Chapter 5
Michael
“Got anything you want to tell me?” Ryan’s voice startles me, and I whirl around. He’s got his arms crossed and his eyes narrowed. His runner’s build shouldn’t be intimidating, but my guilt about lusting after his sister is consuming me.
“Uhh…no?”
“You paid all of our bills again without asking for my half.”
A breath of relief has my shoulders lowering.
“It’s not a big deal, Ry. I’ve got plenty of money.
” With the help of our parents, Ryan, Carson, and I bought our house right after we graduated from high school.
It was scary, taking on that responsibility so young, but we’ve managed to not fuck it up in the ten years we’ve owned it.
Now that Carson and Ginny live together, Ryan and I have been going back and forth on who’s paying for what.
Both of us can afford the bills on our own, so it’s become a bit of a game.
“You drive me crazy.” He walks into the kitchen with a shake of his head.
I lean back against the counter and take in my best friend.
His light brown hair and hazel eyes match his soft personality.
I’ve always admired his ability to be warm and welcoming to everyone he meets.
Growing up with him as my best friend, I learned how to love unconditionally.
There were plenty of times he could’ve given up on me—I’m not always a good friend.
Yet after all these years, he never has.
“Anything exciting happen today?” he asks, opening the fridge to pull out a sparkling water.
I snort. “Nothing exciting ever happens here. Broke up a rowdy group of teenagers out at the ball fields and had to give a ticket to Mrs. Haypenny because she was knowingly driving without her license. She tried to use her age as an excuse. As if she ‘forgot’ she didn’t have her license anymore.
The woman might be eighty, but she’s not senile. ”
Ryan laughs. “Did she hit on you again?”
“Of course. She tried that first.” I grin at the memory.
The woman is certifiably insane. Her eyesight has started to fail, so we didn’t renew her license this year.
She’s not happy about it and is struggling to accept the decision.
She’s an accident waiting to happen, but luckily, she never drives above thirty and lives in town.
Everyone’s learned to stay clear if they see her out and about.
“We’re out of all food that could be turned into a meal.” Ryan sighs.
“We’ve got cereal,” I suggest.
He frowns at me. “That’s barely even a breakfast. Let’s just go get burgers at the diner.”
“Sounds good to me.”
We walk out the front door to take my truck. It doesn’t fit in the garage nicely, so Ryan parks there instead.
“Does it still feel weird to you to be at the house without Carson?” he asks as we pull out of the driveway.
“A little, yeah.”
It’s been almost a year since he moved in with Ginny, and I still find myself expecting him to be home when I get off a shift. He hangs out with us often—although less now that Nina is here—so it’s not like we never see him.
I glance at Ryan before looking back at the road. “Ten years is a long time to live with someone. It’s not surprising that it’s taking a while to adjust.”
“What happens when you find someone to be with?”
“Come on, Ry. Who the fuck is going to want to be with me? With all my issues, there’s not a single person in the world who’d be willing to take me on.”
He gives me an unamused look. “That’s not true, Michael, and you know it. Any woman would be lucky to have you as their partner. You’re loyal and protective and selfless, just to name a few of your good qualities.”
The only person I’d be interested in dating is his sister, and seeing as how that conversation could go horribly in so many ways, I’m not about to bring her up.
Needing to get away from that thought process, I put it back on him.
“What about you, Romeo? Any of those people constantly sniffing around the flower shop ever catch your eye?”
He scoffs. “None of them are there to see me. That’s ridiculous.”
“No, you’re ridiculous. I know you have to get to know a person before you feel a connection, but that’ll require you to get out of your comfort zone and actually talk to them. I’ve seen no less than two women and three men checking you out in one day. Your options are endless. “
“Highly doubtful. Mom’s finally found someone she wants to hire full-time.”
“You’re changing the subject. I’m letting it go for now, but only because we can’t talk about this shit in the diner. It’d be all over town in a heartbeat.”
Ryan laughs. “True enough.”
We walk side by side toward the glass doors. The windowpanes along the side of the gleaming silver trailer reveal that almost all the red booths are full.
I wait until we’re seated at a table to finish our conversation. “Who did your mom end up hiring?”
“Her name is Eliza. She just moved to town to get away from a crappy ex.”
“How did she end up here?”
“She threw a dart at a map.”
I raise my eyebrows. “You’d have to be pretty brave to move to a new place without any support.”
“That’s how we felt too. So we decided to give her a leg up. She’s also pretty great with the flowers.”
I chuckle. “I’d hope so.”
We pause our conversation when the young waitress comes around to take our orders.
Ryan picks it back up when she leaves, and his smirk prepares me for his next words. “If you gave that girl any indication that you’re interested, she’d hop in your lap right now.”
While a tad dramatic, he’s probably not wrong. I don’t respond, choosing to roll my eyes instead. He likes to tease me about the girls who flirt with me because he knows I won’t give them the time of day.
If these women knew what I would expect from them, they’d run screaming for the hills. I’ve only ever contemplated telling my dirty secret to one woman. Adalaide has seen me at some of the lowest points in my life, yet somehow, despite all my brokenness, she’s never once backed down.
It’s one of the many reasons I’ve talked myself in and out of pursuing her for years. She sees me in a way nobody else does, and I’m terrified that if I tell her my secrets, she’ll never look at me the same way again.
Hitting puberty came with the realization that if I ever wanted to have sex with a girl, I’d have to touch them and let them touch me. It immediately turned me off the idea. My love life would never be typical if I couldn’t even stand the idea of being intimately touched by someone.
As I got older and began to explore my sexuality, I developed an interest in kinks. In the BDSM world, it’s not odd to have limits and boundaries for sex. It’s also a hell of a lot easier to find women who don’t mind being tied up.
I became a member of a kink club in Greensboro a couple of years after I graduated from the police academy. A fellow dominant took me under his wing and taught me how to properly care for a submissive.
It was so much more than controlling their pleasure.
I had to pay attention to everything they were saying, both verbally and physically.
If I noticed my sub becoming uncomfortable, it was my duty to check in with them.
Not every sub was good at communicating how they felt.
I soaked up every lesson my mentor gave me, and I’m a sought-after Dom now.
The women at the club have learned they can trust me to take care of them.
These days, I don’t go very often because even at the club, it’s become hard to meet women willing to have a one-and-done interaction.
They’re usually trying to find a steady Dom, and I can understand why.
This lifestyle requires trust. Having to set limits and work out boundaries every time you need a release gets exhausting.
I can’t deny that the idea of taking care of a woman, seeing to all her needs, appeals to me.
But I’ve only ever imagined a long-term relationship with one woman, and the thought of Addie wanting anything to do with the BDSM lifestyle is laughable.
She isn’t a submissive, though the image of her tied up on my bed has brought me some of my best orgasms.
Ryan’s face suddenly lights up, and I look over my shoulder to see what he’s looking at. My stomach knots as Addie walks into the diner, then rage envelops me. Some asshole walks in right behind her and tickles her ribs, making her squeal.
Years of practicing control are the only reason I don’t get up and punch him in the face.
Ryan waves them over, and I take a lot of pleasure in how Adalaide’s eyes widen when she sees me sitting in the booth. She leads the schmuck over to our table, grinning at her brother.
Ryan stands to hug her before inviting them to sit at our table. “Do you want to join us?”
Addie raises her eyebrows at the asshole.
“Up to you, cupcake.”
My hands clench into fists. What kind of dumbass nickname is cupcake?
“Yeah, we’ll join you. Zane, this is Ryan, my brother, and this is our best friend, Michael. Guys, this is Zane. He’s a good friend from Raleigh. I’m showing him around town before he has to leave tonight.”
“Nice to meet you,” Ryan says.
I just nod, then relax into the booth when Addie sits down next to me, leaving Douche Face to sit next to her brother.
“It’s nice to meet some of Addie’s friends and family. I’ve heard a ton about you guys,” Zane says after he’s seated.
“All good things, I hope.” Ryan chuckles.
“There are only good things to say about you, Ry,” Addie says, her tone full of love.
Ryan asks what they’ve been up to today, and Addie lists off all the best tourist sights—our downtown shops, the park, and the lake.
“What’d you think, Zane?” Ryan asks.
“I loved it. I finally understand why Addie wanted to move back.”
Ryan and Zane get off onto the topic of the lake, but I tune them out to focus my attention on Addie.
Testing the waters, I press my thigh into her knee. Static arcs across my skin, making me feel like a live wire. I’m pushing my luck. I never touch people this much, but seeing Adalaide with this pompous asshole is making me reckless.
I lift my arm and wrap it around the back of the booth, my hand tucked behind Addie’s head. From there, my fingers burrow into her hair to trace the skin along the back of her neck. I revel in the shiver that takes over her body.
She looks at me, eyes blazing with heat, followed quickly by a glare. I smirk back at her.
No. Addie isn’t a submissive, but I can’t say that I wouldn’t enjoy a little bit of her fight.
I lean over to whisper in her ear. “Did you let that fucker touch you?”
Addie gasps. She tries to get a handle on her emotions, clenching her teeth to hold her feelings in check. “I’m not answering that question.”
“Why?”
“You don’t get to dictate my life and then ghost me for the next two weeks.”
I’d like to argue with her, but she’s right. “Hmm. I’ll keep that in mind.”
“What does that mean?”
I just smirk at her.
It’s officially time to make Adalaide mine.