Giddy Up, Daddy (Dirty Daddies 2024 Anthology #5)

Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen

Nate

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” I’m honestly confused on how he got from what Sadie said to this, but he did, so here we are.

“It’s not going to solve everything, but it will get her to talk to us.” He’s confident. “That’s what we really need, another date so we can find out from her what she likes and who she is, and really figure out how to woo her for real.”

“Can we agree not to just jump straight to sleeping with her this time?” I grumble, because in my mind, that’s where it all went wrong.

Of course it will be a moot point if Bo is wrong about this, and he very well could be. It does seem kind of crazy.

“We’ll keep sex off the table for now,” Bo agrees. “Although it might not be possible. She could see all this…” He waves his hand around at the chaos he’s caused. “And decide we’re irresistible.”

“Oh yeah, right. Obviously. Of course. What was I thinking?” I roll my eyes. “I’m just saying, I think we need to be worried less about wooing her and more about courting her.”

“And I’m saying we need to be able to woo her into letting us court her.”

“Okay, okay.” I finish dressing, and laugh at the getup Bo has lured me into. “It's a small town, in the middle of the day, in the middle of the week. Are you sure all this is really necessary?”

“You heard Elle. She needs to be treated like a princess sometimes.”

“I’m not sure she meant like an actual princess,” I argue. I’m still worried we might be going overboard.

“Well,” Bo steps forward and pats the breast lapel of my suit. “We’re going to find out I guess.”

Elle

“What in the hell is going on out there?” Jeffrey’s voice cuts through the sound of my fingers clacking away at the keyboard.

The office goes still as everyone follows his gaze. I try but I’m too far back and there’s a crowd of people gathered outside the window.

“That looks like news happened literally on our front porch!” Ashlynn cries excitedly. “Let me grab my camera!”

There’s a handful of us in the office today, more than there usually are at one time, and they all grab different devices, cameras, recorders, their phones, and run out the door. As curious as I am, I stay put because it’s their job to report the newsworthy happenings in this town, not mine, and I have work to do.

I’m working alone for only a couple minutes when the bell on the door jingles and Ashlynn runs back in. “Elle! You have got to come see this!”

I glance out the front window but still no clues as to what’s going on outside. “I’m good, thanks.”

“No, I mean you have got to come see this .” She won’t let it go. She actually comes over to my desk, slams my laptop closed and grabs my hands. “Come. On.”

Well, now I’m curious if nothing else, so I let her pull me onto my feet and drag me out the door. When we come out onto the sidewalk, there’s an expectation in the air. I can feel it, but I don’t understand it, or the weird looks people are giving me.

And then the crowd parts. And I see them. Them.

Bo and Nate are standing in the road dressed in full-ass four- piece suits, complete with ties around their neck and boutonnieres on their lapel. Roses.

If that was all… If only that was all. They are standing in front of a full-ass carriage, being pulled by two of the most stunning Ahkal Teke horses I’ve ever seen. They are decked out, their manes shining, gorgeous garlands of roses around their necks. And the carriage is adorned with similar wreaths. There’s a chauffeur I don’t recognize.

When they see me, the crowd goes silent. I step toward them, or maybe I’m pushed. “What… What is going on? What are you doing here?”

“We’ve come to woo you into giving us a second chance,” Bo states.

“We’re hoping you’ll come with us, just… on one more date. So we can talk.” Nate is more diplomatic.

“What?” Crazy, wild laughter bubbles from my lips. I’m stunned at the spectacle, stunned that it’s for me. It’s proposal-worthy and all they want is a date. I don’t know whether to be swept off my feet or totally turned off. “I can’t… I’m on the job. I won't get off for another hour.”

“Well, see, that might be something we’d known If we’d had the chance to get to know you.” Bo’s smile is devilishly charming and even though I’m trying to be aloof, my heart flutters.

The crowd collectively groans.

“She can go!” Jeffrey calls.

They cheer. What is this life?

Bo and Nate smile, and step up, each on one side of me, offering their arms. “You heard the man. Let’s go, M’lady. Your chariot awaits.”

They start to guide me to the carriage, and I falter, pulling back. “I can’t.”

Their faces fall.

Bo speaks first. “Please, Elle? No pressure beyond dinner and a conversation. We just have some things to say and more to ask. We want to get to know you.”

Nate chimes in, “Sex is off the table. We want to do things right this time. You’re worth not rushing.”

I can’t help the stab of regret that twinges when Nate announces that sex is off the table. I know he’s not wrong, but it doesn’t even matter. “No.” I laugh, taking two steps back and pointing to the wreaths. “I mean, I really can’t. I’m allergic to roses.”

My declaration visibly stuns them and they both blink as they process, then Bo steps into action with a wide grin. “Well, see, that’s the kind of thing we’re hoping to get to know. The aim is to woo you, not put you in the hospital.”

“Can we get someone to take away these floral arrangements?” He snaps his fingers, and Mack appears out of the crowd with Kilches King, one of the mayors, and another man I don’t know. In minutes all the flowers have been disposed of. The picture the carriage and horses make is no longer as grand, but it’s not going to make me break out in a rash either.

Once they are gone, I allow Bo and Nate to help me into the carriage, one of them on each side of me, and we literally ride off into the sunset. Not on horseback, mind you, but close enough.