Chapter 4
Four
Blade
I’m probably botching this. I keep speaking too fast and oversharing. Her head must be spinning. She’s just so irresistible that I can’t keep from spewing out a million different thoughts. I’m getting ahead of myself.
It’s crazy that I keep calling her Little when she doesn’t even know the meaning of the term. I can’t stop myself. If she’s not Little, I’ll eat my shirt. She doesn’t have to understand the words. She doesn’t need to have ever heard of age play. Neither of those things keeps her from being Little.
June brings me to my knees. I haven’t been this attracted to a woman in my life. The main reason I rarely do a double take when I meet someone is because my Little radar is strong. If a woman doesn’t give off vibes of having a Little side, she’s not going to be right for me.
I’m a member of a local club called Surrender. Lots of Littles belong to that club, including one of the owners, Lucy. In all the years I’ve been going, I’ve never met anyone who called to my Daddy side and flipped me inside out like June does.
If I’m wrong about her…
I shudder. I can’t be wrong.
I thread our fingers together possessively and guide her out of my office. As we head down the hallway, I stop at a few open office doors to introduce her to my men.
“You met Mace yesterday,” I tell her when we get to the first door.
Mace rises and comes to us. He smiles. “Good to see you again, June.”
“You, too.”
At the next door, Cannon comes to greet her. “June, this is Cannon. Cannon, June.”
He clasps her good hand loosely and also smiles at her. “Nice to meet you, June.”
She turns her head up to face me. “Does everyone who works here have a name that corresponds to some kind of military armory? Who’s next? Rifle and Shotgun?” she jokes.
Cannon’s eyes twinkle as his body bounces with silent laughter.
I chuckle. “Most of my men were in the military before working for Black Blade Protection. We’re just used to going by our nicknames. There’s a story behind a lot of them.”
Her big green eyes widen. “So, you’re what? Good with a knife?”
“Basically, yes. I was in the Army. I belonged to a team that snuck in to silently take out the enemy. I don’t think you want any more details than that.”
She winces. “No. Thank you. Do you have a knife on you now?”
“Always, Little one.”
Cannon backs into his office. “My name comes from an incident with a cannon in the Army. But if you want a much better story, ask Mace how he got his nickname.” Cannon chuckles as he returns to his desk.
“Another time,” I tell June, guiding her farther down the hall.
I introduce her to two more of my guys, Spidey and Spike, before we return to the front desk. No one else is currently in the office besides Rachell, our receptionist.
She’s the glue that keeps us all running smoothly. She’s also kind and stands when we reach her.
“June will be under our protection for the foreseeable future. She’ll be staying with me. I’m taking her upstairs to get her situated. I’ll work from there as much as possible for a while. Yell if you need me.”
“Of course.” Rachell is so professional that she doesn’t flinch or bat an eye at my announcement.
She wouldn’t dare make anyone who comes through the door feel anything less than her equal, but that’s not what’s surprising.
She hasn’t known me to take someone to my apartment since she started working for us.
I’ve never dated a woman or hooked up with anyone in all this time.
She has to be reeling from this bomb. Bless her for being too polite to act like I did anything but point out that it might rain later today.
I usher June out of the office. There are two elevators and a door that leads to the stairwell. Normally, I take the stairs to go up one floor, but I won’t make June walk any farther than necessary. As it is, I feel like I’m holding her up by the elbow.
One of the elevators only stops on this floor and the one above.
That’s the one I push the button to call.
The other elevator stops at every floor.
It won’t open on either of the top two floors without the occupant either having a code or Mr. Brinkman in the lobby calling up to check with Rachell first. I assume he spoke to her before June entered the elevator.
Rachell doesn’t turn anyone away. After all, many potential clients might not have an appointment or want anyone to know who they are. But it’s good for Rachell to have a heads-up when someone is going to step out of the elevator.
If Rachell weren’t also former Army herself and always armed, I wouldn’t leave her unattended at the desk. The woman can handle any situation better than most men I know. She may look small and fragile, but she is anything but.
June grips my hand tightly as we enter the elevator. “Are you sure about this? I don’t mean to be a burden. I had no idea you were so…important when I came here this morning.”
“You’ll never be a burden, Little one. Don’t insinuate such a thing.” I try to give her a mixture of stern and soft. I truly don’t want her to continue to worry about finances or being an imposition, but I also don’t want to be so dominant with her that I scare her off. She’s not ready for that.
Soft is not something I’m good at. I haven’t been soft with anyone in over a decade. I wasn’t kidding when I said I needed to clear out the cobwebs. I’m rusty at being a Daddy.
Not that I’m a pushover as a Daddy. I’m not, and I won’t be with June either. But she’s not ready for the kind of Dominant I am. I doubt she’s heard the term before.
The elevator pings, and we step out. There’s only one door on this floor. Mine. I use my thumbprint to open it, just like I did to bring the elevator to this floor.
June gasps. “Blade… This is not an apartment. It’s a penthouse. You’re making me nervous.”
“My apartment makes you nervous?”
“Your money does.”
I don’t like her comparing our finances. “Do I look like the sort of guy who cares about money?”
She meets my gaze as I square off in front of her. “No, but that doesn’t make it less than obvious you have a lot of it.”
“And you’re prejudiced against wealthy people?” I tease.
Her eyes widen. “No. Of course not.”
“Then let’s drop that subject.” I nod over my shoulder. “Come.”
I try not to panic as I lead her through the open great room toward the hall. I’ve never stopped to think about how my place might look through someone else’s eyes. Well, a woman’s eyes. No. Not just a woman. My woman. My Little.
My apartment is minimalist. Boring. Gray, silver, white, black. Very little color. Nothing that would catch the eye of a Little. But she’s here now. She can change every damn thing in this apartment if she wants.
“So many rooms…” she murmurs.
“Yeah, several of them are empty. You can pick a few and make them yours.” Am I overstepping? I’m sure I am. It’s hard to hold back. In hindsight, I knew June was mine the moment I met her yesterday. I could kick myself for leaving her alone last night. It won’t happen again.
However, she doesn’t understand how totally she has burrowed under my skin. If I had any doubt of her being mine, it was obliterated the moment she stepped into my office this morning.
I need to let her catch up before I scare her to death.
I push open a door to an empty room, move to the next, open it as well, and stop.
“Maybe these two could be yours. They’re connected.
” I point toward a door near the back of the room.
“I’ll have a desk brought up here from the office right away, so you’ll have a place to work tonight. We can order what you like soon.”
She turns to stare at me. “Blade. My head is spinning. You can’t order me furniture.
And what on Earth would I need two rooms for?
A desk would be nice, but other than that, if I could stay here a few nights until I can figure something out, a mattress on the floor is sufficient or even the couch.
Don’t you have a guest room with a bed, though? ”
“Uh…yes.” I turn and open another door. This room is fully furnished.
It even has an attached bath. She has totally misunderstood me because I’ve been way too cryptic.
Neither of the two rooms across the hall will be for June to sleep in.
I was picturing an office and a playroom.
No beds. Maybe a daybed in case she wants to nap.
But my girl will be sleeping in my bed. Our bed.
I might need to consider the fact that she won’t be ready for that immediately, but the thought of her sleeping down the hall from me makes me cringe inside. I want to be able to hear her every movement. She has a broken arm. She needs help getting up. She might need pain meds in the night. She…
Stop.
I have to slow the fuck down.
She sets her small hand on my arm. “So…here’s an idea. And before you balk, hear me out. What if…” She’s grinning. Is she teasing me?
I can’t keep from smiling in return. She is teasing. Adorable.
Her fingers grip my arm tighter. “What if I used this room that already has furniture in it for the night? I don’t need a desk. I can work on the bed.”
I chuckle. No. Not a chance. But I don’t speak. I’m going to say a lot soon, but not right this second. Instead, I lift her fingers to my lips and kiss them.
That’s right. I fucking kiss her fingers. It’s intimate. I hold her gaze while I do it. I don’t need words to communicate that this isn’t temporary or platonic for me.
Her mouth opens, but she doesn’t say anything.
I smirk, thread my fingers with hers again, and nod toward the far end of the hallway. “Come.” I lead her through my bedroom and into the master bath. “I bet you could use a soak.”
She gasps, eyes wide. “Holy shit, Blade. That’s the biggest tub I’ve ever seen.”
“Is it?” I guess it is big. “I’ll be honest. I’ve never used it.
I had it installed for…” You. That would sound insane, so I hold it back.
“I mean, it seemed like a reasonable thing to include in the master bathroom, but I’ve never been in it.
I think the cleaning crew runs it sometimes, so I guess it works. We’ll find out.”
She jerks her gaze to me. “That’s not necessary, Blade. Plus,” she holds up her arm, “I’m at a bit of a disadvantage here. I don’t think I could even climb over the ledge without breaking my neck. In addition, I’m not supposed to take this cast off unless it’s absolutely necessary.”
The cast she’s wearing is removable, but I assume that’s because her arm was too swollen to put a permanent one on it.
I lift her chin. Every time I do so, her breath hitches a little. She likes it when I tip her head back. “I’ll get a plastic bag to cover it. Do you have a follow-up booked with an orthopedist?”
“Not yet. I haven’t had time to make an appointment.”
“I have a few connections. I’ll make some calls and find someone who can fit you in.”
“Blade… You don’t have to do everything for me. I’m so grateful for a place to stay until I can figure something else out. That’s huge. But I promise not to overstay my welcome. I can make calls tomorrow and get things sorted.”
I think I need to be a bit more blunt about my feelings, so I lower my head slowly toward hers, giving her plenty of time to pull back if she doesn’t want this. And then I gently kiss her lips.
“Oh…” she whispers.
“Any questions?”
“About a dozen.”
I chuckle. “Good. Ask me anything at any time. Now, I’m going to go get a plastic bag, then I’m going to help you climb into the tub.
I don’t have anything girly to wash your pretty brown hair with, so you’re going to smell like me until we can rectify that, but I bet you’ll feel a hundred times better after a bath. Yeah?”
She slowly nods. “I… You…”
I set my forehead against hers. “I’ll wash you, honey. Can you handle that?”
Her breathing picks up. Her chest rises and falls quickly. She licks her lips. “Yes.”
“Good girl. I’ll be right back.” I pull the bench seat out from under the vanity and help her sit. “Don’t move.”