Page 211 of Morally Gray Daddies

It doesn’t take long before there’s a knock, but no one comes barging in. I hesitate for a second before I go to answer it. When I do, I’m greeted by five women. Four of whom I’ve already met and one who has a tray of coffee cups and a coffee pot in her hands.

“Care for a coffee date with us?” she asks, smiling sweetly.

Grinning, I step back and let them in.

As Chloe walks past me, she pauses and gives me a hug. “Your makeup looks stunning. Good job! I might have to hire you to be one of my makeup artists if that’s something that interests you. You sure have a talent for it.”

My mouth falls open, and I can hardly believe what she just said. A makeup artist? I love art. Drawing is the one thing I’ve always been able to do at my father’s. I never realized it could pour over into makeup.

“Our Daddies are all in a meeting, so we thought it would be a good time to come and answer all the questions you must have,” Cali says. “This is Katie, by the way. She’s Grady’s woman.”

I smile at Katie, and she returns it with one of her own. I think Patrick said she’s the newest to the family and still adjusting to it here.

For the next hour, we drink coffee and I ask every question I can think of. By the time we’ve finished the pot, my mind is blown, and I have even more questions now. Ones I want to ask Patrick. Like, is he a Daddy? The girls say he is, and it makes sense, but I want to hear it from him. Better yet, I want to ask him if he wants to be my Daddy.

Chapter Fifteen

Patrick

“It’s time that he dies. I’ve watched her flinch so many times over the past two weeks, I can’t let him breathe the same air as her for one more fucking second.”

Declan, Killian, Bash, Kieran, Grady, and Ronan all listen intently as I tell them everything I’ve learned about Ana’s father. About how he’s been borrowing money from other syndicates and feeding offshore accounts. Not only that, but he’s been communicating with someone about selling Ana for a large sum of money. That means, if I hadn’t shown up to collect his debt first, I might not have saved her from a life of misery.

“I spoke with Alessandro and a few other syndicate leaders here in the States.” Declan sits back in his chair and sighs. “They are all on the brink of killing him themselves. He’s done so many people dirty this past year that we’ve lost track. I’ve asked if they’ll leave the killing to us for… personal reasons.”

The way he says that has me lifting my head to look at them, but they’re already all staring at me. “What?”

Killian smirks. “The girls all seem to really like Ana. They think she’s perfect for our family. So now we want to know how you feel.”

Rolling my eyes, I shake my head, but on the inside, I’m beaming. “It means a lot that you guys care. And I’m glad the girls like her. Ana seems to like them, too. She has talked more to me each night this week after spending time with them than ever before. Maybe they’re helping her come out of her shell?—”

“Or maybe,” Kieran cuts in, “she’s feeling safer with you than you realize.”

I can only hope. At the rate we’re going, even if she is interested in me, I can’t rush her. She’s been through trauma and abuse. Of course, when she becomes mine, I’ll give her a ton of rules that will keep her safe, happy, and healthy. If she breaks one of them, she’ll be punished, but that’s where the waters become muddy. Some women who have been abused don’t ever want to be spanked and it’s a hard limit, which I can completely understand. Then, there are others who crave it because it gives them the emotional release they so badly need. My girl could go either way.

My girl. I love that. She is mine, and God willing, she’ll one day be mine in every way. I’ll take her at her pace. I’m a selfish man, but when it comes to Anastasia, she’ll always come first.

“I’m keeping her.”

The men smile and nod like they already know this piece of information.

“It will take a while for her to stop being so scared, but once she knows she’s safe, she’ll bloom under your care. You’re a good man.” Killian offers a reassuring smile, and I appreciate their encouragement.

“Anyway. I appreciate you helping me with Clayburn and his goons. They’re just as fucking guilty as he is. Let’s keep an eye on him over the weekend, and then we’ll pick him up. I want to try to get her to open up to me about all the shit he’s done to her.”

Killian moves over to me and rests his hand on my shoulder. “No matter what she tells you, you can’t lose your shit in front of her, so make sure you’re ready.”

I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready to learn the details of my girl’s past. It sure will make killing Joseph Clayburn much more fun, though. His hours are numbered, and I can already almost taste his blood.

“What do you think about ordering a pizza for dinner?”

“Really? I love pizza. I haven’t had it in years.”

My fingers hover over the keyboard of my laptop as I glance up at her in stunned silence. What kind of prison was she living in? I was going to try to ease into this conversation over the weekend, but I need answers. And I need them now.

“Babygirl, I need you to be honest with me and tell me all the shit your father did to you.”

She immediately pulls her knees up to her chest and wraps her arms around her legs so she’s practically rolled into a ball. I’ve noticed it’s something she does when she’s scared.

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