"Your ankle looks better," Blade interrupted her thoughts, nodding toward her foot. "Less swelling."
"The antibiotics must be working," she agreed. "It hardly hurts at all today."
"Good," he said. "Still, don't push it too hard."
She rolled her eyes. "Yes, Daddy," she retorted without thinking.
The word hung in the air between them, charged and significant. Lily froze, mortified at the slip.
Blade's eyes darkened, his fork pausing halfway to his mouth. For a moment, neither of them moved or spoke.
Then, carefully, he set his fork down. "Is that what you want?" he asked, his voice low and controlled. "For me to be your Daddy?"
Heat rushed to her face. "I didn't mean…I was just…" She stumbled over her words, unable to form a coherent response.
"Rule three, baby girl," he reminded her. "Honesty."
She looked down at her plate, unable to meet his intense gaze. "I don't know what I want," she admitted finally. "Everything's so... complicated right now."
"Look at me," he commanded.
Reluctantly, she raised her eyes to his.
"It's okay not to know," he assured her. "You're right. Things are complicated. And this... dynamic between us... it's not something to rush into under the best circumstances, let alone in the middle of all this."
She nodded, relieved that he understood. "I just... I feel safe with you. In a way I haven't felt in a long time. And it's confusing."
"For me too," he admitted, surprising her.
"Feeling this way?" she asked, confused.
"Finding a woman, I wanted to Daddy again," he clarified. "I've dominated women before. I’ve had a little. But this is different. It feels different. More real."
The casual admission sent a jolt of heat through her core. The thought of Blade dominating someone, demanding submission, wielding his natural authority in the bedroom... it was a potent image.
"Different how?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
He considered the question. "It's more... More responsibility. More commitment. I want you to be mine forever. Not for a scene. When you dominate someone for a scene, there's a beginning and an end. Not a temporary thing, like my previous relationship. But being your Daddy..." He took a breath. “It's about more than just sex or play. It's about care. Structure. Protection. With you, it’s forever. I don’t know if you are ready for that."
Forever.
“I don’t know,” she said pushing a piece of egg around her plate. “I know these are extraordinary circumstances. Real life is different."
Real life.
The phrase was a stark reminder that none of this was permanent. Eventually, the danger would pass. The Rejects would be dealt with. And then what? Would he still want her? Was this really real or did it feel that way because of the danger and circumstances? Would she still want this dynamic outside the pressure cooker of their current situation?
"We should table this discussion," she said. "Focus on staying alive first. Figure out... whatever this is... later. If there is a later."
Blade nodded. “You're right. But there will be a later.” They finished breakfast in silence, the easy camaraderie of earlier now strained by unspoken thoughts and desires.
As Lily cleared the dishes, trying to busy her hands to quiet her mind, Blade's phone buzzed again.
"Savage," he said, checking the message. His expression turned grim. "They've got movement. Hammer left theclubhouse an hour ago, headed toward Pedro's territory. He's got the tracker on him."
Lily's heart raced. "So, he is the mole."
"Looks that way," Blade confirmed, already moving to check his weapons. "Savage is tailing him at a distance. Wants to see who he meets with."
