Page 43 of Worth the Risk

The silver in his eyes turned molten. “Do you have plans to enter the Decadence dungeon with someone else?”

“No. Only you.”

“Same,” he replied brusquely. “I guess that clears that up.”

Clearly, her question annoyed him, as did the thought of her with someone else. His reaction pleased her immensely and made her flush with an unexpected heat.

Keeping her smile in check, she took his wallet and studied the pictures, which from the poses and generic backdrops looked like school portraits, more closely. The worn edges made them look like he’d carried them with him for years.

“How old are they?”

“Caden is thirteen and Emily is eleven.”

She pictured him with a baby on his shoulder, rocking it to sleep and changing a diaper. It wasn’t a giant leap for her imagination. She could also see him coaching his son’s baseball team and teaching his daughter how to ride a bike.

“You’ve gone quiet. Is this a problem?”

“Oh no,” she said, giving his wallet back. “Kids are great. I was just picturing you as a dad. It’s sweet.”

“There’s that fucking word.”

“With a dash of salt. You say the F-word a lot. Not around those two, I hope.”

“I tone it down around the kids.”

“Austin is a bit of a drive. Do you get to see them often?”

“Not nearly as much as I’d like. One weekend a month, alternating Christmas and Thanksgiving holidays every other year, and a week during the summer doesn’t cut it,” Dan replied with a hint of sadness in his voice.

“I’m so sorry, Dan.” Bella understood the loss of a parent, and the separation from her father during her formative years. She didn’t know why, just that he wasn’t there. His kids must be feeling something similar, and she could only imagine how hard it was for him.

Dan shrugged. “It’s the best deal I could negotiate considering...”

“Considering what?” Bella prompted.

“My lifestyle. Allison, my ex, wasn’t into it and threatened to use it against me. I’m not embarrassed by it, and, if it was just me, I wouldn’t care. But I didn’t want to put my kids through it or risk losing visitation altogether.”

“How awful for you.” Bella’s anger on his behalf crept into her voice. “No wonder you never remarried.”

“My ex being a vindictive bi— Uh, she isn’t the reason I’m still single. The pool of prospects narrows as you get older. It gets even smaller when your lifestyle isn’t exactly mainstream. That’s why I joined the club, but, even there, my preferred kink is a niche within a niche.”

“What if you met the right woman and remarried? Would you have more kids?” Heat crept into her cheeks immediately. The question was too much and too soon, but Dan answered, not seeming to mind.

“You’re young. I understand you would wonder about the forty-two-year-old man you’re seeing. The answer is yes, with the right woman I’d do it again. I was away a lot during the baby years and missed out on so much. I’d rather not be like that actor who’s on wife number two or three and pumping out a bazillion kids in his sixties.” Dan looked away, frowning. “I can’t recall his name. It’s on the tip of my tongue.”

Bella shrugged, unable to help. She couldn’t recall the last time she’d been to a movie and didn’t have any interest in or time for TV.

“It isn’t important. My point is if I started a second family, fifty would be my baby-making cut off,” Dan revealed.

Not that he’d asked her. But eight years was plenty of time for a wedding and two kids. That was her limit, and a lot fewer than a bazillion.

“Along those lines, sort of, condoms. At the club, they’re required. It’s a rule that, if broken, can get you kicked out permanently. When we’re elsewhere,” he explained, his voice deepening, “I’d rather feel everything, baby.”

“I don’t have a doctor or insurance until the first of the month,” Bella admitted.

Dan grunted, clearly unhappy with this news. “That’s still two weeks away, but it’s a light at the end of the rubber tunnel. I’ll survive.”

Bella tried to suppress a giggle, but “rubber tunnel” got to her, and she couldn’t help but laugh.

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