You can’t smoke in here! Put that out!”
“Do you remember when I was working that case in Nashville involving the bootlegged moonshine?” Candice exhaled a large cloud of smoke.
The question caught Lacey off guard, especially since she was afraid they’d be busted and hauled off to jail at any moment for breaking the smoking laws. Nodding and waving her hand to ward off the fumes, she answered, “Vaguely.”
Candy took another drag of her cigarette before she said, “It turned out to be a bust due to some family grudge that left me deep in the shit. At the time I was desperate for a story. Gerald had just gotten a big break on the drug bust in Rhea County and Archie was close to cracking the name of the gang responsible for the heist at First Franklin. When I went to scrounge for something I was offered a nice check to do an exposé piece on a super-exclusive club in Nashville—a fetish club.”
“Excuse me, ma’am.” A very stern voice interrupted their conversation as the manager of the restaurant walked up to the booth. “You can’t smoke that in here.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Candy muttered, took one final puff and put the cigarette out in her glass of water. “Satisfied?” The warning look she shot the manager was enough to encourage him to leave but it left Lacey uneasy. Candice relied on her quick wit and unshakable control to do her job. Behaving like a rebellious teenager was completely out of character.
“So you met Michael at the fetish club?”
“Not exactly. I needed a cover, and the list of members I was given was slim. Mike was the easiest person to approach.”
“I have a difficult time believing Michael would help you.”
“He didn’t want to.” Reaching across the table, Candy helped herself to Lacey’s untouched glass of water. “It took a little persuasion.”
“What did you do?”
Candy took a large swallow before she answered. “I told him I would keep the identities of every person I came into contact with completely confidential if he got me in and let me mingle undisturbed.”
“And if he didn’t?”
“I’d find another source and reveal all.”
“You blackmailed him?” Lacey was shocked at the fury she felt as she came to Michael’s defense.
“A girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do.”
“Jesus, Candy.”
“It wasn’t so bad. Everyone came out clean. Mikey Boy wasn’t thrilled but he knew that if he didn’t agree I’d find another way in. Do you have any idea how many politicians like being ordered around and led on leashes? Those are the kinds of names you don’t want spread around.” Candice laughed softly. “That’s why I chose Mike. There was no way the other people on the shortlist would have considered helping me out. It started out totally innocent. I mean, sure, some of it was hot—barely clad men, sex scenes performed right out in the open. You name it and I probably saw it. But it was a job, you know? I’ve investigated worse.”
Lacey continued her questioning carefully, proceeding with caution. “So what happened?”
“On my final night, I met someone.” Candice’s expression screamed conflict and uncertainty. She shook her head as if shaking off the memory. “That part’s not important.” She met Lacey’s concerned gaze. “Listen, kiddo. If you want to know if Mike’s a good guy, I can only tell you that of all of the Doms I met at Fantasia, he was the one I would have trusted most. He was seeing someone at the time, and even though she didn’t mind sharing if that’s what he wanted, he did mind, which gives him major brownie points in my opinion. There were a few times when he played with her in public but sex was never involved. For the most part he seemed interested in being around his friends in the establishment.”
“And the necklace?” Lacey motioned at the box resting on the table.
“If I were a betting woman, I’d put money down that he wants to take you to the club or maybe a very private play
“Do you remember when I was working that case in Nashville involving the bootlegged moonshine?” Candice exhaled a large cloud of smoke.
The question caught Lacey off guard, especially since she was afraid they’d be busted and hauled off to jail at any moment for breaking the smoking laws. Nodding and waving her hand to ward off the fumes, she answered, “Vaguely.”
Candy took another drag of her cigarette before she said, “It turned out to be a bust due to some family grudge that left me deep in the shit. At the time I was desperate for a story. Gerald had just gotten a big break on the drug bust in Rhea County and Archie was close to cracking the name of the gang responsible for the heist at First Franklin. When I went to scrounge for something I was offered a nice check to do an exposé piece on a super-exclusive club in Nashville—a fetish club.”
“Excuse me, ma’am.” A very stern voice interrupted their conversation as the manager of the restaurant walked up to the booth. “You can’t smoke that in here.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Candy muttered, took one final puff and put the cigarette out in her glass of water. “Satisfied?” The warning look she shot the manager was enough to encourage him to leave but it left Lacey uneasy. Candice relied on her quick wit and unshakable control to do her job. Behaving like a rebellious teenager was completely out of character.
“So you met Michael at the fetish club?”
“Not exactly. I needed a cover, and the list of members I was given was slim. Mike was the easiest person to approach.”
“I have a difficult time believing Michael would help you.”
“He didn’t want to.” Reaching across the table, Candy helped herself to Lacey’s untouched glass of water. “It took a little persuasion.”
“What did you do?”
Candy took a large swallow before she answered. “I told him I would keep the identities of every person I came into contact with completely confidential if he got me in and let me mingle undisturbed.”
“And if he didn’t?”
“I’d find another source and reveal all.”
“You blackmailed him?” Lacey was shocked at the fury she felt as she came to Michael’s defense.
“A girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do.”
“Jesus, Candy.”
“It wasn’t so bad. Everyone came out clean. Mikey Boy wasn’t thrilled but he knew that if he didn’t agree I’d find another way in. Do you have any idea how many politicians like being ordered around and led on leashes? Those are the kinds of names you don’t want spread around.” Candice laughed softly. “That’s why I chose Mike. There was no way the other people on the shortlist would have considered helping me out. It started out totally innocent. I mean, sure, some of it was hot—barely clad men, sex scenes performed right out in the open. You name it and I probably saw it. But it was a job, you know? I’ve investigated worse.”
Lacey continued her questioning carefully, proceeding with caution. “So what happened?”
“On my final night, I met someone.” Candice’s expression screamed conflict and uncertainty. She shook her head as if shaking off the memory. “That part’s not important.” She met Lacey’s concerned gaze. “Listen, kiddo. If you want to know if Mike’s a good guy, I can only tell you that of all of the Doms I met at Fantasia, he was the one I would have trusted most. He was seeing someone at the time, and even though she didn’t mind sharing if that’s what he wanted, he did mind, which gives him major brownie points in my opinion. There were a few times when he played with her in public but sex was never involved. For the most part he seemed interested in being around his friends in the establishment.”
“And the necklace?” Lacey motioned at the box resting on the table.
“If I were a betting woman, I’d put money down that he wants to take you to the club or maybe a very private play
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