Page 22 of Daddy's Stowaway

“Where is this restaurant?”

“Just down the road at a neighboring resort. Sometimes, if I want peace, I need to be off-site.”

That made sense, and I supposed it would be hard to always be in your job. Employees trying to impress you and jockeying for position. Ugh, no, thank you; who needed the headache? I glanced over at Alex to see if I could see any of the stress I would imagine I would have if I owned what he did. But he seemed the same as usual, kinda laid back.

“Daddy, may I ask you a question?”

“Of course, ask away.”

I took a breath and formulated my thoughts so I wouldn’t sound like I was prying.

“Well, I’m curious. You have huge responsibilities, yet you don’t look stressed at all. Are you? Stressed I mean, or is all this easy for you?” He smiled, but in the fading light of day, I caught a very brief look of sadness in his eyes.

“I used to get stressed. That was when Jonathan introduced me to being a Daddy. If I felt stress building, I would find someone to play with for a few hours, and it acted like a reset button. But this past year, almost two, I haven’t played, and I sunk into a steady work pace, not paying much attention to how I felt, to be honest. You came along, and I haven’t felt stress at all. Your naughtiness is keeping me quite happy.”

I laughed. “Oh, I see now. You are coercing me into being bad so you can punish me and feel better.”

“Well, when you put it that way, I sound like a terrible man.” Alex’s eyes were glowing with warmth and humor.

“No, Alex, you are not a terrible man. At the very least, you are a lifesaver and honorable and sexy, and although I’m new to this submissive thing, I think you’re the best.”

He didn’t chastise me for calling him Alex, and he seemed generally heartened by my statement. He took my hand in his, and for the rest of the drive, we sat in companionable silence.

When we arrived, I was escorted out of the vehicle. Our car was taken by a parking attendant. Alex took my arm in his as we were escorted down a long plank bridge that jutted out over the ocean. It was a natural setting and the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I stopped walking to take it all in.

“Is there something wrong, Antonia?” Alex still held my hand and came up short when I stopped walking.

“This is better than all my imaginings rolled into one. I’m blown away by the beauty.” I felt tears of frustration building with my inability to really get him to understand how surreal this all was and how little experience I had with the world. “I’m overwhelmed by how you live, and this,” I said, waving my arm around, “and I feel like something is going to happen, and it will all go away, and I’ll be back in Detroit in my ugly world.” A few tears managed to escape and slide down my cheeks.

Alex took me in his arms and ran his hands soothingly over my back, his body warm and reassuring pressed tightly to mine. When he felt me calm down, he stepped back until I was an arm’s length away and tilted my chin until our eyes met. “Antonia, I assure you, that will never happen. I promise to protect you, and you will never go back to Detroit unless you want to. You’re safe with me, I promise you, and if anyone comes looking for you, I will get rid of them. No one hurts my baby girl and lives.”

I believed him, my panic evaporating as I gazed into his eyes. I wiped my tears and smiled up at him. “Thank you, Daddy.”

Our host, who had been waiting patiently by our table, pulled out my chair for me and helped me scooch in while Alex took the seat beside me. Alex said something in French, and the host answered and then left us.

“I guess if I want to live here, I should learn French.” In the short time I’d been in Tahiti, I’d learned that most Tahitians were multi-lingual, conversing not only in their native tongue, but speaking French as it was the island’s official language.

“Is that what you want, Antonia, to live here all year? I’ve asked you twice now, and you never really answered me.”

I was about to say I had when steps were heard on the gangplank. “Looks like our guests have arrived,” I said instead.

Alex stood and drew me to my feet so he could make the proper introductions.

“Johnathan,” he said as the two men back slapped each other while Simone gave me a warm hug. “Johnathan, this is the lovely Antonia,” Alex made the introduction.

“Enchanté,” he said as he took my hand and kissed the back of it. “A pleasure to meet you, Miss Antonia.”

I blushed, why I don’t know, but he did ooze with confidence. Johnathan was like an animal dressed up as a human. His eyes were sharp, like a hunter, and though their builds were very similar, Johnathan was broader and had a heavier body than Alex.

“Nice to meet you too, sir.” I don’t know what prompted me to say sir, but Alex gave me an approving look, as did Johnathan.

“He’s not that scary, Toni,” Simone said using my nickname. “He just likes to intimidate everyone he meets.”

Johnathan let loose a slight growl that had me jump, but Simone’s eyes only dilated. This was a game for them, and Alex and I were party to their foreplay.

After our chairs were pushed in, we talked about the menu. Our conversation was kept light until our orders were placed. Then Johnathan, like a true hunter, did an abrupt 180 when he asked me how I came to be a thief. I felt my face go beet red and looked to Alex for guidance.

“Just say it like it is, Antonia, or don’t. You are not obligated to answer.”

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