Tymber Dalton - The Reluctant Dom

kaden’sdying

How many more nights did they have? “Yeah.”

She sat at his feet and rested her head against his knee. It was something she’d done countless times over the years, but now the gesture took on a poignant new meaning for him.

For her too, probably, he suspected.

“Play ‘Come Monday’ for me,” she softly asked. “Please?”

One of her favorites. While he knew his voice wasn’t as good as Kade’s, he softly sang to her, trying not to cry his way through the words.

He realized at the end of the song that she’d fallen asleep. The door swung open again and Kade looked in.

“Is she finally out?” he whispered.

Seth nodded and carefully put his guitar aside, trying not to jostle Leah. “How long have you been standing there?”

“I knew she came in here. I wanted to make sure she was okay.” He walked in and carefully scooped her into his arms.

Seth beat his jealous pang back into submission.

He didn’t care what Kaden said. She was still Kaden’s wife.

“Good night, Seth,” he whispered.

Seth nodded and waited for a moment, until he was sure Kaden had returned to their room.

He quietly closed the den door and picked up his guitar again.

Seth awoke the next morning, feeling drained and sluggish. He’d made it to bed a little after three a.m., but his sleep was anything but soothing.

So many conflicting emotions swirling through him—

kaden’sdying

—mixed with the fear he couldn’t step up and be enough for Leah no matter what he promised her.

He had class at one. Thank God tomorrow was Saturday. He felt he’d need a couple of days to vegetate. It was a little after seven when he stepped into the shower. Not having to work, he could at least get some study time in this morning.

The image of Leah bent over that bench…

He closed his eyes and rested his forehead against the cool shower tile. He fisted his cock, stroking, trying to work out a little tension. He wouldn’t deny he’d love to sink his dick into her or feel her lips around him, but she wasn’t his.

Not yet.

Seth stroked, finally able to shove conscious thought out of his mind in lieu of physical pleasure. He pounded his cock. It didn’t take long, and it surprised him that the memory of her coming while strapped to that bench and being spanked by Kaden was what pushed him over.

As he recovered, taking deep breaths, a knock on his bathroom door startled him. He jumped, slipped, nearly fell but caught himself.

“Yeah?” he hoarsely called.

The door opened. Through the opaque shower door glass he made out Leah’s shape.

“I brought your coffee.”

He reddened, embarrassed. “Thanks.”

“Want me to scrub your back for you?”

Despite what he’d just done, his cock immediately stiffened. “No,” he hoarsely said, “I’m good. Thanks.”

“You sure?”

“Um, yeah. Thanks. It’s just…you know…” He couldn’t finish and prayed she wouldn’t open the shower door.

“Too soon?” she offered.

“Yeah. Exactly.”

“Did you want French toast or pancakes?”

He looked down at his soft paunch. He wasn’t horribly overweight, but he wasn’t happy with how he’d let himself go over the years. He’d need to get back in shape. Next to Kaden he looked fat. “I need to go on a diet.”

She leaned against the counter. “You need to eat a good breakfast. I’ll make you a salad for lunch.”

What did it say about him that he could have a conversation with her like this?

He’d better get used to it.

“Pancakes, please.”

She sounded happy. “Good. I’ll have everything ready when you get out.”

“Thanks.”

She left. He seriously considered jerking off again, but by the time he finished his shower he’d softened. He shaved, then went to get dressed. He stopped in the bathroom doorway.

Something was off. But what?

He looked around and it hit him. Leah had made the bed.

A wave of guilt swept through him. He’d meant to do it after his shower.

He caught sight of himself in the mirror over the dresser. A week ago, he’d been stuck in his rut but at least with a plan. In the space of just a couple of days his life had taken a hard right turn. In some ways amazing. For the most part…

He wished he could go back. He would settle for his old sucky life if it meant Kaden would always be in it.

Kaden sat at the counter, a plate of food and the newspaper in front of him. “Morning. How’d you sleep?” he asked Seth.

“Fine.”

Leah took Seth’s coffee mug and refilled it, then slid a plate of food in front of him.

Kaden pushed the rest of the paper toward Seth. It felt surreal on a bunch of levels. That last night he was watching…and this morning… Ozzie and fucking Harriet. Literally.

Weird.

“Go ahead and take my truck again today. I’m not going anywhere this afternoon.”

Seth nodded. It was easier to agree than protest.

After breakfast, Seth spread out with his books and laptop at the dining room table. Kaden left him alone, retreating to the study Seth used to think was Leah’s. Now he realized it was Kaden’s. Leah quietly worked around the house, unobtrusively, leaving him alone.

He almost managed to keep his mind on his studies.

A little before lunchtime, Leah paused in the dining room doorway.

“What’s up, hon?” he asked.

“Did you want grilled chicken or turkey for your salad?”

The question took him off guard. “What?”

“What kind of meat?”

“Don’t go overboard for me.”

She stepped inside the room, a hint of thunderclouds rolling through her green eyes. “I’m not. I’m taking care of you.”

He bit back a reply. Wouldn’t most guys kill for this? For their own personal slave?

“Whatever Kade’s having.”

That answer seemed to soothe her. “What time do you think you’ll be home? So I can plan dinner.”

“I’ll just grab something.” He stopped when she frowned again. “I don’t want you guys waiting on me to eat.”

“It’s okay. If you think you’ll be late I can make Kaden’s and have yours ready. I don’t want you to eat fast food.”

“Why doesn’t Kaden weigh three hundred pounds?” he snarked.

She smiled. “I keep him busy.”

Something he could laugh about. And it looked good to see Leah smile.

He leaned back. Before all this shit hit the fan they’d had fun playfully bantering back and forth, gentle teasing that never quite reached outright flirting but still fun and friendly. Not so much during his own marriages or around his wives, just in between.

And there were plenty of times in between.

“You going to keep me busy?”

She flushed a little. It stirred his cock despite his best efforts. “I hope so.”

He waved her to him and pulled her into his lap despite knowing it wouldn’t help his situation. She put her arms around his neck.

“You guys said honesty, so I’ll be honest,” he said. “I don’t know how crazy I can be. How…” He fought to come up with the right words. “If I can keep up a full-time Master act. I’ll do my best to do whatever you need me to do, but I’m probably going to need downtime from that.”

“I know. A lot of the time Kaden and I aren’t doing that.” She smiled. “Well, except for my collar.”

“And running around naked.”

Her smile widened. “I like it. Just because I’m naked doesn’t mean you have to act any different than you normally do. Just…sometimes.”

Hell, he’d had a hard enough time getting his ex-wives naked in bed, much less to run around that way all the time.

“That’ll be good enough for you?”

“Yeah.”

“I mean, I’m going to want to be normal, whatever that is, a lot of the time.”

She nodded. “I know. Me too.”

“Just normal naked.”

She grinned. “Right. Normal naked.”

He wished she was wearing more than the long T-shirt and collar. “I know Kaden said something about not being formal for a while. Could we be whatever passes for vanilla normal around here for a couple of weeks? I’ve got exams to study for. Once I get the semester behind me you guys can start showing me full-time formal or whatever you call it.”

She frowned. “You really should start learning some of the whip stuff.”

“I’m not talking about that. I’m talking just everyday stuff, like right now. I know we’ve got a limited window of time. I need to ease into this. It’ll make it easier on me in the long run.”

That seemed to make sense to her. She nodded. “Does that mean I need to wear clothes all the time?”

He resisted the urge to stroke her thigh. “How about when I’m trying to study, you should dress like this, at least.”

She grinned. “And when you’re not?”

Man up, asshole.

He shrugged. “Give me a few days before you start springing the full monty on me again, girl.”

She hugged him. “Thank you, Seth,” she whispered.

He put his arms around her and hugged her back.

Wormhole. Here was his best friend’s wife, thanking him for allowing her to run around naked in front of him.

Or he’d died and dropped into some weird mix of Heaven and Hell all swirled together—

kaden’sdying

Leah went to fix lunch. Seth put his things away and found Kaden in his study.

While he was being honest, might as well go all the way. Seth sat and looked at his friend. “What the fuck am I supposed to do without you around, man? You’re my best friend.”