t quite place.

This man, though, was different. He sounded American. How had I let Ottavio get into my head so much that I was now seeing him in the image of a powerful club owner?

The man before me radiated dominance, and when his hand had gripped my throat earlier, my skin had burned with heat.

But I couldn’t lose focus. I had a vow to keep,a mission to fulfill. A sexually commanding club owner wasn’t going to stop me. I came here to kill the owners of the club that held Julia captive and pull set her free.

“When you’re done checking me out, let me know so I can proceed.” His rough voice jolted me from my murderous thoughts.

I scoffed. “You wish.” Damn it. I needed to keep my mouth shut if I wanted this job. “Do whatever you want with me and make it quick. Some of us aren’t club owners,we have to work during the day.”

He let out a low hum, then grabbed the chair in the corner and dropped into it directly in front of me.

I wished I could see his face. Hell, I wished I could see any expression behind that mask.

“I’m not doing anything to you,” he said flatly. His gaze lingered between my legs, making my skin prickle. “You’ll be doing something to yourself.”

My frown deepened. If he wasn’t going to fuck me, then why demand I spread my legs?

He caught the confusion in my eyes. “Don’t get me wrong, um…” He paused, waiting for me to fill the silence.

“Raven,” I supplied.

“Hmm. Raven.” He repeated it slowly, dragging his gaze from between my thighs up the length of my body. I shivered under the weight of it, goosebumps rising across my skin. “I’m no saint. Something sexual will happen in this room, but I won’t be the one delivering it. You will.”

“Why?” The question slipped out before I could stop it.

“Careful, Raven. I might think you’re yearning for my touch.” His words were mocking, but his tone was edged with heat. “Don’t look so disappointed. If you want me to touch you, all you have to do is press that button beside you.”

I glanced around, then spotted the red button I hadn’t noticed before, slightly larger than the ones I’d seen on the other girls earlier.

So… he wouldn’t touch me unless I asked? This club never failed to surprise me. “I won’t need it.”

“Sure?” His American accent seemed lighter now, amused.

I gave a stiff nod.

“Consent is a priority in Raves and Jay. Whatever you say,sticks.” He concluded, his steps slow and deliberate as he circled the desk.

“Now enough talk. Let’s cut to the chase.” He stopped at my side, his presence burning against me. “Slide off your pants. My demand is simple: give yourself two orgasms, and I’ll consider your application.”

My head snapped toward him in shock. “What kind of screening is this?”

“Raven…” he hummed my name, and the heat of his body pressed close enough to raise my heartbeat. “One more question, and you’re out. I’m sure an orgasm isn’t new to you.”

Only…it was. I’d had sex with Michelo countless times, but I’d never once orgasmed. The word was foreign to my body. Panic rose in my chest. I wouldn’t be able to do it. My lips parted to protest, but his warning echoed in my head.

I was fucked.

“Start with your fingers,” he said smoothly, almost as if he sensed my fear. “Get yourself through the first one. For the second, I’ll provide the equipment.”

My hands trembled as I slid off my pants, stalling as if dragging out the moment might change the outcome.

The instant my pants pooled at my feet, the masked man sat back down, his eyes locked on my bare pussy. His throat bobbed as he swallowed hard. The awareness of his gaze burned through me, and I clamped my legs shut on instinct.

His hand darted forward, stopping just short of my thighs.

“Open up, woman,” he ordered, his voice hoarse and raspy. “Is there a reason why your pussy is soaked?” He said , his words so raw and dirty I wondered if he repeats this cycle with all his employees.

Shame crept into my body. “For a moment I thought the look of contempt in your eyes meant something else but she…” he pointed at my cunt. “Is explaining what the he look means.”

I lacked a suitable retort and so I parted my legs slowly, my fingers hesitant, almost stiff, as if they belonged to someone else. The heat in the room pressed against me, but inside I felt nothing. Nothing but the pounding of my own heartbeat in my ears.

I tried. I really did. I forced myself to move, to touch, to coax something from a body that had always been numb to pleasure. But the emptiness was deafening.

The man sat across from me, silent, his mask angled slightly like he was studying every move of my hand, every shallow breath I took. His stillness carried more discomfort to me than if he had spoken. It was like he knew I was failing, waiting for me to break.

I clenched my teeth. Julia. I reminded myself why I was here. For Julia, for my vow, for revenge. I couldn’t fail this. I couldn’t afford to.

So I dragged my mind elsewhere. To the memory of Ottavio’s hand locked around my throat in the club, how the air had left my lungs, how my skin had burned under his grip. My body remembered even if I wanted to deny it.

That heat had been real. And now, with this powerful stranger watching me, my treacherous mind stitched the two men together Ottavio’s commanding presence bleeding into the faceless mask before me.

A shiver ran through me. I waited for more. But nothing came. Not the release he demanded.Just frustration.

I stopped, hands falling uselessly to my sides. “I… I can’t,” I whispered, hating how small my voice sounded.

For the first time, he moved. He leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees, head tilting slightly. “Then leave,” he said, the words clipped, final.

Leave. Just like that. My chance at getting in…gone. My chance at Julia slipping.

Panic flared in my chest. My eyes darted to the red button by my side. He had told me pressing it would change everything. He had said it would bring his touch. I wasn’t supposed to. I knew better. But my hand moved before my brain could stop it.

Click.

The sound was sharp in the silence, echoing louder than my racing pulse.

The masked man stilled. For the first time since I entered this room, I felt the shift in his presence, a dark energy that told me I had just crossed into dangerous territory.

He rose slowly, like a predator deciding whether or not to strike, and when his shadow fell over me, every nerve in my body lit with the same heat I had sworn to resist.

And all I could think was…God help me, what have I just invited?