Page 6 of Maddox

“To celebrate her friend’s birthday,” I said slowly.

Dion sighed. “You know how I grew up.” Amazed he was even talking about it, I nodded. We’d all seen the scars from what his fucker of a father had done to him. “Well, we had guard dogs, and I don’t mean like Hades and Anubis. I don’t mean trained properly.” I had to smile at that. Dion’s two Cane Corsos, who could put the fear of God into anyone that looked in their direction, were both very protective and turned into complete softies with Abby.

“I got bitten by one of the guard dogs when I was around three. Took two of Dad’s men to get it off me. I’ve no idea what I did to trigger it, just that I grew up so petrified of dogs, not even Dad could beat the fear out of me.”

I glanced at Walker, who looked equally amazed. Dion had never told us any of this. “So how did you get past that?” Because I knew Dion loved dogs. All dogs.

“Conditioning. Facing my fear.”

Understanding hit me. “You think that’s what Clare was doing?”

“And she probably had to get drunk to be able to face it,” Walker said.

“But how’s that going to help me?” Getting her drunk was completely irresponsible and my hand still itched even now with the wish to redden her bottom for it.

“Think about it,” Dion said. “She’s wanting to…I don’t know…reclaim her life? What if she has a safe space to do that?” He dipped his chin toward me, and I understood he meant I was her safe space.

“That’s a smart idea,” Walker said, and Dion grinned.

“Of course it is.”

"But you'd have to be careful. Very careful," Walker added.

I nodded slowly. "I know. The last thing I want is to push her too far or make her uncomfortable."

Dion leaned forward, his expression serious. "Look, man. You clearly care about her. But you've got to remember—she's been through hell. It's going to take time and patience."

"I know," I sighed. "But how do I even start? She barely trusts me as it is."

Walker shrugged. "Maybe start small. Offer to meet her for coffee somewhere public. Let her set the pace."

I considered this. It wasn't a bad idea. A public place would hopefully make Clare feel safer, and if I let her take the lead, maybe she'd be more comfortable.

"And whatever you do," Walker added, "don't push the Daddy thing. Not yet. Maybe not ever, if that's what she needs."

“I disagree,” Dion said. “Go slow and be patient absolutely, but don’t hide who you are. You can’t let her get used to a version of you that isn’t the real one, because once it comes out, because it will, any trust you’ve established will vanish.”

I nodded, considering Dion's words carefully. He had a point—I couldn't pretend to be someone I wasn't. That would only lead to more distrust down the line.

"You're right," I said. "I need to be honest with her from the start. But how do I do that without scaring her off?"

Walker tapped his fingers on the bar thoughtfully. "Maybe you could bring it up casually, in a way that doesn't put any pressure on her. Like mentioning your job. Most people have heard of Salvation. She might not know you own Kingdom. She might have thought you were security.”

“Oh yeah,” I said dryly, “Sorry, I know you’re traumatized because of what that prick did to you, but let me take you to my personal dungeon and watch a few masochists getting whipped.”

Dion chuckled. “Or while you’re meeting her for coffee, you could see if she’s interested in meeting Abby?”

I chewed on that. That might work. Abby was a sweetheart, and it would be good for Clare to see how a good Daddy/Little dynamic actually worked, not the warped version of it she’d been subjected to.

Feeling suddenly optimistic, I decided to text her.

Hi, this is Maddox. Got your no. from the club.

All credit card deposits for groups had to be accompanied by contact information in case there was an issue.

Would u like to meet me 4 a coffee?

I saw immediately it had been read and practically held my breath. Then the dots appeared, and I tried to calm my racing heart.

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