Page 30 of Soothe Me, Daddy
Isaac’s smile dimmed a little, but he held it as he turned to face Leon. “Just seeing how much fun they’re having out there,” he answered, thumbing over his shoulder.
There was nothing wrong with Leon per se, but Isaac hadn’t taken to him like he had the other execs. It didn’t mean Leon was awful. Isaac felt there was somethingoffabout him. Nobody else had mentioned anything, so he’d ignored his feelings and tried to get to know the man better.
“You can tell right off that Henley’s gay,” Leon said, gaze riveted on the group. “He certainly doesn’t hide it, does he?”
Isaac bristled. “Why does he need to?”
Leon must have noticed the tension or tone because he immediately backtracked. “No, of course, he doesn’t. I meant—”
“You meant to keep your nose out of his business. That’s good to know,” Isaac smoothly interrupted.
“Yes, of course.” Leon swallowed and scooted back, leaving more of a gap between them. His gaze kept flicking between Isaac and the group on the dancefloor, but Isaac couldn’t interpret what his expression said.
He jumped when a more-than-slightly inebriated Sierra fell into his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Isaac! Do you wanna come and dance? The music’s fantastic!”
“No. You go have fun, though. I’m enjoying watching you all.”
“Okay! Watch me!”
Isaac did watch as she careened towards the group, and Henley caught her with a laugh. He spoke to her for a moment, wrapped his arm around her shoulder and started moving with the beat once more. Their eyes met briefly, and Isaac nodded to him, hoping Henley would understand he was proud of him for taking care of her.
“Hey, Isaac!” Jo called over to him. “We’re going to grab something to eat from the Chinese restaurant down the road after this. Do you fancy coming with us?”
“Who’s us?” Isaac asked. As he was the designated driver, if any of the people he had driven had agreed, he would naturally go as well.
“Me, Trish, Blake, Leon and Maddie. I hadn’t asked the ones you drove in case you needed to get home.”
The thoughtfulness made him smile. That was Jo, always thinking about others. She would make a good Mummy to a little. “I’m happy for you to ask them, although I think my passengers are worn out.” He chuckled as he saw Sierra and Frankie leaning against each other, and Henley with his arms around both of their shoulders.
Jo laughed. “Yeah, possibly. I’ll give them the option, though. Is that okay?”
“Of course, it is.”
Jo wandered off to the dancefloor, and Isaac watched the animated conversation. He had a feeling Sierra would want to go, but Frankie and Henley appeared to have had enough. Sierra was completely off her face, so he didn’t think it wise. Jo strode back to him.
“Sierra wanted to stay, but I persuaded her to go home instead. She’s wasted. And Frankie and Henley were happy to go home.”
“Thanks, Jo. We’ll bow out this time. But next time you decide to, we’ll be there.”
“Alright. Do you need any help getting them into the car?”
“No, don’t worry. Henley hasn’t been drinking, so he’ll help me.”
“Yeah, what’s up with that? Last time, he was sozzled.” Leon chuckled.
Isaac assumed it was an attempt at a joke. “Henley doesn’t need to drink to have a good time, unlike some people,” Isaac all but snarled at him. He could see Leon was on his way to the land of unpleasant mornings. Maybe that was the cause for his words earlier.
Leon stared at Isaac, making him second-guess his opinion of how drunk he was until Leon giggled like a small child. Isaac shook his head and ignored him. When he turned back to the dancefloor, he saw the group walking towards him, or rather Henley and Frankie holding Sierra between them. Isaac stood quickly.
“We’ll say goodbye now, folks,” Isaac called to the rest of the group. “Thanks for the great night. We’ll see you soon, or in two weeks, depending on how busy we all are.” He waved.
“Night, guys and gals,” Henley added.
“Let’s get these two to the car.” Isaac pointed at Sierra and Frankie, and they each took one woman. Frankie was less drunk but not by much. Isaac heard her jabbering away to Henley, and Henley softly answering her, but the music was too loud for him to hear what was said. When they exited the bar, Isaac’s ears were ringing.
He led the way to his car and helped Sierra sit in the back seat, buckling her in tight. Henley did the same with Frankie, and they both got in the front.
“Well, that was an interesting night.” Henley laughed.
