Corden

Entering The Harbor feels different now that I'm aware of the sleazy hands it's run by. I'm on edge as I take the short ride from the elevator, my mind racing at thoughts of Carmen arriving here twenty minutes ago. Twenty minutes doesn't seem like a lot of time, but in this world I live in, twenty minutes is more than enough time to take a life.

But we needed to arrive separately. If we had come together, it'd raise too many suspicions. Seeing her as a client is one thing. But driving her to work? It'd reveal too much, and the point of today is to act as nothing but a horny client to remain off of Buck's radar.

The minute the doors open, Buck is at the entrance speaking to a woman on the clock. He sees me from the corner of his eye, his stance straightening ever so slightly at my presence. I always thought it was because he was a spineless idiot who was too scared to confront me, but now I know the real reason he's always cowered beneath me. He's attempting to hide a trafficking ring that's been coexisting with this place right beneath my fucking nose.

The thought irks the hell out of me.

But I have an act to play, so I plaster an indifferent smile and offer him a clipped nod. "Buck. Always a pleasure."

"Corden. Here for Hadari again?" The fact he already knows who I'm requesting is terrifying. It means he's aware of how important she is. It means Rafino is aware of how important she is.

"Yes. Have you seen her?" Despite my best efforts, my pulse spikes as worry seeps through my veins. It clouds my senses when it shouldn't. I'm supposed to be level-headed, especially in this situation, but this is why getting close to someone can be so dangerous. It can make you irrational. Crazy.

"Pole three," he replies, his gaze lingering on mine for a beat too long. "Would you like me to escort you?"

"No need. I'll do so myself." Then, I'm making a beeline past the bar and through the numerous people blocking my way. I need to have eyes on her. Once I see that she's alive and well, I can focus on the task at hand. Get into Buck's office. Find information on the missing women. Leave before we're caught.

Finally, my eyes spot her glorious fucking body sliding down the pole. It's a routine she's done before, so I'm aware it's ending when her thighs snap shut and her eyes latch onto mine. I thought I'd have to put on an act being a horny client tonight, but there isn't going to be any acting at all. No amount of tonight's stress can shake my desire for her.

I'm not sure anything could.

"Hi," she says with a tiny smile. Dressed in another baby pink number, she's fucking incriminating tonight. It's downright sinful the way that garter looks on her hips.

She surprises me when she hops off the stage and pushes me back to a lush velvet couch in front of the stage. I flop down on the cushion, wearing a savage smile when she straddles me, her dainty palm trailing down my button-up shirt.

"Who do I have to thank for this?" I ask. My hand travels down her spine, stopping right above the thin strap of her thong.

She leans close to my ear to whisper, "Buck is watching us, so we have to make it look like we're too wrapped up in each other to handle ourselves out here. We need to get to the red room to bypass him and get to his office."

"Mmm." I pull away slightly, my eyes darting to her lips. "And how far do you want to take this performance?"

She's breathless when she replies, "Enough to make it believable."

My fingers snap her thong, grinning wickedly at the sharp inhale she takes in response. I haven't been able to keep myself from between her thighs. I'm enamored with her. I'm obsessed with her. She's the first thought when I wake up and the last before I go to bed. She has a hold on me no other woman is capable of, and we haven't spoken in depth about what this is between us, but I think I want to. I think I want to make her...mine. Just mine.

"Does me doing this in front of everyone turn you on, Hadari?" I squeeze her ass for emphasis.

"I...I don't know," she whimpers. "I don't think they'll notice. I'm not..."

"You're not what?"

"The men here mainly prefer blondes," she admits. "I make good money on the pole, but until you, I've never been asked to go to the red room. Well, except for when I made a move on that guy to get back at you, but..."

Tilting my hips up, I reach into my pocket to grab my wallet. Carmen's eyes remain trained on my movements, her chest rising and falling rapidly, anticipating what I have up my sleeve.

"Then they're all fools," I murmur. Reaching into my wallet, I pull out a crisp one-hundred dollar bill and pull her bra back with two fingers to wedge it inside. "Because you're the most stunning woman in here, Hadari, and you deserve to suck them dry of every penny they have." I plant kisses down the center of her chest until my face is nuzzled between her breasts. I bite the edge of her bra and stick another hundred on the other side. "You're so fucking pretty."

She tugs on her lip, another tiny whimper from her shooting straight to my cock. It's standing at full attention when I slip another hundred into the band of her thong, my fingers trailing along the apex of her thigh now, almost to the spot she's craving for me to be. I don't have to ask when she's fidgeting on my lap, attempting to grind on my leg while she's desperate for friction.

"Please," she begs

"Please what? You have to be specific."

"Touch me."

"Here?" I grow harder at the thought. "Where everyone can see just how fucking dirty you are for me?"

"Oh, god," she moans. "Yes."

I pull out another hundred and slip her underwear to the side so I can replace it with my fingers. The bill acts as a barrier between my touch and her clit, and a frustrated sound escapes her.

"Tell me you deserve it," I say. "Tell me you're worthy of all the money in the fucking world. Tell me you're not who Archer painted you to be. Tell me you're aware of how fucking incredible you are—that allowing yourself to be devoured in front of others doesn't make you any less of the powerful woman you are, and I'll give you what you want."

Her eyes snap to mine, laser-focused, while my words penetrate her brain. She's fucking perfect, and I refuse to allow her to think less of herself because of an insecure man who was incapable of handling a woman stronger than him.

"I know I am," she whispers. The lights dim from another's set ending, the music fading out until it feels like only the two of us in this room. "You make me feel like I'm invincible, Corden."

As soon as the words leave her lips, I shove two fingers into her tight, wet pussy. Her jaw drops open with pleasure, not a care in the world about those around us in nearby booths who might be watching. I could give two fucks if they watch me finger fuck her when they'll never get a chance to do so themselves.

"Look at how well you take my fingers." My eyes home in on the hundred dollar bill poking out of the fabric. "What a dirty fucking girl."

She tosses her head back, arms hooked around my neck when I curl my fingers in the right spot. My cock is straining against my dress pants as she rocks against it, and I know we have a task to complete tonight, but we also have a show to put on, too. And by doing this, it makes my reasoning for being here more believable.

"I want you to come on this fucking hundred. Let it be known that you are invaluable, not this flimsy piece of paper people chase after. Soak it. Now."

With a swipe of my thumb against her clit, she shatters against my hand, gasping when I use the hundred for added friction against her hole. She stains the money with her arousal, and when I remove it from her panties, I crumple it and toss it to the side. "Money is what all of these fuckers around us are after. They come here solely to use these women for pleasure, but me? I'm here for you, and if there's a choice between money and you, always know it'll be you."

Carmen rises from my lap and sticks her hand out for me to take.

"Is it time for our plan to commence?" I ask.

Her eyes sparkle with mischief. "It will, but not yet. It's my last night on the job, and I want to break my red room virginity before I quit."