Chapter 6
Six
Grant
I stared at Dalton, wondering how I was going to backpedal out of my earlier throw down. We had brought Kendall to bed together. She was deliciously sated after her spanking and multiple orgasms. But I had been skating around thoughts in my head regarding the man sitting at my kitchen table.
“I probably shouldn’t have been so vocal tonight at the bar. I was a bit snarky.”
Dalton set his mug of coffee on the table. He succeeded at handling Kendall tonight, but the look he was shooting my way made me equally intrigued yet hesitant to keep talking.
“You did issue quite the challenge.” He tilted his head to the side. “A tripod only works when all three people are on board.”
“I'm on board,” I grumbled. I’d been overthinking and hung up on the reality of giving my submission to Dalton. “It’s late. We can discuss this on a different day.”
“Do you turn into a reindeer at midnight?”
“Listen…” He cocked an eyebrow in my direction and something about his slight glare directed at me gave me pause.
I’d been ready to throw excuses at him, and my tone had been less than respectful.
I was done for when it came to him. Being blind to my own need to be submissive was lame.
I loved when someone else submitted to me, but I’d been craving doing the same for far longer than I cared to admit. “I said it’s late.”
“You’ve pushed enough of my buttons for one day.” Dalton winked. “You can stop now.”
Was I a brat? I took a hard look inside myself while Dalton stared at me. I really hadn’t believed it, even after saying it repeatedly. Something about the handsome medic literally made me want to battle him. “I’m the one who leads, and there is nothing you can do to change my mind.”
“Grant,” he practically growled, but I was past the point of no return. “I’ve got two things up my sleeves that, when applied correctly, will likely have you retracting that statement.”
“The temperature is dropping.” I changed the subject and ignored the effect his threat had on my body.
“I’m going to get some more firewood.” I backed up, increasing the distance between us because otherwise I’d be moaning into his mouth while he laid claim to it.
Heading to the backdoor, I shrugged on a coat and a pair of boots and opened the door.
Snow had fallen, covering the top of my lawn and the porch railings. “Did you know it was going to snow?”
“No, I thought the storm was supposed to be next week.” He moved to the doorway, glancing outside before settling his gaze on me. “Just because we’re pausing our conversation doesn’t mean we’re finished.”
“I’ll be back in a few.” My mouth was dry when I answered.
I had to clear my throat several times before stepping into the night.
I was no longer feeling confident. I had a funny feeling Dalton’s idea of ‘finishing’ the conversation would involve his hand and my ass, and I wanted it to end the same way.
Dalton
Standing around the kitchen, I glanced at my watch. Even under the best of conditions, Grant should be back by now. Kendall padded down the steps. She paused on the stoop, watching me drum my fingers on the counter. She looked adorable in one of Grant’s t-shirts that hung below her knees.
“Where’s Grant?”
“He went outside to get more firewood, but it’s been a while.” I had a gnawing feeling in my gut, and usually it turned out to be correct. “I’m going to go check on him. Something must be holding him up.”
Rubbing the sleep from her eyes and perhaps her brain, she yawned. “Is it snowing?”
“Yeah. Hopefully, it will be less than what was predicted.” I jabbed a hand through my hair. “I don’t know how long it takes to get wood.”
“It’s probably nothing to worry about, but I’ll stay awake until you both come back.”
“Sounds good, prancer.”
I grabbed my jacket and boots, looping back to hug Kendall before stepping out into the night air.
I was used to the weather for this time of year, but it was colder than usual.
Spying Grant, my suspicion was confirmed.
He was walking slower than he typically did, and he had a hand pressed to his leg.
I couldn’t see what the issue was from my vantage point.
Hurrying down the steps, I jogged across the expanse of the lawn until I met his side.
“What happened?”
“I mishandled the ax. Luckily, I wasn’t swinging at full force, but it still won. Damn tool took a nice bite out of me.”
“Why didn’t you call me?”
“I didn’t think to bring my phone. Nothing’s ever happened in the thirty years I've been chopping firewood.”
“Always take your phone with you.” I grabbed him around the waist, bracing him against my side. Heading toward the house, I hoped his injury wasn’t serious. I’d seen people lose limbs from chopping accidents. “Where is the wound?”
“Above my knee, but thankfully lower than my cock. It’s not bleeding much. At least I don’t think it is.” He attempted humor but panted in between words, telling me he wasn’t as good as he appeared.
“New plan.” That knowledge changed my course, and I released my hold. “Keep your hand on it.”
“I can walk, Dalton.”
“I’m sure you can, but we need to hurry.
” I couldn’t see his expression in the darkness, but I was certain he read into what I didn’t say.
Instead of wasting time arguing, I lowered myself toward the ground to adjust my center of gravity.
It enabled me to lift him across my shoulders, evenly distributing his weight without putting pressure on his legs.
I needed to assess his injury sooner rather than later.
“I didn’t hurt myself that badly, man.”
“We won’t know how bad it is until I can get a good look at it.”
“Carrying me like a pretty princess is going to make me fall in love with you, Prince Charming,” he grumbled, likely never having been picked up by anyone else in his life.
“If you nicked something major, lumbersnack, you could bleed out.”
“Lumbersnack,” he repeated, still panting. “Put me down, man. You’re going to drop me.”
“I’ve never dropped anyone. Now shut up, and don’t fight me.” Speaking would exert additional energy he didn’t need to waste. Hustling, I carried him up the stairs and kicked the door open. Kendall screamed, startling. She threw her hands over her heart.
“I’m sorry, darling. Can you please get my bag? It’s in the living room.”
She recovered, shutting the door behind us, then immediately jumped into nurse mode. “Yes, Daddy.”
“Thank you,” I replied, and she nodded before hurrying to get my equipment.
“Did you just break down my door, charming?”
“No, I left it ajar. I had a bad feeling.” Setting Grant on the kitchen island, I did my best not to jostle him.
He was muttering curses under his breath, and I hated to cause him undue pain.
Kendall returned in record time, handing me my medical shears and a pair of gloves.
“Try to relax and don’t talk unless it’s important. ”
“You don’t have to cut my pants off,” Grant protested. “Ask me nicely, and I’ll remove them.”
“Your jeans are already torn beyond repair.” Cutting down the seam of his pants on his injured leg, I scanned for any major indications of a serious issue and saw none.
Handing the scissors to Kendall, I pointed to either side.
She set the shears next to us, donned gloves, and put pressure on the wound without further explanation. “Slowly move your hand, Grant.”
He did what I asked without protest. Assessing the wound, I was relieved to see it was long, but thankfully not deep.
Grant narrowly avoided a more serious situation.
He still needed to take it easy, but that was more do-able than an urgent trip to the hospital.
Staying home with Grant and taking care of him and Kendall sounded like a wonderful way to enjoy a snowy weekend. “You are extremely lucky.”
“My pants don’t feel the same way.”
“Your ass isn’t going to feel much better when I’m done with you, either.”
“I’ve been handling my shit for years.” He swallowed hard. “You’re not going to magically keep me in line with one rule.”
“Two rules.” I smirked. My nonchalant tone and the way I was already handling him did nothing but cause him to roll his eyes. He kept saying he wasn’t a brat, but I knew better.
“Two rules.” Grant shook his head. He rested his hand on top of Kendall’s head, lightly running his fingers through her hair. “What are they?”
“Listen to what I tell you to do and be honest with me and yourself. Do you agree?”
His Adam's apple bopped up and down as he stared at me. Though he’d already verbally agreed to a relationship, we hadn’t gotten the time we needed to delve into our dynamic specifically. “Yes, Sir.”
“Good. What’s your safeword?”
“Snickerdoodle.”
Though I very much wanted to tease him about the choice, he was likely playing off Kendall’s baked good theme.
“We’ll talk more after we get you all patched up.
” I dabbed a disinfectant around the inner edge of the wound.
Grant jerked his leg and his hand at the same time, tugging on Kendall’s hair. She let out a low moan.
“Sorry, sweet girl.” He shifted his hand.
“At least you know I like that, Sir,” she said with a straight face.
“I apologize for not warning you, lumbersnack,” I said sincerely. Kendall waggled her eyebrows up and down smirking, clearly liking the nickname. “We don’t want bacteria hanging out in your leg. When’s the last time you had a tetanus shot?”
“Two weeks ago,” he replied. “You won’t believe the sort of shit I get myself into.”
“At least you’re protected, otherwise one of us could jab you. Elias usually has all sorts of nifty extras at his house and it’s closer than anywhere else in town.”
“You have a weird definition of the word ‘nifty’,” Grant quipped. “Back to what you mentioned. I’m not falling asleep anytime soon. Maybe we could have that discussion tonight?”
“We’ll see.” I was happy for the tiny bit of compliance, even though I felt like we had more stuff to dig through.
He also wouldn’t like the sudden plan I had for him tomorrow, which involved me keeping his ass red hot.
I already had ideas for Kendall, but now I had both brats at my disposal.
I was going to have fun even if they didn’t.
Something must have flickered across my face because Grant poked Kendall.
“Does he always make that face, sweet girl?”
“Only when something truly awful flitters through his brain.” She had been quiet, handing me the needed supplies without my asking, but not speaking much. “Dalton has a sadistic streak a mile long.”
“Quiet, prancer.” I shushed her, though she was right. “Let’s not scare Grant out of the gate.”
“I don’t scare easily,” he replied. “Not that I know exactly what you’re talking about.”
“Dalton enjoys inflicting pain but not during an actual medical problem,” Kendall explained patiently, but then her eyes darted to mine. “Oh! I probably shouldn’t share private stuff.”
“It’s all right,” I assured her. “There is something immensely satisfying about shifting pain into pleasure, but no, not during an emergency. We can discuss what I’m into later.
” I checked to see if the bleeding stopped and was happy to see it had.
Sometimes a few stitches did the trick, but we were lucky Grant didn’t need them.
Changing my task to bandages, I tapped Kendall’s hand, and she followed suit.
“Sorry, Sir.” She apologized as she tore several lengths of medical tape, handing each one to me as I worked. Kendall swept her gaze to Grant. “I have some super ibuprofen in my bag. Would you like a few?”
“Yeah, my leg is throbbing. I’d appreciate the medicine.” He pressed a kiss to her temple. “It’s nice to have someone else looking out for me,” Grant said offhandedly, but his eyes shone with adoration as he stared at her.
I believed the two of us taking care of him meant more to him than he let on.
“I hope you won’t have to rely solely on yourself anymore.” Kendall mimicked his action, kissing the top of his hand. “I think the three of us could really use some time to relax.”
“Yes, darling.” He smiled at her. “You’re right.”
I finished patching him up and Kendall shuffled off to get the aforementioned pills.
“Even though I’m grumpy, I appreciate you and Kendall being here. Sorry, the night didn’t play out better.”
“Accidents aren’t planned. I’m glad we were here, though I wish you hadn’t gotten hurt.”
“Earlier you mentioned pushing me to work through some hesitations tomorrow.” Grant rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m not sure how I feel about it.”
“Let’s worry about tomorrow, tomorrow.” I kissed his lips once. “I’ll help you to bed so you don’t have to put pressure on your leg.”
“You gonna carry me like a princess again, charming?” His eyes sparkled as he looked me up and down.
“If carrying you around helps you relax, then I’ll do it all the time.”
Grant stared at me, something he’d done a lot of since I’d pressed him against the wall and made out with him. “You’re serious about making me fall in love with you, huh, Dalton?”
“I’m already growing on you, Santa. You just need to get used to the idea.”
He nodded, letting my words sink in. Somehow, I’d show him that I was exactly the type of man he’d been wanting to be in a relationship with for so long, and I was up for the challenge.