This is a mistake. I shouldn’t be here.

I stood outside of The Crimson Veil, one of the most exclusive and notoriously difficult to enter BDSM club in the city. The entrance was discreet, almost forgettable, if not for the low pulse of music seeping through the heavy door.

I shifted on my feet, feeling painfully out of place beside my friends. Sophia and Emily were dressed up for the occasion, sleek, confident, while I had hidden myself in layers of fabric. My fingers toyed with the hem of my sleeves. I could still turn around. My gaze drifted towards the direction of our car. It was only twenty steps away.

“Ready?” Sophia flashed a bright grin, practically vibrating with excitement. “This is going to be fun!”

Emily caught Sophia’s arm, laughing softly. “Let’s calm down first. We don’t want to get kicked out before we even make it inside.”

They both turned to me. Sophia groaned dramatically. “Jasmine, stop overthinking. We have already talked about this. If it becomes too much, we leave. Right?”

“Yes,” Emily said gently, slipping her hand into mine.

I nodded, but my eyes stayed fixed on the door. My parents would be horrified if they knew where I was. Still, something deep inside me whispered that walking away now would leave me wondering forever.

As we stepped inside, the scent of leather, warm skin, and something darker wrapped around me. The lighting was low and red, casting long shadows. Soft commands and quiet moans drifted beneath the music. I looked away quickly from several scenes, my pulse jumping. The deeper we went, the more I saw tenderness mixed with control. A man slowly brushing a woman’s hair. Another resting his hand possessively on the back of his partner’s neck while she leaned into him. Soft praise. Quiet surrender. My cheeks flushed as I quickly looked away. I suddenly felt as though I was intruding on something private, something intimate.

I shook the thought away and realized I had lost my friends in the crowd. I wandered, heart beating faster, fingers pressing hard into my palms as I scanned for Sophia and Emily. The club wasn’t overcrowded, but there were enough people to find it hard to find my friends. As I moved through the crowd, I couldn’t help but stare at a couple in front of me. A woman was kneeling at the feet of a seated man. She was beautiful, poised, her back straight and her hands resting calmly on her lap. There was no tension in her body. She looked at peace, serene even as he slowly fastened a leather collar around her pale neck. He was doing it so gently, almost reverently. When he finished, she looked up at him. She looked at him like he was her entire world. There was no shame or humiliation in her expression. She trusted him.

My chest tightened with a strange ache.

What would it feel like…?

The thought came so suddenly it startled me. I shook my head. No. That wasn’t what I wanted. This was only curiosity for something new and foreign. I was only here to look and say I did something out of the ordinary for once. As I turned to continue searching for my friends, a strange shiver ran down my spine.

The unmistakable sensation of being watched.

The air around me seemed to shift. I turned slowly. Grey eyes, sharp and unblinking, locked onto mine. A tall man dressed entirely in black stood a few steps away. Broad-shouldered, motionless, he watched me like I was the only person in the room. The shadows clung to him. He didn’t smile. He didn’t move. He simply observed — calm, patient, and utterly in control.

My breath caught. Heat flooded my cheeks. The crowd around me suddenly felt farther away. The music seemed quieter. Even my own breathing sounded too loud. I dropped my gaze first, but the pull was too strong. When I looked back, he was still staring. Something about him made it hard to breathe normally.

He began walking toward me. The crowd parted without him saying a word. When he stopped, the space between us felt far too small. His presence pressed against my skin.

“You’re new.” His voice was low, quiet, and unmistakably Russian.

I stared at the man in front of me, suddenly unsure of what to say. “Yes,” I whispered.  

“Why are you here?”

I played with my sleeves. “My friends wanted to come,” I said softly. “They… dragged me along.”

He studied me in silence. His gaze was too heavy, too knowing. It made my stomach flutter and my instincts scream at the same time.

“I…” my voice faltered. “I wanted to understand.”

“Understand what?”

The silence stretched. Under the weight of his attention, the truth slipped out before I could stop it.

“What it feels like… to let go.” I let out a nervous laugh, trying to brush it off.

His eyes darkened slightly. For a moment, something hungry flickered across his face before it disappeared behind perfect control. He extended his hand.

“Wrist.”

It wasn’t a request. My body obeyed before my mind could catch up. I placed my trembling hand in his. His grip was firm, warm, and impossibly steady. Calluses brushed my skin, the hands of a man who didn’t only give orders. He pulled a narrow black silk ribbon from his pocket and tied it around my wrist with slow, deliberate movements. His fingers barely grazed me, yet the touch sent warmth racing up my arm.

“Keep this on tonight,” he said, voice low.

I looked up at him, throat dry. “Why?”

He leaned closer. The scent of whisky and smoke surrounded me.

“So, I’ll know if you choose to come back to me.”

Then he released my wrist and stepped back. The loss of contact felt strangely empty.

As he turned to leave, he paused. Without looking back, he added, “And Jasmine?”

I froze. I had never told him my name.

He glanced over his shoulder, the faintest trace of satisfaction in his eyes. “Don’t take it off.”

He disappeared into the crowd, leaving me breathless.

****************************

Somehow, I found Sophia and Emily again. The rest of the evening passed in a blur. They chattered excitedly about everything they had seen, but I stayed quiet, only half-listening. My fingers kept returning to the silk ribbon on my wrist, tracing the soft material over and over. My eyes scanned the room constantly, searching for him, even though I told myself I shouldn’t.

I should leave.

That had been the plan, come, satisfy my curiosity, and go home. But I had never felt so seen before. At parties, I was always invisible. Men gravitated toward girls like Sophia. Bold. Confident. Fearless. Everything I wasn’t.

And yet tonight, someone had chosen me.  

Hours later, close to midnight, I sat quietly at our table, both hands wrapped around a cold glass of water. Then I saw him. He stood in a dark corner, perfectly still, straight-backed, watching. Waiting. My heart slammed against my ribs.

“I’m going to the restroom,” I said quickly, rising before my courage could vanish.

My friends waved me off distractedly. My feet carried me toward him, slower with steps. My thumb pressed hard into my palm as I tried to steady my breathing. He didn’t move. He simply waited, radiating quiet, unmistakable power.

When I stopped in front of him, I had to tilt my head up to meet his eyes.

“I came back.”

His gaze dropped to the silk ribbon on my wrist, then slowly rose to my face. Something possessive flickered in his expression.

“I know.” A pause. His voice dropped, deep and approving. “Good girl.”