“Ask away.”
“Why do you want to be a Daddy? It can’t just be because you want to take care of me. Even if we were going to start a relationship—which we arenot—there are plenty of ways to take care of your partner without being a Daddy.”
“That’s a good question.” The approval in his tone spoke to the parts of her that yearned to please, to be told she was a good girl, and she just managed to stop herself from beaming at him in response. “I’ve had an interest in kink for as long as I can remember. So when the opportunity came up to join a group in Baltimore and have someone mentor me, I jumped at it.”
Jesus, this conversation was surreal. And completely inappropriate, but it was a little late to turn back now. “Someone taught you how to be a Daddy?”
“Eventually, yes. At first, I was just interested in being a Dom. But the more I learned, the more I realized I wasn’t interested in the harsher side of BDSM. I wanted someone to take care of. I was drawn to the idea of having someone depend on me, look to me for guidance.”
“You could get that from any relationship.”
“Possibly. But I don’t want just any relationship. I managed to get myself invited to a Littles event, and I was hooked. It’s difficult to explain, but it was like… like I’d just discovered the missing piece of my soul.” Looking somewhat embarrassed, he shrugged. “That sounds like I’m waxing poetic and being ridiculous, but it’s the truth.”
“It doesn’t sound ridiculous.” It sounded like exactly how she’d felt the first time she’d read a Daddy book. Like someone had ripped her open and put her own thoughts, her own desires right there on the page. “Have you had a Little before?”
Dangerous ground, girl.And it was, especially since it was none of her business. Those were the types of questions she would ask someone she was seriously considering as a partner. Which she wasn’t. At all.
Not even a little bit.
“I’ve talked to several, even played with a few so that I could learn. But no, I’ve never had a long-term relationship with a Little. I’ve never really had a long-term relationship with anyone.”
That surprised her, even more than his declaration that he wanted to be her Daddy. “Really? Why not?”
“I wasn’t really interested in romance in high school. I had… other priorities.”
There was more there, and she wanted so badly to dig up whatever it was. Ethan had hinted a few times that Dylan’s childhood had been less than ideal, but she’d never pressed for details. Now, she was wishing she’d been just a little bit nosier.
“What about college? The way Ethan talks, you had girls throwing themselves at your feet.” Young girls with nubile bodies that hadn’t gone soft with age and child-bearing.
“I suppose. But they all had the same fatal flaw.”
“And what was that?”
Rising from his chair, he closed the distance between them to cup her face in his hands. Just that simple touch sent her heart racing and slicked her palms with sweat. “They weren’t you.”
Chapter Four
Sam
They weren’t you.
Those words played over and over in her mind all through dinner and kept her up well past the time she would have normally been in bed.
Which meant she slept through both of her alarms, and woke up to Dylan pounding on her bedroom door and calling her name.
“Sam? Your alarm has been going off for like half an hour. You okay in there?”
“Fuck! Yes!” Reaching over, she jabbed a finger at the button to turn the alarm off and jumped out of bed. A quick glance at the time on her phone told her she had about fifteen minutes to get out the front door, so no time for a shower.
Dry shampoo and extra deodorant for the win.
It took her ten minutes to get through a much shorter version of her morning routine and to throw on the outfit she’d thankfully laid out for herself the night before. Which only gave her five minutes to make her coffee, grab her purse and laptop, and head out the door.
But when she stepped into the kitchen, Dylan was snapping the lid onto her favorite travel cup. Glancing up, he smiled before holding it out to her. “The medium-roast k-cup, too much cream and way too much sugar. To go.”
Too grateful for the time he’d saved her to argue, she hurried across the kitchen to take the cup, but she allowed herself a moment to taste test just in case she needed to add something to it before she left.
Nope. Perfect.
