Remy
“Um, yes, extra whipped cream, please? It’s been one of those days.” Hearing the frustration in my voice, I stood straighter and tried not to look ridiculously dramatic, even though it felt like I deserved it. “Do you have chocolate sprinkles?”
Yep, it’d been one of those days.
However, instead of answering my question and letting me pout, the barista turned and called out toward the back. “The lawyers are dicks. They got the cute twink, too.”
The low murmurs from the people in line behind me said they knew at least part of the story. Their anger made me feel a bit better, but I just wished someone had told me about them before I’d taken the job. It would’ve been helpful.
Before I could figure out how to respond, since she really hadn’t been talking to me, I heard high heels click on the concrete floor in an angry rhythm. “Goddamn it. Those assholes have gone too far.”
Oh, it was the other one.
Skyler was…he was very Skyler and kind of scary in an overprotective big brother kind of way. The fact that I thought he was sexy made the big brother feelings a bit weird, though.
As he marched out in high heels and a long skirt that looked like he was going to church, I had to fight to keep my mind focused. He was so distracting I came off like a moron every time we talked. I was getting better, but it was still ridiculous…especially when his Daddy was here.
Skyler had a Daddy.
I kept tripping over that thought because it was crazy.
I’d never known anyone like them, and it was like I had to keep pinching myself to remember they were real.
“What did they do?” Skyler folded his arms and looked like he was ready to march over there and give them a piece of his mind.
“Um…I…” Shit. Words. Taking a breath, I tried again. “I don’t know how it escalated, but one of the managing partners threw a coffee cup full of pencils at me?”
It’d really gotten out of hand so quickly I wasn’t sure what had happened.
Logic had definitely left the building over there.
“So I, um, quit.” The constant snide remarks about male secretaries had been bad enough, but I wasn’t so desperate I was willing to be a pincushion. Some of those pencils had been sharp. “I was…I was very dramatic?”
Skyler beamed.
It was kind of scary how good I felt that I’d made him happy.
Telling him I’d channeled him would’ve probably been oversharing, but I was glad I could tell him I hadn’t been a doormat. “I…I told him I was done and that he could get his own fucking coffee and marched out.”
I’d been loud too.
Just remembering it had my heart beating faster, but I was so glad not to have to go back I wanted to cry.
“I’m so proud of you.” Skyler swept around the counter looking a bit like Scarlett O’Hara and wrapped his arms around me.
I was starting to understand why he liked the long skirt.
“Thank you.” The weirdest thing about the whole situation was the number of strangers who came up and patted me on the back, too.
This was the weirdest shop ever.
When everyone had gotten back in line and Skyler had released me—well, mostly released me—he ushered me toward the back of the store and sat me down at one of the little tables. “Now, Daddy said not to be terribly pushy, but I could push a bit to make sure you were going to be okay once you had your fill of the assholes.”
Skyler sat down across from me, somehow still doing it very dramatically so the skirt whirled around his legs and looked very proper. “So, I’m going to need you to explain to me why you don’t need a job here.”
Huh?
They’d talked about me?
Okay, well, after our first meeting, that probably shouldn’t have been a surprise, but it was still startling.
“I…Um…” Did I want to work here? Wait. Had that even been a question? “I don’t have a plan so far, but you don’t need to worry.”
I needed to worry, but he didn’t.
Skyler scoffed, waving his hand. “Don’t be ridiculous. Now answer my question.”
What had his question been?
“I’m sorry. I’m not usually so scatterbrained.” Taking a breath to clear my head, I sat straighter, hoping it made me look more professional. “I was actually a very good assistant.”
They’d just been insane.
I could not be blamed for crazy, but I wasn’t sure how to explain that on a resume.
Skyler’s hands danced in front of him again as he shook his head. “It’s me. I’m wonderfully distracting, so I won’t take offense.”
Well, he probably shouldn’t since he was right.
It was him.
“Um, I don’t have a plan yet, but after a pity party with coffee and—” Wait. Where was my coffee?
Skyler must’ve been a mind reader because he chuckled and looked over toward the woman at the counter. All it took was one raised eyebrow in her direction and she nodded. “Janie will bring it over in a minute.”
Psychic.
It was kind of scary.
“Yes, thank you. Well, everything is going to be fine.” I was just going to get overcaffeinated and enjoy something deliciously terrible for me for dinner, and then I’d figure out what to do next.
“Don’t be silly.” The way he looked at me said platitudes and being silly weren’t going to cut it. “Now, it seems like you don’t have another job lined up, but that’s okay. We can work from scratch. Are you going to look for a similar position?”
Simple questions were so much easier. “Yes.”
“Because you have to or because you want to?” That wasn’t so simple, but I had an idea how to answer it.
“Both. Kind of.” He raised one eyebrow, and I knew I had to hurry and really explain. “I’m saving up for law school, so I need a decent job, and I was hoping that being exposed to the law offices would give me a good step up when I started.”
I’d been working part-time for an accountant before, and when he’d retired, I’d thought it’d been a sign that it was time to get my ass in gear.
Evidently not.
I found myself holding my breath until Skyler nodded. “Yes, you need enough hours to save up money and some exposure to the law so you can be sure that’s what you want to do for a living.”
Hearing that he approved of my plan had me wanting to smile, but before I could figure out how to respond, he charged off in an unexpected direction.
“Alright, here’s what we’ll do.” As he sat up and started gesturing with his hands, all I could do was watch, fascinated at how take-charge he was. “You’ll work most of your hours here. I think we should be able to work around your classes. Online, right?”
I nodded, but he kept going like he’d already known the answer.
“We’ll make sure you get enough time to study, but it would be great if you could work a few mornings a week at the very least. I’m putting in a thousand hours and Daddy is ready to put his foot down.” He took a breath this time, but that didn’t stop him for long.
“Once we figure out the hours you need here and what you need to have free for school, then we’ll aim for one day a week where you’ll work over at the main office and help in the legal department. I have no idea what they’ll have you do, but they’re nice and it’ll give you the exposure you need and something to put on a resume later.”
Huh?
“Are you a chain?” There was no way that was right, because, well, he was insane. But I couldn’t think of anything else that made sense.
Skyler paused, cocking his head and thinking so loud I could almost hear the wheels in his head turning. “I guess that might not have been enough details.”
“If you wouldn’t mind giving me a bit more…” That was the politest way I could think of to agree with him.
Since I thought he was offering me a job, I didn’t want to tell him how confused I was.
Our first interaction might’ve been blown all to hell because I’d basically drooled over him and his Daddy, but that didn’t mean I had to continue looking like an idiot.
“Yes, details are important.” That didn’t mean he was going to throw them out quickly, though. He leaned back and studied me for a few long seconds before nodding to himself.
It wasn’t helpful at all, but it made me feel good that he approved of…something.
God, I was needy.
Pushing that stupid thought to the back of my head, because it really wasn’t helpful or relevant at the moment, I tried to stay focused and wait patiently.
Thankfully, he didn’t make me wait long.
“I own several businesses. Most of my time gets sucked up with this place, but I also own what’s basically a property management and real estate investment company.” He looked serious, but it was the craziest thing I’d ever heard.
And I’d just gotten smacked by a coffee cup-wielding lunatic.
“Alright.” But I could deal with interesting as long as he didn’t throw shit at me. “So I would be spending most of my time working here depending on the hours you need me, and then working with the legal department about once a week.”
I was hoping I’d get paid for the legal part, but I’d even take some kind of unpaid internship as long as it got my foot in the door. He’d said work, though, so maybe that meant I’d get paid? But honestly, the money itself wasn’t my biggest concern.
“I…I need consistent hours so that I can plan my classwork.” When Skyler immediately nodded, I felt a bit more confident and continued. “I think…I think you noticed that I’m not very…I mean, I get…”
Shit.
Swallowing, I tried to restart, but he cut me off.
“You’re easily…let’s call it stunned silent? And I’m betting you’re not the most confrontational person.” When I nodded, he continued helpfully. “I will do my best to remember that, but if I overwhelm you and don’t realize it, then I think setting up a protocol where you discuss those types of problems with Amber would be a good idea.”
He didn’t seem to expect a response that time and kept going.
“She’ll be the one you report to most of the time.” He gestured vaguely around the room. “If I can hire someone like you who doesn’t mind working for someone fun and interesting, then she’ll take on a bit more of a management role and I’m going to take time off and work a real schedule.”
That made sense.
Yeah, he probably had a hard time finding people who wanted to work for…for someone a bit livelier than the average boss.
“Now, the most important questions.” He crossed his legs and studied me again. “Can you show up to work on time? Because, while I love Janie, she’s terrible with schedules if she’s getting sex on a regular basis. I can’t have everyone being like that. I might just snap.”
Oh.
Wow.
“I’m single.” Stupidly single. “And…and I can show up on time even if…even if I’m not that single.”
Not that I was going to hold my breath for a date, but I didn’t want to be single forever.
“Perfect.” He nodded like we’d made wonderful progress with the discussion, but I wasn’t even sure I’d agreed to work for him. “Now, one of the events we hold on a weekly basis is a…let’s call it an open-minded event for unconventional locals.”
When I simply blinked, kind of intrigued and kind of afraid of what that might mean, he sighed. “We hold kink nights on Saturday night. Everyone has to be appropriately clothed, but we get pups and littles and all kinds of fun couples who come to hang out.”
Ohhh.
I must’ve looked as surprised as I felt because he giggled.
“Can you handle working those nights?” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table and giving me a very manipulative smile. “I’ve been working nonstop for months now and Daddy’s ready to put his foot down.”
That made sense, so I nodded.
Any time I walked by the shop he seemed to be working and any good Dom would get upset by that, especially a Daddy.
“I…” Shit. If he was going to be my boss, I had to get better at talking to him. “I don’t have to…I mean…would I…”
Oh dear.
As I took a breath to give it another try, Skyler beat me to the punch.
Again.
“You don’t have to participate in the lifestyle in any way. You’re in charge of the counter and they’ll just hang out.” He seemed to realize that was what I’d been trying to ask because he continued to explain. “It’s generally really quiet. It would be like any other party coming in for coffee, and the only difference is that you don’t ask a pup what he wants to drink and you’re the one in charge, so you don’t Sir anyone you’re not looking to sleep with or submit to.”
He rolled his eyes and sighed. “Some get super into their roles and I’ve had to put my foot down on that. It’s my fucking store, so I get to make the fucking rules. Employees top Doms and they can kiss my ass.”
I had no good response to that, so I simply nodded.
The chances of me being able to say more than Can I take your order to someone who was that…that take-charge was slim to none anyway—my brain just melted—so yeah, I wasn’t going to worry about that.
His drama faded as quickly as it had come and thankfully before I had to figure out how to respond. “But if you can’t work every Saturday, I understand. I’m looking for employees who want a family and I want to set up a schedule you can handle long-term. I want you happy here, but I know I’m an acquired taste.”
He shrugged, not making any apologies for that, but I felt the need to respond anyway. “I…I don’t find you…I mean, I think you’re…”
Good grief.
Skyler beamed and ignored my stumbling words. “When can you start?”
He looked around the room again and frowned as his eyes found the clock on the wall by the bathrooms. “I don’t think I can stay to train you today, but I’m flexible tomorrow.”
Had I agreed to work for him?
I finally shrugged, not sure that mattered. “Tomorrow is fine.”
So I guess I had a job?
Synopsis:
Sometimes the only thing that will make a day better is whipped cream and sprinkles.
When Remy dodges a flying coffee cup from an insane lawyer and ends up quitting his job, he’s not sure what to do. The one thing he knows is that whipped cream makes everything better, and the strange barista who’s offered him a job can’t be worse than the lawyers…right?
Some days things just don’t go quite as expected…even when you’re a Dom who likes everything planned out.
Brooks had thought he’d done his due diligence before he’d gone to work with the new firm. He hadn’t, and now he not only has to figure what’s next, he has to figure out how to fix things with the sweetest and shyest admin he’s ever met…if he can figure out where his perfect cutie, and hopefully sub, has disappeared to.
When a shy boy meets a cautious Daddy, sometimes they need a push to find their happily ever after—but what else are friends for?
