Page 5 of R for Rough

Yeah, sign me up. We’d find a place.

“Can everybody take a seat?” Madigan hollered. “Justin, go sit with your Owner.”

“Yes, Sir.” Justin scurried back to Jameson, and I found an available seat in their booth.

“Where’s the rest of the family today?” I asked.

“Alex wanted a night in, so the girls decided to stay behind too,” Jameson replied. He exchanged a brief glance with Justin. “I don’t think we’ll be very late either.”

Justin shook his head. “Not considering y’all keep knocking up the girls.”

I lifted my brows.

Jameson rumbled a laugh and rubbed the back of his neck.

“Congratulations?” I half asked.

He smiled and nodded once. “Thanks.”

“Don’t you already have one?” I was fairly sure, but we didn’t see much of each other outside kink, and their dynamic was still somewhat new. I must’ve missed a lot this last year.

Jameson nodded again. “Yeah, Alex and Lola didn’t waste any time.”

“But now it’s both Lola and Harper,” Justin said, smirking. “The Grady genes take no prisoners.”

Jameson shook his head in amusement but said nothing.

Children were a blessing, but I wasn’t gonna go down that road. I was a happy uncle. One who refused to change diapers and put up with screaming through the night.

“Thank fuck! I thought you weren’t gonna show!” I heard Abel exclaim.

“Sorry I’m late!”

Fuck no.

I went rigid at the sound of that voice.

It can’t be.

Madigan smiled. “Have a seat, pet. Glad you could make it.”

“Thank you, Sir.”Thatmotherfucking kid hurried past this booth and sat down next to Abel.

I swallowed hard, unable to stop staring at him. Why the fuck was he here? My chest suddenly felt tight, and my ears started ringing.

Yeah, okay, this was why I’d left. Fuck me sideways, I couldn’t believe I was reacting so strongly to seeing Tracy again. He’d annoyed me for a goddamn year at work before I’d told Adam I needed a break. But that was where Tracy belonged—atwork. Not fucking here.

He hadn’t seen me yet, despite how close he was. He’d sat down with his back to me, so my immediate thought now was, should I split? If I ducked out right now, chances were he’d never know. He’d see me at the restaurant.

He’d cut his hair, I noticed. It was a shade or two darker than my own, but his used to be shaggier. Now, maybe a couple inches long.

Madigan started talking to everyone, and Dave, another Top, joined him. A server came to take our orders as well, and music was playing, but I couldn’t for the life of me decipher the lyrics or anything said. On autopilot, I ordered a beer when the server looked at me expectantly.

God-fucking-dammit. This wasn’t gonna work. I couldn’t run any longer, and I couldn’t fool myself. Anger rose to the surface, and I scrubbed a hand over my face.

He’d been more than a small reason I’d left. He’d been the catalyst to my ultimately calling shit off with Charlie. It hadn’t been working anyway; we were too different, and…I’d had that cocky little punk running around the restaurant, proving what a great chef he was, gushing about his nephews, proclaiming his love for hunting and being out on the water… Loving the small-town life in Camassia Cove. His blue eyes lit up when he talked about sustainability, living off the land, and cooking according to the season.

Was he kinky too?

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