“Clothes? What do you mean?”
“From now on while you’re in my bed you will be naked. We are not going to have clothes on.”
He nodded again.
“Another way could be to stomp.” Mainly because the idea of Aiden stomping when he was cross amused me to no end. I would have to make sure to school my features and take him seriously.
“Okay, Daddy.”
“Would you like to be in my lap now?”
“Yes, please.” He was climbing up before another word was uttered.
I wrapped my arms tightly around him. “Look how agreeable you are after spankings. Maybe I’ll have to start the morning out with them, slap the brat out of you.”
He huffed. “You wish.”
“Are we back to button-pushing already?”
“I’m horny.”
“And you’ll be horny a little while longer. We have important things to discuss tonight and then whatever mess you have coming next week.”
“Next week? Did I say next week? Because I certainly meant Avery is already in town.”
“What?”
Aiden cleared his throat. “I should get back to the desk. Patron and all.”
“Mister-must-read-the-back-of-every-single-book can wait.”
“I’m afraid Mr. Hill cannot wait. He’s quite cross and old.” Aiden was trying to wriggle out of my arms.
I grabbed him by the dick. “You are going to finish telling me what the hell is going on. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
Thirteen
AIDEN
I hadn’t expected Avery to come when I’d invited him for Christmas. It had been more like him going on and on about how his life was over there and how he had nothing left and me getting a light bulb moment that had turned into an avalanche. Sure, it was a little bit of a trash fire, but what was I going to do about it now? This trash fire was my life and either no one would be talking to me next week, or I’d have my older brother back and a niece in addition.
Eight-year-olds were cool, right?
I had no idea what to do with kids of any age but was here to learn.
“Your brother has a kid?” Jensen repeated when we’d gotten back to his place. We’d been talking about Avery all afternoon and somehow I’d forgotten to mention the kid all day. What was her name?
“Yes, So…Elis? Ellie?” I waved it off. “It will come to me.”
“Avery has a whole ass kid and you can’t remember her name?” He took off his coat and hung it in the closet.
“In my defense, she’s eight and I didn’t know about her until a few weeks ago.”
“Do your parents know they have a grandchild?” he asked.
“I am thinking no.” But I couldn’t be sure. I guessed anything was possible.
“He has an eight-year-old.” He was still in disbelief. “I’m going to have a beer, want one?”
“Yes, yes I do. I’ll use it to ice my blue balls.” I was complaining because that was my natural state, but it was nice to have someone to talk to about the secret I’d kept. I’d gotten to the point where it would have burst out at the next family gathering if I didn’t tell someone. Not that it mattered anymore. With the way gossip was, everyone would know in a day or two, so I had to tell my parents fast.
He handed me a beer and sat on his leather sofa. “When are you telling them?”
“Not tonight.” I perched on the arm of the sofa closest to him. “Since I’m here and I don’t particularly want to get denied any longer.” Wow, my attitude was horrid. No wonder Jensen was inclined to spank me. But even after realizing my behavior, I wasn’t going to stop it.
“How long have you been putting this off?” he asked.
“It’s not my fault I was snowed in with my brother’s best friend and had other pressing dilemmas in my life I didn’t want to complicate by getting my brother mad at me and my parents.”
“Your freakout in the cabin makes a whole lot more sense now.”
I nodded, peeling the label on my beer. “Adam might hate me after he finds out. Maybe I should have let him find out about you and Avery the same day. Rip the Band-Aid off.”
“I don’t think he’ll hate you.” He had that protective look about him and I kept sneaking glances at it. I wondered what would happen if Adam wasn’t speaking to me. I hadn’t even thought of that when I’d agreed to date Jensen.
“What if he does, Jensen? What if he doesn’t speak to me anymore? Then what’s going to happen to us?” I didn’t let my lip tremble. I jutted my chin out and looked him right in the eyes. “What are you going to do if he is done with me?”
The longer he was silent, the more plans I had to march right out of his place. I didn’t care if it was miles back to my cabin I’d walk there in the cold. I stood abruptly and blew a breath out through my nostrils. “You just not going to answer? Well, your non-answer is enough.”
“I was deciding how offended I was.”
“If you would pick my brother, you and he can go fu— What did you say?”
“I was deciding how offended I was.” He looked at me right in the eyes and I was a little worried I was in some kind of real trouble.
“Come again?” I asked, my brain trying to comprehend how he was the offended one when he was the person picking my brother.
“You can’t just run off and dig your way out with a sand shovel anytime anything gets hard. There is more to a relationship than you calling me Daddy and me spanking you.” There was a tone to his voice that sent a shiver up my spine.
“I know there is more, but this is kind of a big fucking deal.” I didn’t mean to get shrill but I had a hard time not going to that octave when I got upset.
“I hope you know I wouldn’t give you up over anything going on between you and either of your brothers.” His frown deepened and he turned his body towards mine, studying my face. “I don’t like what you were suggesting about me. Adam is my best friend, but I’m not so shallow to get involved in, first of all, a dispute between brothers that doesn’t involve me, and secondly, to abandon a relationship because my friend told me to. That’s not the basis for a good friendship. I wouldn’t let Adam dictate who I see.”
“Oh…”
“Do finish your sentence, what should I be doing with Adam?”
I was having a real hard time telling if he was ticked off or teasing me. “I would like to not.”
He grabbed my wrist and pulled me to him. “You have to learn to trust me.”
“Trust is a hard concept and you should give me time.”
He nodded, taking time to choose his words again, or so I hoped. “I understand you were screwed over by a shitty guy and you have baggage, but you don’t get to take it all out on me because you carry it. It’s heavy, and I want to be here for you but you don’t get to assume I will treat you like he did. It’s not fair to me or frankly to us.”
I nodded, somberly. He was right but that didn’t mean I liked to admit I was taking out my stupid issues over my ex on him.