Cherished (Masters and Mercenaries #7.5)(16)

“No. I’m talking about Taggart. I think he’s scared of becoming a dad. It can’t be easy for him. His own father left at a young age.” Kai’s eyes were suddenly on him. “It can’t be easy taking on an adult role when you’re still a kid. That kind of responsibility can be difficult to deal with. It can cause a person to go through a kind of arrested development.”

Jeez. And they were back to him. “We’re not talking about Taggart anymore.”

Kai didn’t deny it. “I heard about the scam you ran on Bridget Slaten. I was surprised you would do that. I’ve been trying to figure out why you want to hurt her like that. You’ve never come off as a cruel person.”

“I’m not trying to hurt her. I was trying to herd her to me.”

Kai’s brow rose in a surprised arch. “Really?”

“I was trying to get laid, dude.”

“Huh. Well, then that’s a different story, though I’m pretty sure it still has the same ending.”

He was a bit offended Kai thought he was actively trying to be an *. “You thought I was trying to hurt her?”

“Well, I certainly didn’t think you were trying to date her. You have to admit that when you discuss your perfect woman, it wouldn’t be her.”

For some reason that didn’t set well with him. “She’s not so bad.”

“I didn’t say she was bad. I quite like her. She’s refreshingly honest about most things, but she’s also quite independent. I think you might chafe against that independence. You told me you would prefer a woman who was somewhat dependent on you.”

“I don’t think I put it like that. I think I talked about enjoying a submissive lover. I like to be in control. It’s kind of the whole point of being a Dom. If I didn’t need control, I would be vanilla or into swinging or foot fetishes or something.” Though he often thought it would be simpler if he only wanted to suck on a chick’s toes.

“I got the feeling you would prefer a woman who was submissive out of the bedroom as well. Bridget is never going to be that woman. In her own way, she needs control as much as you do. I believe she requires submission in order to let go long enough to find pleasure sexually. In some ways she almost needs permission to find pleasure or relaxation of any kind.”

It didn’t make sense to him. She’d grown up ridiculously wealthy. Her childhood would have been marked by opportunity.

Was it possible that she might need him?

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Kai asked. “I worry Bridget needs more than you’re willing to give any woman at this point.”

Sometimes Kai could be annoying. Will wondered if it would be rude to walk away. Probably. And he did kind of consider the guy a friend. “How do you know what I’m willing to give a woman?”

“Because we have weekly sessions and I did the whole PhD thing. Should I go over my credentials?”

“When do those end, by the way?” In order to get into Sanctum, he had to agree to weekly sessions with the good doc for a prescribed period of time.

“You’re on probation for six months. I’ll clear you at the end unless something changes radically, but I hope you consider continuing the sessions. I think it’s good for you to have a place where you can talk.”

He would never admit it, but he enjoyed those stupid sessions. Kai was right. It was good to talk. He’d told Kai things he’d never talked about before. Something about the man…well, he trusted Kai. “We’ll see, but I don’t understand how I’m hurting Bridget.”

Kai’s dark eyes brightened and he leaned in. “I’m so glad you asked.”

“I wish I hadn’t.” He knew a trap when he fell into one.

“But you did. Look, I think Bridget needs someone who can be serious about her.”

He was totally serious about f*cking her. “From what I can tell she’s not dating. If she’s not in a relationship, I don’t see what’s wrong with spending some time with me. I’ve explained everything to her. I’ve been honest about what I want. If she decides to go to bed with me, it’s because she wants to.”

Kai pointed at him as though he’d made a point. “That’s the thing. I don’t know that she’s truly capable of stating what she wants. There’s a lot in her background that taught her to isolate herself and her needs. She won’t let you see when she’s upset.”

Was he high? “Have you seen what happens to people who cut her off on the highway? I was behind her once and she is the very definition of road rage. I heard a story from Serena about the way she deals with *s who try to get out of traffic by driving in the service lane. She throws the passenger door open, man. I can’t imagine what her insurance premiums are like. I don’t think she has a problem expressing herself.”

“Anger, no. She can express that readily. Hurt? Vulnerability? Those are different. You’re a good guy, Will. You recently came off a bad relationship.”

“If by bad you mean she tried to set me up for murder, then yes, it was bad.” It still sat in his gut. How stupid he’d been. Na?ve and foolish. He didn’t want Bridget to ever find out how dumb he’d been.

“You’ve still got a lot of anger and I don’t want you taking it out on Bridget,” Kai explained. “She seems like an easy target because she’s so prickly, but underneath she’s quite soft. You know she’s the black sheep of her family, right?”