Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 77127 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77127 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
“You mean there really is a gate?”
How did I know his history better than he did?
“Where did you think you came from?” I knew there were problems setting up a central information database to keep in touch with all the different groups, but hadn’t one of the mages been working on that?
Grady waved his free hand. “My grandparents’ generation mentioned hearing stories about a portal but that seemed more like stories that we tell, like Greek gods and that kind of stuff. One of the science teachers said that we were probably an evolutionary branch from the dinosaurs.”
I could feel my mouth fall open but nothing was coming out.
“I take it we’re not?” He was trying not to smile but he wasn’t doing a very good job of hiding it. “You seem a lot more horrified about this than I would’ve thought.”
“Because my family has spent the last three hundred and some odd years guarding the gate your ancestors came through. We’re one of the founding families who’ve protected your secrets for generations.” I went up there every year to make sure nothing was growing on it and to make sure regular humans hadn’t found it.
“I’ve taken field trips to it. It’s a hell of a long walk.” I’d been tortured for school trips and he didn’t even appreciate my sacrifice? “I get blisters every year when I go up to check on it.”
That had Grady pulling me into his arms and kissing my forehead. “No more blisters for you. We’ll figure out how to keep your feet healthy.”
How had the conversation gotten so off course?
“Thank you, Daddy.” Deciding to just Kenzie my way out of the confusing conversation, I kissed his cheek and swung our hands. “Do you think we should put chairs out here or a hammock?”
Flashing me a smile, he shook his head but played along. “Both. A hammock between those two trees and then a large platform with chairs and space for me to work.”
That was right—Daddy was an artist.
“Am I supposed to know who you are?” It was my turn to look at him weird. “Besides being my Daddy, I mean.”
That got another laugh from him. “No, I’m not every day famous and I’ve certainly never been on TV, but I do fairly well and it makes me happy.”
“That’s what counts.” Besides, I could keep us fed and a roof over our head, so the rest didn’t matter. “I’m glad you like your career.”
He released my hand long enough to wrap his arms around me and his smile went from teasing to naughty Dom in a flash. “I can’t decide if you need kisses for being the cutest distraction ever or if you need to be punished.”
There was no way to hide the shiver that sent through me, but I was horny, not stupid. “I…I’m going to need to know what your definition of punishment is first.”
Grady barked out a laugh but his hands slid down my back and grabbed my ass, sending wickedly mixed signals through me. “Smart and sexy. I got very lucky with my mate.”
“Mates are always compatible.” My head was full of naughty things instead of logical ones, so my brain went with smart-ass instead of smart.
Daddy didn’t mind, though.
He leaned his forehead against mine and gave one cheek a firm spank. “Then I think I already know the answer you don’t want to give me.”
That worried me and turned me on.
“I’m not always good with me stress.” Had that made any sense? “I’m good with outside stress. Like when Lorne talked Carrick into using the find lost shit spell to help us find you, I tried not to overreact, and when people kept doing stupid stuff around the new human librarian, I tried to think logically about what we should do next. I’m not logical with me stress.”
I got a Daddy smile from Grady, so he seemed to have figured out what I was trying to say. “Then I’m going to need you to give me some help figuring out when I can push you and when I should back off.”
Oh.
He laughed when I scrunched up my face like Kenzie getting served soup. “It won’t be that hard.”
I was going to call bullshit on that idea, but he made the plan before I had to. Kissing my forehead, he looked like he wanted to tell me I was being ridiculous, but he was smart and just fixed the problem instead. “Alright, when we get to the point where something is making you stressed, you’re going to give me a number between one and ten.”
Huh?
“One means you’re just being a bit dramatic and I can easily keep pushing you for an answer or to continue the discussion. Ten means we’re done with the topic until you bring it up again.” Before I could agree to the plan, he stopped and held up one finger. “But the rules change if your health is in danger. Got it?”