AllFreeNovel
Share Us
There was — to Rainer’s surprise — a resounding cheer from the room. Thank goodness for the men of the Drifters. They were good people, not criminals. That’s where the heart of the MC lay.
“You know, I think Dog wants me to stand up here and lie. He wants me to say: the Drifters is more important to me than my Little will ever be. He wants me to say: I’d betray Esme for the good of the club. But I won’t do it. Because for me, being a Drifter is about being committed to your Little, toallLittles. And that’s what I am. I’m a Drifter.”
This time, people were up on their feet, stamping and clapping, whooping and hollering. Dog, on the other hand, was looking down at his phone, a look of strange calm on his face.
*
“My belly feels like a popcorn machine.” Esme lay on the couch, with one hand on her tummy, groaning as her gut gurgled and bubbled.
“My belly feels like a casserole pot,” Sophia replied.
“We ate too much.”
“We’re the worst.”
“Look at Om Baby,” Esme grunted. “She’s so perfect. So slim and limber, no matter how much food she eats.”
“Stuffies have a rough deal, though,” Sophia said. “No tastebuds. And also, they’ve got no bottoms, which makes things uncomfortable.”
“Ewwwww!” Esme said, giggling away despite herself.
“It’s true. Us stuffie-makers never stitch on butts. Or front butts.”
Her Daddy had been away for a couple hours. She’d received a message from him to say that he won the vote. She was super happy for him and was planning a big surprise for when he got back, but she understood that he was going to be out for a while. He needed space to celebrate and just be with the guys, just like she needed space to be Little with friends from time to time.
“Hey,” Sophia said. “You’re thinking about your Daddy, aren’t you?”
“I’m just… so proud of him.”
Sophia gave her a sweet smile. “You’re a real cute pudding, you know that? When we first met, I was kinda intimidated by you.”
“You weren’t!”
“Uh-huh. You seemed so spiritual and cool and in touch with all this funky, witchy stuff.”
“Now you just see me for the dweeb I am?”
“No, silly! You’re still way too cool for me. But it’s been nice to get to know therealyou, too. The vulnerable you.”
Vulnerable. It was true. She was vulnerable. But maybe she was vulnerable for the right reasons. Maybe she wasn’t ready to be taken advantage of, maybe she’d just opened herself up to love, and to success. And that needed vulnerability.
Just then, Esme’s phone chimed. She picked it up and checked it. Hmm, a voice message. She clicked play, and her Daddy’s voice rung out.
“The Drifters is more important to me than my Little will ever be.”
She played it again, trying to convince herself it wasn’t real. Then, a moment later, another message came through. Another recording.
“I’d betray Esme for the good of the club.”
She felt the blood drain away from her cheeks.
“Esme, are you okay?”
“No. I don’t think I am.”
It had to be a trick. Or taken out of context. Her Daddy would never say that about her, would he?
“I’m sure he didn’t mean it,” said Sophia, but her voice was full of uncertainty.
