Cole's Mistake (Haven, Texas 8)

She nodded, smiling, but, as usual, it didn’t reach her eyes.

Yeah, he fucking hated that too.

So, he opened the door a little more forcefully than he’d intended. On the other side stood Joel, who raised an eyebrow at him but otherwise showed no reaction. Next to him was Jardin. He had on a pair of jeans that probably cost more than Julian’s entire wardrobe and a button-down shirt. He had a feeling it was as relaxed as the other man got.

And he was suddenly reminded of another man who wore expensive clothes and looked like he’d stepped off the pages of GQ. Shit. The last thing he needed was for Jardin to remind him of Cole.

They were very different, he reminded himself. Jardin actually cared about other people besides himself.

Cole did too. He just didn’t care about anyone more than himself. He also couldn’t see past his own bigoted opinions.

Enough about Cole. Fuck, he had Julian rattled since he’d turned up two days ago. Yesterday, he and Keira had spent the whole day together, making love and with him gently dominating her. Taking a dominant role had helped him. That spanking hadn’t just eased some of her demons, it had given him a sense of control he’d been searching for but had been unable to find.

“Joel. Jardin.” He grimaced at how cold and stiff his voice sounded. He couldn’t help it. A territorial possessiveness had come over him.

“Julian? Is it all right if we come in?” Joel asked gently.

Shit. Fuck. Christ.

He shook his head, and the two men exchanged worried glances.

“Sorry. Of course. I was just thinking about stuff.” He winced. He appreciated that even though Joel owned the guest house they lived in the other man always knocked, even if he did let someone sneak in to fill up their fridge every week.

He’d tried having a word with him about that but Joel always denied having anything to do with it.

“Please, come in.”

He felt Keira slide up behind him, placing her arm around his waist in support. He appreciated that she wanted to care for him, however, she’d just disobeyed him.

“Keira, where did I tell you to wait?”

She shot him a glance filled with apology. “Sorry. When I heard it was Joel, I figured it was okay to come forward.”

He leaned in and whispered in her ear. “It wasn’t, kitten. And, later, we’ll deal with the consequences of your actions.”

For a moment he worried about her reaction. He didn’t want her to fear him, ever.

But she simply nodded. She didn’t show an ounce of fear. In fact, all of yesterday and today she’d seemed more relaxed.

As though she’d been waiting for him to take the reins. Fuck, he was going to have to catch on quicker than he was.

Maybe that was where Jardin came in. Maybe he could be more of an advisor than an actual Dom to them both. Because, he was pretty certain he couldn’t submit to him, in any capacity. He wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to do that again. Something inside him mourned that.

“Sorry, Sir,” she whispered to him.

He was aware of Joel and Jardin watching him closely and he stepped back, letting them in. He had to check the urge to step in front of Keira. It wasn’t Joel bringing that out in him, he trusted him. It was Jardin. And this wouldn’t work if he couldn’t ease up on that protectiveness.

Easy, this is just the start.

“Have a seat,” Keira told both men with a smile. She moved from foot to foot as they sat. “What can I get you to drink? Sweet tea? Coffee? Soda?”

Joel gave her a smile. “Coffee would be great, sweetheart.”

“For me too, please,” Jardin added.

She smiled wide and it almost looked genuine before she turned and walked over to the kitchen.

Julian sat on the sofa. Both men were in armchairs facing the corner sofa.