They’d been a solo Little for so long, that they weren’t even sure what a dynamic would look like. They saw lots of different Caregiver/Little relationships around the Ranch, but Tay had always worried that what they wanted wouldn’t appeal.
They didn’t want an all-day-every-day kind of dynamic. They didn’t want to give up work and be someone’s perfect little princess—for one thing, they weren’t a girl. They were stubbornly, decisively them, and no one would ever change that.
So to think that Chef Guilia, who knew their foibles through and through, wanted them just as they were…thatfelt incredible.
When they all sat down to eat lunch, pizzas fresh out the oven, Chef Guilia cut through the general chatter with a, “We need to talk.”
Silence fell across the table, and when she looked at Tay, Tay realized what was about to happen.
“We all know that, wherever possible, this kitchen is a Big headspace place.”
Everyone around the table nodded. That didn’t alleviate any of the anxieties that Tay held within them. Instead, they realized that they were tapping their foot on the ground continuously, their toes all scrunched up inside their shoes.
“Well, after some discussion with Signore Derek, Tay and I have decided that—outside of the kitchen—we are going to explore a new dynamic together.”
“About time,” said Lily under her breath. When Chef Guilia looked at her, Lily miraculously had a coughing fit and took an overly long sip of water from her glass to fix it.
“About… what do you mean?”
Everyone stared at Lily as she looked from Chef Guilia to Tay and then back to Chef Guilia again. “Oh, I keep forgetting that the two of you don’t realize—” Her sentence cut off as she yelped and glared at Nico, whom Tay assumed had kicked her under the table. “Is it really that big a deal though?”
“Well, this was what I was about to say. I’m Tay’s boss, so it is a big deal. So Signore Derek will be taking over their line management for the foreseeable future. I’m still in charge in the kitchen,”—here she shot Tay a challenging look—“so that still means I have seniority, but it just means that Tay’s business and career prospects are not tied to whether or not we get along.”
The team looked completely indifferent to the announcement. “You wouldn’t mess about at work, and we all trust you to be fair,” said Nico. “It’s all good.”
And then they all just went back to eating as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened at all.
Tay and Guilia exchanged confused looks.
“You don’t care?” asked Tay. Their voice sounded tremulous, even to their own ears, and Lily reached out and squeezed their hand.
“It’s not that we don’t care, but more like we’ve all been able to see the connection between the two of you for a while. I can’t speak for everyone else, but I think it’s a good idea. You guys should explore this.”
“We’re all Littles,” added Hannah. “Well, aside from Lily, and we know what it’s like to be without a Caregiver. We’re happy for you both.”
“Oh.” Guilia looked taken aback. “Well, I suppose in that case, everyone finish eating and let’s get back to work.”
And everyone picked up and carried on as if nothing had happened at all.
Tay didn’t know how they felt about that. In some ways they wanted everyone to make a big fuss, as if that would give the whole decision credence. This just felt like a bit of a letdown.
But then Hannah nudged Tay, and Nico winked at them, and Lily ruffled Tay’s hair and perhaps they weren’t all aslaissez-faireabout the whole situation after all.
CHAPTER 8
Guilia
The lunch shift was followed by the evening shift, and though it had been a long day, Guilia wasn’t about to let Tay just disappear off into the Littles’ Wing for the rest of the night. Her Little had a punishment to come up with.
After Tay had tidied up their station, they hovered behind Guilia, as if not entirely certain what they were supposed to be doing next. The evening shift chefs arrived, and Guilia did her handover, placing a hand in the small of Tay’s back when they started fidgeting on the spot. She didn’t need to say anything, because even that simple action was enough to settle Tay’s nerves.
She cleaned her station, made sure that the people covering room service knew what they were doing, and then turned and smiled at Tay. “You ready?”
“Yes, Daddy,” said Tay and the words seemed to come so naturally to them that Guilia couldn’t help the grin that spread across her face.
Holding out her hand, Tay slipped their palm into hers and the two of them left the kitchen in relative silence.
They didn’t pass too many Littles as they walked, most of them already in bed, and Guilia paused in the main hall. “Would you… are you okay with coming back to my rooms?”
