Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

Santiago Jones

“Good morning, Mr. Santiago—I mean, Mr. Jones.”

I looked up from my phone and smiled, surprised to see him so early. He’d told me he started at ten, and it was only seven. “Mornin’, Gael. Santiago’s just fine.”

I’d beaten the breakfast rush.

“Got it—Santiago.” He fumbled with his apron.

“I thought you started later.” I walked over to the tables and noticed he’d put a reserved sign on the one in the back.

“I was going to, but I talked to Kit last night, and apparently you spoke to Colt about coming in early.”

Ah. There we go with the tight-knit communities. Word traveled fast.

“I like to avoid traffic,” I admitted. I’d also woken up worried as fuck, but I could keep that to myself.

Like some goddamn rookie, I’d forgotten to ask Gael when Caleb usually made contact. Day or night? Weekdays or weekends? When he was sober or drunk? Or was it entirely random?

I firmly believed Caleb Larsen was in town.

A young woman walked in, and I recognized her from yesterday. She worked here too.

“Hey, Gael.” She went behind the counter as I took my seat and brought out my laptop.

“Hi. You can have breakfast first,” Gael responded.

“Cool, thanks.” The woman disappeared into the back.

Gael turned back to me, and it seemed he couldn’t stop fidgeting. He was definitely on the shy side, and it was highly possible someone had turned him into that.

“Can I get you some coffee, sir?” he asked. “And breakfast, maybe?”

He was too fucking cute. He’d been as accommodating yesterday.

“It’s a bit early for breakfast for me, but I won’t say no to coffee,” I answered.

He nodded and got cracking by the coffee machine. “Con leche, right?” He smiled awkwardly. “That’s what you said yesterday. I-I don’t speak Spanish beyond tourist stuff.”

I chuckled to myself, wondering how the hell I was gonna get any work done. “Good to know.”

He busied himself making coffee but kept glancing my way, only to avert his gaze whenever I caught him. I hadn’t looked away once, highly entertained. And a little hooked—but I’d been that since I’d first looked into his background last fall.

Under different circumstances, I would’ve asked him out to dinner or drinks already. I hadn’t dug very deep since I’d been more interested in finding information about his asshole ex, but I’d stumbled across enough bits and pieces to know he was ticking a lot of boxes for me. Unbelievably cute, beautiful pale blue eyes, on the Little spectrum, smart as hell—it was possible I’d observed him in Mclean House’s online forum. Well-read, polite, sweet. The kinks he’d listed as being curious about included group play, somnophilia, wax play, servitude, and “being Daddy’s goofball.”

I needed a goofball in my life. My past few relationships had given me the reputation for being a high-protocol Daddy Dom, and while I enjoyed high-protocol, it wasn’t one of my core kinks. With the job I had, I wanted to come home to an adorable clown who could brighten my mood. Someone who could ramble about his day while I made us dinner, and he—

“Here’s your coffee, sir.” Gael came around the counter and set a big cup of coffee next to my laptop.

I thanked him and took a sip. “Perfect.” First step in becoming human every morning—a good cup of coffee.

“May I ask how you got your nickname?” he asked. “Are you from Chile? I went to your Mclean profile, but there’s very little information there.”

He’d looked me up, huh? Smart boy. Information was always good.

“My mother’s from there,” I replied. “Dad worked with the DEA in the seventies and eighties, and they met while he was working a case in Santiago.”

“Ohh, I see.” He bobbed his head. “Okay, now I know. Thank you.” He returned behind the counter.

I grinned into my mug and took another sip.

Over the next few minutes, things got busy for Gael as early commuters wanted breakfast on their way to work. His opening line went on repeat with each customer who was unfamiliar with the types of waffles. “We have Belgian, American, and Scandinavian—you can see the differences here—and then you choose the flavor, plain, chocolate, or blueberry.”

The woman joined him within a few minutes, and by then, I had a tab up for every social media account Caleb was active on, including Snapchat on my phone. Up until December 23rd, he’d been very active, posting almost daily, and now, almost nothing. A single post. His Twitter was all but dead, his Instagram hadn’t been updated since November…

I logged in on Mclean House under my own name and decided to browse through new members.

Then I sent Reese a text.

Any chance you can have your web admin let me know if you have any members logging in from California? Visitors on Gael’s profile would also be helpful.

I scratched my forehead, knowing my account would pop up frequently on that list.

Under different circumstances, I repeated to myself. I wasn’t going to be the dick who made a move on someone who was hurting from an ex who refused to let go. Besides, work and pleasure didn’t mix. No matter how personally invested I was, this was work.

My stomach started tightening in hunger around nine o’clock, when the breakfast rush was over and I’d had two hours of inhaling the scents of freshly made waffles and all the toppings. One woman had ordered a plain Belgian waffle with bacon and maple syrup, and I was weirdly intrigued. Another had ordered a blueberry-flavored American waffle with something they called creamy lemon whip, fresh blueberries, and white-chocolate chips. Last but not least, I’d seen two men I was fairly sure were kinky—I recognized the older of the two—and he’d ordered a chocolate waffle with chocolate mousse and dark-chocolate chips.

Fuck it, I wanted something sweet.

I left my seat in the back and brought my coffee mug with me, and I timed it so that my spot in the line would give me Gael as my waffle maker. The woman took care of the customer in front of me, and then it was my turn.

“Oh—hey.” He was a little flushed from working nonstop, and his apron was stained with waffle batter. “Time for breakfast?”

“Yeah, I can’t resist any longer.” I smiled and scratched my jaw as I eyed the menu on the wall. “I think I’ll try a Waffled Sampler.” It would give me a quarter of eight different waffles.

I had a big appetite.

“Yes, sir.” He got started right away by pouring batter into the biggest waffle maker I’d ever seen. “Would you like them all sweet or savory, or maybe a few of each?”

So many options. “Do the flavored ones sweet and the plain savory.”

“Good choice. But…may I recommend a Scandinavian quarter with just whipped butter and syrup?”

Abso-fucking-lutely. “That sounds fantastic.” Crispy sweet with salted whipped butter—just send me into a food coma right now, thanks.

Someone entered behind me, and I looked over my shoulder. Nope, not Caleb. Unless he was now a high-school-aged girl.

In the photos I’d seen of him, he’d liked to show off his physique. He was average height, he definitely skipped leg day to put all focus on his abs, and he put too much gel in his hair.

I gave Gael free rein with my order, and I merely watched him turn the waffles into divine little creations I couldn’t wait to devour. Sunny side up, just the way I liked my eggs. Extra bacon, fuck yeah. The chocolate waffle was loaded with chocolate mousse, chocolate chips, and then drizzled with melted white chocolate.

“Fuckin’ hell, boy. I guess this is the definition of food porn.”

He snickered adorably to himself.

“Is this your place?” I had to ask.

“Sort of? It’s my dad’s franchise—he has twelve locations on the West Coast, two in Denver, one at Houston’s airport, and then me. I run this one.”

Lucky me. I didn’t get enough sweetness in my life.

Gael sent me a teasing little grin. “I thought you knew everything about me already.”

I smirked.

I knew too much and not enough.

* * *

Gael was off on Saturday and said he was going to stay at home all day and read and work on a paper, so I had no reason to head into town and be a Waffled squatter.

He had, thankfully, let me install a camera in the entryway outside his little apartment, which sent me notifications whenever someone came and went. No need to buy better locks; he was well prepared in that area. He had an alarm system too.

It was an uneventful day. I cleared the driveway of what I hoped was the last snow, I talked to Reese and Colt, I went through the list of visitors on Gael’s profile page, as well as members out of state, and nothing struck me as suspect. It was as if Caleb had vanished—which made me all the more alert.

The guy worked as an assistant manager at a talent agency in San Francisco, and he’d canceled his monthly parking permit near his work. But when I called the agency and asked to speak with him, they said he was on vacation.

I sat down on my couch and looked over my notes.

In the past, as per Gael’s reports and what he’d told me yesterday, Caleb tended to reach out over weekends. He didn’t drink alcohol or smoke. He wasn’t on any medication. In college, he’d studied computer science, and Gael described him as an “intense guy who went to the gym as much as he tinkered with computers.”

I’d never worked in cybercrime, so my experience was limited when it came to modern spyware. But I did have a good network of connections, and I’d sent the photo Caleb had posted before Christmas to a friend, in hopes I’d find out more about the device Caleb was using. If I could locate his phone or computer, chances were I’d find him too.

I had to catch up on my real work too. I was passionate about this case. Because screw jilted wives and husbands who wanted to spy on their spouses. It did pay the bills from time to time, but I preferred clients with less drama in their agendas. Like right now, when I worked for an organization that specialized in tracking down lost family members. It was my job to vet the people who were looking for someone, just to make sure they weren’t the ones someone might want to escape or hide from.

I’d never spent so much time on social media before.

I followed trails everywhere, whether it led me to another Facebook account or to darker corners of the internet. I’d red-flagged several potential clients for the organization who needed further investigation that went beyond my abilities.

At around nine PM, I got a text from Colt.

I know you’re sitting at home doing nothing. Come over to the house and have a beer with us.

I blew out a breath.

But I’d showered and changed into sweats…

No, I wasn’t in the mood. I wanted to find this fucking Caleb guy.

Man, had I become boring since I’d left the city. I’d retired from the MPD, sold my condo, bought a little house west of Manassas, and started living on TV dinners. I was in bed by ten most nights.

If my mamá could see the state of my fridge and freezer right now…

She’d throw it all out and curse at me.

“You used to cook all the time, mijo! Sometimes for hours! What is this? Cheese in a bottle? Ptui!”

Then she’d get so heated that she would switch to Spanish and bring Jesus, Mary, and Joseph into the argument too.

I was forty-two years old, but a scolding from her could still make me feel like a kid.

This couldn’t go on. I didn’t have too much work on my plate, so I couldn’t blame that anymore either. It was an excuse I’d used ad nauseum anyway. For everything. Oh, you’ve barely decorated your house. Yeah, I work too much, Dad. You comin’ to the kink party? Can’t, I have work.

I withdrew my feet from the coffee table and eyed the moving boxes in the dining area.

Maybe it was time to unpack my home.

I’d bought the kind of house I’d had my eye on for years. Too close to the nearest strip mall to be called “out in the sticks,” and too far away from street grids and neighborhoods where the houses all looked the same. I had four neighbors and fields all around, but I could still get takeout delivered in twenty minutes.

I had a nice kitchen with a big island, meant to be used for other things than dumping mail. A cozy living room slash dining area with an open fire. Three bedrooms upstairs. A big backyard where I was supposed to let a dog or two run around, but I’d been too busy working to look into pet shelters.

I ran a hand over my head and picked up my phone again, and I replied to Colt.

Sorry, I’m too busy throwing out TV dinners and planning changes in my life to come tonight. But I’ll be at the munch tomorrow, and I solemnly swear to sign up to join the Game.

* * *

I didn’t have to idle outside Waffled for long on Sunday morning before Gael hurried out.

He looked extra nervous today, all bundled up in mittens, beanie, and down jacket. “Good morning.”

“Morning. You okay?” I waited till he was seated and had the belt on before I pulled away from the curb.

“Um, yeah. I guess. I just get nervous before a big social event.”

I nodded in understanding. “Were you nervous before Caleb too?”

“Not to this degree,” he said. “I could be shy at first, but then I relaxed and…yeah.”

I wanted to see that side of him. I’d seen glimpses of it yesterday, and it’d been impossible not to smile when he was happy.

It wasn’t my place to get attached, or to make him happy, but at least I could keep him safe. Hence, why I’d all but insisted I pick him up this morning. He shouldn’t have to worry about anything.

“You really didn’t have to pick me up, sir,” he said.

“I wanted to.” I also wanted to flirt with him and turn his polite “sirs” into “Sir.”

It was possible I needed to get laid.

It was also possible I’d spent too much time observing Gael’s interactions online.

“I watched your latest Falklands War debate unfold last night,” I admitted. “I don’t know who that AlphaDom69 is, but you crushed him.”

Gael let out a gigglesnort and promptly slapped a hand over his mouth.

Too cute.

“I’m sorry, but with a name like that, he deserved it,” he answered. “He annoys me so much. Like, he throws himself into these calm discussions with arguments he’s so sure of, and they’re almost always wrong.” He grinned out the window. “I liked when Greer called him a fuck-knuckle.”

Yeah, that’d been a well-placed punch.

“Do you know Greer?” he wondered.

“Not really,” I said, slowing down before a red light. “I mean, we’ve crossed paths, definitely. He’s dating an ex play partner of mine.”

“Oh.” That seemed to surprise him. “Archie? Corey?”

“Sloan,” I said. “We used to co-Top subs together.”

Sloan and I had been perfect together in the way that we’d only been interested in casual playtime. He’d been balls deep in surviving his ex-wife, and I’d…had too much work.

“Maybe you know Cam and Noa…?” I side-eyed him. “They’re in Mclean too.”

“I know who they are.” He nodded. “Noa’s super funny. We joined the community at the same time.”

Noa was fun. A wild little thing. Last I heard from Sloan, Noa and Cam were finally with the two men they’d pined after for so long. Together with KC and Lucian, they formed a poly-house much like Greer, Sloan, Archie, and Corey.

“So you were with Noa and Cam?” Gael asked carefully.

I inclined my head. “For a while. I guess we were each other’s kinky waiting room. Noa and Cam were hooked on KC and Lucian from afar, Sloan had issues with his ex-wife, and I…”

I sighed.

Saying it was just too much work would’ve been bullshit.

“And you, sir?”

I smiled ruefully and eyed the rearview. “That’s a boring story. In short, I’ve been mentally exhausted from work, and it’s kinda bled into everything else in my life.” I threw him a glance to gauge if I should continue or cut myself off, but his eyes showed nothing but interest. And possibly concern. “I’ve done everything half-assed because everything’s felt half-assed. A burger’s been 75% delicious instead of one hundred, I’ve slept okay but not great, music’s been all right but not fantastic, I fall asleep to movies I usually love. Things like that.”

“I think I understand.” He nodded slowly. “Maybe you’ve been burned out?”

The term had certainly come up with my therapist before I’d retired, along with depression.

And I kept hearing I was too young to feel like an old man.

“Either way, it’s a slow recovery, but I’m getting there.” I sent him a quick smile. “All the waffles I inhaled the other day were definitely 100%.”

He flashed a goofy smile that was so free of awkwardness and anxiousness that I lost my resolve. Would it be so wrong if I showed my interest? If he backed away when I stepped forward, I’d have my answer—no harm, no foul—but it felt like a fucking waste to not do anything at all. Because what if.

As we got closer to Logan Circle and Macklin’s restaurant, I could tell Gael’s nerves came back in full force, and I couldn’t help myself. I wanted to make things easier for him. It was right there on his profile page—he wanted to meet new people and make friends, and I didn’t see the harm in lending him a hand.

“When we get to the munch, you could stay close to me,” I said. “I’ll be your wingman until you’re ready to fly on your own.”

“Heh. Wingman.” He bit at a cuticle and shook his head. “I don’t want to be in the way.”

“Who says you would be?” I furrowed my brow. “It’s a munch among friends, and we can be friends too, can’t we? Or do you have something against Daddy Doms with a growing waffle addiction?”

That earned me another pinch of sweet amusement. “I would like very much to be your friend.”

“It’s settled, then.” I gave his knee a brief squeeze and smiled. “You hide out with me when the social anxiety gets to be too much, and I’ll give you a little nudge when I think you’re ready for more. In the meantime, you keep supplying me with waffles.”

He snickered and nodded. “Okay. All the waffles you can eat, I promise. And coffee con leche.”

“And coffee con leche,” I chuckled. “You’re a pro already.”

That seemed to give him a little boost, and he sat higher in his seat while I hunted down a parking spot not too far away from the restaurant.

“Just promise to let me know if I get too clingy,” he said.

Fuck, great opening for me. “That goes both ways. You let me know if I make you uncomfortable. With you, I find it’s too easy to slip into Daddy mode and get protective.”

It was nothing but the truth anyway.

“Really? But—you protect people in your work, sir,” he said. “I would think you’re naturally protective.”

“You have a point.” I grinned to myself as I checked my blind spot and backed into the slot between two nice SUVs that didn’t need to be scratched by my old truck. “My clients at work are never cute subbie boys, though. More than that, they’re not you.”

I let him process that while I squeezed myself into the tightest parking spot ever. Christ. But it was either this or walking four blocks or something. It was never easy finding parking in this area.

Bottom line, I wanted to be honest with Gael. I wanted him to know I was interested in him, not just any subbie boy, but that didn’t mean I was going to crowd him or make a move he wasn’t ready for. We didn’t know each other. I knew him fairly well from having observed him so much, and I preferred to put all my cards on the table. What happened after was up to him, but no matter what, his safety and comfort came first.

Once I’d killed the engine, we climbed out, and he waited for me on the sidewalk.

His gaze flickered; he struggled to maintain eye contact, and he looked like he wanted to say something, but shyness kept him from opening his mouth.

“Did I cross a line already?” I asked half jokingly.

He widened his eyes and shook his head quickly. “No, I-I just—I’m not sure I understand what you meant by…you know.”

I had no problems spelling things out.

“Let’s put it this way,” I said, forcing myself to put my hands down in the pockets of my jeans rather than somewhere else. “If I wasn’t worried about what your ex has done to you, I would’ve asked you out on a date by now. So this is my way of letting you know that when or if you feel ready to meet someone new, I’ll keep my fingers crossed you’ll want to have dinner with me. How’s that?”

I couldn’t be more blunt, and yet he still looked like he was trying to figure something out.

“And there he is,” I heard a familiar Texan stage-whisper. “The elusive Santiago Jones. It’s important we don’t spook him, little darlin’, ’cause he might run away again.”

I felt my mouth twist into a smirk, and I reluctantly looked away from Gael to see Colt and his two men walking up the street.

“Always impeccable timing, my friend,” I drawled.

Maybe this was for the best. Gael probably needed a moment to process, which spoke volumes of his readiness. It wasn’t as if I’d said anything weird.

“Hi, Gael! I’m so glad you came today,” Kit said happily.

We’d never met before, so Colt dove into introductions. “Kit, I want you to meet Santiago. Daddy Dom, primal player, and wax-player extraordinaire. Santiago, our boy, Kit.”

I shook the boy’s hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Kit.”

“You too, Sir! I’ve heard lots of things about you.”

“If it comes from Colt, take it with a grain of salt,” I chuckled, moving on to shake Lucas’s hand. “Good to see you again, buddy.”

“You too.” Lucas smiled between Gael and me, visibly curious. “How are you today, Gael?”

Colt stepped closer to Gael and threw an arm around the boy’s shoulders. “Yeah, you still afraid of me, pet?”

I lifted my brows and tensed up a bit. I just wanted to make sure Gael didn’t get too uncomfortable.

He laughed nervously. “Not at all, Sir. Kit assures me you’re like a kitten.”

I grinned, loving his response.

“Attaboy,” Colt laughed. “I’m always nice to brats.”

“Uhhh.” Kit raised his brows. “That’s such a lie, Daddy. Come on, Gael. Let’s go upstairs and see who else is here.”

While Kit ushered Gael up the steps to the restaurant, I resigned myself to watch Gael from afar for a while.

Nobody wanted to stand out here in the cold, so Colt, Lucas, and I followed, and we trailed up to the rooftop terrace that’d changed a lot since I was here last time. The picnic tables were still here, but so was a ceiling. And heaters. I’d read something about this online. Because of the fire last year, they’d used Macklin’s restaurant for casual meetups and smaller events while they’d rebuilt what’d been damaged in the house.

It was a nice restaurant, and I’d eaten here plenty in the past. Actually, it was great for dates because it used to be a residential building, which meant all the dining rooms were on the smaller side and therefore cozy and intimate. I’d been here with friends and for munches, but I wouldn’t mind testing it out for the dating purpose. Preferably with Gael.

Some fifteen or twenty kinksters were scattered across the terrace, with most having shed their jackets. Lucas was quick to go off and greet friends—I spotted the Tenleys and their boy Shay, as well as Noa and Cam with their Doms.

Colt and I stayed back for the moment; he wanted an update on Caleb, and I wanted to let him know the camera I’d installed in Gael’s entryway was working great. Not everyone welcomed new technology, and I was sometimes one of them, but it was damn comfortable having an app to check for updates.

Colt worked in security; he ran his own business with two buddies from the Air Force, where he’d spent twenty years as a fighter pilot, so he was all ears about the gadgets I’d purchased through their firm. Apparently, he had installed the same cameras at their house, and they were all linked to the same app. He showed me on his phone how he could just flip between the cameras to show their feed.

“I like this part of joining the private sector,” I said, still not used to the availability of so much technology. Back in the day, if I’d needed surveillance, it had to go through a whole chain of people within the department. “Can you imagine I didn’t have to sign a single form to do this?”

Colt laughed and slapped a hand to my back. “It’s nice, innit? You should come out to MadCo sometime. We have a bunch of shit you can try out. I just installed new security doors at home for a trial run. They have smart screens with a shit-ton of features, so I’m not sayin’ it’s all sunshine and roses—I’m right there on the fence between if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, and let’s upgrade our security to the max.”

Yeah, definitely relatable. “I feel that. It goes against my nature to hook everything up to the internet where we’re too vulnerable. At the same time, it’s so goddamn comfortable to run my security through an app on my phone.”

“Yup, it’s a constant battle,” he agreed with a nod. “We actually shy away from depending on the internet, though. The doors require a power source but no online connection. That’s Ty’s area—he’s the engineer of the future who wants shit as basic as possible.”

I liked the guy already. He was a member at Mclean too, if I wasn’t mistaken.

“Colt!” Lucas called across the terrace.

“Be right there!” Colt hollered back. He hauled out his wallet and retrieved a business card that he extended to me. “That’s our address. Come out whenever. Right now, we’re trying to grow our network of personnel trained in security, so if I run across a client who’s lookin’ for a PI, I can send them your way.”

“And you’ll be my tech hustler for security—sweet deal,” I chuckled.

“Exactly. See you later, Detective.”

“Later.” I smiled and glanced at the card. MadCo Sec. Madison, Carter, Fischer. They were based out in Fairfax, so it wasn’t far away from where I lived.

“Hi.”

Oh hell, I hadn’t seen him there. “Hey, you.” Fuck, it was too soon to get all warm at the thought of Gael wanting to return to me so quickly.

I liked his shy grin, though. It was cute as fuck.

“I came back as soon as I could,” he admitted. “But I promised myself to let Kit nudge me toward other people so I can make friends…”

“I think that’s a fantastic promise,” I said. “You can’t have too many friends.”

We stepped to the side as more people arrived, and I reckoned we should find a table soon. Cam waved to me from across the area, and I smiled and waved back. He looked much happier these days, and that made me happy too. Unrequited love was painful. Thankfully, it’d been more a case of Lucian getting out of a bad relationship and slowly becoming ready for Cam. I’d witnessed their interactions online, and I had a feeling they were set for life now with their foursome.

I turned back to Gael and—

“Joshua?”

That voice.

I spun around and came face-to-face with Dean for the first time in probably four years. Holy shit. I mean, I’d known it was only a matter of time before we ran into each other again, especially since he was a Mclean member, but goddamn. He was still a sight for sore eyes.

“Dean. Fuck, it’s been a while.” I couldn’t help it; I lit right up, and I took an automatic step forward.

He smiled warmly and shook my hand, and he gave my bicep a squeeze. “Much too long. How are you?”

“I’m great. You? Last I heard, you were teaching at some fancy university on the West Coast.”

He chuckled. “I was at Stanford, yes. I came back before the holidays.”

Amazing. It felt so fucking good to see him again. Not much had changed. He was still the epitome of handsome, charismatic history professor. Which reminded me—Gael would like him too.

“You should meet—” I cut myself off when I glanced around me and didn’t see Gael anywhere. What the fuck? “He was just here.” I looked across the terrace. It’d filled up nicely since we’d arrived, and I was sure one of the founding members would take the metaphorical stage soon.

“Who?” Dean wondered.

“Gael,” I said. “It’s this sweet boy I’m helping out—long story—but he seems to have vanished.” I had to go look for him.

“Ah. Would that be a Gael Grimes, by any chance?”

I looked back to Dean. “So you know him?”

He smiled ruefully. “I believe it’s me he’s hiding from. He’s in one of my classes—and he hides there too.”

I frowned, confused as fuck.

“Macklin’s trying to play matchmaker,” he elaborated. “Gael is evidently interested in history, so Macklin encouraged him to sign up for my class in hopes I’d…I don’t know. The boy’s been reading too many romance novels.” The boy in question would be Macklin, then. Dean’s brother-in-law. “If he wanted me to notice Gael, he’s first and foremost late to the party, but he picked the wrong approach. I’d never do anything inappropriate with a student—besides, I’m much too old for him.” He didn’t seem too happy to admit that last part. “I love his spirit online, though. I’ve observed him in the history group on the Mclean forum.”

Weren’t we a pair? It was funny because this wasn’t the first time Dean and I had shown interest in the same sub.

“I’m actually here today mostly to find him,” Dean admitted. “I read the attendance list online this morning and saw his name. I don’t want him to hide from me.”

I felt my forehead wrinkle some more. “I find it weird that he thought he could.”

“Eighty-four students.” Dean weighed his response. “I’m sure he thought he could blend in and that I wouldn’t react solely on his name. Which I didn’t at first—I’ll give him that. But once I saw him, I knew I’d seen him somewhere else. He was at a wine mixer that Macklin hosted here before the holidays.”

I nodded and eyed my surroundings again. Well, he couldn’t have gotten far— I cocked my head, noticing Kit in the doorway. He was speaking in a hushed voice, and whoever he was with didn’t wanna come out.

“I think I know where we can find him.” I gestured at the doorway. Gael wouldn’t have many spots to hide in there. The third floor had a sealed-off area with a few smaller dining rooms that Macklin rarely used, and other than that, it was just a bathroom marked with a private sign, a service elevator, and the landing by the stairs. At most, some lost patron wandered up here and wondered where the hell they were.

Dean and I trailed over to the door, and it only took Kit a couple seconds to spot us. He widened his eyes, then blurted out, “Abandon ship, every man for himself!” and ran off.

Fucking hell, I’d missed being around Littles.

“Kit!” I heard Gael whisper-yell.

Dean and I exchanged a grin before I poked my head through the doorway, and there he was, hugging the wall by the service elevator.

“Hey, little one,” I said casually. “You hidin’ from someone?”

He winced and bit at his thumbnail. “Maybe?”

Excellent timing for Dean to walk through the door and reveal himself to Gael.

“Oh crap,” Gael mumbled. “Um, hello, Professor Aavik.”

“Hello, dear.” Dean was as amused as I was. “If we pretend I didn’t already know you’re my student, you just gave yourself away.”

“Aw, man.” Gael made a face and zipped up his jacket higher, as if he was trying to retreat into it. “So this is embarrassing.”

“More like entertaining,” I offered.

Dean inclined his head to me, then decided to put Gael out of his misery. “There’s no reason for you to hide from me, Gael. I’m sure we can keep things professional in class despite the lifestyle we have in common. Wouldn’t you agree?”

Gael shuffled forward a couple steps. “Maybe. I guess I’m not very good at being a sneak.”

“That’s a good thing, sweetheart,” I told him.

“Very much,” Dean agreed. “We can leave the sneaking to Macklin. I’ve already renamed him troublemaker.”

Fitting name—though, I liked troublemakers too, Macklin included. It’d been a while since I’d seen him. And played with him. I knew he was finally back with his husband, something we’d all been waiting for. Sometimes, two stubborn men just needed to get their shit together and communicate better.

“I’ll admit I’m curious, though.” Dean tilted his head at Gael. “Why did you feel the need to hide from me in the first place? I’ve seen some of your interactions in Mclean’s history group, and you’re clearly vocal about your opinions—which are all correct, for the record. Screw what that Alpha imbecile is rambling about.”

Oh, I had a guess for this.

I eyed Gael and sensed his growing discomfort, how he broke eye contact and fidgeted with the zipper on his jacket.

“Maybe we let the boy keep some secrets,” I suggested. I gave Dean a brief, pointed look. “I’m sure he had his reasons.”

Knowing Macklin, he’d tried to set up Gael and Dean because he’d noticed someone’s interest.

Dean didn’t seem to get it but let things go, and out on the terrace, Reese welcomed everybody to the munch. In other words, it was time to get back out there.

“Excuse me, I just have to go to the bathroom.” Gael hurried down the stairs.

He wasn’t escaping again, was he?

I could give him a couple minutes.

“What am I missing?” Dean asked.

I rolled my eyes and leaned against the wall. “He’s into you, you lucky bastard.”

I could admit I was a little jealous.

“Oh.” Dean furrowed his brow. “Then there must be something wrong with him. I’m more than twice his age.”

So?

We were all consenting adults here, weren’t we?

“It’s not like he’s fresh out of high school.” I frowned. “He turns twenty-four in a few weeks”

He cocked a brow at me. “And I turned twenty-four thirty damn years ago.”

I grinned, having really missed his semi-uptight personality. It was all a ruse. A front. Have a couple drinks with him, and then… Nothing about him was uptight.

“Don’t give me that smile, Joshua.”

Or what?

I just wanted to…ruffle those sweater-vest feathers and get under his skin. I wasn’t sure anyone had ever succeeded in riling him up. He was always so composed and well-spoken. And he was the only one who refused to call me Santiago. He’d told me once that my name was Joshua and that it was beautiful. Then he’d downed his whiskey and left me hanging.

“Are you seeing anyone?” I had to ask.

Because that’d always been our problem. We’d never been single at the same time. We’d…flirted over drinks, we’d acknowledged each other from across a nightclub, we’d ended up in group play together—but commitment to others had kept us from exploring why we had this chemistry. He felt it too.

He sighed and took a step closer to me. “No. What about you?”

I shook my head. “I have my fingers crossed Gael will let me take him out to dinner at some point. That’s it.”

Dean hummed and took another step. “Are you telling me we’re both available, for once?”

“Sure sounds like it, doesn’t it?”

The disbelief and excitement I felt, not to mention the deep-rooted desire, were reflected in his eyes as he closed the last distance and ghosted the tip of his nose across my cheek. Lust flooded my senses, and I slipped my hands up his sides, picturing us naked and grabbing at each other, with him eventually pushing me down to fuck me hard.

I shuddered and nipped at his jaw.

Our bizarre little reunion took place in the shadows to the background noise of Reese and Colt entertaining a crowd…while I was waiting for Gael to return. Christ. This day was already everything I hadn’t dared hope for when I’d woken up.

Dean brushed his lips to the corner of my mouth. “Didn’t we agree once that we’d probably be trouble for each other?”

Something like that.

“I think we were drunk,” I said quietly. “We shouldn’t listen to ourselves when we’re drunk.” I tilted my face just enough, and I was right there, about to kiss him, when we got interrupted by a beeping signal.

Dean cursed under his breath and inched away, and he pulled out his phone.

I had a feeling I knew what it was about, because the signal didn’t remind me of a message received or an incoming call.

“Do you need food or insulin?” I murmured.

He made a face and pocketed his phone again. “I forgot you knew. Food. I’ll go down and order somethin’.”

Right. If he’d decided today to come here, he’d missed the preorder form.

“I’ll save you a seat unless you have other plans.” But I wasn’t satisfied with that. Who knew when I’d get my next chance, so I stepped up to him once more, and I cupped his face and kissed him firmly.

He smiled and kissed me back. “You just became my plan. I’ll be right back.”

Perfect.

Fucking hell, perfect. I couldn’t believe my luck. This would make one fantastic comeback to the land of the living. No more excuses, no more bailing because I had work or was tired, no more running toward solitude when I fucking hated it.

I scrubbed a hand over my mouth and jaw, unable to shake the smile.

Dean disappeared down the stairs, just a second or two before servers appeared with food. Three came up the stairs, and two came out the service elevator with an impressive cart.

I got out of the way but stayed near the stairs, and I hoped I wouldn’t have to chase after Gael again. Even more, I hoped I could get him interested in me when he was ready. Because if he had a crush on Dean already…? I mean, I’d read Gael’s fetish list. He was curious about group play—and I loved to share as long as I got a generous piece for myself. To myself. Being non-monogamous didn’t mean I wasn’t possessive, though that was usually reserved for steady partners. It’d been so long since I’d been in a committed relationship outside the parameters of a kink dynamic that I was wary to shoot for the stars right away.

But who knew?