Page 22 of Lesson In Honesty
Rolling her eyes, Callie gave him another, more drawn out kiss before stepping back. She held out her hand to Sierra. “Eli’s a hard ass but you don’t have to be scared of him. I think the accent makes it worse, right? All strict and British…”
Sierra’s eyes widened as Callie fanned herself.
“And it doesn’t help that his eyes speak their own language. Like when they go dark and turbulent, you can pretty much seea whip cracking in them.” Blowing out a heated breath, Callie snagged Sierra’s hand and started towing her across the room. “Although it does turn me on when he scowls. Brows go down, panties come off. Probably shouldn’t tell him that.”
Too late, Sierra thought when she glanced over her shoulder. The intimidating Dom in question was following them, side by side with Liam, and his expression stated he was listening toeverything.
His eyes met hers; she dropped her gaze immediately, whipping her head back around, and almost tripped over her own damn feet.
“Ooopsie.” Callie slid her arm around Sierra’s waist. “You okay?”
It felt like she was being stalked by two hungry wolves, she thought uneasily, resisting the urge to check over her shoulder again. If she broke into a run, would they chase her? “I-I’m just a klutz.”
Callie glanced back at Elias. “Daddy, you’re making her nervous. Stop it.”
“Why? I like nervous subbies; it shows a degree of respect, unlike a certain bratty wife.”
Sierra’s stomach clenched with anxiety. The accent really did make things worse, she realized. The words and his tone were easy, casual, but add in that Britishness…
“We’ve already determined you like having a bratty wife so you can beat my bratty ass with your sadistic toys, Daddy.”
“I’m going to like fucking that bratty ass with my sadistic cock,” he fired back.
Callie smirked, all but purring, “Yes please, Daddy.”
What the hell was going on? Uncomfortable, Sierra gave serious thought to yanking free of Callie’s surprisingly strong grip and running to the cabin where this insanity couldn’t reach.
Just as she summoned the courage to do exactly that, Callie stopped in front of a pair of wide double doors. “It doesn’t look like much right now because it’s a storage area.”
Confused, Sierra frowned.
Callie opened the doors with her free hand, probably realizing Sierra would bolt if she let go of her hand. “My Daddies and I were talking about the hours Liam’s going to be working, and how that might affect how happy you are here.”
“I’m happy wherever Liam is.”
“That’s so sweet.” Callie beamed at her. “I feel the same way about my Daddies. The thing is, we wantyouto be happy here too. What we thought about doing was removing these doors and installing an old-fashioned store front instead. Shelves along the back to showcase all the precious pretties. All the space around to the left, we can kit out with whatever equipment you need. Daddy Vander said all you have to do is tell Daddy Eli what you want and it’ll be here by Monday.”
All right, it was quite obvious there was a simple explanation for this. Apparently, the sand pit was actually a wormhole into another dimension and she’d fallen through it into a world she didn’t know how to navigate.
Seeking reassurance, she shot Liam a worried look, trying to convey her unease with only her eyes. He just smiled as though everything wasn’t heaving beneath her feet and gave her a wink.
She was on her own.
“I-I don’t understand.”
Before Callie set off on another ramble of information, Elias stepped forward and rested a gentle hand on Sierra’s shoulder. His lips twitched when she froze under the light contact, but he didn’t release her. “Callie gets overexcited sometimes and doesn’t quite hit the mark. We’d like to offer you a job, Sierra. One uniquely suited to your talents.”
Talents? She didn’t have any talents.
“A workshop and a small store rolled into one. We’ll provide all the equipment you require to rescue and rehabilitate your stuffies. I have a small team in Denver ready to scour dumpsters, trash cans, yard sales for potential candidates.” He said it so casually, she just blinked at him. “We can have any number of stuffies delivered on a weekly basis, depending on your turnaround time.”
“T-Turnaround time?”
“Yes. Liam told me you rehome most of your finished projects to likeminded people, aside from those that you get attached to deeply.”
She flushed, hating how stupid it sounded. “You can say that with a straight face?”
Eli cocked his head. “It’s not my place to judge how you run your business, Sierra. Being married to this one has taught me a great deal about a lot of things, including how passionately a Little feels toward her stuffies.” The look he gave his wife was part adoration, part exasperation, in equal measure. “Don’t be ashamed of your skills; your gift brings happiness to more people than you know.”