AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Hunching her shoulder, she tipped her cheek into it. The gesture was remarkably shy for a woman so confident in other areas. She’d barely touched her pancakes, pushing them around in the syrup on her plate, which simply wasn’t acceptable.
For a tall, well-built woman, she was underweight. Stress and grief ate the flesh off a person’s bones, given enough time. Two years of it was more than she could handle, in his opinion, so he reached out and snagged the side rung of her chair, dragging her over to him.
Link clapped his hands and laughed uproariously.
“Can I trouble you for some fresh pancakes, Att?” Zeke asked politely, yanking Olivia off her seat and onto his lap. She squirmed, then stilled when his fingers found her nape, massaging the cable-taut muscles. “Someone needs a helping hand this morning.”
Alicia hummed softly. “I love when Daddy feeds me. Especially after sex.”
Olivia jolted, her expression growing distressed. “I… we…”
“We’ll be outta your hair by lunch,” Zeke interjected, taking pity on her. He loved Alicia dearly, but sometimes she had no goddamn filter. “The stuff you salvaged from the house can be shipped over to mine when you’ve got time, Att, or we can put it in the truck. The junk heap’s been dealt with?”
A foreboding expression crossed the big guy’s face. “Towed. The money will be in her account by the end of the day; there’ll be a new company vehicle delivered this afternoon.”
“Wait… what?” Olivia croaked.
“Quiet, angel,” he murmured against her hair. “You’ve escaped the lecture up until now, let’s not draw his attention.”
“But… you towed my car?”
Chuckling, Zeke just shook his head. She was fiercely protective about what was hers—her possessions, her space, everything she needed to remain in her solitary bubble. After what she’d told him about Jared, it wasn’t surprising.
“I towed that worthless hunk of dangerous metal masquerading as a car,” Atticus snapped. “The piece of sh—”
“Sugar,” Alicia interrupted sweetly.
“—sugar,” he corrected smoothly, “that you shouldn’t have driventoNevada two years ago, let alone all the way back. I understand you’re independent, Sonic, and you treasure your privacy, but putting yourself and others at risk by driving that heap is unacceptable. All for the sake of forgoing pride and asking me for a loaner vehicle?”
Color leeched from her face. “It wasn’t pride.”
“No? Then what? Whatever it is, was it worth potentially killing yourself?”
Oh, that was the wrong tactic to take. The woman on his lap was shutting herself off, hunkering down where words held no control over her. He felt the shift in her, the walls erecting to protect herself. “Atticus, leave it to me.”
“My employee—”
“My woman. My sub. Leave it to me.”
Glowering, Atticus surveyed the pair of them. Inhaling deeply through his nose, he rolled his head until his neck cracked, finally nodding in agreement. “Make sure she understands the ramifications of putting herself in danger, Zeke.”
“She will.” Still massaging her nape, he ran his tongue around his teeth, smiling at Alicia as she plopped a plate of fluffy pancakes in front of him. “Thanks, darlin’. I need to ask a favor, Att.”
A thick black brow arched. “Another?”
“One you might not be keen on granting.”
“Oh Christ. Hit me with it.”
“Begins with a T and ends withabsolutely insane.”
Atticus groaned. “You know I can’t guarantee she’ll play ball, Zeke. I love the girl, but she’s a fucking wildcard.”
The savage cough Alicia gave him was entertaining, especially when he turned a baleful glance on her.
“She’ll gear up for this one,” Zeke assured him before he could freak Olivia out completely by hauling his Little over the kitchen counter to spank her. “Sexual predator, likes them young and uses intimidation tactics as a grooming method. Don’t know how many girls he’s got his eye on right now, but if he isn’t already molesting them, he’s got plans to escalate.”
Atticus’s gaze sharpened. “How do you know?”
