One of those options was a much sounder solution than the other, if only Cedric knew how to go aboutdoingit.
Breakfast.
Cedric’s eyes traced up the kitchen wall to the clock hanging over the stove. Fifteen minutes had passed since he’d brought Gabriel inside and laid him in bed, but his nerves were still shot. Fifteen more remained before he would claim Gabriel’s time as his own—fifteen more minutes to make a decision about what he was to do about his runaway omega. Two escape attempts in less than twenty-four hours. Was he a monster? Cedric had always thought he was the kind of Dom who operated with integrity and respect, and who was never afraid to give his submissive exactly what he or she needed. With Gabriel, he was beginning to doubt thatwastrue.
Had he been too stern? Too tough? Toodemanding?
Until he knew, he couldn’t come up with a suitable punishment for what had just happened. Gabriel’s state of mind was so frail that even a light spanking felt like it would be abusive. Until Cedric had a chance to pick his mind and get to know Gabriel for who he really was, his handsweretied.
Spinning his wheels wasn’t getting him anywhere, so Cedric pushed off the counter and occupied himself with busywork. He scrubbed the few dishes in the sink he’d left from breakfast and swept away the crumbs left on the counter from making toast. He put water on to boil and prepared the French press. The unexpected cardio he’d been abruptly forced into hadn’t given him a runner’s high, and he neededsomethingto make the morning a littlebetter.
Boiling water poured, coffee left to brew, Cedric took a mug from the cabinet while he talked himself up. All he needed to do was go in there and treat Gabriel like he was any other client. Sterling wouldn’t have given him a job that was beyond the scope of his capabilities—he knew Gabriel better than Cedric did, and if he thought it was a job Cedric could handle, then there had to be something he wasmissing.
Or maybe Sterling was setting him uptofail.
Cedric set the mug down. The ceramic clicked against the counter, joining the hum of the refrigerator to erase silence from the room. Was Sterling the kind of man who’d entrust a potential candidate with an impossible task in order to avoid rejecting him head-on? Cedric didn’t want to think so, but the more he thought about it, the more his troubled mind tried to convince him it was true. The sudden change of plans, the alternate job offer, and the promise thatifhe did a good job taking care of Gabriel, the management positionmightbe available to him when it opened upagain.
It was allaploy.
The realization was the kind of bitter Cedric couldn’t chase away with sugar or cream. He strained the French press and poured his coffee, and by the time he’d sweetened it to his liking, the fifteen minutes he’d been so anxious for had passed—and so had his negativity. So what if Sterling had set him up to fail? He was young and green, and he would snap back even when put under pressure. So what if he didn’t land the management position at The Shepherd? He’d built a perfectly good career for himself outside of Sterling’s kink club—the position would only have helped broaden his horizons and connect him with the right people. The fact of the matter was, right now, he had a job to do. Gabriel was the one he should be concerned about—not himself—and conflating the situation with hypotheticals wasn’t going to get himanywhere.
It didn’t matter if Gabriel was damaged, or if the job was beyond the scope of his ability. The fact was, he’d taken it, he was being paid for it, and he was going to see it through to completion. Whether or not Gabriel wanted to be dominated was debatable, but there was no doubt in Cedric’s mind that he needed help, guidance, and someone to catch him shouldhefall.
Cedric coulddothat.
Cedricwoulddothat.
He picked up his coffee, approached Gabriel’s bedroom door, and gottowork.
18
Gabriel
Three rhythmic knockswere all the warning Gabriel got before the door swung open. He looked up from his empty plate to find Sir coming through the doorway, a mug of steaming coffee gripped in one hand. He nudged the door closed with his heel after he entered, then came to sit on the bedside a polite distance away fromGabriel.
Polite wasn’t something Gabriel was used to. When a man came to sit on his bedside, it meant that he wanted a certain thing, and Gabriel’s body was quick to remember what it was. Partially, he knew, it was because his body remembered the way Sir had touched him the night before. Gabriel knew that it was wrong to get excited over a man he didn’t belong to, but he couldn’t help it. Besides, for as long as he was in Sir’s custody, a reaction like that would be useful. When the time came that Sir did want to use him for sex, at least Gabriel wouldenjoyit.
Shamefully, he scooted across the bed to close some of the distance between them and sat so close to Sir that their thighs were touching. Usually that was allittook.
But Sir didn’t turn and pin him to the bed, and he didn’t try to kiss him, even though Gabriel had the feeling that kissing Sir might actually be nice. Instead, he turned his head and looked Gabriel in the eyes. Pinpricks, too light and too pleasurable to belong to a panic attack, spread through Gabriel’s chest. They crept down his shoulders and along the length of his spine until he was sure he’d never get rid of them, and the pleasant buzz would stay forever. The depth of Sir’s green eyes looked into him, like he was a painting to be appreciated rather than a blunder bestignored.
Affection, unexpected but welcome, bloomed alongside the pinpricks, and Gabriel fought the urge to smile. He knew that he shouldn’t feel this way for another man, but he wasn’t actively trying to. When Sir looked at him like that, Gabriel found it hard to remember he belonged tosomeoneelse.
For a long while, there was silence. Sir studied him, and Gabriel found himself too much in awe to look away. The sun was at an angle where its rays came through the glass door leading to the sun room and struck Sir’s eyes in just the right way to intensify the color and amplify every undertone and highlight. But it wasn’t the color of Sir’s eyes that bound Gabriel—it was the emotion in them. Concern. Affection. Worry. Without a single word said, Gabriel knew he wascaredfor.
He never wanted tolookaway.
“What’s going on with you?” Sir asked, his voice quiet. They sat so close that there was no need for him to speak any louder. He reached out and ran his fingers along the ridge of Gabriel’s jaw, but didn’t push for more. The pinpricks in Gabriel’s chest turned frosty, like mint, and he shivered as he nuzzled againstSir’shand.
He didn’tunderstand.
Sterling had given him to an alpha. They hadn’t been together long, but the arrangement was unusual, and Gabriel wasn’t sure what to make of it. If Sir didn’t want his body, then whatdidhe want? There was nothing about him that was particularly special. It wasn’t like he was smart, like Adrian was. His genes meant that he wasn’t good for much. Conception, child rearing, domestic tasks, sure… but Sir hadn’t asked him to take care of any of those things, and the more he touched Gabriel with kindness instead of lust, the more confused Gabrielbecame.
When he’d left Sterling’s penthouse to come live with Sir, he’d made peace with the fact that he’d have to be bad. Getting to Garrison meant struggle, and part of that struggle was the temporary rule of an alpha Gabriel didn’t want. But this? Sir wasn’t ruling him at all. Not really. Gabriel hadn’t even seen him with hissweateroff.
It made him feel like maybe he was doing a bad job at the only thing he wasgoodat.
Sir said nothing, even when Gabriel held his tongue. The silence allowed Gabriel to think, and the more he thought, the worsehefelt.
