Chapter 17

Zoe

Stopping outside the main entrance to the club, I tugged at the hem of the little black dress I was wearing and glanced down at my body with a frown. Going to a BDSM club had never even crossed my mind, so it wasn't like I had the correct wardrobe for it. I'd had to settle for a classic from a decade ago that was just a little too young and a little out of style, but it was the only thing in my closet that wasn't earth-mother hippie- artistic type or frumpy old maid.

I'd paired it with strappy black heels that barely fit my feet, and a pair of nylons I'd tugged off and back on half a dozen times because I had no idea if anyone even wore nylons anymore. At least what I was wearing underneath was sexy. Thank god I'd always had an affinity for matching and expensive lingerie.

I could hear the music pulsing even through the door and knew without a doubt I was out of my comfort zone. The urge to turn around and run back to my car was strong, but the urge to march in with my head held high and make Lennon proud was stronger.

I licked my lips and pinched my cheeks the way my mama had taught me, said a silent prayer that I wasn't about to be the only person over forty in there making a massive fool out of myself, and pulled the door open.

I was expecting dim lights, pounding music, and half naked people everywhere. Instead, what I saw was nothing more than a glorified office area with a stark white counter that wrapped around, a couple conference phones, a computer set-up, a printer, and several filing cabinets, along with a row of sleek black lockers.

There was a woman behind the counter smacking her gum as she shifted from foot to foot, and a large man in a security shirt standing nearby. When the woman saw me her eyebrows shot up, but she didn't say anything unkind.

Instead, she twirled a strand of blue hair, smacked her gum again, and said, "Heya. Welcome to the Penthouse. Are you a member?"

I stopped in my tracks as I'd been set to approach the counter. "I… you have to be a member?"

She squinted at me. "Well, yeah. Kinda. I mean, you can get a guest pass, but like it"s a whole process. You have to be, like, vetted. There's like, a background check and stuff."

"Oh." I instantly felt stupid. Of course I couldn"t just pay a minor fee at the door and saunter in. It wasn't that kind of club. Not that I'd been to that kind of club, either.

"Well, I'll just buy a membership, then." I'd brought a small clutch with me and I opened it to grab my wallet.

The woman behind the counter just stared at me. "I mean you can… but, you still have to be vetted. There's, like, a whole process, and stuff."

"Oh. Right. That makes sense." All my plans for surprising Lennon tonight, or ever, went up in a ball of flames with that one sentence. What had I been thinking? Of course there was a process. This wasn't a dance club, for god"s sake. Security, privacy, background checks, all those things would be issues. The worst part was, even if I filled out the paperwork and started the process, he was one of the club"s owners. There really was no way to surprise him or get in without him knowing. Was there? I thought about it, and wondered how involved he actually was in the day-to-day operations and vetting process.

I decided the best way to find out was to just ask. "I'd like to apply for membership." I stepped up to the counter and set my clutch on the top of it. Now I was close enough to see that blue-haired, gum popping girl had a name tag on. Her name was Eve. The security guard, or bouncer, whatever he was, had his name printed on his shirt. Zeke. Funny, he didn't look like a Zeke.

"Sure." Eve snapped her gum, and pushed a packet of papers at me. "Just fill these out."

"Uhhh…" I faltered. I was already way out of my comfort zone just being here. Leaning closer, I whispered, "I'm really out of my element here. I've never been to… uh… a place like this. I don't know that I want a whole membership. If I have to be vetted, anyway, maybe I should just do the guest pass thing?"

Eve popped her gum again, and I noticed the security guard roll his eyes. I wasn't sure if he was rolling them at her or me.

"Well… If you want a guest pass, you have to be a guest. Like of a member. Do you know a member?"

Shit. Of course, I knew Lennon. But I didn't want to come as his guest. I was trying to surprise him. In a moment of desperation, I said the only other name I could think of. "Archer Brennan."

Eve's eyebrows shot to her hairline as she exchanged a look with the security guard.

Zeke stepped forward. "Could I get your name, miss? And can I see your ID please?"

"Certainly." I dug it out of my wallet and handed it to him. He scanned it for a few seconds, gave a curt nod, and handed it back to me. "I'll be right back, ma'am."

I sighed, telling myself I hadn't gone from miss to ma'am just because he'd seen my ID and now knew exactly how old I was.

Zeke nodded to Eve, walked to the back of the office area, and pushed open a large, heavy door I hadn't noticed before.

Eve regarded me with renewed interest. "So, how do you know Archer?" she finally asked.

Ah. So that was it. Apparently giving his name had been the right thing to do. There were many ways I knew Archer. Which one should I give?

With a sigh, I admitted, "I used to be one of his Rent-A-Daddy clients."

Her entire posture changed, as did her expression. Her mouth dropped open and she spun on her heel, stalking toward a file cabinet and pulling a drawer open. "What did you say your name was?" She tossed the question out over her shoulder without looking at me.

"Kramer. Zoe Kramer."

With a nod, she riffled through the cabinet. "Here we go!" she called triumphantly, extracting a manila folder and pulling it open. She skimmed its contents while I stood there processing the fact that a club I'd never been to had a file with my name on it. I knew why, of course. It was just a bit jarring.

"Yup!" She nodded excitedly, carrying the file to the counter. Plopping it open in front of me, she jabbed her finger toward the middle of what I knew was my initial Rent-A-Daddy application. "Here it is. You're still a client. And membership is included for the duration of the time you are employing those services. Also, you've already been vetted. So you're good to go."

"What?" I blinked. After all that, that was it? I was just cleared and free to go in? I should be elated and relieved, but my stomach sank to my toes. "That's it?" I stuttered. "I can just… go in?"

"Well no, not quite. Since you've never been here before, I need to scan your ID, fit you with a bracelet, and give you a locker key."

She moved around as she spoke, opening a drawer, clicking buttons on a laptop, and withdrawing a key from a pegboard behind her. "What position are you playing tonight?"

I blinked, lost as if she were speaking a totally different language. She may as well have been. Position? Like in baseball?

My confusion must have been evident because she laughed. "Sorry I mean like… Are you wanting to be Top, Bottom, Switch, Submissive, Dom, Mistress?"

The options weren't any less confusing. "Uh… submissive, I guess?"

She nodded and clicked a few more keys on her laptop. "And are you playing tonight, just observing, or not sure?"

"Not sure." My intention was to play with Lennon if I found him, but she didn't need to know that, and of course there was still a good chance I'd chicken out. She didn't need to know that, either, though.

"Okay great. One more question. Are you looking for a partner and looking to play with someone who is also here alone?"

I could tell she expected that I would say yes, but it would be a cold day in hell before I did.

"No," I snapped, much more harshly than I'd intended.

She looked up from her computer, blinking in surprise. "Okayyyy…"

"Sorry I just… I…"

She shook her head, tapped a few more buttons, and printed a purple bracelet, fastening it onto my wrist. "You don't have to explain. Here is your purple bracelet. Purple means submissive. This black star here means that people should not approach you to play. However, it doesn't stop you from approaching someone whose bracelet has a heart. A heart means they are willing to play."

Next, she handed me a key. "No phones in the club. Drinks get charged and you pay on your way out. You"re in locker number twenty-nine. Go ahead and get your stuff put away, and Zeke will escort you into the club."

"Okay. Thank you." I stared down at the bracelet she'd given me, my heart racing. I couldn't believe this was actually happening, and what a roller coaster it had been wondering if I would get in or not.

As Eve led me to the lockers, the door I assumed led to the club swung open and Zeke stepped into the office. "Archer's in the middle of a scene. He said to send her back, but it looks like you already knew that, somehow."

"Something like that." Eve tossed a smile over her shoulder as I unlocked the small locker, stuffed my phone and purse inside, and locked it back up. Tugging on my dress once more, I straightened my shoulders and reminded myself that Lennon thought I was beautiful. I also reminded myself to stop thinking of him as Lennon, especially here. That seemed like a good way to get more trouble than I was bargaining for.

The nerves were taking over my body and I was forcing myself not to turn tail and run, but I stood up straight, pasted on a smile that masked my true feelings, and followed Zeke through the door.

I told myself that finding Lennon was the only thing that mattered, but I couldn't help but stop in my tracks as we stepped into the dimly lit club. The decor was exquisite. Young and classy with just an air of dark and dangerous. Lots of leather and velvet and huge crystal chandeleirs. Soft music played, adding to the ambience, but not overtaking it.

It was the kind of place that drew you in and made you want to stay a while. Or at least, it would have been that for me if not for the half-naked people roaming around. And "roaming" was a term I was using very loosely. I really meant they were hanging from the ceiling suspended in various rope designs, spread out over leather spanking benches, or securely fastened to giant X-structures. Some of them were kneeling on the floor while others were led around on leashes. All of them were wearing far less clothing than me, and most of them were far younger, though I did see a few men and one woman who looked closer to my age.

"Archer's there."

Zeke pointed to the middle of the club where Archer's red hair gave him away. He was currently dressed in black slacks, a black button-down, and holding a black leather flogger over the back of a beautiful buxom blonde.

"Thank you." I nodded, although Archer wasn't the one I was really looking for. But I figured if Archer was there, Lennon should be close by, so I kept walking in his direction. He looked up and smiled at me when I passed, and though I was sure he and everyone in the club were judging me, I felt nothing but kindness in his gaze.

I walked past him, and that"s when I saw the object of my search. Lennon. My Daddy. He was in a large booth with a high back that stretched to the ceiling, facing the club floor. There was a vaguely familiar man next to him with a woman on his lap. In front of the three of them was a half-empty bottle of expensive-looking booze.

I bristled, but told myself it didn"t mean anything. This was a club. People drank. His friends could be drinking. I didn't have a right to impose my issues on others, especially those I'd never met.

Lennon looked amazing. Comfortable, confident, flawlessly handsome as he laughed at something his table mate said, and swept his hair back with his hands. His dimples were out in full force and his attention was on the club floor, somewhere behind me.

His tablemate rapped his knuckles on the surface of the table near the booze and pointed out at the scene in front of them. Crap. I realized too late that he was pointing at me.

Well, it was too late to back out now. Pasting on a smile that probably looked braver than it felt, I strode toward them with my eyes on Lennon the whole time, so I could see the exact moment he spotted me.

If I'd had any misgivings about showing up at his club tonight, they faded away when his eyes met mine, and a slow, wide grin spread across his face. I was only a few feet from their table when he jumped to his feet and immediately stumbled, his leg catching on the rung of a chair. He almost went down on his face in front of me, but he managed to recover before I reached him.

"Hey there," he said with a smile, grabbing onto my forearm and leaning in for a kiss.

The first thing I noticed was the strong stench of expensive booze. This was not the sour-your-stomach, gut-rot kind of booze my father always drank, but the result was the same. Lennon was drunk.

He's not your father. He's not your father. He's not your father.

The mantra swirled on repeat in my brain, but my body wasn't listening. My reaction was instinctual. I couldn't have stopped it if I wanted to. I took two giant steps back, yanking my arm out of his grasp, glaring when he almost fell again.

"You're drunk," I accused, unable to keep the hurt out of my voice.

"I'm not drunk, baby. Just a little buzzed." Drunk Lennon wasn't reading my signals as he tried to close the space between us.

Some combination of rage and fear coursed through my veins. He was definitely drunk. "That's bullshit, Lennon."

He visibly flinched at the use of his name, but I didn't care. He didn't deserve a title.

"Hey, now. Hold on. What is your problem, exactly?"

"My problem? Oh, I'm the one with the problem?" I shrieked. I was well aware that I was making a scene, but I couldn't seem to stop. "You"re drunk, Lennon. I told you how I felt about alcohol, and yet you still decided to get shit-faced blasted the first chance you got. You've spent weeks pretending to care about me and my feelings, but you obviously don't."

"What the…" I heard him mutter under his breath as he reached for me again. "Hey! First of all, you didn't tell me how you felt about alcohol. All you said is that you didn't drink." He grabbed my forearm.

"Don't touch me!" I yanked away from him so hard I stumbled. I braced myself to hit the floor but instead I fell backward against a hard chest while strong arms wrapped around my middle. My heart pounded and I whirled to get away.

"Hey, hey, hey," the person holding onto me said. "What is going on here?" At once I recognized the voice as Archer's, and looked to where he had been playing only a few minutes before. The pretty blonde was still affixed to the spanking bench, half- naked, but her head was turned toward us and she was watching intently, concern evident in her features. Guilt clenched my gut. Guilt for what, I didn't know.

"Let go of me." I pushed out of his arms, and he let me go, but stayed close, whispering in my ear.

"I'm not sure what's wrong, but you're making a scene. Why don't I unlock the owners' lounge and you two can go talk in there?"

"That's a good idea. Come on, Zoe." Lennon dug in his pocket, presumably for his own key, and took off toward the back of the club.

"That's not necessary." My voice rang out louder than I'd intended in the now near-silent club, stopping Lennon in his tracks.

"Zoe, babe." He turned on his heel and swayed as he walked toward me.

I put my hand up to stop his progress, but I didn't need to as Archer stepped between us.

"Guys. seriously. This is not the place for this."

"The place for what?" Lennon raised his voice. It wasn't a yell, but it wasn"t an inside voice either. "I didn't do anything wrong."

"You are drunk!" I roared. "That's what you did!

He took a step toward me just as Archer stepped to the side, and I smacked him across the face. It was reactive and instinctual. I was as stunned as he was.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Archer lift his phone, push a button and speak into it, and I was sure I was going to jail. I couldn't believe I'd just committed a crime for the first time in my life. In a public place with a hundred witnesses, no less.

Lennon

Stunned, I raised my hand to my cheek, feeling the skin heat up with the power of her palm against my skin. What in the hell was happening? Why was Zoe here? I'd been so shocked to see her, and she'd gotten so mad so quickly, I hadn't even thought to ask the most obvious question.

I'd ask now, but I was pretty sure it wouldn't go over well. She was too pissed, and honestly her anger was pissing me off. So was the fact that she'd actually hit me. Across the face in my own club. What was worse, I honestly had no idea why. She was mad that I'd been drinking, obviously, but it didn't seem fair.

My instincts warred within me. I wanted to calm her down, obviously. I also wanted to flip her over my knee and spank the anger out of her, but that was never a good idea. And then, I wanted to be just as angry at her, if not more so.

"What the hell?" I whispered, rubbing my cheek. "Little girl, you better…"

"Don't you ‘little girl' me," she hissed. "You are not a Daddy. You're a… a fraud! You do not deserve to be called Daddy!"

I ignored that outburst, even though it hurt like a knife to my heart. "What are you even doing here? You said you weren't ready!"

"I thought I wasn't. And then I painted, like for real. For way longer than thirty minutes, and afterward I felt…" Her voice cracked and tears fell from the corners of her eyes, streaking down her cheeks. She shook her head as if to clear the pain. "It doesn't matter what I felt. It was all just… a lie."

Each word she spoke was like a bullet. I didn't know which to address first. I hated being painted as a villain. I hadn't done anything wrong.

"Babygirl…" I stepped toward her, letting my hand fall from my cheek. "You painted? For real? That's wonderful. I'm so proud."

"Don't be." She stepped backward quickly. "Just leave me alone." She turned and started to run from the club.

I wanted to let her go. I knew I should. But this was all just a big misunderstanding, and if I could just get her to listen, if I could just say my piece, surely I could get her to see that.

"Zoe!" I yelled, my cry piercing the air between us. "Stop!"

Magically, she did, but when she faced me, she was sobbing, and her face was contorted in anger. "How dare you? How dare you come here and get shit-faced drunk the second you're away from me? What, you think just because it"s expensive booze, and not gut-rot, trailer-park shit that makes a difference?"

I couldn't follow her logic. Obviously that was a ridiculous notion, but I'd never said or inferred anything of the sort.

"It's just alcohol. I didn't drink it around you. I'm not a drunk. I honestly had no idea you had a problem with me drinking just because you choose not to, and to be honest, that"s quite frankly unfair and ridiculous."

"Unfair! Ridiculous!" she sputtered. She stepped toward me before remembering herself and stepping back.

At this point the whole club was staring at us, and I could see Zeke hovering in the background, ready to escort her out if she touched me again.

"You're unfair and ridiculous!" she continued. "Why is it I have to do everything you say, and you can't listen to this one thing I ask of you?"

I took a deep breath, steadying my nerves. I could feel my face flaming and every eye in the place trained on the two of us. "Except nothing I have asked of you is unfair or ridiculous, and you're mad about something you never asked of me. You told me you didn't drink. So I haven't been drinking around you or in your house. But newsflash, this is my place. And you said you weren't coming. If I had known you were going to be here, yeah, I probably would have refrained out of respect, and because I don't like to drink too much, anyway, if I'm going to play. But never once, not once, did you tell me you had a problem with me drinking when I wasn't with you. And honestly, even if you had, I probably wouldn't have listened. Because there is nothing wrong with what I did tonight. I'm in my own place of business, which happens to be a club. I'm not alone. I don't have to drive. It's a Friday night, and all I'm doing is kicking back and having a good time. The one who is out of pocket here is you."

"Whatever!" she sputtered.

I could see the pain etched on her face, getting deeper with every word I spoke, but nothing I'd said was mean. I wasn't going there like she was. I hated the way this was shaking out, but I was still proud of the way I'd handled it. Well, to an extent. I'd have much preferred scooping her into my arms, wiping her tears, and then painting her ass cherry-red for the way she'd spoken to me, not to mention putting her hands on me.

"I'll leave your bags on my porch," she spat as she turned to trounce out of the club. Looking back at Archer, she added, "Obviously I'm canceling my membership and I will no longer be requiring services."

That pissed me off more than the rest of it, because that was my chance to fix this when she'd calmed down circling the drain. I couldn't let her do that. Couldn't let her end us. We'd been so good, and this was just a giant misunderstanding.

"Zoe, wait!" My voice cracked as I called out after her.

I was ready to chase her into the parking lot, but Archer and Bas grabbed hold of me. Nyla stepped in front of me, blocking my path before I could even think about fighting them off.

"Lennon, just let her go. She's obviously triggered and not thinking clearly. There's some trauma there."

Her succinct observation fizzled my anger. Hanging my head, I dropped into a nearby chair and looked ruefully at the bottle of scotch. I wanted a sip to take the edge off, but with a hundred sets of eyes still on me, and her having screamed about me being a drunk, it didn"t seem like a wise choice.

Nyla sank to her knees in front of me as I buried my face in my hands. "It's okay, you handled it well. I think you did the best you could have in this situation."

"I don't know…. I just… this sucks. She's obviously hurting. I'm her Daddy. I should be the one to fix it."

"You can't. Not right now."

"Okay, everybody." Bas's voice boomed through the club. "Nothing more to see here. Back to your previously scheduled programming."

There were quiet whispers and shuffled movements as people resumed their play. I'd lost the urge to watch, or to do anything. I just wanted to go after her. I just wanted to beg her to talk to me, to try again, to not give up on us.

"Hey, Len, let's go back to the lounge, okay?" Archer joined Nyla and they pulled me to my feet. I let them guide me away from the prying eyes and into our private sanctuary while Theo helped Audrey up from the spanking bench Archer had left her secured to, and Bas restored order in the club.

As the door closed behind us, Archer headed to the bar and poured three drinks, handing one to each of us. I held it, but didn't sip. My enjoyment of the beverage would be ruined, and my feelings on alcohol were splintered at the moment. What had happened to my babygirl to make her feel the way she did—to have such a strong, visceral reaction to me having a few drinks with my buddies?

Yeah, I'd imbibed a bit more than usual tonight, but not an obscene amount. I wasn't slurring my words. I'd kept control over my emotions and reactions.

"Lennon." Nyla's soft voice interrupted my thoughts. "Did you know she felt that way?"

I shook my head, looking up to meet her eyes. "I swear I didn't. I have no idea where that came from. And obviously I didn't know she was going to show up here tonight, either."

"Well she obviously feels like she said something."

"Nyla, she didn't. I swear. I know she doesn"t like to be around drinking, and she doesn't drink. I haven"t had a sip all week, and if she had joined me like I asked her to, that streak would have continued, but since she chose not to I didn't see the harm. I swear. I had no idea she'd react like that. I still have no idea why. I mean, fuck, I can take a stab in the dark…"

"Yeah, we all could after that display." Nyla frowned. "Has she ever reacted that strongly to anything else? Like other situations? Is she prone to flying off the handle like that? Nyla winced. "I hate to ask, but some people are."

"Not her," I interjected. "Not ever. I've never seen her act anything like that before. I swear."

"Okay."

The more I thought about it, the more sure I was that this outburst had been insanely out of character for Zoe, and that whatever was going on, she was in serious pain.

And if she was in pain, and going home alone… I hated that. I wanted to be there for her. Even if she screamed at me. Even if she slapped me again. Even if it meant we were over.

"I have to go. I have to go to her. She's upset. I don't want her to be alone."

"No." Archer had his Dom voice on and was directing it at me. "Lennon, you have to let it go tonight. You can't chase after her. You'll just make it worse. You can try to contact her tomorrow once you've sobered up."

Ignoring him, I stood, swaying on my feet. "She's alone. I don't know if she even has anyone to call or talk to when she's upset."

"She's fine," Archer insisted. "Bain and Jasmine followed her out. They'll check on her and make sure she doesn't drive in that condition. I don't know if she'll talk to them, but if anyone could get her to, it would probably be Jasmine." He stepped closer and laid a hand on my shoulder. "We're all here for you, even when it means being there for her."

That made me feel slightly better, but I jerked away from him. "She doesn't know them. What if she won't talk to them?" Yanking my head up, I narrowed my eyes at him. "At least she knows you. Why didn't you go after her?"

"I could have, but Audrey was indisposed, and I thought it would be better for her to have a woman to talk to, since we don't know what exactly the trigger with alcohol is. Besides, you're my best friend and I wanted to be here for you."

He was making perfect sense, and I knew they were both right, but I couldn't help the way I felt. Not going to her was killing me. The door to the lounge swung open and Audrey and Theo entered. Theo took a seat near the door, and Audrey beelined for Archer, who shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders before turning and kissing her softly on the lips.

"I'm so sorry I left you, babygirl."

"It's okay, Daddy. No harm done. That was a crazy interruption nobody could have expected, and you were the only other person besides Lennon that she knew. You were the best choice to get in the middle of things. Besides, it"s not like you just stranded me. Theo helped me up. I"m okay."

The door swung open again and this time it was Bain and Jasmine. Standing, I rushed to them. "Is she okay? Did she say anything?"

Jasmine shook her head. "She wouldn"t talk to me. I'm sorry, Lennon."

"Fuck." I swore under my breath.

"She's okay, though," Bain assured me. "We stayed until she was calm and we were sure she was safe to drive, at least, but that's all she would let us do."

"Well, thanks for that."

I stood in the center of my friends, feeling lost, embarrassed, and restless. Everything in me screamed to go after her, but I knew they wouldn"t let me, and more than that, I knew I shouldn't.

Sinking back into the chair, I buried my face in my hands again and groaned. How had tonight gotten so messed up? All I wanted to do was have a good time.

"So, what are you going to do?" Bas pulled up a chair next to mine and echoed my own thoughts.

"Not much he can do," Bain answered. "She made it pretty clear she was done with it, and doesn't want anything to do with him." He nudged my elbow. "You want one of us to go get your stuff tomorrow, so you don"t have to?"

I rubbed my hands over my face, trying to find a different ending, desperately wishing I had a time machine I could jump in or a reset button I could hit. "I guess," I finally croaked out.

"No! Fuck that!" A roar from across the room had us all turning in shock when Theo lifted the back of the chair in front of him and slammed it against the floor. "Women, man."

"Excuse me?" Nyla, Audrey and Jasmine cried in unison.

Bain, Archer, and Bas looked ready to fight for theirs. I closed my eyes, hoping we weren't about to have another dramatic scene tonight.

Luckily, Theo backed down. Sort of. He rubbed his hand through his hair, gave a ragged sigh, and plopped down on the bench. "I just mean… she came in here attacking him, with no explanation, mad that he's ignoring things he says she hasn't even said. Women can be so fucking impossible sometimes, especially submissive women."

The girls looked ready to pounce again, but Theo shook his finger at them. "No. Don't. Being a Daddy or a dominant man is hard fucking work. It's like a full-time job, and one that can be very rewarding and wonderful, but it can also be exhausting and impossible."

Nyla opened her mouth, presumably to argue, and Theo cut her off with a look.

"I'm just saying, if you women mess up, you get punished, and we all move on, but if we mess up, we aren't given the same grace. If we mess up, it's the end of the world."

I wasn't sure what was up with Theo lately, but apparently my problems tonight had triggered some of his own. I was about to tell him we weren't the same and to sit down and shut up when he said the thing I needed to hear.

"Just… seriously man, fuck that. She owes you an explanation. When you're sober and she's not triggered. If you guys really had something good going, you can't let it get derailed by one big misunderstanding. If she"s your woman, if you're her Daddy, like for real, and it's not just about the contract and the money and this damn Rent-A-Daddy bullshit, then you need to chase after her like a Daddy would. When his babygirl is upset, a Daddy doesn't back down just because she's lashing out. He doesn't give up just because things are hard, and giving up is easy. That woman, that broken, angry woman that was in here… Lennon, she needs a Daddy. Not just any Daddy. Her Daddy. And that's you."

Theo was going off now. He'd paced closer and closer to me during his speech until we were nearly standing nose to nose, and he poked his finger into my chest. "That's you, man. So the question is, what are you going to do about it?"

"Damn," Nyla said softly from somewhere beside me. "That was… kinda beautiful."

Jasmine nodded.

"It really was," Audrey agreed.

"I almost hate to admit it," I agreed, "but, that was actually really helpful."

"Yeah. Damn straight it was." Theo grabbed a nearby chair and slammed it against the floor for effect.

Archer covered his ears. "Fuck, man. Will you stop doing that?"

"Sorry." Theo's response was delivered with a sheepish grin and for the first time in a long time, he looked like himself instead of the angry, drunk, impossible-to-be-around monster of a man he'd been for the last several months. "I just… You know what? I think I needed to hear that, too." He stood there, still for a moment, blinking, with a stunned expression on his face. Then he smiled, actually kissed my cheek with his big, slobbery lips, wished me good luck, and ran from the room leaving the seven of us staring after him.

"What. The. Fuck?" Bas finally demanded.

Bain and Archer shrugged while Nyla and Jasmine giggled.

"Was that actually helpful?" Audrey asked me.

I raised my eyebrows at her. "I think it was. Unless you think it's bad advice…" Even if she said it was, I'd probably take it, anyway, but I still wanted to know.

"Fighting for your woman is never bad advice," she answered carefully. "Just maybe take Theo's advice, but not his words. Refrain from calling her impossible, or a full-time job."

"Right. Thanks for that." I stood and made my way toward the door, but was stopped in my tracks when someone grabbed the back of my shirt.

"Not. Tonight." Archer was using his Dom voice on me again. It made me want to go now just to spite him, but I knew he was right. Zoe needed time, and I needed to sober up. Going now would just make the problem worse."

I sat and downed the drink Archer had poured for me. It seemed I was going to be drinking a lot less from here on out, so I figured I'd enjoy it while I had the chance, since tonight was already a big, fat L, anyway.