Page 11 of New Tradition

She stabbed absently at a piece of pasta, feeling uncomfortable with his praise.

"It just feels natural," she admitted after a moment of awkward silence.

"I'm glad, baby girl. It's never felt more natural than it does with you."

7

Sunday, December 16th

Erin

"My goodness he's perfect," Erin said as she held Darci's newborn. "And I love that you named him after President Givens."

Darci smiled. "It was the very best way we could think of to honor Steve’s legacy. Thank you so much for coming. I've been a bit lonely all weekend. Bradley didn't want visitors but I finally stomped my foot hard enough that he gave in."

Erin smiled. "I'm just surprised you didn't call Carrie or Adara."

Darci laughed. "I love Carrie dearly, but she's too high energy right now. I might be lonely but I'm still exhausted. Adara is uncomfortable around children and I don't want to force her into an uncomfortable situation because of her sense of duty to our friendship. She’ll visit when she’s ready. You're calm, practical. I like that."

Erin laughed. "I sometimes feel like my practical nature is a hindrance to my relationship."

Darci's eyes lit up. "Oh yes. Please let's talk about you and your handsome soldier. You make such a sexy couple. I feel like when I don't look like a blimp Bradley and I make a pretty couple."

"I heard that, pet," Bradley said sternly from the kitchen where he was making food for them.

"Sorry, Sir, it's just how I feel right now."

Erin smiled. "I know we've talked a little about it before, but how do you do it when you're both so busy all the time? I feel like my job makes me a horrible submissive."

The baby began to fuss so Erin handed him back to Darci so she could feed him.

"I think it's a definite balancing act. And it requires a mind set that honors your dynamic above all else. Even when you have to make decisions for work that feel contrary to the dynamic. You have to make sure your partner still feels your commitment. And that goes for both the Dom and the sub. I'm sure Bradley and I will have to rearrange our dynamic now that this little one is here, but it's not going to eliminate it or diminish it at all. We've already started talking about ways to make sure we keep things exciting."

Bradley stepped in with a tray of sandwiches and set them on the coffee table.

"Hope you don't mind my eavesdropping, but let me try to explain it from the Dom's perspective. I have no problem with Darci being the feisty independent woman she is. In fact, I would hate it if our dynamic took that from her. But I also expect her to acknowledge what we have even when she has to do something that would seem to violate that."

Erin felt her face warm. Talking to Darci about this was one thing but talking to Bradley made her nervous. She picked at a sandwich and he chuckled.

"I can tell you have a question. Don't be afraid to ask."

She blew out a breath. "What do you as a Dom want that acknowledgment to look like?"

Darci giggled. "I wish I would have been smart enough to ask that question from the beginning."

Bradley smiled. "It's an excellent question and it's one I would advise you to ask Samuel because everyone is different. For me, if she feels she has to break a rule or skip a protocol, I want acknowledgment beforehand or as quickly as possible. It could be a text or a phone call just saying, Sir, I know you might feel like I've gone outside of our agreed upon boundaries but I need to do this and I'm willing to discuss the consequences later."

Erin nodded. "That makes sense. It tells you that she's not just forgetting about you in the decisions she makes."

Bradley snapped and pointed at her. "Bingo. See, you've got this. Now have this conversation with him and you'll be getting somewhere."

"In some ways I feel like we've already had the conversation. I just wasn't seeing it. I appreciate the outside perspective."

Bradley grinned. "And that's something I had to learn was a necessary thing in a relationship. It used to annoy me that Darci felt the need to discuss our dynamic with Michael or Peter. Not that I ever viewed them as competition, it just made me feel like I wasn't meeting all of her needs. Now I understand that outside perspective is valuable."

Bradley's gaze drifted to his wife and Erin watched his face morph into tenderness. He nodded her direction and put a finger to his lips. Mom and baby were fast asleep.

Erin stood with a smile and gave the man a hug.

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