Daddies’ Discipline: Chapter 16

I’m fussing in the barn, clearing up my stuff, finding new places for my paint brushes and palette, and checking the painting in its half-finished form.

I don’t want to go back to the Lodge, but I don’t really have a choice.

My bag is there. In my office.

I’m not going to be lucky twice in a row.

But I can’t just hide out here forever. Gathering my courage, I stomp out into the snow, it’s not that deep today, and charge inside.

I immediately see Gabe, pacing by the front desk.

My heart kicks at my breastbone as hot and cold war with each other in my gut.

He turns and catches my gaze, and I want to freeze but don’t. The plan is to breeze by him without giving the time of day.

It doesn’t work.

He’s on my heels, hand catching my elbow and stopping me in the hallway to our offices.

His touch makes my heart beat even faster with anger, rejection, and desire. I hate it.

“Stop pretending you’re not mad.”

“I’m not pretending anything.” I can barely bite the words out. Energy vibrates inside me so hard that I can barely contain myself.

“You’re breathing like you want to scream at me.” His voice is in my ear. Low. Intimate. Flashing me back to how his mouth had been on mine, his hand titling my face to kiss me deeper.

I spin on him, glaring. I have to stack my walls higher, unused to needing them with him. “Leave me alone, Gabe.”

“That’s not what you actually want.”

“Yeah? You think you’re such an expert on what I want. But you still think I’m a kid. The perfect princess of Pinebrook. But I’m not her anymore. And it’s not right for you to try to make me her again.”

Pulling free of him, I dip into my office and grab my things.

Gabe stands in the door silently watching me. I hate how gorgeous he is, even with the sad tilt to his features.

Golden-brown eyes, the same ones I’ve confessed to a million times.

When I’m back at the door, ready to push past him, he bows his head. “I never thought of you that way. Not even back then.”

The makeshift armor I hastily strapped on cracks so easily at his words. I struggle to hold it in place.

Gabe shifts and catches my eyes.

“Maybe you’re not the one who really knows me.” With that he ambles away, head down, shoulders hunched, and it tears at my heart more than it makes me mad.

It takes me a second to catch my breath, but I shake it off and head home to gather myself completely before Adam comes to pick me up for our date.

My sister’s home when I walk through the front door. Her dark hair is up in two spiky buns that remind me of the ears she used to wear as a pre-teen.

The ones I stole and broke by accident, prompting her five-day campaign for a lock on her bedroom door.

“More rumors going around about you.” Daisy crosses her arms and gives me a pointed look. “Adam. Greyson. And Gabe? Got a thing for older dudes, don’t you?”

A blush fires in my cheeks as I look around for Mom and Dad.

Daisy rolls her eyes. “They’re not home.”

Sucking in a big breath, I blow it out.

Her raised brow and meaningful look has me cracking.

The pressure to confess what’s going on to someone breaks me down. Because if anyone will understand, it’s my big sister. She’s had far more rebellions than I ever did.

“I don’t know what everyone’s saying, but it’s true. Adam, Greyson, and Gabe. Kind of.”

“Kind of? How is it kind of?”

I tell her what he said, how I stormed out, and the guilt trip he laid on me before he walked away just twenty minutes ago.

The softening of her eyes has me turning away.

I just can’t deal with my feelings for him right now.

“I have a date with Adam tonight…”

“And you didn’t start there?”

Huffing, I plant my hands on my hips. “Don’t even. You know you wanted to hear about Gabe first.”

Daisy tilts her head to the side and smiles. “Of course, I did. Come on. I’m helping.”

She takes my hand and drags me upstairs to my room, opening my closet and ruffling through the clothes I’ve hastily thrown in there.

I didn’t pack everything from the apartment I rented in the city, but I would have to decide if I want to go get the rest of my things before the new year.

“I’m going to dress you, and you’re going to talk. Because honestly, Adam I can see. He’s totally the kind of man I can see being interested in you and your newfound confidence, but Greyson? Wasn’t he your coach? How did that happen?”

So, I tell her. All of it since I’ve returned to Pinebrook amongst trying things on and having her reject them.

When she sprints off to her room and returns with her own things to try on, I feel like a little girl again. I’d always wanted to be more like Daisy when we were kids.

Finally, when she’s chosen a pair of my tight jeans and one of her tops, she has me sit so that she can brush powders across my skin.

“Now, tell me about why you came home.”

The sigh puffing up my chest hurts, and she must notice because she crouches down in front of me and grabs my hands.

“Don’t let the man defeat you. Or the town. You have a right to tell the story from your perspective.”

Nodding, I finally find my voice. “His name is Nick. My…ex?”

“Yes. Whether he was married or not, he is still your ex.”

I laugh sadly. Yeah. Sure. “Well, I didn’t know he was married.”

“Obviously.” Daisy’s matter of fact response fills me with a much-needed absolution.

“He worked at the publishing company, the head of his department—not my department but an adjacent one. I’d see him around all the time, and he was…good looking. There’s something about a man who can dress himself.” Although now that I think of it, his wife probably dressed him. “Nick was coy with me at first, sneaking glances, little exchanges, and they were always drenched in so much tension that even I couldn’t miss it.”

Daisy’s smile reaffirms how oblivious I’ve been about guys for most of my life.

“It started with drinks with others from the office, and they all petered out long before the two of us were tired. Then it was drinks alone. Dinner. Nights at my place. But we had to be quiet about it at work for what I thought was to maintain professional boundaries.”

Daisy stops her ministrations on my face to send me a look. “Red flags flying all over the place in this story.”

“Well, it’s obvious why now, but I didn’t know at the time.”

My sister makes a neutral noise but goes back to her makeup case and instructs me to blink into her mascara wand.

I do before I tell her the hardest part of the story.

“My last day of work…we’d snuck into a janitor’s closet to make out. It’s the same one we used on occasion to sneak kisses and touches.”

“And you were caught.”

I nod.

“By who?”

This is the part that’s hard to get out because it’s the most embarrassing piece of the puzzle. “By his father-in-law, the CFO.”

“What? No.” Daisy’s utter and horrified shock brings back the echoes of those feelings. “The moment I heard daughter and wife, I was out of there. I bolted. Grabbed my stuff and simply ran out of the building. Packed my things. Came home with my tail between my legs.”

A heavy silence settles between us as tears threaten to ruin all of Daisy’s hard work.

“What an utter pig. You didn’t deserve that.”

Finally, I can agree with her. I wish I hadn’t been such a coward, but I didn’t know what else to do. God, what must our parents think of the whole thing? I couldn’t tell them any of it. Except that I didn’t know Nick was married when we started seeing each other.

“Alright. Listen. Fuck this Nick douchebag. Focus on Adam. From what you’ve told me, he’s not going to let you get away with running from him.”

I laugh. She’s hit that nail on the head.

“And I know he’s rich and all that, but he’s done a lot for this town. For the people who live here, not just his bottom line. So, give him a real chance.”

“Sure.”

“Sure?”

I shrug. “What about⁠—”

I wave around me as if I can encapsulate all my worries with the gesture.

“What about the Kincaid brothers, you mean?”

A blush hits my cheeks with such ferocity that I don’t really need to answer that question. Daisy sighs, sits behind me, and grabs my hand in hers for a reassuring squeeze. “Just be honest with them, and the rest will shake out the way it’s supposed to. Go have fun.”

“Fun seems to get me in trouble.”

“No, people taking advantage of you gets you in trouble. None of this shit is your fault. Just like last time. Just because you’re not the innocent Pinebrook Princess anymore doesn’t mean you’re not good.”

I take that nugget with me—I’m still a good person even if I’m not perfect—when Adam arrives for our date. I meet him at the door before my parents can answer it.

His fine navy blue coat brings out the green in his eyes, which are twinkling at me in the dying sunshine. Adam’s smile is small but still dazzling. “Afraid to let me meet your parents?”

“I’m pretty sure you’ve already met my parents. And this is our first date, I’m not seventeen. Yeah? So let’s skip that part.”

Adam laughs. It’s big and booming and churns warmth low in my belly.

I bite my lip at him, and he extends his elbow. Taking it, I let him escort me out to his Mercedes Benz SUV, open my door for me, and hand me inside. He even buckles me in, which has him leaning across me and depositing his fresh scent in my space.

The sudden urge to sink my teeth into his skin hits me.

But he’s closing my door before I can act, and he climbs behind the wheel a few seconds later. After backing out of the driveway, he takes my hand and links our fingers together.

I like that he doesn’t push me to talk. I’ve always been a fan of quiet. The ability to settle without the need to fill the silence. To be content with that.

It’s a natural culmination from what Gabe and I built in my youth.

And the thought of him makes me bristle.

I shouldn’t be thinking about him while I’m on a date.

Adam squeezes my hand, a silent question. Am I alright?

“So, where are you taking me?”

His brilliant smile resurfaces. “To one of my favorite spots.”

“Cryptic.”

“Don’t tell me you’re not a fan of surprises.” The playful tone in his voice pulls the smallest smile out of me. I do like surprises. Good ones anyway.

I tilt against the headrest to watch him as he drives. I don’t often get to simply watch him without having to combat his authoritative and intense stare in return.

He’s got a strong nose and jaw, a shapely and pouty mouth, the subtle stubble along his jaw and chin, and the feathering of gray along his temples.

I can’t see much of him otherwise, but he’s got a beautiful face, distinguished yet rugged.

Adam was made for business, to be a leader, and it shows. But was he made for romance?

I suppose we would see. He’s given me hints at it.

The slow but dominant way he’s taken charge but hasn’t pushed me past where I’m comfortable.

Mostly.

When I pull back, he wants to know why. And that’s more important than I ever thought possible.

It’s not what I’m used to.

I’ve always taken care of and given myself over to my partners—offered too much of myself for minimal returns.

He glances at me as we exit the town limits, and I’m even more curious about what he has planned.

Most of what surrounds Pinebrook is forest.

A lake sits on one side, a small one fed by a small river, and I’m pretty certain we’re headed to a private spot that I never would have pinned as one of Adam’s favorites.

When we park, I can barely see the edge of a hill in the growing darkness through the back window, a lookout in the woods that I’ve never been to before.

I wait as Adam exits the SUV and opens the back hatch. Cold breaches the warmth we’ve built along the drive.

Again, I find myself watching him through the gap in the seats. He spreads out a blanket and props a cooler and heat bag at the end before his gaze lifts to mine.

The confidence and amusement tugs at me.

I climb out of my seat and join him.

Adam has a blanket ready for me, wrapping it around my shoulders before helping me up in the back of his vehicle.

He lingers above me, his big hand cupping my cheek, sliding his fingers behind my ear and brushing my jaw with his thumb.

“So this is your favorite place?”

“Yes.” Such a simple answer. Is he trying to get me to pry?

“Why?” Because I find myself actually wanting to know what makes him tick.

“It’s quiet here. No board meetings, no phones, no noise. Just…room to breathe.” He’s searching me for something again, and the heat of him is delicious with the cold swirling around us.

I want to lean into him, but our date has just started. It’s too early to cuddle in close and encourage the things I’ve been daydreaming about since he denied me.

But I don’t take the opening, remembering what he taught me about leaning in, touching him…

“And then there’s me, ruining your peace.”

A small, sly grin greets me. “Maybe you’re the reason it’s peaceful.”

I snort and shake my head, embarrassment heating my face. Taking his hand in mine, I examine his large, blunt fingers and trace the lines of his palm. “You don’t strike me as the type to picnic in the woods.”

“That’s because you only see me when I’m working.”

“Oh, so that’s what you call what I’ve seen? Working.”

“Of a sort.”

“Working me you mean.”

His laugh is soft and intimate, then he leans his mouth to my ear. “You’ll know when I’m working you, princess.”

I turn toward him, our noses brushing and sending a sharp need through me. Biting my lip keeps me from leaning in.

Adam tucks the blanket tighter around me and retreats, propping himself next to me.

He takes up so much space, even with how big the back of his car is.

We look out into the sky and the way the river shimmers below us, frosted over and framed by bright white snow under the moon.

“So, what made this your favorite spot?”

“My grandfather brought me here when I was a kid. He taught me that you can tell a lot about a person by how they handle the quiet.”

Another reminder of my best friend growing up. My neighbor. Gabe. Everything always seems to come back to him in some way.

After a beat, he turns to peer at me. “You handle it well.”

“I’m not afraid of quiet.”

“No. Just what it lets you think about.”

My pulse hiccups, and I turn to look at what he brought with him to break the tension building in my chest. “You shouldn’t psychoanalyze your dates. I’m pretty sure that’s dating 101.”

“You’re not just a date.” His voice drops, leaving those words hanging between us before he’s moving, opening a bottle of champagne and pouring me some in a real glass flute.

I giggle as I take it, savoring the sweet bubbles as they fill my mouth. Then he tugs the warming bag closer and pulls out two hand pies. “Try this before it freezes.”

I take the warm tart, my fingers brushing his, and immediately take a bite. Like before with the burrito, I let out a low moan at the savory meat and perfect spice—thyme, onion, garlic—and expertly flaky crust that still holds its shape under the moisture and weight.

Adam chews through his own bite, smug pride filling his features.

“You make these?”

He shakes his head as he swallows. “No, I leave that to more talented people. I can grill a mean steak though. I’ll show you when the weather gets warmer.”

“Mmm. Presumptuous of you.” Thinking I’ll still be around. But I have to admit, if I am, I would very much like to have him show me. I like being around him.

His brow lifts. Can he read my thoughts? The things I’m leaving unsaid with my response.

I devour my meat pie, licking my fingers clean and ignoring how it keeps his attention on my mouth.

He’s holding back on me, proving his point.

Adam is not like the men I’ve dated before.

But that doesn’t mean he’s not going to hurt me.

“You want another one?”

My laugh is a bark. “Of course.”

I never lost my athletic appetite. Even if I haven’t gone running since I came home, it’s been a constant in my life for more than a decade. Devouring my second pie is greeted with his approval, completely at odds with how Nick responded to my food habits and his offhand comments about my figure.

Luckily, we weren’t together long enough or often enough for it to give me a complex.

Afterall, my clothes had gotten loose on me, not tighter.

But depression has that kind of effect on me.

I shake off the thoughts of the past. They’re not serving me at this moment, and I’d rather be present here with Adam.

He gestures to my empty glass, and I take the refill. It goes well with the meat pies, which surprises me.

What he pulls out next surprises me even more: a pint of ice cream—Blue Raspberry Cotton Candy. My favorite.

“How did you know?”

“I can’t reveal my sources.”

“Mmm hmm. You know this is going to make me cold.”

Still, he hands me a spoon and shifts, wrapping an arm around my waist and yanking me across the back to settle me between his thighs.

Once he has me nestled against him, he takes the pint back and tears off the top and hands it back.

“I won’t ever let you get cold.” The sincerity in his words sends a shiver through me just the same.

I take a few bites and relax into him, finally asking the question that’s been swimming around my thoughts since he told me he’s not attached to anyone.

It’s easier to broach the subject with him surrounding me this way, without his ability to pierce me with his all-knowing gaze.

“Adam.”

He hums in response.

“Why aren’t you married?”

“That’s easy. Because I’ve never met anyone who’s prompted that kind of response in me. The need to call her mine. The desire to be hers. Never seemed right without that feeling driving me.” His arms tighten around me, and I can’t help how my heart rate spikes at that admission.

At what that might mean for us.

We settle into companionable silence as I finish off my pint and soak in the feel of his body around mine.

The ride home is quick, faster than the way out, and when he walks me up to my door, I know my parents, my sister, Greyson and Gabe are all watching. Even if I can’t see them.

“You know they’re all watching,” I say.

“Of course they are.” Adam crowds me against the front door. “I’d better make this worth their trouble then.”

He leans in. His kiss isn’t demanding, but it’s one that claims the moment—measured, slow, with a hand braced on the doorframe beside my ear.

I’m ready to dissolve into a puddle at his absolute thoroughness.

I want to grab hold and yank him into me, take what we’re both really craving.

When he pulls back, nose brushing mine, his voice is low and rough. “Next time, I don’t plan to drop you off at home.”