My heart sped up. One flick of his wrist and I’d be locked inside with him. The fuzzy edges around my mind started to hum. “I actually want to leave now,” I said.

“Why would you want to go? We haven’t even started yet.”

“Now. Move.”

He leered at me. “I don’t like the way you’re looking at me, little sub.” His hand moved to the doorknob. “I’m going to have to remind you how you’re supposed to talk to your Top.”

I swayed and shouted the one thing I could think of, “Red!”

“Bitch.” The leer left his face and he went to close the door, but at the last second, a booted foot kept it from shutting.

“I heard someone safeword,” the owner of the boot said, opening the door and looking inside. “Everything okay?”

We both answered at once.

“No.”

“Yes.”

The man at the door was tall and dark, and he wore a frown. He crossed his arms and looked from me to the other man. “What’s going on?”

“Just a little disagreement with my sub.”

“I am not your sub,” I said, but it probably would have had more impact if it wasn’t slurred when it came out.

“How much have you had to drink?” asked the stranger at the door.

“Three?”

He mumbled something under his breath that didn’t sound like it should be repeated in front of ladies or children and glared at the man who’d claimed I was his sub. “She safeworded and even if she hadn’t, she’s not sober enough to consent.”

The other guy wasn’t going to back down. “Who are you?”

“I’m a guest who’s here for the weekend. And from what I can tell, I won’t be back.” He turned back to me. “Are you alone or are you with someone?”

Before I could say anything, I was interrupted.

“She’s with me,” the man who had trapped me in the room said.

Moving faster than I would have thought possible for a man of his size, the dark guy shot his hand out and grabbed the other man by the throat. “She safeworded. You are no longer involved in this conversation. If you continue to act otherwise, I will call the police and file assault charges.”

The guy nodded, which was quite an accomplishment considering how tightly the dark man was holding him.

“Let’s go somewhere we can talk,” the dark man said to me.

I hesitated, suddenly uneasy. He was acting like my savior now, but who could tell? I might be trading one nightmare for another. He pressed his lips together.

“Of course,” he said. “You don’t know me. Let’s go into the main room.”

That sounded safer. I nodded and we made our way down the hall. Once back in the main room, I collapsed on a couch, suddenly exhausted. I realized all at once just how drunk I was and how close I’d come to being assaulted. I burst into tears.

“Hell,” dark man said. “It’s okay. You’re safe.”

He looked around as if he didn’t know what to do. He held out a hand, but then took it back. Finally, he grabbed a napkin from a nearby table and passed it to me.

I sobbed for a few more minutes and eventually calmed down to mere hiccups. “I … I … Thank you. The lady I came with left me and I was trying to find her. I. … I just want to go home.”

“I think that’d be for the best. I’d call you a cab, but I don’t think you should go by yourself.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Is there someone I can call to pick you up?”

I thought about having him call Nathaniel, but decided it’d be better to deal with this myself. I shook my head.

“My name’s Jeff Parks.” He pulled out his wallet and handed me a card. “I’m a security expert and work very closely with the Wilmington, Delaware, Police Department. That’s the number for the switchboard. Feel free to give them a call and ask about me. I can also provide you with the number of an attorney I’ve played with numerous times. It’s as much of a reference as I can give on short notice.”

I simply had no choice but to believe him.

He sensed my hesitation. “Ma’am, if I’d wanted to take advantage of you, I wouldn’t be going through all this. I insist my subs be sober and provide consent.” The corner of his lip quirked up. “Call me egotistical, but if you’re going to be pleasantly sore and achy in the morning, I damn well want you to remember how you got that way.”

I smiled for the first time in hours. “Will you call me a cab, Mr. Parks?”