Chapter 10
NATHAN
Ihated going to The Docks. The place was loud and always so crowded I could hardly move without accosting someone—or being accosted. I didn’t like to be touched unless I initiated it, which was rare in a place like this.
Too many people wanted too many things. Especially with the way I dressed in custom-tailored suits and the air of confidence that surrounded me. Apparently, it gave off Daddy vibes. But I had no interest in taking care of the needs of another person, not even for a night.
Unless that person was Aiden, apparently.
When I noticed the GPS tracker I’d put on his car had shown he was at The Docks, I thought there had to be a mistake. But twenty minutes later, he was still there.
I couldn’t let my boy in a place like that, unprotected. Too many men would think they could touch what didn’t belong to them. But it was okay. He’d figure out the rules soon enough. I’d help him.
The bouncer stopped me at the door and collected the cover charge, which was an insane amount.
Thankfully, money didn’t mean anything, so I handed it over without batting an eye and made my way over to the bar.
I glanced around at the barstools, expecting to see him there, but after a quick assessment of the bar and nearby tables, I didn’t see him anywhere.
My heart raced and my palms started to sweat. That wasn’t something I thought people actually did outside of books or movies. But my nerves were getting the better of me.
Where the hell is he?
Thoughts bombarded me as I tried to figure out what had happened. He could have broken down and I wouldn’t have known it. Or maybe he was somewhere nearby and not actually at the club. He could have let a friend borrow the car.
Possibilities were endless.
But I had worked myself into such a frenzy, I wouldn’t be able to calm myself until I had seen Aiden with my own two eyes.
After a minute or two of panicking and trying to figure out what my next move was going to be, I was surprised to find him on the floor, dancing.
He wasn’t much of a dancer, but the guy at his back that he was grinding against didn’t seem to have any complaints. He seemed so different at the club than he did anywhere else in his life—more free, more himself.
I scowled. It wasn’t jealousy. Really, it wasn’t. More like I just didn’t like other people touching my things, and Aiden was mine.
The guy’s hand slid from Aiden’s hip and my eyes narrowed more and more the closer his hand got Aiden’s crotch. He tried to wiggle away from the man, but the arm he had banded across Aiden’s chest held him in place, not allowing him to get free.
I saw red as Aiden continued to struggle against the man and I wondered why he didn’t take him down. Sure, he might be smaller than the guy, but I knew how tough he was. He was a decorated police detective. His size be damned.
Honestly, it was one of the things that drew me to him. There was a quiet strength in that compact packaging.
But at the end of the day, it didn’t matter why he wasn’t defending himself. I would free my little bird. I was his Daddy, whether he knew it or not, whether he wanted it or not. And it was my job to protect him and take care of him.
And that was what I was going to do.
Starting with the asshole getting handsy with my little bird on the dance floor.
I pushed through the densely crowded floor of writhing bodies and made my way to where Aiden and the asshole were dancing.
When I got next to them, Aiden didn’t seem to notice me at first. He was too intent on trying to peacefully extract himself from the situation that the lumberjack of a man next to him seemed to keep him in.
I, on the other hand, didn’t have such qualms.
Before I even finished formulating a plan, I moved behind them and grabbed the guy by the throat. I yanked him back against me, and he seemed surprised as he shouted and squirmed for a moment. Then he went stock still, feeling the edge of my blade at his side.
Goal accomplished. His hands were no longer on Aiden.
He spun around to see what was happening. The line between his brows and the frown on his face were easy to read as confusion. It was the tilt of his head as he stared at the scene before him, that I wasn’t able to read quite as well.
Over the loud noise of the club, I heard Aiden’s confused voice say my name.
“Nate? What are you doing here?” He didn’t sound mad, but he also didn’t sound exactly happy either. I was sure he would have rather dealt with the towering hulk on his own, but he would learn I was a possessive asshole and that he was mine.
No one was going to get away with touching what was mine, especially if he was unwilling. Hell, even if he was willing.
A growl started deep in my chest. While the asshole pressed against me felt the vibrations, and the pulse in his neck picked up speed, Aiden was none the wiser to all my baser instincts wanting to come out and play.
“Move along, asshole. He isn’t interested.” I didn’t press enough to cut through his clothes or skin, but I did give the blade a slight nudge to remind the guy to behave. “Now, apologize.” I shoved him forward, sliding my blade back into my pocket so Aiden wouldn’t notice it.
“Sorry, man,” the guy stuttered before he darted away, giving me one last wary look.
“What the fuck was that?”
I tore my gaze from the retreating man and looked over at Aiden. My head cocked to the side as I watched him march toward me, his hands on his hips and a scowl on his face. He was angry, but I didn’t know why.
“Aiden?” I wasn’t used to people reacting to me the way he did. Most people bent over backward to accommodate me and to try to make me happy.
I’d say it felt wrong to have him act that way, but everything about him felt right.
“You’re mad?” I asked, wanting to understand what was wrong. What I’d done wrong.
I thought I was protecting him.
My little bird let out an exasperated huff and tried to walk away, but I grabbed ahold of his arm. Looking back, I was lucky he didn’t turn around and swing. There was a vibration coursing through his body, a tension I didn’t like.
“Of course I’m fucking mad.” The way he looked at me told me I was missing something that should have been obvious. It was a look I used to get a lot while I was growing up and it hit me like a punch to the gut.
“Oh. I just…” My voice was low, so quiet I wasn’t even sure if he heard me as I looked at the ground. Anywhere but at him and what achingly looked like disappointment on his face.
I wasn’t used to being unsure. My brain screamed at me to get out of there, to run, to flee. Except, I was the predator not the prey. In that moment, though, I felt small even though I was the one who towered over him by at least half a foot.
He continued to stare at me, but his posture relaxed. I wished I could say the same for myself.
“Seriously, what do you want me to say, Aiden?” I got in his space, partially so he could hear me and there was no misinterpretation, but also because I needed to be near him.
“Nothing,” he bit back.
He was being a brat and I didn’t know if he was testing the boundaries we hadn’t even begun to establish or if it was just who he was. Either way, I knew I needed to be careful with how I reacted to him. One wrong move and this could have all been over before it really began.
“That guy was being a creep. You were clearly uncomfortable. So, I was doing what any good Daddy would, and I came over here to help you.”
With fire blazing in his eyes out of nowhere, Aiden pushed me back. “Except you’re not. And in case you’ve forgotten, I’m a cop. So I don’t need your help in getting rid of a handsy creep in a club.”
My jaw fell open as he ranted at me. With each barb he threw, it found its target and I didn’t even know where to begin to defend myself.
Hurt at his words, though I didn’t know what else I expected after forcing myself into his life, I stumbled back a few steps away from him, hand outstretched as though he were a venomous snake I was warding off.
“Right. Okay. Clearly misread the situation.”
If my victims could see me then, on the verge of a fucking panic attack over a man who didn’t want me. I didn’t know where the rich, confident man I used to be was, but I wanted him back. Feelings sucked and I wanted them gone.
Zero out of ten, I did not recommend.
“Fuck, Nate,” he muttered, hands in his hair, as he stalked off the dance floor, leaving me with no other choice but to follow him. For the first time in my life, I felt uncomfortable in my skin, for an entirely different reason. I wasn’t used to dealing with people, with feelings.
And Aiden was stirring up a lot of them that I didn’t know what to do with.
He stormed up to the bar and ordered two shots. I thought at first he ordered one for each of us, but he downed the first and then the other right after. Before he could even reach into his wallet, I had my card out and handed it to the bartender.
“Should I reopen my tab or is that all you need?”
He glared at me for a moment and then let out a deep breath as he braced his hands on the bar and leaned back as he contemplated his choices.
“Can we get two waters? Then I’m good.”
I nodded to the bartender to let her know we’d take the waters and be on our way. When she handed them over, I opened Aiden’s and handed it over to him, then took a sip from mine as I watched him. “Of course, anything you need.”
He let out a sardonic laugh that left me more confused than ever.
“Talk to me, little bird.” My voice was soft but commanding, dare I say, almost pleading.
He chugged his water and watched me, as though he were studying me.
“Why do you call me that?” he asked.
I was pretty sure he asked me that night we slept together, too, but I couldn’t remember if I gave him an answer or not. Looking away, I shrugged. There weren’t adequate words to make him understand. Especially if I wanted to try to keep him in my life.
Which opened up a whole other can of worms and unanswerable questions.
The frustration was easy to read on his face, but there wasn’t anything I could do about it. I couldn’t give him the answers he wanted, even if I had been inclined to tell him the truth.
“Fuck it,” he said, chugging his water before he grabbed my hand and dragged me away from the bar.