Chapter Six

CHAPTER SIX

I don’t do well around parental figures.

Neither does Ethan.

But there’s a first time for everything, right?

~ Zayne

“GOOD EVENING, MISS. Welcome to Exquisite. Would you like me to park your car?”

“Thank you.” Chloé took in a deep breath as she handed her keys to the valet opening her driver’s-side door.

It was just coming up on eight, and as she headed toward the restaurant’s entrance, she tried not to think about the reason she was there. It was no use, though. After her conversation with her parents, there was no getting out of this. She either had to talk to Ethan and Zayne or risk causing a rift—a bigger one—with her fathers.

So, she’d made the call and asked if they’d meet her for dinner. But whenever she thought about what she was there to discuss, she wanted nothing more than to get back in her car and drive far, far away.

Stop it. They have to know this has something to do with your fathers. So it won’t be that much of a shock, right?

That did nothing to help calm her nerves, though, as she came to a stop at the hostess table and did a quick scan of the dining room, hoping to spot Ethan and Zayne. She was out of luck, though—she couldn’t see anyone who resembled them, and wondered if she had beaten them to restaurant.

“Welcome to Exquisite.” The hostess smiled in greeting. “Do you have a reservation with us tonight?”

“I do, yes. It’s under Ethan Holt.”

“Ah, yes. If you’ll come with me, I’ll take you to your table.”

Chloé nodded and followed the woman in through the main dining room, but she couldn’t help but stop and take a moment to admire the view. Exquisite was one of the top fine-dining restaurants in Chicago, not to mention one of her favorites. Family-run and owned by one of her papa’s work partners’ wives, it’d been handed down through the generations, much like JULIEN was going to be. She couldn’t help but admire that. The restaurant business wasn’t an easy one, and to still be going strong decades after opening spoke volumes of both the quality of the food and the owners.

Chloé followed after the hostess as she weaved them through the crowded tables. As they neared the back of the dining room, a familiar face came into view.

As her eyes landed on Zayne’s rugged features, she still couldn’t believe that she’d somehow managed to capture this man’s attention and keep it, because wow. If she thought he’d been handsome in his tuxedo on Saturday night, something about this look, the casual, open-neck dress shirt and leather jacket, made him downright dangerous to her health.

He was sex personified, and when he glanced up and spotted her, the smile that slowly curved his lips made her instantly think of ice-cream kisses.

She held her breath as he tracked her approach, and as she neared the table, he got to his feet, and so did the other person who had his back to her—Ethan.

His tailored black suit and shirt molded to his body like a second skin, and when he turned, those amber-colored eyes seemed to gleam under the lights.

Damn, he was beautiful. But that beauty was deceiving. On the surface he appeared charming and suave, a complete gentleman, but Chloé knew better now. His passions ran hot and matched the intensity in his eyes, and just thinking about some of the things he’d done to her—and Zayne—made a shiver race up her spine.

God, she wasn’t sure she could do this. She wasn’t sure she had the nerve. They’d just started dating, just started to get to know each other, and now here she was about to ask two of the sexiest men she’d ever met if they’d please come and meet her parents.

If the ground could just open up now and swallow me, that’d be great.

“Good evening, gentlemen,” the hostess said as she stopped by the table and gestured to Chloé. “Your final guest has arrived.”

Ethan schooled his features to a polite expression as he looked to the hostess. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. One of our waitstaff will be with you shortly.”

“We appreciate that.” Ethan nodded.

As she hurried off, Zayne pulled out the only other chair at the round table. “Evening, Red. Don’t you look stunning.”

A blush hit her cheeks at his obvious pleasure, especially after she’d spent an inordinate amount of time picking out what to wear tonight. In the end she’d settled on a white mini dress with gold embroidered detailing to match her bracelets and heels, then pulled her hair up into a playful ponytail.

“Thank you.”

He winked at her. “Oh no, thank you.”

As she took her seat, Ethan leaned down to kiss her cheek. “Zayne’s right, you look absolutely gorgeous. We’re very lucky to have such a beautiful woman dining with us.”

The nerves she’d felt walking in settled somewhat under their praise. “I think I’m the lucky one. There’s two of you.”

Zayne chuckled. “Some might say that’s too much to handle.”

She looked between both of them and smiled. “Then it’s a good thing they’re not handling you.”

Ethan sat down in his chair. “It’s good to see you still have your sense of humor after this weekend. We weren’t sure what to expect tonight.”

Neither had she, honestly, but as she sat there between them, a sense of calm enveloped her. It was crazy, but suddenly she wasn’t nervous at all.

“Me either. I was really worried about meeting up with you.”

“And now?”

“Now…” Her lips tipped up at the sides. “Now, I’m just happy to be here.”

“Good. We don’t want you to be nervous to talk to us.”

“I know, but after this weekend and dealing with my parents… It was a lot.”

“We get it, Red, and we don’t want to pressure you in any way. So, you tell us what you need and we’ll go from there.”

Her papa’s words ran through her head: If these two men want to continue dating you, then the least they can do is come and meet us.

It was moments like this she really wished she was old enough to drink alcohol.

“Chloé?” Ethan’s eyes narrowed a fraction. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m good, it’s just—do you mind if we order something first? I’m really hungry, and it’s probably best you both get a drink.”

“Ah shit.” Zayne’s lips crooked in a half-smile. “That sounds ominous.”

“Um, more unexpected than ominous.”

“And now I’m intrigued.” Ethan signaled the waiter, and luckily for them, it was as though he’d been waiting for the go-ahead. He stopped by their table, and they each put in their order along with requesting a bottle of wine and a sparkling water for her.

Now all she had to do was find the perfect moment to ask her doms to “meet the parents.”

* * *

ZAYNE TOOK A bite of his filet mignon and studied the beautiful woman sitting across from him. All through their appetizers and first round of drinks, Chloé had been smiling and doing her best to make small talk about everything that didn’t involve Saturday night.

It was clear she was no longer worried about talking to them, but it was also very clear she was avoiding something like the plague—what, he wasn’t quite sure.

He glanced over at Ethan to see that he was also sizing Chloé up. No doubt trying to give her the time and space she needed to open up. Ethan was always good at that—Zayne, on the other hand, was not.

Chloé twirled her fork in the black pasta in front of her, and Zayne grimaced. “How can you eat that stuff?”

“Squid ink pasta?” She stabbed one of the shrimp. “It’s delicious.”

“Yeah, I’ll, ah, take your word for it.”

“You don’t like seafood?”

“Oh, I do—the shrimp, crab, and mussels all look good. But that inky black stuff?” He pulled another face, making her laugh. “Pass.”

“Have you ever tried it?”

“Nope.”

“Then how do you know you won’t like it?”

“Trust me, I just know.”

“Uh huh.” She took the bite she’d loaded up on her fork, and gave a sassy wink once she’d swallowed it. “If I had that attitude, I wouldn’t be sitting here right now.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah.” She glanced around and then leaned in to whisper, “I didn’t think I’d like being submissive. But I tried it, and now look at me.”

He chuckled. “Touché, and trust me, Red. We’re looking.”

Her eyes shifted between them as she began to twirl a second helping onto her fork. Ethan reached over and gently stroked one of the bracelets surrounding her wrists.

“Speaking of”—he eyed her in a way that had her hand freezing mid-twirl—“do we still have a submissive after this weekend?”

“Of course.”

Ethan shook his head. “There’s no ‘of course’ about it. A lot has happened over the last couple of days, and it’s a question that needs to be asked.”

Thank fucking God. Zayne could’ve kissed Ethan for finally breaching the subject they were all tiptoeing around.

“That hasn’t changed,” Chloé said. “At least not for me.”

“Meaning?”

“You might change your minds when I tell you what my fathers want.”

“Ah.” Ethan reached for his wine and took a sip. “Now we’re getting to it.”

“Sorry, I wasn’t trying to be vague, I just… They want to meet you, okay?” Chloé reached for her water and took a long gulp, and Zayne suddenly had a feeling she wished it was vodka.

Hell, he wasn’t above ordering himself one after that bombshell.

“They want to meet us?” Ethan asked.

“This weekend.” She covered her face. “Oh my God. This is so mortifying.”

Zayne’s shock took a back seat for a second as he reached out and gently tugged her hands free. “Hey, it’s okay.”

“No it’s not.” Her cheeks turned bright red. “This isn’t what you signed up for. I know, I picked the contract. But that’s what they want. Dinner. With the two of you.” She closed her eyes and muttered, “Just kill me now.”

Zayne wasn’t sure how he felt about this new development. On one hand, it seemed perfectly normal for parents to want to meet their daughter’s…boyfriends. But on the other, they weren’t exactly boys, and he didn’t do well around parental figures. Neither did Ethan, for that matter.

“Look,” Chloé said. “I understand if you want nothing to do with—”

“Chloé?”

She looked at Ethan, uncertainty swimming in her eyes.

“We didn’t say that.”

“I know. But I highly doubt you expected to be summoned to my parents’ house within a month of knowing me.”

Zayne’s heart broke a little at the way Chloé lowered her eyes. He moved his chair over until he was right beside her.

“Listen,” he said, placing a comforting hand over hers. “You’ve got nothing to be embarrassed about.”

He looked at Ethan, the question are we going to do this or not? in his eyes, and Ethan nodded.

“They’re your parents,” Zayne said. “They’re just lookin’ out for you.”

“By treating me, and the both of you, like we’re in high school? When was the last time you ever met one of your subs’ parents?”

Zayne’s lips twitched, but he did his best to bite back his laugh. “Well, since they’re usually tied up at our club, that would be, um, never.”

“But then again,” Ethan added, “we’ve never done this either.”

Chloé looked at him. “This?”

“Invited a third person into our relationship outside of the club.”

“Oh.”

“And you’re wrong.” Ethan fingered the bracelet on the wrist closest to him. “We did sign up for this. We signed up for you—every single part of you. We’re just now learning what some of those parts are.”

Chloé worried her lower lip with her teeth. “Really?”

“Really. Now, what night were they thinking of having this dinner?”

“Whatever night suits you. Père’s going to have our sous chef take care of JULIEN so we can all be there.”

“Shit.” Zayne’s eyes widened. “They aren’t messing around, are they?”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize.” He chuckled. “I’m just working out how long I have to update my will.”

Her lips twitched. “I just don’t want you to feel like you have to do it.”

“Red, do we really look like the kind of men who would do something we didn’t want to?”

“No.”

“Then stop worrying.”

“We want you, Chloé.” Ethan refilled his wine glass and took another sip. “We want to see what this could be. If that means having dinner with your fathers, then that’s what we’re going to do.” He gestured to her plate. “Now, finish up that delicious pasta before Zayne steals it.”

Zayne scoffed. “No fear of that happening.”

Dinner was much more relaxed after the elephant in the room was acknowledged, and they completed their meals and then dessert. They invited Chloé to stay for the night, but she thought it might be best not to push her luck so soon, and Zayne couldn’t blame her.

He ushered her out of the restaurant with Ethan following behind, happy to watch over his dates. The night had grown chilly, and when they stopped at the valet and Chloé handed over her ticket, she shivered.

Zayne shrugged out of his leather jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

“Oh, you don’t have to do that.”

“I know. But I want to.”

She shook her head, and a few seconds later, the valet jogged around the corner with a frown.

“Miss? You had the silver Toyota, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Um, yeah, we tried it a couple of times and it won’t start.”

“What? Are you kidding me?”

“I’m afraid not.” The man handed her keys back and looked between the three of them. “It’s around the corner in row D. We’re going to have to ask you to have it towed by the morning or there’ll be fines.”

“Towed?” Chloé’s eyes were wide now, her head looking like it wanted to explode. “Fines?”

“Yes, miss. They charge by the day.”

“Perfect. That’s just perfect.” Chloé stormed off toward the corner without another word, and Ethan and Zayne took off after her. She was a woman on a mission. She made her way down the row of cars and stopped by hers, then kicked the front tire and cursed it to hell and back.

Zayne leaned into Ethan’s side and said under his breath, “I don’t know if I should be scared or turned on right now.”

Ethan side-eyed him. “I know which one I am.”

“Of course you had to break down tonight. Of course you did.” She kicked it again, and then started to hop around as she reached down to rub her leg.

“Jesus, Red. Don’t break your foot,” Zayne said.

She whipped her head around, fire in her eyes. He held his hands up.

“Just some friendly advice, that’s all.”

“This is just what I need,” she muttered to herself. “The fathers told me. Let us buy you a car, but I said no… They are just going to love this. A mechanic fee, a towing fee, a fine, and now I get to go home in a cab. The universe hates me right now.”

* * *

THERE WAS NO way in hell they were letting Chloé go home in a cab this late at night—or anytime, for that matter—when they were right there and willing.

Ethan didn’t care if he had to haul her over his shoulder and shove her in their car. “You are not calling a cab.”

“It’s fine, really. I do it all the time.”

“Yeah, not tonight, Red. We’ll take you.”

Chloé’s eyes bugged out. “No. You don’t have to do that.”

“We know we don’t have to.” Ethan reached for her hand and took it in his. “But we wouldn’t feel right sending you home in a cab when we have a car right here.”

“Yeah, but—”

“But what?”

She chewed on her lower lip, concern flickering in her eyes. “What if my fathers are there?”

“Then they’re there. Don’t you think they’d rather we take you home than let you go off by yourself?”

Zayne slung an arm around her shoulders. “Come on, Red. What’s the worst that could happen?”

“I’m just… I don’t know. I’m not ready yet. We decided on the weekend, and that at least gives me time to mentally prepare myself. What if they come out and want to talk to you?”

“The horror,” Ethan deadpanned as he began to lead them back to the front of the restaurant.

“I’m serious.”

“We can tell.” Zayne winked at her. “But stop worrying so much—we got this. Trust us.”

“Okay, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

When they reached the valet, Ethan pulled out a business card and wrote his cell phone on the back. “We’ll send a tow truck to pick up the car tonight. If you have any problems, you can call me at this number.”

The man nodded, then took Ethan’s ticket and grabbed his keys. “I’ll be right back with your car.”

“Thank you.”

A few minutes later, he pulled up in the SUV and climbed out. Ethan slipped into the driver’s seat, and Zayne opened the passenger door for Chloé.

“After you.”

“Oh, I’ll just sit in the back.”

“No, you won’t. Up you get.”

“But I’m the interloper.”

“Red?” Zayne held on to the door and leaned down until his lips brushed hers. “Get in the car before I turn you over my knee.” Chloé’s lips parted, and when she hesitated, Zayne laughed. “Cheeky girl. That’s not supposed to encourage you. Now, hop in.”

Chloé climbed inside, and Ethan ran his eyes down over her.

“So you’ve decided you like that punishment more than you dislike it, have you? That’s good to know. We’re nothing if not adaptable.”

Her cheeks flushed a pretty pink as Zayne climbed in behind them and shut the door.

“Why don’t you put your address in the GPS there? We’re going to need it this weekend anyway.”

“Oh God, don’t remind me.”

“Aw, don’t be like that,” Zayne said, ever the peacemaker. “Maybe it’ll go better than you think.”

“If we all come out of it alive, that’s better than I think.” She began to punch in her address.

“You’re really that worried?” Ethan asked as the GPS loaded and directed him out onto the main street.

“I just can’t believe they’re making me do this.”

“In all honesty, I’m shocked they didn’t demand you end things. So perhaps this is the better option of the two.”

“Yeah.” She rested back in her seat. “Tell me that again after you’ve met them.”

Ethan looked at the directions on the screen. “Wicker Park?”

“That’s right.”

“Nice area.”

“Yeah, it really is.”

He continued to follow the directions until he turned down her street, and as he approached a three-story modern contemporary, he slowed the SUV to a crawl. He pulled in to the curb and cut the lights, then looked at their passenger.

“Would you like Zayne to walk you to the door?”

Chloé balked at the suggestion, but then she caught sight of Ethan’s smirk. “Very funny.”

“Yeah,” Zayne piped up from the back. “Hilarious. Do you want me to die?”

Ethan started to laugh, and Chloé joined in. “That’s just wrong.”

“And yet you’re laughing,” he said.

She shook her head and pushed open the door, and the interior light illuminated all three of them. As she climbed out, Zayne followed, about to take her place, and Ethan noticed a curtain on the second floor shift.

He zeroed in on the silhouette of whoever now stood in the window, and judging by the height and broad shoulders, it was neither of the men they’d seen at the ballroom.

“So, I’ll um, call you with the day and time?”

Ethan looked to where Chloé stood beside Zayne, and suddenly wondered if he should be concerned for Zayne’s safety.

“That sounds good. We’ll make sure we’re free, and we’ll get your car back to you as soon as possible.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“We know. We want to.”

“Well, thank you. For dinner and the car.” She smiled, but when she went in for a kiss with Zayne, Ethan cleared his throat and she immediately stopped.

“We have an audience, just so you’re aware.”

Chloé’s shoulders stiffened as she straightened and looked up at the window, and she blew out a breath.

“Okay. I’ll just say goodnight. Since, unlike you, I don’t want either of you to die.”

Ethan nodded as Zayne climbed in the car. “Night, Red.”

“Have a good night, petite fille. We’ll be waiting to hear from you.”

She waved, and as she turned and headed up the drive, Ethan noticed the curtain shift back into place. He couldn’t help but wonder just how much of a battle they were going to face when trying to win over not one, but three fathers.