The man laughed, bent his knees to brace for impact, and opened his arms for the little coming at him. Red slowed down and jumped into his arms, wrapping his legs around the man’s body.
“Hey, little bit,” he said, cupping Red’s ass as he leaned back to balance out their weight. “Did you kill any dragons?”
“Nope,” Red said, shaking his head sadly. “We killed some cultists and a couple of these scary dog things, but no dragons. Daddy, we were at this party where we weren’t supposed to be, and we got caught. And when we were running away, I tripped and got arrested, and then they throwed me into jail!”
The man I assumed was the Nate Carson had mentioned earlier laughed and put on an alarmed face. “Oh no! What happened?”
Red put his legs down but stayed wrapped up in Nate’s arms. “Well, Mjölnir—that’s Miller—he’s new,” he said, pointing at my over his shoulder.
My eyes burned as I fought the urge to blink. Nate looked at me over Red’s body, smiled in greeting, and nodded before turning his attention back to Red.
“He’s sent his cat familiar in to protect me, and then Vaeril seduced the guard. And now you’re here, Daddy,” Red said, finishing his recap of the night.
“Seems like you had quite the adventure, little bit.”
It felt like I was having an out of body experience. I felt hot and cold at the same time as I tried to get oxygen into my lungs. I looked around the room, but no one was paying Red and Nate any attention. They didn’t care. They already knew.
I wanted to run, but there was nowhere to go. They were still standing in the doorway, blocking my only exit.
“Miller, are you okay?”
I glanced up at Carson to see him staring down at me with concern. “What?”
I flinched when his hand lifted from the table too quickly. Watching me, he stilled and then slowly lowered his hand back to the wooden surface.
“I asked if you were okay. You’re starting to look a little pale,” he explained.
“I’m fine,” I said as fast as I could. I even gave him a fake smile to convince him what I’d said was the truth.
I was focusing on Carson, but I could still hear Red and Nate talking as if they were standing right in front of me.
“Are you ready to go downstairs, little Red?” Nate asked.
What was downstairs?
Lee had said it was a club, but remembering how weird he’d gotten after mentioning it back at the coffee shop, I couldn’t help wondering if it was one of those kinds of clubs, the kind I’d sworn off forever. I curled my toes in my shoes, my feet feeling itchy just thinking about what was possibly going on beneath us.
“What are we going to do?” Red asked, excitement clear in his voice.
“That’s for Daddy to know, and you to find out.”
I pushed up from my chair, startling Carson with my sudden movement. “I need to use the bathroom.”
“It’s the first door on the right,” he said, pointing down the hallway.
“Thank you.” I turned and power-walked toward the bathroom door, knowing safety was on the other side.
I paused with my hand on the bathroom doorknob, helpless, wanting to know, needing to know what Carson was going to say.
“I’ll meet you in the playroom later. I have something I want to run by you.”
“Sure thing,” Nate said in return.
I caught my breath on a sob as I pushed open the door and scrambled to lock myself inside. Sliding down the wooden surface, I sat on the floor, resting my forehead on my knees as I wrapped my arms around my folded legs.
Was Carson a Daddy’s too?
Just the thought was enough to send tears silently down my face. I smothered every snivel and whimper that tried to escape. I’d learned how to be a quiet crier because Neil had never liked the sound.
“Mills?”
I sniffled at Lee’s voice whispering on the other side of the door.
“Mills, are you okay? You’ve been in there for a while, and Carson said you weren’t looking too good. Are you sick or something?”
Wiping my face with the back of my hand, I got to my knees and turned to face the door. “Is Carson out there with you?” I asked quietly with my face pressed to the crack between the door and the jamb.
“No, he’s in the living room,” Lee whispered from the other side. I imagined him mirroring my