Chapter Seven
Summit
A nice evening, and probably a date. We had not called it that specifically, but the energy of the whole time had that feel.
The humming tension when our hands brushed in passing the ketchup, trading the extra shakes in the silver containers so we both got to try the flavors, and generally enjoying ourselves.
We spoke about our lives, general first-date stuff, for sure.
Nothing too deep, and never touching on a very important fact.
Of course, I knew without having to be told that Rowan was a little.
Not only because of the contents of his bag but when we were enjoying our dinner, and he relaxed, he had a sweetness that the average person didn’t display.
But I had never seen him in the little room—largely due to my working hours keeping me away from the club so often, I was sure.
Meaning, he had never seen me there, so far as I could tell.
And the fact that he met me at Chained did not mean I was a daddy.
Chained welcomed kinks of many kinds, and for all he knew, I might be a garden-variety dom or a sadist or a shibari expert.
While I had great admiration for the ancient Japanese art of decorative bondage, it was not my particular preference.
As we spoke, I’d watched for an opening to mention the relevant facts. None of our conversation related to kink or his being a little, specifically.
After we ate, and finished talking about this and that, things got a little less comfortable. Without being able to go into the daddy/little dynamic, at least to be open about how we fit into that, it was hard to really get to know each other.
But I didn’t want to push the issue. We were having dinner, just talking.
We weren’t in the little room at Chained playing together or even at one of our homes where we could be free to speak of anything without worrying about someone else listening in.
It was difficult to get to know one another beyond the basics in a crowded diner.
Or, maybe he didn’t want to have that conversation? The end of the evening was a little awkward, and as I drove home, I replayed the evening in my mind. Had he been trying to avoid the topic?
Maybe he wasn’t interested in that kind of relationship.
With me, at least? He seemed to enjoy our time together.
I wanted to see him again, but without clearing the air, there was no path forward.
What I needed was another opportunity to do that.
Another date, but one where we had some privacy maybe.
I went to sleep with the little on my mind again and woke up determined to clear up any misunderstandings between us.
If Rowan wanted a more vanilla relationship, or something more, I needed to know.
And he needed to know what I felt as well.
I’d never wanted a relationship that was only one type or the other, had dreamed of having someone who I could have big times and daddy/little times with.
But Rowan had captivated me, and if he sought a big relationship only, I’d have to think about how that might work out.
I was getting ready for work, planning what I’d include in the text I wanted to send him, when I got a call from the office.
“Summit, we need you to go to Chicago today.” The senior partner who had been my mentor was on the other end of the line. “Can you leave in an hour for the airport?”
“Chicago today? But I don’t have any clients there at the moment.” Confused, I put the phone on speaker, set it on the dresser, and went back to buttoning up my shirt. “What’s going on?”
“No, it’s not your case, and I’m sorry to add to your workload, but Stephens was boarding a plane last night when pains he’d been having suddenly increased. The flight attendant saw him double up and called for medics. You know how he is.”
I did indeed. The man would work through anything.
He’d probably known he was too sick to make the trip, but his determination to succeed, to make partner, would have driven him to make a decision that could have been life-threatening.
“I know how he operates, but how is he now? What’s wrong with him? ”
“Appendix burst. He’d apparently been in pain and feverish for days and didn’t tell a soul, and now he’s in the hospital being prepped for surgery.”
Stephens had come on board just a year after me, but he hadn’t managed to break through and make partner yet.
If he took much longer, he’d have missed the unspoken window and be an associate as long as he stayed with the firm.
His desperation had driven him into a dangerous situation, and I felt bad for him.
He wasn’t a bad attorney, just a little too average.
But I liked him and had worked with him a few times.
With a strong lead counsel, he could do a good job.
“That sounds bad. I hope he’s going to be all right. ”
“It doesn’t look good that he missed this trip.
” Christopher was twenty years older than me and had been very helpful as a mentor but never hesitated to state the facts as he saw them.
While it could be hard to hear, his advice had helped me greatly as a young attorney, and I always thought he’d have made a great daddy.
In Stephens’ case, he didn’t mean to be unkind. It was just the facts. Those who supervised him would consider it another nail in whatever coffin they considered him to be shutting himself into. “I’m sure it doesn’t.”
“And the fact that he even tried to do it as sick as he was, shows a lack of good judgment.”
The poor guy had been in a no-win situation.
Don’t go: lose. Try to go and fail: lose.
Sometimes I hated working in a big firm and wondered if I wouldn’t rather just move to a small town and hang out my shingle.
If people even did that anymore. As we spoke, I’d finished dressing and packed a bag.
“I’ll need the files to study on the plane, and are there any hard copies I should print out before I board? ”
“The files were sent to your company email about twenty minutes ago.”
I chuckled, unable to suppress it. “So, before you called. Confident.”
“In you.” He laughed too. “If your appendix burst, you’d still have made the trip after a stop at the hospital for repair.”
“When I was an associate, maybe. Anyway, what time is my flight?”
“Your car is outside right now and you just have time to make it. Call me if you need anything we didn’t send. We’re counting on you.”
“Thanks.” But I wasn’t sure what I was being counted on to do. “I’ll call and clear my calendar on the way.”
“Already done. I hope you don’t mind that I got your assistant on it.”
How could I mind? “No, that’s great.”
We said goodbye and disconnected. I picked up my computer pack and garment bag and headed out to the town car idling out front.
The driver leaned against the front bumper and, as I approached, he straightened and approached to take my bags.
I handed over the garment bag and retained my pack.
I needed it to begin to review the case, but I was also not letting it out of my sight.
Which reminded me. I settled into the comfortable leather seat and pulled out my phone to let Rowan know I’d be away unexpectedly.
We’d had one date, and already I missed him.