Chapter 5

Chapter Five

“ A ddie?”

The small voice coming from behind Addie belonged to Eden, and she turned around to face her friend.

“Hi.” Eden looked nervous and chagrined. “I owe you an apology.”

“For what?”

“For a lot of things. Bear told me he spoke with you about…everything.” Eden glanced over her shoulder.

Addie nodded as she noticed Gabriel standing on the other side of the open door, arms crossed, brows lifted. She was seeing him in a new light today.

She’d never been able to put her finger on what it was about him all the times she’d previously seen him. It wasn’t that he was some sort of bodyguard or crazy jealous boyfriend.

Addie had spent a lot of time this afternoon thinking about every encounter with Gabriel. He was a Daddy. It all made sense now. He hovered because that was their dynamic. He hovered because he adored Eden and wanted her to be safe and protected. He hovered because he liked being with her.

It was so damn sweet that Addie found herself feeling jealous. She’d certainly never had a relationship that had come anywhere close to the one Eden and Gabriel had. Her fiancé certainly hadn’t hovered. Ha. The man had barely glanced at her at any point in their “relationship.” Thank God she hadn’t married him.

Eden continued. “It was wrong of me to point out there was a job opening here in the motorcycle shop without telling you anything about the MC. I specifically should’ve told you I was Little because there was no way you could have spent any amount of time here without figuring it out. Plus, I realized today that I’m not very good at being in my adult headspace when I’m here.”

“It’s okay. I understand. I would’ve had trouble telling anyone if I were in your shoes, too.”

“Anyway, I’m sorry. I also shouldn’t have misbehaved intentionally in front of you. I’m sure it made you uncomfortable knowing I was getting my bottom spanked. It wasn’t very sensitive of me.”

Addie offered her a smile. “It’s all good, Eden. I was a bit surprised for a moment, but I figured it out. I’ve read books.”

“Have you?” Eden drew in a breath, her shoulders relaxing in relief.

Addie shrugged. “Sure. I mean, I didn’t know it was a thing in real life, but I’m not judgmental.” How could I be ? If anyone knew the mistakes she’d made… They’d be shocked far more than she’d been today.

“You’ve read…a lot of books about Daddies and Littles?”

“I guess,” she murmured, not sure she wanted to admit such a thing. The truth was she’d spent years living in a world where everyone had been fake, and she’d been expected to maintain a fake marriage for the rest of her life so her family would look good.

Books about age play had been her escape. Even though she’d thought the entire concept was nothing more than a fantasy, she’d always enjoyed pretending there were people in the world who lived authentically, even if their lifestyle choices went against the norm.

Age play definitely went against the norm—except, apparently, inside this MC. According to Bear, most of the members were Daddies and Littles. She hadn’t fully wrapped her mind around that.

Ironically, Addie had spent the last several months feeling like she needed to find and maintain a backbone. She needed to stop letting people order her around and tell her what to do. She needed to make her own decisions in life.

The reason she was in this town was to start fresh and to make her own choices. She was even taking classes so she could work toward a degree she enjoyed instead of the one she’d let herself get sucked into. She was paying for everything with money she’d earned instead of an allowance given to her by her mother.

When she’d first been left alone to think about the bathroom incident this afternoon, she’d shuddered at the thought of women turning their choices over to men and letting them make decisions for them. That’s exactly what she’d run from.

But after a while, she’d begun to see it through a different lens. Gabriel adored Eden. His world revolved around her. He Daddied her because she wanted him to. What would it feel like to have someone care about Addie the way Gabriel cared about Eden? She couldn’t begin to imagine.

Maybe her father had doted on her that way when she’d been a child, but since his death, not a single person had looked her in the eye with love and affection. Certainly not her mother or her fiancé.

The first person to hold her gaze and give her every ounce of his attention in years had been Bear, and he obviously had only been interested in helping her get out of the bathroom. He’d made that clear when he’d told her he would wait for her to be gone before he came to fix the doorknob.

“Well, I just wanted to apologize, and also, now that you know, anytime you want to come here and study, you can do that, or if you want to come over and just hang out, that would be fun, too.”

“Thank you. I might take you up on that.” Addie twisted around when the door to the shop opened. It happened from time to time throughout the day, and she was continually looking to see who was coming in.

It was Kade again this time. He glanced at his watch. “What are you still doing here, Addie? It’s almost six. You get off at five.”

She absently tidied up the desk a bit. The job was cushy. Most of the day, she’d spent making sure the coffee pods were stocked, answering the phone, and organizing the files for each client who had a bike in the shop. “Well, I lost quite a bit of time when I was stuck in the bathroom, and?—”

Kade frowned. “That was not your fault. That was my fault. And I’m so very sorry about that. I was afraid you would run out the front door and not come back.”

She shook her head. “No, sir. It was no big deal. Weird things happen sometimes.”

Kade glanced toward the door where the old knob still sat against the wall. “Bear didn’t come back and fix it yet? He left a long time ago to get a new knob.”

“Yeah. He, uh, he said he would do it later tonight when I’m not here.”

Kade frowned again. “Why on Earth would he do that?”

Addie was pretty sure the question was rhetorical, and she certainly wasn’t going to share her theory that he was avoiding her, so she said nothing.

Eden came up beside her. “He got back a long time ago. I saw him in the kitchen and later in his office.”

Addie drew in a deep breath. “Well, he didn’t want to bother me,” she added.

“Bother you?” Eden’s brows furrowed. “That’s silly.”

Addie shrugged. “I guess I should go. I have some homework to do tonight.”

Kade nodded. “What time did you say your class is tomorrow?”

“It’s at eleven. Is that okay? I know it’s inconvenient for me to leave for two hours. My other class is at night.”

“It’s not a problem at all, Addie,” Kade said. “Don’t you worry.”

“I’ll come in at eight on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays to make up for the extra hour.”

Kade rubbed his chin. “Okay, as long as it doesn’t become too much for you. The shop will survive without you for two hours. Either I or one of the other guys will keep an eye on things. Customers can leave messages. You can call them back in the afternoon. And, Addie, I’m really glad you’re here. It’s so helpful having someone present in the office. I know there are lulls in the day. Feel free to do your homework or study, okay? Your education comes first. This is just a job. If you need time off for a test or something, let me know.”

“Thank you, sir.”

He shook his head, grinning. “Call me Kade, Addie. I expect Remi to call me Sir. Sometimes, the other Littles who hang around or live here call me Sir, but unless you hook up with one of my brothers, I’m just Kade to you.”

She swallowed hard. These Daddy figures were so intense.

“Have you met Remi yet?” Eden asked.

Addie shook her head. “No.”

Kade palmed his forehead. “Right. Sorry. She’s my Little girl. You’ll meet her soon. Have a nice night.” He turned around, muttering something about shenanigans.

Eden giggled. “Oh, definitely.”

“What?” Addie asked, confused.

“Eden…” Gabriel chastised.

Addie had forgotten he was hovering behind them.

Eden rolled her eyes. “Daddy…”

He’d spoken in a deep voice, the one Addie was coming to recognize as his Daddy voice. She understood much better now. His tone was chastising, but it was laced with humor and adoration. He loved that Eden misbehaved, and she loved it, too. It was so fascinating.

“It’s Addie’s first day here,” Gabriel said. “You’ve bombarded her with information that was more overwhelming than the new job. Let her settle in for a few days before you drag her into your naughty plots.”

Addie bit her lip, fighting back the urge to laugh.

Yeah, this entire MC was a fascinating place. She almost couldn’t wait to meet the other women and join in whatever shenanigans Kade spoke of.