by Lexi Blake
The taller of the two men leaned over, putting a hand over his eyes as though trying to see into the car. It was obvious they were arguing over whether or not the sports car stopped in the middle of the road contained their wayward daughter.
The one carrying the poodle used his free hand to pull out his cell phone.
Kay’s phone trilled. She sat as though completely incapable of getting unstuck. She simply stared out the window as though they might go away if she thought about it long enough.
Yeah, he’d had his silent time. It looked like it was Kay’s time to win the quiet game. He grabbed the phone. “Hello?”
Kay turned to him, reaching out. “Hey, that’s mine.”
She’d taken over his blackmail drop. He could take over dealing with her dads.
What was wrong with him? He needed to move. He needed to kick them all out and decide on how to deal with his blackmailer. Why the fuck was he sitting in a car with her, eager to meet a couple of men who shouldn’t matter at all to him?
Why couldn’t he tell her that seeing her tonight had been all he’d wanted? That when he thought he was going to die, all he’d wanted was another couple of minutes with her. A couple of minutes where he stopped fucking pretending she wasn’t everything he wanted—everything he never knew he wanted.
“Young man, I am trying to get in touch with my daughter,” a cultured voice said over the line. “This is her telephone and if you’ve done something terrible to her, you will pay the price.”
There was zero missing that judgmental tone. He pulled the phone away from his ear and hung it up. “It’s definitely your dads.”
“I know that, damn it.” She lowered her head until it touched the steering wheel.
Her tactical reasoning skills were obviously shot. He needed to point out a few truths to her. “Did you realize that if we don’t get them off the lawn soon, Shane or Dec is going to come back? Do they know your dads by sight? Or will they tackle them, suspecting they represent elderly stalkers who love canines?”
“Shit.” She put the car in first and totally stripped the fucking gears.
She was going to owe him a new engine. He winced but at least they were moving again.
He was moving again. How long had he been still? Since that first moment he’d gotten the call? He’d been stuck in some never-ending purgatory of a second act, the one where the hero finds himself in trouble and falling back on all his old ways. After Tina died, he’d closed down. He’d done some destructive shit, but nothing was more destructive than never moving or changing or opening himself up to the possibilities of the world.
Tonight had been a turning point. The question was which way did he turn? Funny that his life always seemed to turn because of a woman. First, Tina had asked him not to run and despite his instincts, he’d stayed with her.
Now he could choose to protect Kay…no. What the fuck was he thinking? He didn’t need to protect Kayla Summers. She was a badass who could take him down in a heartbeat. He wasn’t going to lie to himself. He was the one he was trying to protect. He could protect himself from potential heartache or he could take a chance with her. He could hope and pray that the universe gave him just one more good thing.
Was he actually considering talking to Kayla about the whys of his blackmailer? Was he considering discussing the situation with her? He was pinging back and forth between utter fear and anger and a desperate need to not be alone again. It would be worse this time around.
Alone meaning losing her because he was fairly certain no one on earth could take her place. Before he’d been fairly content. He’d had his work and that was enough. He wasn’t sure anything could fill the void she would leave in his life.
She turned the Porsche into the drive and managed to put it in park without stalling the engine. That was one miracle.
Now he had to find a way to get her out of the car or they would sit out here all night, staring at each other. “I’ll go first. You come out when you feel like it.” His hand was on the door. “I kind of thought you liked your dads.”
“I love them.”
He knew. She talked about them a lot and always with great affection. “So why the total terror?”
“Josh, have you ever met a pair of overly protective, slightly pretentious father knows bests? Who know you’re probably sleeping with their precious daughter? Do you have any idea the questions they’re going to have? I’m scared for you.”
He called bullshit. This was abso-fucking-lutely about the questions they would have for her. Well, they’d both introduced each other to the troublesome parts of their lives. She’d met his blackmailer. He had to deal with her dads. All in all, he probably got the better end of that stick.
“I’m good with parents.” He’d played the romantic lead many times. This he could handle. Maybe that’s where he was going wrong. He was being far too controlling and trying to take on all the roles. But they had been perfectly cast for this day and age. He should handle charming the parents and she would murder the blackmailers. They should play to their strengths. “Watch this.”
He left her phone behind and got out of the car.
She scrambled behind him as he limped across the lawn, hand held out.
“Hello, sir, I’m Joshua Hunt. It’s good to finally meet you. Kayla has told me so much about you,” he said with his best leading-man, don’t-worry-about-your-daughter-at-all smile.
The man with the poodle frowned, not taking his hand at all. “Well, I’m glad she mentioned us since she hasn’t bothered to mention you. This whole thing is a complete surprise. One would think that when one’s daughter is going to be dating a celebrity, she would call and give her fathers a heads-up. We had to hear about it from that obnoxious Marty Dixon at the potluck. First he brings that horrible tuna casserole that the seventies spat out and then he announces to all our friends that our sweet daughter is dating…”—the man shivered as though this was something truly distasteful—“…an action star.”
The poodle barked, as though adding its two cents to the discussion.
“Now, Fred, give the kid a chance,” the taller of the two men said. He reached out a hand, shaking Josh’s. “I’m Jim and this is my husband Fred.” He put a hand on his husband’s shoulder, glancing down at him. “You know our Kayla likes to keep her secrets. I blame the CIA. What that institution needs is more transparency. Perhaps a civilian oversight committee.”
“Yeah, dad, that would go over well with clandestine ops. I’m sure voting on what actions to take wouldn’t cause trouble at all.” Kay finally moved up beside him. “Sorry I didn’t call back. Do you know it’s one thirty in the morning?”
Jim was a tall, elegant-looking black man. His close-cropped hair was graying, but in a way that lent dignity to his handsome, intelligent face. “I am, in fact, well aware that it’s one thirty in the morning, young lady. We left Santa Barbara at six. We got stuck in terrible traffic.”
“There’s a fire north of here.” Fred was at least six inches shorter than his husband. “They closed down the highway for over three hours because fire likes to jump around like a kid on a pogo stick. I thought we were going to be squatters. Luckily I had packed a care package and had a couple of lawn chairs. We met this lovely couple driving down from San Francisco and had a nice supper. Well, as much of a supper as one can make from goat cheese and crackers and wine. Thank god, I’m prepared for anything.”
“By the time we got here, it was after midnight and every hotel in town is full,” Jim explained. “So we’re here. Now could someone explain why my daughter is sleeping with a man who thinks King Arthur listened to rap music?”
Damn, naturally that one came up first. He’d thought that Arthur as a rock ‘n’ roll kind of superhero would be a cool, modern take on the legend. No one outside the cast and crew had agreed. A definite misstep.
“No, sir, that was an artistic choice by the director. I’m well aware that Arthur wasn’t into Jay-Z. He was likely more of a pan flute kind
of guy.” Everyone was a critic.
“I’m not sleeping with him,” Kayla said, keeping her distance. “I’m his bodyguard. I told you I was working. This is the job. I’m sorry about the rumors.”
Did she think she was getting away with that? Hells to the no. If he was going to have to defend his movies to her erudite father and deal with that poodle who looked like trouble, she was going down with him. “She’s totally sleeping with me. We’re exclusive. Though she is my bodyguard.” He slid an arm around her. “And my submissive, but we can go over what that means later. Should we get your luggage inside? Kay, baby, do you want to see if we’ve got some leftovers to feed your dads?”
“I think I would rather murder you,” she said under her breath. “What are you doing?”
He was making his decision. He was making his stand.
“I’m sorry, what did he call you?” Fred asked, holding the poodle up, showing dual expressions of complete horror on their faces. “You had better be talking about a sandwich or a submersible vehicle, though neither of those explanations fit my sweet baby girl, either.”
Another car pulled in behind them and Jared was out of the passenger seat like a shot, Shane following behind him. It looked like Declan had been the one to draw Riley babysitting duty.
Jared was all over him. “Dude, are you okay? Is the bike okay? Forget about the bike. The bike doesn’t matter. I can get a new one. I’m sure. You’re the important thing here. Did you almost get killed by a rattlesnake? And I’m sorry I screwed up. I forgot the whole you taking a call excuse and I fell back on explosive diarrhea. I’m such a fuck-up.”
Josh groaned. He should have known better than to give Jared Johns the high-pressure job of informing Kayla he was indisposed. “Hey, new friends, buddy. Let’s can the bodily functions.”
“Is everything all right?” Shane asked, hanging back as though ready to strike at the first possible opportunity.
“Kayla’s fathers have come to visit,” Josh explained.
Shane sighed. “I told her to call.”
Jared immediately turned and gave the newbies his best smile. “Kayla’s dads. Wow. Hello, I’m Jared Johns.” He turned to the poodle, obviously amping up the charm. “And who is this? Well, hello, pretty girl.”
The dog growled, eyes kind of bugging out. It was cool because he’d never seen a creature great or small who didn’t love Jared Johns. The man was like a walking, talking magnet. He pulled them all in, young and old, straight or gay, human or puppy.
“He’s a boy,” Fred said, dismissing Jared entirely. “And what is this about a rattlesnake?”
“Are you that actor from the TV show about the darts?” Jim asked.
Jared’s smile widened. The fucker practically glowed any time he got attention. “I am indeed. Hey, can I sign anything for you? Anything for a fan.”
“Yes, you can sign a document stating that you completely ignored both history and physics when making that ridiculous show. Did the writers attend school in any way?” The professor was in the house and it didn’t matter that it was late. He was obviously going to school them all. “Because it doesn’t appear so. A dart is far too small to transverse a human body, much less three. Also, when dealing with three human beings, their hearts wouldn’t all be in the exact same place, therefore making it impossible for the aforementioned too small dart to pierce each heart if it was on a fixed course.”
Jared’s eyes went wide. “Huh?”
The professor wasn’t done. “And no, the dart was not a weapon invented by cavemen.”
Jared shook his head and glanced over at Josh as though someone should save him. “No, the weaponized dart was given to the first Dart, who happened to be a caveman. See, ancient aliens knew that someone had to save humanity from darkness, thus the Dart was born. I was merely the contemporary man who was chosen by fate to protect earth.”
Jim stared at him for a moment and then shook his head, turning back to Josh. “Tell me you have more sense than he does.”
Oh, he was going to be fun to deal with. “Absolutely. I carefully research every role despite the fact that the screenwriters and directors often get the historical facts wrong in favor of drama. The key is to know what you’re fictionalizing and then figure out how to still find the character’s truth.”
“And who is the new guy?” Jim asked, staring at Shane.
“I’m the bodyguard,” Shane replied.
“I thought Kayla was the bodyguard. And something else. What did he call our daughter? Is the new body person also the other thing?” Fred was caught on that one little word.
“Bodyguard. I’m his bodyguard.” Kay was still trying, but he could have told her that ship had sailed away. “Shane’s also his bodyguard, but I’m his main guard.”
“What’s the other thing?” Shane asked, having missed that amazing exchange.
“She’s also my sub,” Josh reiterated.
Shane backed away as though the word itself could hurt him. “Nope. Just guarding the dude’s body. I’m here to take the bullets and nothing else. Nope. No penetration except for the bullets. Jeez. Why did I take this assignment?”
He needed to let that dude get to bed. “Come on in. I’ll get you both a drink and we can discuss my and Kayla’s serious relationship. We have a contract and everything. I’m surprised she hadn’t told you about me. She likes to talk a lot. It was inevitable, darling. You were going to show up on my arm at some point in time.”
“Hey, isn’t the sub stuff supposed to be like secret?” Jared asked.
“Yes. Yes, it is,” Kayla insisted, her eyes narrowing on him.
“Well, no one on the face of this earth respects my secrets. Why bother to keep them? Isn’t that what you told me to do? Tell the truth and shame the devil.” There was something a little freeing about saying it out loud. Kayla was his sub. There was nothing wrong with that. They were adults. They consented. Hell, they consented so much they had a contract to prove it.
Fuck. He was going to tell her. He was going to tell someone what happened to him, and it was going to be Kayla. That was why he’d finally relaxed. It was also why he was drawing out this scene.
Because she could hear about what happened to him and be disgusted, be shocked that she’d slept with someone as dirty as he was.
He had to tell her. He supposed he’d known as he’d sat on the trail watching her run toward the drop. He’d known the evening would end one of two ways, with him telling her everything and giving them a real shot, or he would play it safe and kick her out.
He couldn’t play it safe anymore. He needed her too badly. The little boy inside him was shaking and rattling the cage, begging him to protect them, but the man needed something more than safety. The man he’d become needed her.
She turned her head up slightly. “This is punishment, then?”
He turned and did something he promised he would never do. He should wait. He knew that. It was right there on his conscience to wait, tell her everything and then give her the option of accepting what he was about to do. He leaned over and kissed her anyway, brushing his lips across hers in a way that set his world right again. “No punishment. This is complete and utter surrender.”
She went still for a moment and then her hands came up, cupping his face like she couldn’t quite believe he was standing there. She went up on her toes and tentatively kissed him. He let her, his hands finding her waist.
And then she was back on her feet, her arm hugging him close as she looked at her dads. For as dark as she’d been since the moment they’d met on the trail, now she was all about the light. She practically glowed. “Dads, this is Josh and I’m totally his submissive, and I mean that in a sexual fashion. It’s a beautiful thing.”
Shane winced and shook his head. “And I’m out of here. I have something to monitor I’m sure.” He stared at Kayla’s fathers. “I don’t know what you intended to do for her, but she’s way too open about that shit. You needed to shame her way more than you did
.”
Finally something that seemed to stun the couple. They stood there, and even the dog seemed a little shocked.
“Shall we take this inside? I’ve had a long night and I personally would like to go to bed at some point.”
Kayla tilted her head up. “Where are we going to put them?”
Because she was in the guest room. Shit. In for a penny… “The guest room, of course. I’ll hurry up there and make sure everything’s ready for your dads while you…explain stuff.”
“Yeah, thanks for that,” she replied but that smile on her face…damn, that was everything.
He’d put that smile on her face. He’d done that. Somehow even with all his accomplishments, it was making her smile that made it all seem worthwhile. “We still have things to talk about.”
She went up on her toes again. “We’re going to be okay, you and me. I promise, Josh. Whatever the fallout is from tonight, we can get through it.”
He was awkward when he leaned over and kissed her. He was out of practice and too emotional to make up some character in his head. He was nothing more than a man kissing the woman of his dreams and hoping he could be enough for her.
She looked up at him like he’d done something amazing. “It’s going to be okay.” She turned to her dads and finally ran up to them, hugging both men. “I’m sorry I’m being weird. I’m happy you’re here. I can tell you all about Josh. And I can show you all the clothes, Papa. You always said you loved me in yellow. Come inside.”
He watched her start to show her dads around.
“Seriously, are you okay?” Jared asked.
He’d fallen for the one woman in the world who could handle his current issue, who he didn’t have to protect because she was far deadlier than he could ever think of being.
“I think I am.”
She could handle his now, and he wanted her to be his future.
If only she could accept his past.
Chapter Twelve
Kayla stood in front of the door to Josh’s bedroom almost two hours later. She wasn’t surprised that the lights were out and all was quiet. He’d sat beside her for an hour or so and then kissed her cheek and said he wanted to give her some time alone with her dads.