Her Daddies’ Saving Grace

by Laylah Roberts

  “Don’t go.”

  “I’m not going anywhere. I was going to get you a T-shirt of mine to wear.”

  “Oh. Thanks.” But she clutched at his shirt, not letting him move.

  “Baby girl, you have to let me go.”

  “I love you, Daddy.”

  He froze. Then stared at her for a long moment. “You do?”

  She stared back at him, her face solemn, then she nodded. “I really, really do.”

  A small smile crept onto his face then it widened. “Good, because I love you more than anything.”

  She sighed. “That’s a relief.”

  He let out a surprised chuckle. Sometimes she shocked the hell out of him. Well, a lot of the time. And every day, he was amazed by her strength.

  Grabbing a T-shirt, he helped her take off her nightie, throwing it into a pile he had ready to wash. He’d get to them tomorrow. After she had on a new T-shirt, he pulled back the covers. “In you get.”

  “Um, Daddy?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Will you sleep with me? Please?”

  “Sure.”

  “Have you had these night terrors much lately?” he asked.

  “A few times since Reuben called to tell me what was going on.”

  “Fuck.” He hated that. “Move over.”

  She slid over and he climbed in with her. There were several inches of space between them so he raised his arm. “Come here.”

  “Actually, um . . .”

  When she didn’t say more, he grunted and rolled to his side. “What is it?”

  “I, um . . .”

  “Juliet, you can ask me anything.”

  “Can I please, um, you know that thing about . . . about cock warming . . . can I . . .”

  “You want my dick in your mouth?” he asked in a low murmur.

  “Yes, please,” she said in such a sweetly polite voice that it filled him from the inside out, chasing out the cold.

  “You can.”

  She scooted down under the covers without another word. Then he felt her tugging at the boxers he was wearing. Usually, he didn’t wear anything to bed, but he’d been wearing boxers and a T-shirt while he was here in case he needed to get up in a hurry.

  He helped her pull them off, throwing them away, and then her mouth was around his cock. He was at half-mast, but it didn’t take him long to get fully hard.

  “Just ignore it. It’s got no manners,” he said sleepily.

  * * *

  Juliet listened to his low murmur, letting his tone rather than his words soothe her.

  She hated the night terrors. Generally, she wouldn’t get back to sleep afterward. She’d stay awake until dawn broke, then spend her day moving around like one of those zombies she was terrified would eat her brains one day.

  She’d gone ages without having night terrors until Reuben called to tell her he was in danger. She’d had several since and she was feeling completely exhausted. Drained.

  Sometimes when she finally came out of them, she found herself in another room of the house or she’d discover that she’d hurt herself. She’d have cuts or bruises. That was more terrifying than anything else.

  She’d never told anyone that. Not even Reuben. Or Xavier. Both of them would have shit fits.

  In completely different ways. Reuben would yell. Then he’d go scary quiet. Xavier would never yell, but he’d give her that look like he wasn’t going to put up with this. For a man who spoiled her horribly, he had some lines that wouldn’t be crossed.

  This time, though, she hadn’t woken up alone. And now, here she was, lying next to one of the sexiest men she knew with her mouth on his cock. He was lying on his side and reached up and dragged down a pillow to support her head as she suckled lightly.

  It might sound insane or fanciful, but she swore she could feel her stress levels dropping. What would it be like to be able to do this anytime she felt anxious or unsure?

  Well, maybe not every time. The poor guy would probably get a chafed dick. His erection was impressive, and she couldn’t get anywhere near all of his dick into her mouth. Just slightly more than the head.

  Moving on instinct more than anything else, she cupped his balls in her hand. He let out a small sound, and she slid his cock from her mouth and drew the covers down so she could see him.

  “You don’t want me touching you there?”

  “You can touch my balls, Duchess. They’re sensitive, though, and like to be handled gently.”

  She snorted. “No shit, Sherlock.”

  “Excuse me?” he asked in a deep voice.

  “Nothing, Daddy. It must be those zombies, they’ve eaten part of my brains.”

  She took his cock back into his mouth, figuring that was her safest bet to keep her out of trouble.

  Maybe.

  Darn zombies.

  25

  Xavier pulled up outside the house. Someone must have told Juliet he was here, because as soon as he stepped out of his car, she was barreling down the steps toward him.

  “Slow, down, Twink,” he commanded, surprised when she listened. She came to a stop right in front of him.

  Then, to his shock, she threw herself against him, hugging him tight. It wasn’t often she initiated hugs, unless she was in Little space.

  “Hug?” she whispered.

  He realized he was standing there, like a dummy. He wrapped his arms around her. “Will Brick be okay with this?”

  Much as he wished he was her man, he didn’t want to create problems between her and Brick. She was happy, and for that much he was grateful to the other guy.

  Grudgingly.

  “Of course,” she whispered, sounding indignant. “Brick sometimes has issues with trust after the way his ex-wife cheated on him. But if he doesn’t trust me, then this isn’t going to work.”

  “That’s really insightful of you.”

  “Well, I’ve been told I’m pretty smart,” she said modestly. “I baked some brownies.”

  “Without walnuts?”

  “You’re as bad as Reuben. No walnuts. Promise. I’m not annoyed with you.” She winked up at him.

  “Brat.”

  Turning, she tugged on his hand. He was still concerned that Brick would appear and knock him flat on his back for touching his girl.

  “Should you be out here, alone?” he asked as they entered through the front door.

  “She should not,” Brick said, walking towards them both with a stern frown aimed at Juliet. “She was supposed to wait until you were inside.”

  “Twink,” Xavier said warningly. “You need to listen to Brick when it comes to your safety.”

  “And other things,” Brick added. “We’ll be having a discussion about that later.”

  Xavier studied her closely, looking for any sign that she was scared or concerned about Brick’s words, but she just gave the other man a pouting look.

  Damn, that was cute.

  “Don’t even start. That won’t get you out of trouble.” Brick pointed a finger at her. Then he turned to Xavier with a nod. “Thanks for your help last night.”

  “Of course,” Xavier replied. Even though it had hurt him not to help her in person. “I wanted to come over and check on her before my shift at the hospital.”

  “Would have thought less of you if you hadn’t,” Brick said. “She’s a bit tired. She’s going down for a nap later.”

  “Good idea. She doesn’t sleep enough as it is.”

  “Hm, I wonder if a regular napping schedule would benefit her.”

  “Could do,” Xavier agreed.

  “I’m still here, you know,” Juliet suddenly said.

  Xavier glanced down at her, biting his lip in amusement as he took in her red face and the way she glared at them both. Her confidence was growing and he was proud of her.

  “You’re so short, I forgot you were there, Twink.” He pulled on her braid teasingly.

  She sniffed. “I think I’m going to revoke both of your brownie privileges.” />
  “Fighting words,” Xavier teased.

  “Or spanking words,” Brick added.

  She gave a theatrical gasp. “I don’t think so, mister.”

  Brick grinned at her. “I’m going to work in the study. You’re in charge of her for a while, Doc. Good luck.”

  “I’ll need it.”

  Juliet huffed and stormed off towards the kitchen while Xavier found himself in the weird position of sharing a grin with the man who was with the woman he loved.

  The world was a weird place.

  Xavier couldn’t help but moan as he took a bite of brownie. “You make the best brownies I’ve ever had, Twink.”

  She let out a pleased giggle. He loved that sound. She didn’t laugh enough. Or she hadn’t laughed enough in the past. If Brick could get her to smile more, then Xavier would be forever indebted to him.

  It was difficult to do. He’d rather hate the bastard. But seeing Juliet happy could never be something he resented.

  Didn’t mean it wasn’t hard. Was he going to be able to do this? To stay in this town while she was with someone else? To see them together?

  It would be torture.

  But he only had two choices. Stay here and somehow survive seeing them together. Or leave. And never see her.

  Fuck.

  “Delicious as always, sweetheart.”

  She gave him a shy look. “Thank you. You want more? Better eat it now before Elias sees it.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “I’ll box some up for you to take home. Are you all right? You look tired.” She studied him with worry.

  “I should ask the same about you,” he said. “It sounded like you gave Brick a fright last night.”

  “I know. Stupid night terrors. I wish they’d go away.”

  “Maybe you should talk to someone about them? It might help.”

  “I don’t know,” she whispered.

  “Think about it, for me?” He put his hand over hers.

  “All right. I’ll think about it.”

  “Thank you, sweetheart.”

  * * *

  Brick walked into the kitchen just as Xavier placed his hand on his girl’s hand. He saw the way Xavier looked at Juliet. With a mix of desperation and hunger.

  But Xavier wasn’t his priority. Juliet was. He waited to see what would happen, but all they did was smile at one another.

  Then she turned and saw him. And her gaze lit up. Her face practically shone with happiness. And the knot in his stomach unraveled. Because there might be a part of her that loved Xavier. But she loved Brick too.

  “Came in for some brownie,” he said in a gruff voice. As he grew closer, she launched herself off the stool at him.

  “Careful,” he barked at her at the same as Xavier did.

  Brick lifted her up so she rested against one hip while Xavier righted the stool she’d nearly knocked over. Xavier stared at them with such longing that it actually hurt Brick.

  Damn it. Was he coming to like the guy?

  There was no denying he’d been a big help last night. Brick had panicked and Xavier had known just what to do.

  Could they take care of her better together?

  “Are you sure you’re all right, Xavier?” Juliet asked.

  “Just a lot going on.”

  “Your mom?” she asked.

  He sighed, shaking his head. “She won’t tell me what the biopsy result was. Truth is, I’m starting to wonder if there was a biopsy.”

  “What do you mean?” Brick asked as he set Juliet down and then walked over to grab some coffee.

  “I’ll get you some coffee,” she offered, standing.

  “I’ve got it, Duchess. You stay there.”

  He poured a cup and stood on the other side of the counter. Xavier was frowning, looking pensive. “I think she might have lied about the whole lump scare just to get me to visit.”

  Juliet gasped, reaching out to touch Xavier before snatching her hand back. Brick was starting to realize just how special Juliet was. And her capacity for love. She had enough for both of them.

  It depended on how selfish they wanted to be. On how selfish he wanted to be.

  “You really think she’d do that, man?” Brick asked.

  Xavier nodded. “Yeah. They hate that I work here. Not prestigious enough for a Marson. My father got out of here as soon as he could, and I think my mother regrets ever coming here in the first place. They’re constantly pushing for me to work with my father at New York-Presbyterian. This time, they really upped the ante.”

  “What do you mean?” Juliet asked

  “While I was there, they invited a woman who works at the hospital to come to dinner at their place. She was beautiful, single, and obviously someone they found acceptable.”

  “Oh,” Juliet said.

  Brick hated the look on her face. She appeared lost, sad. Xavier didn’t notice as his head was down.

  “Not that I was interested, of course. In her or the job. But the fact my mother is so cagey with the results of her biopsy makes me think the whole thing was a ruse.”

  “I’m sorry,” Brick told him sincerely.

  He shrugged as though it meant nothing, but it obviously did.

  “I’m glad you’re not leaving,” Juliet told him.

  Xavier frowned, looking off into the distance. “Maybe it’s time I did. Don’t get me wrong, I love it here. But perhaps it’s not the place for me. I came here when I was in pain, to lick my wounds and start again.”

  Juliet had gone pale, wide-eyed. When she saw him studying her, she looked quickly away, but he thought he saw the tears in her eyes.

  It gutted him.

  “You’re needed here,” he said to Xavier.

  The other man gave him a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, then he looked at Juliet with such longing that Brick felt his stomach clench.

  Fuck.

  Juliet still had her face tilted down so she didn’t see. But Brick did.

  “Am I? I’m not so sure.” Xavier glanced at his watch. “I’ve got to go. Thanks for the brownies and coffee, Twink. Make sure you rest this afternoon.”

  After he’d left, Brick walked around the counter and touched her back lightly. “You okay, Duchess?”

  “Yeah. I think I might go up to the playroom, though.”

  Sensing she needed some time on her own, he nodded. “I’ll be up soon.”

  Unable to stay away from her for long, he found himself in the playroom forty minutes later. He found her snuggling down in the corner with a huge, stuffed wolf in her arms.

  “Hey, baby girl.” He knelt in front of her. Pain stabbed his gut as he saw that her eyes were swollen. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing, Daddy. Worried about Reuben.”

  He should scold her for lying, but he didn’t have it in him. Instead, he drew her into his lap and rocked her.

  “Reuben bought me Wolfie when I first moved here. I call Reuben the Big Bad Wolf.”

  “Sounds apt.”

  “Wolfie has kept me safe,” she whispered.

  “He’s done a good job.”

  “Xavier has too.”

  “I know.”

  “Sorry,” she whispered. “I know I shouldn’t be upset at him leaving.”

  “You have a right to your feelings. And your feelings for him don’t make your feelings for me any less.”

  “Of course not, Brick. I don’t ever want you to feel like that.” Panic filled her face.

  “Hush, I know you don’t.” He kissed her lightly. Then he drew back and held her tight.

  “Everything will be all right, baby girl. I’ll make sure of it.”

  Xavier walked into the Wishing Well, wondering what the hell he was doing.

  But a few hours ago, he’d gotten a text from Brick asking him to meet him to discuss Juliet.

  And Juliet was his soft spot.

  He saw the other man sitting in a quiet corner across the room. It was only Tuesday night so there weren’t many people aro
und.

  He already had a couple of beers in front of him. Xavier sat in the booth across from him, and Brick passed a beer over.

  “Take it you drink beer?” Brick asked.

  Xavier shrugged. “Yeah, sometimes. What’s going on? Is Juliet all right? Is she ill?”

  “She’s not ill. But I wouldn’t say she’s all right, either.”

  Xavier stiffened. “What do you mean? What’s wrong?”

  Brick tapped his fingers on the table. “This is hard for me to say. But I only ever want what’s best for her.”

  “I know.” Xavier gave him a nod. “I can tell you do. And she’s smiling so much more lately. That’s down to you.”

  “She hasn’t been these past couple of days. She’s been upset. Quiet. Withdrawn.”

  “Why?” Had Brick done something to hurt her? He’d kill him.

  “Because of you.”

  Xavier sat back, shock filling him. “What? How? I haven’t seen her since that last day I came over.”

  “When you dropped that bombshell about leaving.”

  Xavier sucked in a breath.

  “It’s because of her, isn’t it? That you’re going to leave. You love her, don’t you?”

  Shit. Fuck.

  What to say?

  Swallowing heavily, Xavier nodded. “I do. But you don’t need to worry I’m going to steal her away from you. I want her to be happy.”

  “Who said you could steal her away if you wanted to?” Brick looked amused rather than angry. “I’m not worried, which is surprising considering my ex cheated on me with my accountant for years.”

  “I’m sorry, man. But that’s not who Juliet is. Or me.”

  “Juliet doesn’t have a disloyal bone in her body,” Brick agreed.

  “Who’s with her now?”

  “Elias and Sterling. They’re watching a movie.”

  “A zombie movie?” Xavier guessed.

  Brick grimaced. “I think so.”

  “She has a love-hate relationship with them.”

  “She worries about them eating her brains, yet she keeps wanting to watch movies about them.”

  “Crazy, huh?”

  They shared a knowing look. Then Xavier looked away, uncomfortable. “I can’t stay here and see her with you. I don’t think I’m strong enough to do that.”