Chapter 11 Saxon
DURING THE FOLLOWING week, I thought about Danny’s reaction to the few small gifts I’d given him. The toy wasn’t even a gift that was solely for him – I’d benefited greatly from the little blue vibrator. I wanted to get him a plug too, but I didn’t want to move too fast.
The other gifts, flowers, candy and a book, weren’t particularly impressive. They were the bare minimum, but he’d seemed thrilled. Then I’d bought him tulips at the festival, and he’d been beyond appreciative. But I hadn’t given him anything significant, or over the top. I was a sugar daddy who wasn’t doing a great job playing the role. Just because Danny wasn’t materialistic didn’t mean he didn’t want gifts of any kind.
So many of the sugar daddies at the club spoiled their sugar babies with opulent gifts and luxurious dates. I knew Danny didn’t want fancy clothes or shoes. He also refused to let me upgrade the apartment he lived in with his brothers and cousin. But one of the dragon shifters just took his omega to Santorini, Greece in a private jet for a week.
Would Danny allow anything like that? From the stories Danny told, it was clear that Hollis had been reluctant to accept any help beyond what was necessary to survive. Haven had been less wary, according to Danny, because he had a taste for the finer things, but he still hadn’t been interested in the kind of lavish gifts many sugar daddies bestowed on their omegas.
What made Danny happy? Old books. British history. That gave me an idea. I could take him to London for a date. Maybe take him to the Globe, and see one of Shakespeare’s plays, or go down to Bath, and let Danny tour the Roman bathhouse. He hadn’t traveled at all; after fleeing his hometown, he’d come to Crestfire Hill and stayed there.
Yes, I’d claimed that I wanted to practice dating with him. Normal dates. Things like a pottery class, or a cooking class too, not just something that allowed me to throw my money around. But we’d done those dates. I had an excess of money. I wanted to use it to make him happy.
I was going to do it. I was going to take him to the United Kingdom. It would show that I understood his interests. We could leave and fly straight to London. We’d have time to sleep, and then we could go out to lunch in the city, then see a play. When I stopped to look at the timeline and logistics, I realized Bath wasn’t a practical stop. Maybe for such a short trip, we’d need to stay in London.
No. Screw staying in London. But he might like Canterbury better than Bath, if we were leaving London. He’d chattered on about The Canterbury Tales to me, more than once. How could we possibly skip that? What was the saying? Right. Go big or go home. That’s what we’d do.
There was far too much to choose from. For the first time in ages, I was giddy with anticipation. Not at seeing London, which I found to be gloomy and damp, but with Danny’s reaction.
With a few quick phone calls, I had the plane ready. Next I got tickets to the Globe. Seats for Much Ado About Nothing were available. Perfect. I snagged us two tickets on the lower gallery.
I could have an assistant do this, but I wanted to do it for him.
I rented a private car and a driver for our time in England. I could drive on the left side of the road, but it had been a while. I didn’t want to scare him. I’d show him the Underground subway as well. If this trip went well, I’d take him to Italy. I was certain he’d love Florence.
If he’s still with you by then.
I was finding the temporary nature of our relationship unfortunate.
Hell. Had I gone too far? I called Gatlin. I had Haven’s number, and he had mine, in case he ever needed help again, but I was not going to text or call a wolf shifter’s pregnant omega. Gatlin’s jealous streak would not appreciate it.
When Gatlin answered, I quickly explained everything I’d planned. “Can you ask Haven if Danny will be okay with this?”
As expected, he did not tell me to ask Haven myself. “Hang on. Okay, you’re on speaker.”
I explained once again, this time with Haven listening.
“Oh my God! Saxon! You possibly asked the wrong person, because I’ve been on a mission since we were five freaking years old to get Danny to loosen up and branch out.” He let out a peel of laughter. “He’s so reserved! I’m sure you’ve noticed that.”
“Yes. I have.” I was quite fond of his reluctance. Fae were bold and unrepentant about it. It was nice to be around someone a little more circumspect.
“I know it’s his personality, and there’s nothing wrong with being an introvert. But when he finally tries something, sometimes he likes it. So yes! Do the trip. Just back off if he says he wants to come back, or if he won’t get on the plane.”
“Of course,” I said. I thanked them both, and Gatlin muttered something about him owing me for life, which I ignored.
The next day, I met Danny in the university parking lot.
“I’m all yours,” he said, moving close enough for me to hug him.
“How was your day?” I asked.
“Good. I had two classes and then spent a few hours in the library.” He turned toward me. “How was yours?”
I pushed down a grin. “It was fairly tame, thank goodness.”
He peered out the window as I was driving toward the airport. “Where are we going?”
“I have a surprise for you.”
His face fell.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Um. I don’t always do well with surprises.” His hand went to the arm rest, where he gripped the leather, hard.
I’d miscalculated. Haven had been right about Danny’s wariness. But he hadn’t warned me about surprising him. “That’s not a problem. There’s no need for anything we do to be a surprise.” I slowed the car, watching for a place where I could pull over and turn around. Everyone would get paid. I could get all of the reservations moved, if he wanted to go later.
He didn’t let go of the armrest, but I watched from my peripheral vision as he tried to take a few deep breaths. “No. I want the surprise.”
“Are you certain?”
He nodded. He loosened his death grip a bit. “Yes. You’re always understanding. I know it’s annoying when I freak out.”
“It’s really not.” I’d spent my life watching the Fae steamroll others. I sure wasn’t going to bludgeon him into choosing what I wanted. It wasn’t the same, but it was close enough.
“That’s what my parents said,” he said quietly. “That my freakouts were annoying.”
My hands clenched around the wheel. I had to deliberately loosen my fingers before I cracked it. “I’ll tell you where we’re headed, how’s that?”
He gulped. “Please. That would help.”
“I’m driving us to the airport. I have a private plane reserved that can fly us to London.”
“A plane?”
“Yes. Remember, it can easily be changed. No harm done.”
He tipped his head back and closed his eyes. “I’ve never flown before.”
“It will be a much more pleasant trip than a commercial airline.”
“I can imagine that’s true.” He exhaled. “London. Wow.” He twisted his fingers together. “I thought one day, maybe, I might save up enough to visit.” He opened his eyes. “I really can’t wrap my brain around it.”
“Haven said that it might be too much.”
He glanced at me, a quick, furtive look. “You talked to Haven?”
“Yes. Right after I made all these plans, I thought maybe I needed a reality-check. I am aware that not everyone likes surprises. I asked him if I needed to nix the whole thing.”
“Let me guess. He said to keep the plans, and try to get me to go?” A faint smile made his lips curve up.
“Yes. Exactly.”
“What are the plans in London?”
I was going to take his question as a good sign. “I’ve got tickets to the Globe to see Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. I rented a car, and we’re going to drive to Canterbury, walk through the museum, see the cathedral, and then fly back Sunday evening. I also made a list of bookstores we can visit. The plane has a really nice couch, so you can sleep while we fly.”
Danny said nothing, but I heard a small gasp. Should I pull over? Was he upset? I looked over, and sure enough, a single tear rolled down his left cheek.
“Danny.” I reached over and took his hand in mine. “I’ll turn around.”
“No!” He wiped his face with his shirt. “No. Don’t turn around. I want to go. I do.”
“Why are you crying?”
“I spent my entire life thinking Alphas were bad. I thought they wanted me for my heats, and for any children I could bear. I never saw any reason to think I was wrong, not until I saw Luke with Hollis, and Gatlin with Haven. I assumed maybe they were an exception. But now I’ve met you, and you’re not a monster. You’re actually really nice.”
“Okay. Aren’t these good things?”
“Yes, but I’ve been holding Alpha-status against everyone that I meet. Not that long ago, I dropped a book.” He sniffed. “It was Canterbury Tales, ironically. An Alpha in the English building stopped and picked it up for me. First, I froze. Then I glared at him. I was messed up all day. All week even. I see every Alpha as a threat.”
“All of that is understandable, given how you were raised.” I hesitated. I wanted to ask. I had to. “But you don’t see me as a threat?”
“No.”
“Do you know why?”
“I suppose it’s because you rescued Haven and Gatlin. You went after them with no hesitation, or concern for your own safety. And you helped me with my cousin, and you didn’t expect anything in return.”
Those were hardly high recommendations, in my book. But I wasn’t going to argue with him. Having your worldview altered was difficult. “There are still plenty of terrible Alphas out there.” I didn’t want him letting his guard down because he felt guilty. “I wish you didn’t have to treat Alphas with suspicion, but that’s the reality.”
“I know.” A choked-off sob tore from his throat. “It’s just a big deal to see that I was wrong about every Alpha being an abusive asshole.”
I pulled over and hopped out of the car, wrapping my arms around him.
“Are we going to miss the flight?” he asked.
“I’m paying the pilot, so he’ll wait as long as we need.” I was happy to hold him for as long as he needed.