“Come on sweetheart, it’s a great day to have a great day.”
* * *
On our way down to the car park Dallas stood close to me with his hand placed on the small of my back. He noticed I was stealing glances at him in the mirrored elevator doors.
“What is it, Miss Delaney?” He asked with bounce in his tone, almost as if he anticipated my concern.
“Um, are you going to wear that mask out? I mean in public?” I asked timidly.
“Mhmmm, I am.”
“Oh,” was all I could think of to say. I had never seen anyone walk around in a mask, especially a shiny silver Ghostface one, in public unless it was Halloween or some costume event. All I could think about was how eating would work while wearing that thing…
He must have seen the obvious confusion written on my face because he said, “don’t you worry about me, sweetheart, I’ll be just fine.”
PING
The elevator chimed as the doors opened simultaneously to Jacob standing tall and at attention, expecting us.
“Morning, Sir,” Jacob greeted. “Miss Bennett,” he nodded politely in my direction.
“Hey, Jacob, morning to you, too,” I said as Dallas gently squeezed my hand, guiding me to the passenger side seat and closing the door once I was settled in.
I watched as Dallas leaned in to say something to Jacob. I couldn’t tell what exactly he said, but after whatever Dallas said, Jacob looked over to me, cracked a dubious smile, turned, then finally walked toward the elevator.
Once Dallas had gotten in the driver’s seat, I settled in and reached to grab the seat belt but Dallas beat me to it. His strong hands reached over my body as he pulled the seat belt over my shoulder and buckled me in before doing the same for himself.
I was starting to understand what he meant when he told me he would be taking care of me, and as much uncertainty that I may have felt at having someone else take care of me…I can’t deny how deeply satisfying it feels to be cared for, even if it is fleeting.
Don’t worry I’ll teach you…
Dallas
Itold Delaney I was taking her somewhere but what I didn’t tell her was that we were going to get away from the city life for a few days, where we could get more comfortable with each other. I own a little piece of heaven on the outskirts of town, a small house on the beach. It was one of the first pieces of property I purchased after I opened the club. I needed a place I could go to be alone, away from the constant hustle of daily life, a place to wind down and get lost in my head for a little while, without distractions.
I have never brought anyone out here. It’s always been exclusivelymysafe space . Delaney will be the first person to visit my little sanctuary by the ocean.
I was stuck in my thoughts as I watched the city traffic start to die down. The further out of town we went, the clearer the roads became, giving me a sense of calm. This has always felt like a good place to disconnect but today my purpose was to get to know Delaney betteras a person. I was hoping that bringing her somewhere that would remind her a little bit of home might be a good place to get her to open up to me.
She told me about a river she visited back home in Arkansas, how she would sit on a log that laid right over the busy stream, just out of reach of the rush of the strong currents. She told me that when she visited this place, she felt the most peaceful and serene. Like the rest of the world didn’t exist which meant neither did the worries and the stresses. I thought of this place immediately. I didn’t plan on bringing her here so soon, but with all the mess with Teddy I thought now was as good a time as any.
* * *
As we pulled off the freeway and started up the gravel drive toward the house, I kept taking glances in Delaney’s direction, watching her wandering eyes as she paid close attention to her surroundings. I was thrown off by the absence of questions after I told her where I was taking her would remain a surprise.
“Almost there, sweetheart,” I was ready to get her settled and get her fed, and then I had some plans for us, some activities I knew she will thoroughly enjoy.
As we pulled up to the house, I noticed Delaney fix her gorgeous eyes at the sight before her.
“Wow, this is so beautiful,” she said mostly to herself.
“If you like this, just wait until we get inside, the view is spectacular.” I spoke as I leaned over to unbuckle her seat belt. When I got out of the car she opened her door and started to get out on her own. I hurried to meet her just before she had time to close the door. I reached up, wrapping my fingers around her throat, gently holding her in place asshe stepped back, pressed against the cold metal frame of the car.
I brought my face close to hers and spoke sternly.
“You will not open doors for yourself, I will be opening all doors for you, understood?” I spit.
She looked up at me underneath those long lashes and whispered, “okay.”
