Page 46 of Bet On Me, Daddy

Leaning back in her seat a bit, she tilted her head to the side, studying him the way she had his painting. “Did you mean to call yourself Daddy while you were fucking me?”

Shit. Had he done that? “Ah… no. No I did not.”

“I see.” Her mouth turned down in a frown. “I don’t know what to make of that.”

Neither did he, if he was being truthful. “I owe you an apology. That was out of line, and I’m sorry.”

“Thanks. I appreciate that. But I also didn’t hate it.”

Shit, again. “Ruby…”

“I know, I know.” She waved a hand, as if swatting away whatever he’d been about to say. “You’re not looking for anything serious. Which works for me, because I’m not looking for a Daddy. But you said you wanted honesty from me, and ifI’m being honest, it wasreallyfucking hot. So, as I said, I don’t really know what to do about that.”

Hearing her say she wasn’t looking for a Daddy shouldn’t have been the stab in the heart it was. Because he wasn’t looking to be her Daddy, and they’d both made their intentions very clear. He was the one who had muddied things by slipping up in the heat of the moment.

Which meant he was in deeper than he’d originally thought if she was able to undermine his self-control so easily. The logical thing, therightthing to do was to put some space between them. To tell her she needed to go home and that this… whatever this was between them was over.

But that wasn’t what came out of his mouth.

“What if we put some boundaries around it?”

Her brows rose and curiosity lit the brown of her eyes. “What kind of boundaries?”

“When we’re at the club together, I could be Daddy. And maybe sometimes when you’re in my bed. Outside of that, we’re just Beckett and Ruby.”

“You want to be my Daddy?” Surprise, and more than a hint of wariness colored her tone.

“Not all the time. I’m not asking for any kind of exclusivity from you, and I’m not offering it, either. So if there’s a night you’d rather play with someone else, just let me know. Otherwise…”

“When we’re at the club, you’re Daddy.” Her eyes took on a far-away look, like she was seriously considering his offer. “I think I could be okay with that. With a couple caveats.”

“I’m listening.”

“For starters, I want aftercare. Ivy is lovely, but if you’re going to be calling yourself Daddy with the expectation that I submit to you at the club, I want all of it. I’m not sure I can handle the emotional whiplash of submitting all night andthen having you pass me off to someone else for cuddles and chocolate.”

That was an entirely fair request, even if it made him a bit uneasy. Not because he didn’t want to give her aftercare, but because he did. More than he should.

But what was he doing right now, by making sure she ate and rehydrated after a good hard fuck, if not aftercare? Just because it looked a bit different than it might at the club didn’t mean it wasn’t serving the same purpose. “I can do that for you. What are your other caveats?”

“Just one more. When I’m on the clock, you’re just Beckett. I won’t have you interfering with my work, even when I’m at the club.”

That could put a bit of a damper on some of his fun, but he couldn’t fault her for it, either. “Fair enough. Do you work tomorrow?”

“No, Sir.” A smile bloomed across her face. “I actually have the entire day off tomorrow and I have big plans to do absolutely nothing all day.”

The fact that she was so excited about having a day off made him wonder how rare those days were. But that wasn’t his concern, he reminded himself. Daddy at the club did not mean poking into her personal business. “Were you planning to come to the club?”

“I wasn’t, but I could be convinced.”

“If you change your mind, I’ll be there around nine.” And already his imagination was churning, thinking of all the delicious funDaddycould have with sweet little Ruby.

Slipping from the bench, he took her hand, pulling her up to join him. When she was on her feet, he bent and scooped her up in his arms before turning and heading for the bedroom.

“Beckett!” she squealed, her laughter filling the air. “What are you doing?”

“We finished our meal.” He grinned down at her. “Now Daddy wants dessert.”

CHAPTER 16

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