Page 55 of Suite 7

“From your marriage?” she asks.

“Started during. Finished after.” The admission tastes like copper. “It’s part of why the marriage ended.”

She goes still, not flinching, absorbing.

“What did you tell Sloane about it?”

“That it contains confidential client work. She’s never questioned it.”

The lie sits heavy between us. Another weight we’re carrying from Sloane.

“Do you want to see it?” I ask.

She swallows.

“Yes.”

No hesitation. Nervous but certain.

I move to the keypad. My hand hovers over the keys for half a second, and then I punch in the code.

“No one has been in here but me,” I say. “And now you.”

I push open the door and the warm amber light floods the space.

Vera steps inside.

And stops.

Her eyes move through the room. Then she crosses toward the Cross like it’s magnetic, fingertips just above the smooth wood, the padded restraint points. Not quite touching.

“You built this,” she whispers.

“Yes.”

Her gaze travels to the implements behind glass: floggers, paddles, crops, canes, organized by size and intensity, meticulously maintained. She studies them without speaking. Then the spanking bench. The aftercare couch. The mini fridge. The medical supplies in labeled bins.

Finally, she lets her fingertips run over the weighted blanket on the aftercare couch. When she turns back, I brace myself.

Waiting for disgust. Pity. Fear.

“This is part of who you are,” she says. “The actual you.”

“Yes.” The word comes out rough.

“Why show me?”

“You asked me to teach you. You asked for all of it.” I hold her gaze. “This is part of the answer.”

She looks at me for a long moment. Then she reaches out and places her palm flat against my chest, over my heart.

“What if it’s too much?” she asks.

The part of me that still carries Vanessa’s voice holds its breath, waiting for her expression to change, for something colder to move in. It doesn’t.

“Is it…too much?”

“No.” Her hand stays, palm warm against my chest, looking at me the way you look at something you’ve decided to keep. “It’s just... you.”