Chapter 5
Five
Reed
It had been about a week or so since I’d pulled over to help Eli with her car and today I was in a mood.
Work sucked lately and though I was capable of handling my demanding career, it irritated me on a cellular level.
I wanted more than to be tied to a corporate office, even with one that allowed remote flexibility in my life.
More than that, I was upset about the way things had been left with Eloise, but I hadn’t attempted to sort through the issue or address the thoughts flying through my head about King.
Though we hung out often, I hadn’t been my usual self.
No, I’d been moody and closed off. He would notice soon.
He always did. I checked my watch and signed off for the day hours past the time I should have.
Eating dinner at my desk was more the norm than not.
The doorbell chimed, pulling me out of my thoughts. I frequently had deliveries, but I wasn’t expecting anything. At least not this late in the afternoon, it was almost five.
I answered through the intercom without looking at the camera. “This is Reed.”
“Hey, um, it’s Eli.”
My heart hammered in my chest at her casual greeting.
I didn’t get nervous around women, usually, but something about her drove me absolutely wild and made me anxious.
Striding to the door, I opened it, not sure what she wanted.
I’d probably messed up any chance at a relationship with her before we even tried.
She was wearing flared jeans with a cute sweater and her hair hung in waves down her back, and before I could say a word, she thrust a homemade bouquet at me.
She’d cleverly crafted a bunch of candies to look like flowers.
Lemondrops were the star of the gift, wrapped to fan out like petals around some sort of lollipop.
I couldn’t name the other treats from sight alone but the heartfelt gesture left me speechless.
“It’s dumb. You think it’s dumb,” she lamented.
“No, not at all,” I said, quickly reassuring her. I wasn’t used to receiving homemade gifts. “It’s the most thoughtful thing anyone has ever given me.” I accepted her candy arrangement and stepped backward, allowing her to enter.
She stood in the doorway staring at me as if she’d lost her nerve. “I just wanted to show you my appreciation. For everything with my car…”
“Thank you, Eli. I’m touched. How’d you get here?”
“Uh, Dane dropped me off. But I can have someone pick me up if you’re busy.”
“No, it’s fine. Stay a while.”
I grabbed her around the waist and brought her inside, shutting the door behind us. I set the bouquet on the small table just inside the hallway knowing that I needed both hands.
Reckless used to be the way I lived in my twenties and though I sometimes acted impulsively it wasn’t my usual M.O.
But with Eloise, I couldn’t help myself.
Pushing her against the wall in the foyer, I lowered my lips to hers and kissed her.
Kissed her like she was the damn air I needed to breathe.
I wasn’t sure she wanted nothing to do with me on a romantic level, but I did it anyway.
Her hands threaded into my hair and she moaned into my mouth.
We made out while I pinned her body with mine, keeping one hand firmly on her hip.
She bit down on my lower lip, sucking on it.
There were defining moments in my life. Ones that I knew would change the course of the rest of it, and this was one of them. I could feel it deep down in my bones.
“You taste so fucking good,” I growled.
“Is this a bad idea?”
“Maybe.” I raised her hair so I could lick across the soft curve of her neck, nibbling along her soft skin until she moaned.
“I don’t want something casual.”
“That’s not what I’m looking for.”
We found each other’s mouths again, our kisses filled with passion. I kept her in place, loving the way she hesitantly traced her hands along my body, exploring my arms, chest and wherever she could reach. We broke apart but neither of us made a move to increase the space between us.
“I need a Daddy,” she announced. Her honey-brown eyes widened as she stared at me, waiting for an answer to her statement.
I’d been fairly certain of that after our sleepover, but hearing her say it to me brought a lot of insecurities to the surface.
I’d never had a Little before. Submissives?
Sure. But there was something different in the dynamic where one partner was a Daddy Dom.
More care. More discipline. Something else I hadn’t shared was that I was also Little.
I doubted my ability to become her Daddy.
Not when I so desperately needed one myself.
“I am a Dom, which I thought I made clear, but I’ve never been a Daddy.
I’m willing to discuss your needs, but I’m not sure I can fill that role. ”
She bit on her lip, her eyes wide as she stared at me. It seemed like she thought my refusal was a rejection. That was so far away from the truth.
“No, actually this was… this is a bad idea.” She ducked under my arms. “I’m sorry, Reed.”
I turned around to stop her but she already had her hand on the front door. “Eloise, please don’t leave like this.”
Ignoring me, she twisted the knob and stepped out.
Except she smacked straight into Kingston, who stood there looking confused.
He was dressed in his paramedic uniform, meaning he was on his way to work, otherwise he showered at the firehouse and changed into casual clothes.
Though even his dressed-down comfort selections were high-end lounge pants and thermals.
“Whoa! Are you okay?” King dropped his tone lower when dealing with difficult situations, causing things to swing things in his favor. At least most of the time.
Did he look exceptionally handsome today or was it the way he gently touched Eli’s shoulders, looking concerned, that made my arousal spike?
We had been best friends our whole lives.
We’d never tried dating each other, but we’d had a handful of drunken make-out sessions over the years.
He was also dominant. What Eloise probably didn’t know was that Daddy muscle that I seemed to be missing?
Kingston had it. He was a natural Daddy, something that I envied.
He did it with ease just like everything else he handled in his life.
A thought flickered through my head as he spoke to Eloise.
What would it be like if he became our Daddy? No, Reed. I chided myself. Focus.
“I threw something embarrassing at Reed, so I’m leaving,” she mumbled.
“Granny panties?” King joked.
Eloise stared up at him with a completely unreadable expression and then she dissolved into giggles. I could listen to her laugh all day. Usually her eyebrows were knitted in frustration. That he’d made her giggle within a few seconds of him being here wasn’t lost on me either.
“I don’t wear granny panties! I meant figuratively speaking, King.”
“Hm? What’d you say?” Kingston subtly led Eli into the foyer, closing the front door and locking it. He was one of the only people who had the code to my keypad. “Tell me.”
“I don’t want to repeat it.”
“Did you declare your wild, unbridled desire for someone to tickle you until you can’t breathe?” He tapped her nose.
“Oh, hell no! That would be a hard limit,” she answered, laughing again.
Kingston shot me a look over her head, his eyebrows waggling as he directed us into the kitchen. Charming could be his middle name. He was so smooth in his responses. Another reason why men and women alike swooned over him.
What the heck is my problem today?
I admired the way his uniform pants pulled on his thighs as he leaned against the counter.
Damn it. The other night when he came to check on me and wound up sleeping in my bed had more of an effect on me than I believed.
I was falling for my best friend. That was a lie.
I’d fallen for him a long time ago but never told him.
“So, what’s up, King? You don’t usually stop by randomly.”
“You didn’t answer my messages. I had to make sure you didn’t knock your head again and wind up unconscious.”
“Sorry, man. I was a little preoccupied.”
With the attention away from Eloise she seemed to realize that she hadn’t followed through with her plan to leave. She took a step toward the entrance to the kitchen. Kingston cleared his throat, drawing her attention back to him.
“Do you need a ride home, sweetheart? I can drop you off on my way to work.”
Eloise paused, shooting me a guilty look before letting out an exasperated breath. Before I could acknowledge it, she turned on her heel and propped a hand on her right hip.
“I haven’t found a car I want yet, so I’m at the mercy of everyone else in town. I hate bothering people for shit that I can do myself.”
“You’re not bothering me. I offered,” Kingston stated simply.
She pursed her lips as if wondering why anyone would offer her a ride home. It was a simple gesture.
“Why?” Eloise glanced at me again.
“Because I think you’re cute stomping around like you want to leave when it’s so very apparent that you don’t. At least not yet.” Kingston glanced at his watch. “Would you like a ride? Yes or no?”
His crystal-blue eyes sparkled as he studied her posture.
I wondered if he was thinking the same thing I was–that despite her protests, Eloise seemed to be at least a little bit interested in me romantically.
I’d told him every detail of our interactions when she’d brought me home in my car and stayed the night.
She hadn’t stuck around the next day, not for as long as I’d wanted her to, but she had a lot going on.
Her interest in Kingston seemed surface-level at the moment.
Though I’d caught her checking him out when we hung out.
At least when she thought no one was looking.
It was as if the tough outer shell around her cracked whenever he spoke.