Page 122 of Double Daddies (Dirty Daddies Anthologies #8)
“No. Your friends are busy enough without hijacking their time for this. Besides, I need to know without a doubt that you’re in this for the long haul, not just a vacation fling.
” Why on God’s green earth he was even entertaining this ludicrous shit, he didn’t know.
“Besides, you’ve got to convince Avery she wants a second Daddy and, right now, she’s vehemently opposed to having a first.”
The waiter returned, grandly producing two cups of coffee with flair. “One black coffee for Master Clay, and one caramel macchiato for sir. Is there anything else I can get you?”
“Yes. Avery’s presence is required for a few minutes. Mind getting her out here?”
The young man blinked horrified eyes at him, the pale blue alive with refusal. “Master Clay, she told everyone she doesn’t want to be disturbed. The cake she’s working on has a time limit.”
“So does my patience.” He dropped his voice to a lower octave, adding a hint of displeasure to the words. “Tell her I won’t keep her more than a minute or two.”
Recognizing the significant change in Clay’s tone, the waiter nodded respectfully and fled back toward the kitchen.
“That was kind of rude,” Tristan mused.
Clay frowned. “Really? I’m sure you’ve said and done worse, but please, tell me what about that was rude in your eyes.”
“He was only relaying information; your response was a threat.”
Oh, Tristan was going to learn a lesson or two. Whether he retained any knowledge was another matter, but the lesson would be given regardless.
“Littles spout excuses like confetti from a cannon when they want to get out of doing something, including punishments. Let them get away with it once, they’ll take advantage of it.
Avery is working hard, no doubt, but she’s also avoiding me and using that an excuse.
” Lifting his cup, he breathed in the scent of rich, dark coffee.
“If you think my reply was threatening, Tristan, maybe you’d be better off as a sub than a Dom. ”
“What?”
“You heard me. I informed him of a fact—my patience also has a time limit. There is no threat in that. My tone was firm, brooked no bullshit, and gave him no avenue to use another excuse.” Clay jerked a thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the subject of conversation.
“He’s not a Little, but he is submissive.
Seems to me you reacted the same way he did. ”
“I’m not a submissive,” Tristan fired back, incensed.
“You’ll have a chance to prove it. Being a Daddy is different than just being a Dom.
Actions and words have the same impact, castigation hits harder, but a Little is unique.
One woman, two personalities. A good Daddy sates the adult needs while keeping the Little satisfied.
” Clay sipped his coffee. “That means being firm without cruelty, maintaining rules without weakness. You need to find your sense of humor, your imagination, and be prepared for fucking anything, especially with a brat.”
“Is Avery a brat?”
Now he smiled. “Oh yes, she is.”
“Is that what happened yesterday?”
“It is. She pushed several limits and earned the consequences.” Clay tilted his head as the waiter approached, his head bowed and hands clasped. “Hello again.”
“She’s not happy, Master Clay, but she’s coming.”
A wise decision on her part, he thought, meeting the young man’s shuttered eyes and offering a pleased smile. “Good boy. Thank you.”
The blue brightened instantly as a result of the praise. Nodding, he backed away, and with a little skip in his step, hurried off to serve another customer.
“Learn how to use praise effusively. It’s often a more gratifying reward than candy or stuffies.
Good girl is a magic phrase for a reason.
Everyone wants to feel appreciated, Tristan.
They want to be seen, acknowledged, cared for.
A woman like Avery who, for her own reasons, lacks self-confidence and self-worth, will be harder to appease. ”
The angry stomp of sneakers heading in his direction alerted him to her presence. Letting his gaze slide from Tristan’s thoughtful face to the approaching siren, he wasn’t surprised to see her feet weren’t the only part of her radiating with temper.
Smile widening as though she wasn’t attempting to skin him alive with her dark, furious stare, Clay kicked out the chair to his right and waved a hand at it. “Take a seat, sweetling.”
“No. Thank. You.” Avery bit off each word with a snap.
Oh good, the game was on. Sipping his coffee leisurely, he raised his eyebrows at her. “You’re mistaking an order as an invitation, Avery. Take a seat.”
She really wanted to take a bite out of him, he mused. Her lip curled slightly, showing those beautifully white teeth clenching against what was probably a spanking-worthy retort. “No offense, Master Clay, but I’m too busy to put up with your hijinks today.”
“It was Daddy Clay yesterday,” he reminded her in a soft murmur.
Heat flushed her perfect complexion into a dusky shade of red. “That was yesterday, and yesterday is not going to be repeated.”
“That’s a shame. How’s your ass today, sweetling?”
Dusky red became fiery red as her gaze shot to Tristan. “Fine.”
“Good. Then you won’t mind sitting down.”
Avery glared at him, taking a half-step back and turning to leave. A suspicious bulge beneath her shirt made him reach out and hook a finger into a belt loop on her pants, gently tugging her back toward him. When he lifted her shirt and a certain reindeer peeked at him, Clay grinned.
“We need to talk, Avery. A civilized, adult conversation if you can control your Little long enough to remember your manners.”
“I’m not—” Bristling, she yanked the chair out further and sat, gingerly. “There, happy now? When I said I’m busy, it means I don’t have the time or inclination for chatting. I’ve got an entire cake to decorate, and it needs to be perfect. So start talking, sir .”
Tapping his hand on his thigh in warning, Clay skewered her with a look.
“While I’m pleased you’ve stopped denying what you are, I recommend you drop the attitude, Avery.
I understand you have things to do, but so do we.
Being sassy and rude is only delaying all three of us from returning to our regularly scheduled activities. ”
The calm, admonishing tone toned down her hostility. She lowered her gaze, chewing on her lip. Some of the tension in her shoulders eased. “Sorry, Master Clay.”
He glanced at Tristan, watching him as he said, “Good girl.”
Mercurial eyes flared with surprise as Avery shivered in response to those two quiet words.
“Avery, this is Tristan. He’s a new guest here at Serenity, and a trainee Daddy Dom.”
“I know who he is, sir.”
“That saves some time then. Why don’t you introduce yourself to him?”
There it was, that spark of defiance which seemed to preclude the arrival of Little Avery. Flaring beneath those long, sleek eyelashes, illuminating her dark eyes. One more small push and the spark would ignite, burning away the grown up and leaving behind the more complicated half of her.
Come on out and play, sweetling .
She heaved a breath. “Hi, I’m Avery.”
Tristan stared at her as though she hung the moon in his dreams every night. “Hello.”
Smooth, Clay thought with a quiet snort. Real smooth, playboy.
Checking an imaginary watch on her wrist, Avery huffed softly. “If that’s all…”
“You need a Daddy, sweetling.”
The chair scraped as she shoved back, standing quickly. As she whirled to go, Clay reached out and whipped the reindeer from her waistband, stopping her in her tracks.
It was the last push needed.
Fury ignited, she spun back, hands fisted on her hips. “Give him back!”
“Not until you admit you need a Daddy.”
A thin, shrill scream warned of an incoming attack. He rose as she leaped, letting her bounce off his chest as he held the reindeer out of reach. “I don’t! Give him back now! ”
Patient as a saint, pretty impressed she hadn’t yet resorted to beating him with those tiny, icing-dusted hands, he just waited as streams of irritated babble spewed from her in a voice very different from normal. “Avery, take a breath and look at yourself.”
“He’s mine! Give him back!”
Clay pursed his lips, then tossed the unfortunate reindeer ass over antlers to Tristan, who caught it more by luck than skill.
When Avery leaped for Clay’s throat, he spared her the possibility of another spanking, hooking an arm around her waist and dragging her flush against him. “What are you, Avery?”
She narrowly missed kicking his shin. “Angry!”
“That’s how you’re feeling. What are you?”
Panting heavily, she dropped her forehead against his chest.
“One tiny word, sweetling. That’s all I need.”
Her fingers dug into his sides, gripping both shirt and flesh. “Little.”
“Good girl,” he said immediately, emphatically. Wrapping her up in a hug, he felt her breath shudder out before she relaxed into his arms. “At least you managed to avoid your ass being warmed today.”
“I don’t want a Daddy…”
“But?” he asked quietly.
“Maybe I need one.”
The unhappy admission made him cuddle her closer.
Yesterday, he’d learned she was a snuggler; she preferred to be pressed against him, as much of her body touching his as humanly possible.
With the sass spanked out of her and her curvy ass bearing the brunt of her punishment, she’d been docile as a bottle-fed calf, taking chocolate squares from his fingers and drinking from the bottle he held to her lips.
It was, he thought with a smile, a peacefully productive end to the impromptu scene.
He watched Tristan’s face, saw the yearning flash over his features before it was replaced with confusion. He probably couldn’t work out why he suddenly felt the urge to be monogamous after God only knew how many years of sowing his oats here, there, and everywhere. The emotions were real, however.
Clay sighed. What was that saying…
In for a penny, in for a pound.
“Lucky for you, Avery, you have two Daddies at your disposal.”