Justin hated being late—he became anxious and nervous when he wasn’t right on time. And now he was running a full ten minutes late to a meeting with his boss. Lady Leo was going to kill him. He was sure of it.

She was seated at her desk, the morning sunlight streaming in around her. Two floors below them, Kinky Kritters would open in an hour. At that moment the building was quiet, except for the occasional sound of Bethany, Lady Leo’s daughter, walking through the halls running errands for her mother. Nothing close to the noise the patrons would make once they arrived.

“I’m so sorry I’m late. There was traffic on the highway and—”

Lady Leo waved away his excuses, then pointed him to the seat across from her. He instantly sat and pulled the chair up closer to her desk. It scraped loudly against the floor. He cringed at the sound. “Sorry about that, too.”

Lady Leo sighed. “It’s fine. Really. Justin, I’d like to add a special assignment to your usual security workload.”

“A special assignment?” he repeated. He’d never been asked to do anything out of the ordinary at Kinky Kritters.

Nodding, Lady Leo placed a piece a paper in front of him.

Justin looked down at it. The flyer showed a man tied up and dangling from the ceiling. Ropes wrapped around him bound him securely. Heat rose in Justin’s cheeks just from looking at the picture. He couldn’t imagine how it would be to actually see him in person. Whoever Tom was, he was having erotic rope art exhibit at Kinky Kritters.

“I want you to assist him. Give him whatever he needs while he’s here. He’ll be suspended during our regular hours, and an extra half hour before and after, for set-up and take-down purposes. The exhibit will run for two weeks, lasting through Thanksgiving. Tom’s a turkey. He finds it amusing to be tied up during the holiday when so many of his brethren are tied in a different way. The club won’t be open, but he’ll still be suspended, per his choice. So I’ll need you to work the holiday as well. Unless you have other plans?”

Justin had nothing going on. He wasn’t close to his family, and he didn’t really care about the holiday—it was just a day to gorge on rich food. He could do that anytime. Plus, he liked Chinese food more than mashed potatoes any day. “What do I need to do for him to assist him? What can I really do for a guy who’s tied up all night? That sounds fairly monotonous.”

Lady Leo chuckled. “I wouldn’t enjoy being tied up either, but he does. So you’ll get him water when he’s thirsty, you’ll feed him when he’s hungry, and you’ll keep everyone from putting their grubby little paws on him as he dangles there naked.”

Justin looked back down at the ad. “I can do that.”

“I know you can. I also know you’re getting bored making the rounds every night. That’s okay. It happens sometimes. You need a change of pace, and Tom needs someone to make sure he doesn’t die of dehydration. I think you might like this assignment. You can yell at people for trying to touch the naked man. I’m sure you’ll have fun with that.”

Justin snorted, surprised at how well Lady Leo knew him. “When do I start?”

“He’s doing a trial run downstairs tonight. No guests, just him in a room and you assisting him. The exhibit officially opens on Monday. That’ll give him two days to work out any kinks that might arise.” She gestured toward the door, indicating their talk was over.

Justin bit back a smile at her use of the word kink. There would be plenty of kinks, he was sure. He’d never met someone who liked being tied up for more than just a scene, but as he went downstairs after his meeting with Lady Leo, he knew he was about to.

Amani met him as the elevator dinged open. “I’ll show you to our resident artist. It’s our first exhibit. I’m excited. Do you want something to drink?” They strolled deeper into the club.

Justin shook his head. “I’m good. But thanks. Do I need to take anything to him right now?”

“Not yet. Text me when you do. At this point, he just wants to get to know you and let you know what’s going on. Tom’s a good guy. A little nuts, if you ask me, wanting to hang from the ceiling for hours on end, but he’s done it before so it’s all good. Just ask if you need help. He’s through there.” Amani pointed toward a closed door.

Justin hesitated, but Amani gave him a smile. “You’ll be fine.”

Justin nodded, then headed toward the door.

He knocked before entering. “Enter,” a muffled voice called out.

Inside, a naked man he presumed was Tom walked around between piles of tightly coiled rope. Justin quickly looked away. “Hey. I’m—”

“Justin. I know. How was your meeting with Lady Leo?”

Justin had been working at Kinky Kritters for a while, so he’d seen plenty of naked men, but none looked as completely relaxed in their skin as Tom did. He wasn’t trying to show off or attract anyone’s attention. He was simply walking around without clothes on, and that bothered the hell out of Justin. But he knew he’d have to get over that if he was going to work with him, so he decided to suck it up then and there. He shook himself out mentally and focused on a point on the wall instead of giving in to his desire to stare at Tom. “It was fine. Can I get you anything right now?”