Page 5 of Maddox

“I know,” and I did. “It’s almost as if she was trying to prove something.”

“What was she like with you?” Walker asked.

I sighed, leaning against the bar. "It was...complicated. One moment she'd seem to relax, almost like she was craving the care and attention. Then she suddenly pulled away, put her walls back up."

"Can you blame her?" Dion asked, opening a crate of wine. "Trusting anyone must be terrifying."

"I know," I said, running a hand through my hair. "I just... I want to help her. To show her that not everyone is out to hurt her."

Walker gave me a knowing look. "You've got it bad, don't you?"

I didn't bother denying it. From the moment I'd first seen Clare last year, terrified and broken as we rescued her from that monster's clutches, something in me had shifted. I'd wanted to protect her, to shelter her from any further harm. But I knew I couldn't push too hard.

"She needs time," Dion said gently. "And maybe professional help. This isn't something you can fix on your own, no matter how much you want to."

I sighed heavily, considering my options. "I don't know. I want to be there for her, but I can't push too hard. She needs to feel safe, to heal at her own pace."

"Maybe you should give her some space," Walker suggested. "Let her come to you if she needs anything."

Dion scoffed. “Which is going against every instinct you have. You’re a Daddy. Letting her come to you isn’t the way your brain is wired.”

The problem was they were both right. "I just... I can't stop thinking about her, worrying about her."

Walker clapped me on the shoulder. "We get it, man. But you've got to take care of yourself too. Don't let this consume you."

I tried to smile, but it felt forced. "I'll try. Thanks, guys." But I knew I wouldn’t be able to get her out of my head.

The way she'd looked so small and vulnerable in my bed, how she'd initially relaxed into my care before pulling away. I wanted nothing more than to wrap her in my arms and shield her from the world, to show her what a true, caring Daddy could be.

But I knew I couldn't. Not yet, and maybe not ever. The thought made my chest ache.

I bent to unwrap some bottles and checked them off the delivery, but my thoughts kept circling back to Clare. Was she okay? Did she make it inside her apartment alright? She’d refused to let me come into the building. At least there’d been a doorman. Still, should I check on her?

No, I told myself firmly.Give her space. Let her come to you.

“She’s seeing the same therapist Maddox got for Abby,” I said after working in silence for a few minutes. “But it’s confidential so I can hardly ask how Clare’s doing.”

Dion leaned back and gazed at me. I let him look. We’d fought side by side in war-torn hellholes around the world. I knew he still had my back. “Does she know what you are?”

“You mean a nightclub owner with a BDSM kink?” I asked flippantly.

“You know I don’t,” Dion said.

I nodded, knowing exactly what he meant. He meant a Daddy Dom, or even just a Daddy. I knew Clare was a Little. The wholereason she had trusted Blakeny was that he fooled her into thinking he was a Daddy, but I also doubted she’d ever trust that side of herself again. Not to herself, and certainly not to someone who wanted to be her Daddy. Someone who would remind her of that nightmare every day. The image of Clare's frightened eyes as she'd flinched away from me this morning was burned into my memory.

"What are you going to do?" Walker asked.

“I have no idea,” I said honestly.

“You could always do what Maddox did with Abby,” Dion suggested.

I glanced over at him. “Abby was homeless after losing her job and her fucker of a landlord trying to rape her. It was easy for Maddox to sweep in and be her Daddy. Abby wanted a Daddy.”

“From the sound of it so does Clare,” Walker said. “Or she wouldn’t be in this position.”

“Clare’s got a ton of money,” I protested. Plus, she wouldn’t put herself through that again.

Dion shrugged. “I know, but this isn’t about that. Think about it. Why did she come here last night?”

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