“You know him?” Sloan asked.
“Sure, he lives in the next building.” She glanced up at them both. “He might look like a man, but, developmentally, he’s more like a ten-year-old. Oh, God, it’s just a crush. He’s really just a kid.”
James stared over at Sloan, who looked skeptical. They weren’t so sure.
“I think he was deprived of oxygen when he was born. He’s harmless. Really.”
“I’ll go have a chat with him,” Sloan said.
She shook her head. “He’s afraid of men. I think his dad beat him before he took off. A real deadbeat. Please let me talk to him. I can let him down gently.”
“No,” both men said together.
“Perhaps we should let the cops do it,” James said reluctantly. He wouldn’t mind having a little chat with Alan either. “They’re better equipped to handle this, and he might listen to them.”
“Okay. But we need to tell them to send female officers.” She looked up at Sloan. “Sloan, please?”
“Fine,” Sloan said reluctantly. “I’ll let them handle it.” For now.
James heard the words even if Sloan didn’t say them.
“This means I can go back to work,” Kinley said. “Now that we know it’s not Gary.”
Sloan frowned. “I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”
“I’ve stayed home from work for two weeks because you thought it was Gary. I thought it was Gary.”
“I still don’t like it. Not until the cops have been to see this kid . . . man.”
“I’ll take precautions,” she said, standing to face them both. “I’ll stay in the office, and you can drive me there and back if you insist. But I have to go back to work. Not only am I going crazy stuck here, but I’m going to lose my job if I don’t. My boss is a good guy. I don’t like lying to him. I’m going to call him now and tell him my flu is all cleared up and I can make it in tomorrow.”
She strode off, leaving Sloan and James staring after her.
“Damn, she’s sexy when she gets all bossy,” Sloan said.
“You’re going to let her go back to work?” James asked, unsure if it was a good idea.
Sloan barked out a laugh. “You can try stopping her if you like, but I’d make certain you stand near an exit cause you’re going to have to run afterwards. When that woman makes up her mind there’s little that can stop her.”
“You’re her Dom.”
Sloan shook his head. “And my sub is a strong, independent woman who submits to me during play and follows my lead when it comes to safety. But I cannot run her life.”
“This is about safety.”
“I don’t like it either, but it sounds like he’s harmless and he’s never sent anything to her work before. And how long can we keep doing this? It’s already affecting her. She’s needs some normalcy. She needs a trip to the club. We all do. You coming with us this weekend?”
“I’ll see. I might have to go to New York.”
Sloan just nodded, watching him knowingly.
“I’d better go.” And even knowing he was acting the complete coward, he practically raced out of the house.
If there was one thing he knew for sure, it was that he was not going to that club with them, because seeing Sloan dominate her and not being able to join in might well kill him.
18
“Do you think we’ll ever see him again?” Kinley stared out the window of Sloan’s truck, trying to sound like she didn’t really care about the answer.