“I need to tell you something.” Bile rises in my throat, and I twist the ring on its chain. “I went back to the club after I served the documents. I’d never seen anything like it, and I was curious, and I figured it was my only chance to check it out because I thought we would win in court today and they would be evicted. I didn’t say anything about the case or tip anyone off, but now I’m worried I’ve compromised you somehow, especially after what happened today, and hurting you in any way is the last thing I would ever do. I’m so sorry.”

    Amanda falls back in her chair and lets out a long breath. “Thank you for telling me. I trust you implicitly, Penny. I don’t believe for a second you would have discussed the case. Still, it would be better if you don’t go back while this case is going on. Appearances matter, and we don’t want to give Gerry any ammunition when it comes time to pay the bill.”

    “Of course, I won’t.” I am both gutted and relieved, but mostly I am thankful I haven’t compromised Amanda or, worse, lost my job. But what about Jack?

    “Anything else?” She gathers up her papers, and we push in our chairs. “You still look worried.”

    “I know someone whose career could be damaged if he was caught on camera—”

    Amanda cuts me off with a shake of her head. “I wish I didn’t have to put you in this position, but you can’t say anything. If he’s a friend or someone you care about, do what you can to keep him away from the club until the lawsuit is resolved, but you can’t tell him why.”

    A friend or someone I care about.

    Jack is both. And now I have to keep a secret that could destroy his career.

    * * *

    Cora meets me at the Redemption snack bar after I get out of my meeting with Amanda. We are taking another jiu-jitsu class, and I am both hoping and dreading that Jack will be there.

    “I’m going to set up a double date for us on Thursday night,” she announces.

    Since I can guess who my half of the double date might be, and since it is someone who spanked me, finger-fucked me, and then watched me run away with my proverbial tail between my legs, I am not overly enthusiastic about the idea.

    “I’m busy. You and Blade Saw go out and have fun.”

    “You have to come.” Cora grabs my arm, pulls me away from the counter. “I can’t be alone with Blade Saw. When we were rolling on the mats in jiu-jitsu class, I drooled every time he talked to me. It was too much. He has an amazing body, and he was lying on top of me, and then I was lying on him, and then my head was locked between his legs… I don’t know how people who do the sport aren’t horny all the time.”

    “You have to pick the right partner,” I say. “If you partner with someone who hasn’t washed his cup or had a shower since Sunday, you aren’t thinking of anything except getting the beast off you.” I shake her off and order a blueberry acai wheatgrass shake, although what I really want is the big fat cinnamon bun with extra cream cheese frosting that I saw in the coffee shop across from Amanda’s office this morning. However, while tied to the spanking bench with my bare ass in the air, I had an epiphany of sorts and decided to follow a slightly lower-calorie eating regime.

    “I only want Blade Saw.” She sighs. “I’ve never met anyone like him. The guys I hang out with are all about their brains, not their bodies. They’re pale, skinny, and hunched. Most of them have bad eyesight from staring at a computer for too long. They game all night long, and watch The Big Bang Theory for the science. They kiss like droids, and they get so excited about having a live woman in their bed, it’s over before it begins, if you know what I mean.”

    “I get the picture.” I take the shake from the cashier and gag on the healthy taste. Maybe if I pretend it’s ice cream…

    “On the other hand,” she continues, “I understand them. I like The Big Bang Theory. I love gaming all night long. Maybe I’m not cut out for an alpha male. Maybe I kiss like a droid, and he can sense that with his alpha senses.”

    “Oh, honey. I’m pretty sure he likes you. He didn’t spend that much time with anyone else in class last week. I think he’s just gun-shy because he’s had a lot of really bad relationships. He’s always on the wrong end of a love triangle.”

    “Does that mean you’ll come on the double date?” She gives me the big-eyed, pathetic puppy dog look that she uses when we’re kicking back and watching TV and she wants to watch shows with aliens and spaceships.

    “Fine. I’ll come on the date if you put this shake out of its misery. I can’t drink something this healthy.”

    Cora snatches it from my hand. “I thought you were into Jack. The two of you were pretty much going at it on the mats during the last class.”

    My cheeks heat, and I give an indignant sniff. “We were not ‘going at it.’ He was teaching me some moves.”

    “I wish Blade Saw would teach me those moves.”

    We sit at the nearest table, and Cora sips the shake while I dream of soft, warm buns and cream cheese frosting. I take a quick glance around to make sure we won’t be overheard. “Those moves were moving things too fast.”

    “You slept with him!” Her face lights up.

    “No. Close. But before it got too out of control, I cut and ran.”

    She claps her hand over her mouth. “You cut and ran? Poor guy.”

    Annoyed, I frown. “What do you mean ‘poor guy’? It was getting too serious too fast. I didn’t want him to get any ideas.”

    “He already had ideas,” Cora says. “I’ll bet if you’d been alone with him in class, his ideas would have included stripping off your clothes and doing you right there on the mats. You clearly weren’t paying attention, but a couple of the guys went over to break you two up ’cause you were supposed to be doing a drill, and he growled them away.”