Page 29 of Born Daddy

“Well,” Tate began. “Things haven’t been so great, you know, it’s been tough. But I did what you said and found an apartment.”

“Good job. I’m very proud of you. You need a place, even if it’s temporary and not your first choice, somewhere you can retreat to whenever you need. That’s your touchstone when you’re not sure what to do or where to go.”

Tate wasn’t sexually attracted to Master Zane, but his desire to be praised and coddled had never been about sex anyway. This inherent need to have an authority figure who believed in him and saw his worth meant more than sex ever could. Having both dynamics in one relationship was his ideal scenario. That had only ever happened with Cam, and part of Tate was terrified it would never happen again.

“Tate? Are you still with me?”

“Oh, uh sorry, Master Zane. I’m having trouble focusing. Even though the…thing with Cam is the worst part of all that’s happened, not having someone to help structure my life is…” Tate swallowed down the rising emotion in his throat. He cried enough when he was alone. “I’m not handling it very well.”

“That’s completely understandable. I know you’re not in a place to get involved in another relationship right now, but my offer still stands. I’m more than happy to do a morning and nighttime check in, give you some tasks, make sure you’re faring okay. As I said before, if you need a friend, I’m here.”

Tate’s immediate reaction was that he didn’t need a friend because he already had Rogan. But that was ridiculous. In truth, he could use all the friends he could get.

“You don’t have to do that, Sir. I’d feel bad because I know how busy you already are with the club and your two boys.”

“I wouldn’t have suggested it if I didn’t mean it, boy.”

Tate’s breath hitched, the stern voice made his chest tighten, a bizarre mixture of elation and sadness.

“I apologize, Sir.”

Master Zane’s voice softened. “Apology accepted. I don’t want to add to your stress, so what if I found another Daddy or a Dom for you to check in with. Phone only.”

Tate had already explained to Master Zane that he couldn’t bear the thought of going into the club again. Maybe someday, but for now, the idea of setting foot into what had once been such a welcoming place made his heart thunder and his stomach roil.

“I don’t know.” Tate considered how he’d feel taking direction from a stranger, especially one he’d never seen before. “I’m not very trusting these days. I mean, I know you vet everyone who sets foot in the club and I’m sure whoever you recommended would be fine, it’s just…” He let out a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry.”

“How about a compromise then.”

“Compromise?”

“Yes. We’ll do a morning check in only. We’ll discuss your goals for the day, and I’ll assign tasks for you if necessary. Then the next morning, you can report back to me how you did. Then, we work on a new day. We’ll set up some rules where you have so many strikes before you get a punishment. How does that sound?”

It sounded amazing. Even if the experience would be strictly virtual, it was so much better than nothing. “I’d love that, thank you. How would the punishments work? You know, since…well…”

He supposed Master Zane could forbid him from touching himself, but the intricacies of things like a cock cage, or testing him with edging wouldn’t be on the table. Same with spankings.

“We’ll figure it out, Tate. It won’t be as ideal as you having a hands-on Daddy—so to speak—but it would give you at least some relief.”

“Yes, Sir. It would.”

“That’s a good boy. I trust you to be honest about whether you’ve behaved or not.”

“I will. I promise.” Tate grinned. Already his world seemed less dreary.

“How about everything else? Do you have enough money to get by? I told you before, I can help you out with that, too.”

Tate chewed on his bottom lip. Up until Rogan, he hadn’t told one person about the safe deposit box.

“I appreciate it, but that hasn’t been a problem for me.”

“I mentioned before that I can set you up with a job somewhere, even if you don’t want to be at the club. There’s my good friend who owns a nice hotel downtown, and he can always use people in the housekeeping department or for the laundry. It’s not glamorous, but it pays decent, you wouldn’t have to be around people, and he might even have an option where you can stay there as well.”

“That’s super nice of you, Sir. But I don’t actually need a job right now.” He winced at how vague and suspicious that sounded. “I have some money saved, and uh, I can live off that for a while. I mean, not forever, but for now.”

Master Zane didn’t respond right away, and Tate chewed on his thumbnail. If he was going to check-in with him every day, did that mean they should have complete transparency? Tate found that he didn’t want to give Master Zane the details. In an odd way, it seemed like a special secret between him and Rogan.

“Tate, while I feel there’s more to your financial situation than you’re sharing, I won’t demand you divulge what it is. We haven’t worked out what our rules are, and honestly, that depth of ownership is typically reserved for a committed Master or Daddy. When we discuss what the rules are tomorrow morning, you can tell me how detailed you want to get.”

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