Page 14 of Hayes (Alpha Daddies #7)

Chapter Twelve

Two weeks later …

Rylee ducked under her Daddy’s arm as she raced through the kitchen, heading for the front door.

“ Rylee ,” he called after her, shaking his head. It was difficult to keep from laughing. She was a ball of energy today, beyond excited because he’d invited some of the other Little girls over to meet her.

He knew they were on their way because Damon had called, but he suspected Rylee knew more than he did. She could scent them approaching.

Hayes caught up with her before she could open the front door. He snagged the skirt of her yellow dress and hauled her back before she could turn the knob.

“Daddy…”

He wrapped an arm around her from behind and tipped her head back with his other hand so she was looking up at him. “I know you’re excited, and I’m equally certain you can scent our friends arriving. However, you do not have permission to open the front door without Daddy.” He lifted a brow.

She sighed. “Yes, Sir.”

“Also, you don’t know yet what scent belongs to whom. Until you do, rein in the energy, naughty girl.”

“Yes, Sir.” At least she sounded contrite.

“Are you allowed to run in the house?”

“No, Sir.”

“Do I need to spank you before they get here?”

Her eyes widened. “You can’t. They’re only like thirty seconds away.”

He lifted a brow.

She blew out a breath. “I mean, of course you can … I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.”

“So we’re going to add sassy to your list of behaviors?”

“Sorry, Daddy.”

“Why do I have rules, Little one?”

“For my safety,” she breathed out.

“Is it safe to run in the house?”

“No, Sir.”

“Is it safe to open the front door without me?”

“No, Daddy.”

“How many Alpha Protectors have you met so far, Little one?”

“None,” she admitted, wincing.

“How many of their mates have you met?”

“None, Daddy.” Her deep sighs were comical, making it difficult for him to stick to his guns.

“So, do you know for a fact who is about to arrive?”

“No, but, Daddy, you told me there are no other wolf shifters in the area, and I don’t scent bears. Just wolves.”

“Are you permitted to argue with Daddy?”

She inhaled deeply, and her shoulders dropped as she shook her head. “No, Sir.”

“I won’t spank you in front of your new friends and their mates, but you can expect me to spank your naughty bottom as soon as they leave, understood?”

“Yes, Sir.” So dramatic.

He loved her to pieces. Every inch of her.

He didn’t mind a bit when she misbehaved because one of his favorite things was to pull her panties down and swat her naughty bottom until it was hot pink.

She always acted like it hurt, and he always pretended to believe her when she cried and complained, but the truth was it was all a game of sorts.

Rylee enjoyed being reprimanded, and she liked it when he took her over his knees and pulled her panties down. She didn’t even mind standing in the corner afterward with her naked bottom on display. He knew all of that because he could scent her arousal the entire time.

His mate had a nose for a lot of things, but Hayes had the ability to scent the most important thing inside their home—his sweet mate’s wet pussy. Though he never let her orgasm directly after a spanking, it was unspoken knowledge that spanking days always led to the best sex. Usually twice.

“They’re here,” Rylee whispered.

Hayes bent forward and kissed her forehead. “I know, Little one. You aren’t the only one with olfactory nerves. Mine just aren’t as strong as yours.” Holding her hand, he opened the front door just as three of his friends and their mates bounded into the clearing.

Rylee stood next to him in the doorway, grinning from ear to ear as she glanced around at each of the six of them, probably trying to learn their individual scents.

He couldn’t blame her, and he had no doubt she would be able to identify each and every one of them from this moment forward.

All she needed were names and human faces to go with their wolf scents.

“You’re right,” she whispered as the six wolves shifted, “Khloe is huge. If you hadn’t told me, I might have been kind of scared.”

He chuckled. “Don’t forget, anything you say can be heard by Molly.”

Rylee nodded, not commenting further.

By now, there were no secrets among the Alpha Protectors.

There was no way for anyone to go anywhere or do anything without everyone finding out about it.

The only thing sacred so far was their own thoughts, and even that wasn’t a given forever.

After all, Olivia had the ability to communicate with the bears telepathically.

It wouldn’t surprise any of them if one of the upcoming mates ended up being able to read minds.

It might have seemed farfetched until recently, but nothing surprised anyone now.

A collective shimmer filled the clearing as all six wolves materialized in their human form.

Hayes set a palm between his mate’s breasts and backed her up into the house so that everyone could come inside. She was bouncing on her toes. Her excitement was infectious and pleased him.

In accordance with their individual needs, Damon carried Olivia inside because she was blind, and Felix carried Khloe because she had a tendency to fall and hit her head when she had an unexpected vision.

“So glad you could all come,” Hayes said as he shut the door. “Grab seats around the room so everyone can introduce themselves.”

Each Alpha sat and situated his mate on his lap or between his legs. Hayes did the same with Rylee, taking a seat in one of the armchairs, pulling her between his knees, and wrapping an arm around her middle as if she might escape.

She had no reason to move away from him, but he liked having his hands on her. They all preferred to be touching their mates whenever possible.

“As you all know,” Hayes began, “this is Rylee. She has an exceptional sense of smell. I assume it’s similar to Molly’s sense of hearing.

” He glanced toward Damon and Olivia. “I know Olivia can both see and smell stronger than the average wolf, but I assume those senses are heightened more as a result of her body making up for her lack of vision.”

Olivia nodded. “Yes. Though my hearing in wolf form surpasses the average wolf, it doesn’t come close to what Molly can do.” She smiled in the direction of Rylee. “I’m Olivia, by the way.”

Rylee nodded even though Olivia couldn’t see her. She spoke at the same time. “Nice to meet you. Can you really talk to bears in your head?”

They all chuckled.

Olivia shrugged. “Apparently.”

Her Daddy hugged her close. “I’m Damon.”

Molly waved toward Rylee. “I’m Molly. I can hear much farther than Olivia. Maybe it matches the distance you can smell.”

Her Daddy spoke next. “We’ll test that theory. I’m Gavin.”

Hayes nodded toward the last couple. “That’s Khloe and Felix.”

Felix wiggled his fingers and adjusted Khloe on his lap. “Why don’t you explain your superpower to Rylee.”

Khloe rolled her eyes. “Daddy… It’s not a superpower. It’s just who I am.”

Felix kissed her neck. “Don’t make light of your abilities, Little one.”

She sighed. “Fine. I can sense people’s plans.”

Rylee’s brow furrowed. “How does that work?”

Khloe shrugged. “I don’t know, but if you decide to come visit us, I’ll know it before you even leave the house.”

Molly nodded. “And I’ll hear you discussing it even in your home. Unless I’m in an insulated location or I have my ears plugged.”

Gavin kissed her temple. “Molly can hear every single noise for miles around us. She’s learning to block them in order to remain sane, but it’s still difficult and exhausting, so we’ve insulated our entire house, and even when she goes outside, she often wears noise-cancelling earplugs to protect her sanity. ”

Rylee tipped her head back to look at Hayes. “Maybe I could get nose plugs.” She giggled.

“It’s not a bad idea, Little one. Especially when Isaac is grilling something you don’t like,” he teased.

Rylee twisted her body to shove at him. “You better not ever tell your brother I don’t like his cooking.”

Hayes chuckled and rubbed his arm as if her aggression had actually harmed him.

To continue getting a rise out of her, he said, “So you don’t want me to find out who made egg salad last week and tell them to leave out the paprika next time?

” That wasn’t a thing that happened, so he wasn’t worried about offending anyone.

Rylee didn’t fall for it either. She just rolled her eyes. “No mentioning any foods to anyone for any reason.”

“Can I at least ask what everyone ate for dinner last night and breakfast this morning so you’ll start to know distances?”

She sighed. “Yes, Daddy.”

As each Daddy confirmed what he’d cooked for dinner and breakfast, Rylee nodded. Hayes could see her categorizing in her head.

“I think we need a map,” Gavin suggested. “It would be helpful for Molly, too. Even something crude like a crayon drawing would help all the Littles learn where the other houses are with respect to each other.”

Khloe sat up taller. “We could do it! Olivia, Molly, Rylee, and I. Can we?”

“We could make several copies,” Molly added.

“One for every home but a few extras for the next mates who will be joining us. Besides helping understand distances, it would be a safety thing, too. If anything ever happens, leaving any of us or a group of us without an Alpha Protector, it would be safer for us to know where to go for help.”

Hayes rose from his chair and nodded toward the kitchen. “Come on. I’ll pull out supplies.”

Five minutes later, the table was littered with paper, crayons, and colored pencils.

Olivia felt around the edges of her paper.

“Someone point to the center for me, and I’ll help.

” The blind Little never let her vision get her down, and she certainly never wanted to be left out of an art project.

She was also capable of giggling at her own work later when she shifted so she could see it for herself.