Exposed Exposed (Dom Nation #1) - E. Davies Page 0,104

be over.

Slate perked up, his smile relieved. “Tomorrow morning? So tonight, it’s just us?”

“Just us, my boy,” I whispered. “Let Daddy take care of you.”

16

Slate

At last, I felt like everything was going to be okay.

Sunshine streamed through the living room windows. I was cooking toast and eggs for breakfast, wearing nothing but a huge grin.

The kettle clicked just as the newspaper landed on my front porch, so before I poured the mixed-up eggs into the pan, I grabbed a blanket to wrap myself up and grab the paper.

“Newspaper delivery?” Rex was standing at the bottom of the stairs when I shut the door again. “Is it the nineties?”

I scoffed, adjusting my blanket toga as I moved back to the kitchen. I’d been planning to sneak upstairs and bring him breakfast in bed, but he must have heard me. “Good morning, Daddy. I prefer my news physical, thank you. Call me old-fashioned.”

Rex held up a finger. “That blanket’s a fire hazard. Sit down and read your old-fashioned news. I’ll do the eggs.”

“Big Safety Daddy energy,” I teased, clutching the blanket to my chest. I settled on the couch, the blanket across my lap, and unfolded the paper.

It might have been just a few minutes of reading headlines out loud as Rex cooked breakfast, but this contented feeling would be engraved in my memory for years to come. By the time he coaxed me to the table, whipping away my blanket playfully, I was glowing with happiness.

This was what I’d been missing all along. A man who knew when I needed a soft touch, and when I craved something… altogether harder.

“Thank you,” I murmured as I gazed over my plate of toast and eggs.

Rex looked startled, accidentally dumping too much pepper on his eggs as he looked up at me. “For what? Oh, shit.”

I stifled a giggle. “For being patient with me.”

“I could say the same,” Rex told me, reaching over the table to rest his hand on mine for a moment. “Now, look away while I cry into these spicy eggs.”

Despite our banter, these precious morning hours slipped away under the growing haze of anxiety about what we had to do next. Yesterday had seemed so far away, but the more I thought about the trip to Dom Nation, the more unpleasant details I remembered from that night.

Thank God I’d seen the whole exchange between Isaac and Rex. I’d watched Rex put himself in danger for me and defy Isaac like he was nothing. It had been impossible, after that point, to think that he didn’t care. That he’d use me and leave me all over again.

Rex was different. He was the one. So I had to trust Rex’s judgment, and have faith in him.

Still, the voice whispered, what would happen if Brighton didn’t listen to me? After all, I was here, wasn’t I? I was just fine. It wasn’t like Isaac had left bruises I hadn’t wanted. I wasn’t some poor, pitiful victim. What if Brighton took one look at me and decided I was lying?

By the time I was dressed and ready to leave, my guts were a knot of anxiety.

“Should I drive?” I fidgeted with my car keys, swiveling each of them around until the keychain hung correctly from my forefinger.

Rex nodded and put his hand on my shoulder, a reassuring presence. “If you feel up to it.”

“I want something to keep me busy.” This way, I wouldn’t have to think about where we were going until we’d arrived.

Rex winked. “One of these car trips, we’ll explore other options.” Then he opened the door and strode outside like he lived here, leaving me gasping in his wake.

“What does that mean, Daddy?” I asked once we were in the car, but he gave me an enigmatic smile and said nothing. Goddamn, it distracted me wondering what exactly he meant.

Which was probably the point, I realized only once I parked outside Dom Nation. Rex was trying to keep me in good spirits.

But sitting here in the driver’s seat of my car, I shrank back into it. I didn’t want to unbuckle the belt, or walk in there, or talk to anyone at all.

“What’s up, baby boy?” Rex’s pet names never sounded ridiculous. They slipped from his mouth like he’d practiced them all of his life. As he spoke, he unbuckled and slid closer, then laid a hand on my cheek and cupped it gently.

I closed my eyes and leaned into the touch, focusing on this one solid, grounding point. Well,