Competing for the Dominant

Twenty-Two

"Why are you with me?" Daniel looked up, his mouth open.

"What?" He laughed a little, "What do you mean? What brought this about?"

"I don't know. Someone mentioned that maybe I wasn't the right person for you and I got to thinking about it and I don't know. Maybe they were right. I don't exactly fit in with this kind of crowd,"

"Who in the fuck said that? It doesn't matter. Whatever they said doesn't matter because the only thing you should know and remember is that I don't care where you're from, who you were before, or any of that. I'm not with you because of who your family is or was. I'm with you because of who you are now and I love you for that,"

We seemed to freeze as we both realized what he said. Daniel frowned for a second before nodding and smiling, "Yes. Yes, I love you, Quinn. I guess taking care of you and living with you has really made me think about it and I love you, Quinn," he was smiling until he seemed to notice my facial expression, "What's wrong,"

He reached for my hand, but I yanked it away, standing up, "I'm going to go take a breather. Okay? I'll, uh, be right back,"

I didn't even wait for a reply.

I found a closet and hid in it. My heart was moving a hundred miles an hour. To relax, I focused on things around me. The first thing that caught my attention was how big the closet was. It could've easily fit three people no problem.

I sat in the darkness, trying to calm down until a knock sounded a few minutes later.

"Please, go away!"

"Well, I personally don't think that's a nice way to talk to an old lady but I'll let it slide this time dear. You're obviously under a lot of stress,"

I opened the door and Daniel's mother was standing there with a box of tissues.

"I wasn't sure if you were going to need these but I brought them anyway." She slid into the closet and flipped the light on and shut the door.

"Now, tell me what's up, buttercup," I gave her a confused look and she grinned, "Used to say that to Daniel all the time. Now you can make fun of him for it,"

"Um, Daniel told me he loved me,"

Edna snorted, "Well, it's about time. So, why are we hiding in a closet exactly?"

I stared at her, "Because . . ." And staring at her, I realized I wasn't sure why, "Because I panicked. I don't know why I panicked,"

"Listen, dear. I've known Daniel his entire life. I've only known you personally for the course of two or three months. But I can assure you that you, whether you wish to admit it or not, are in love with Daniel as much as he is in love with you. Now, don't argue because a mother knows her child and he's happy,"

"You're okay with your son being gay and dating . . . a tramp,"

She chuckled, "A tramp? Really? Is that how you see yourself? Personally, I see a young man who has lost his way and is only just finding it again and if that means making my son happy, why should I care. You should hear the way he talks to you. You know, when you were in the hospital, we came to visit on the first day and I'll be honest, I have never seen Danny so distraught. It looked like someone had torn his heart out.

As for him being gay, he came out to me when he was twenty-two. I'd known since he was fifteen when he told me Jude Law was the still hottest man alive and not George Clooney as People magazine had labeled him. I don't agree with him, because everyone knows Tom Selleck is the hottest man alive, but anyway,"

I stared at her in shock and she smiled at me, "Take a tissue dear," I did.

"Can I . . . I mean. May I have a hug?"

"Oh, dear! You're going to make me cry. Of course, you can have a hug!"

She wrapped her arms around me and despite her small size, she squeezed the breath out of me and I cried. I wasn't ashamed to be vulnerable to this woman.

"Oh goodness. Okay, I'm going to rejoin my guests and you can stay in the closet for as long as you need and when you're ready to come out, Daniel and the rest of us will all be happy to have you,"

I took a shaky breath and nodded. She shut off the light and closed the door behind her. I'm not sure how long I sat in there for, but I finally decided it was a good idea to go back. I needed to find Daniel anyhow.

I found Daniel on the porch swing, smoking with his eyes closed.

"This seat taken?" I muttered and Daniel's eyes shot open. He immediately put the cigarette out and stood up.

"Hi. Hey, how are you feeling? Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean—"

I cut him off by wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling him down into a kiss. He wrapped his arms around my torso and lifted me off the ground.

"Don't be sorry," I breathed and kissed him again, "I don't know if I love you yet, but I do know that I have very strong feelings for you and maybe it is love, but I don't feel confident to say it just yet," I looked past him to his mom who raised her glass and winked at me.

"That's fine, Kuma. That's okay. Listen, I was going to wait until later, but I have to ask you a question,"

"You aren't going to ask me to marry you, are you?"

Daniel smiled and shook his head, "No. not yet, anyway. Maybe in the future. What I was going to ask is: Will you move in with me? Permanently. Your lease is up this month and most of your stuff in at my house anyway. Whatever you don't want, we can sell in like a garage sale or something,"

"I—Yeah. I guess I can move in with you. Like you said, my lease is almost up anyway. Better to live with you than back on the streets,"

Daniel pulled me into a searing kiss that left me a little lightheaded, "You are never living on the streets again if I can help it," he whispered and kissed me again.

Hey guys! Don't mind my crying in the background because we only have ONE chapter left! I cannot believe this book is done. I remember in February when I was just getting started and I'm really having a hard time believing that it's only been five months since this book started.

In other, much more exciting news, I had to contact my academic advisor about switching semesters and she was able to get me all online classes this semester, so I could still go to school. I have no words for how happy I am right now. Like, guys! I can still go to school!

This obviously doesn't mean I will have the same opportunity in the spring, but for now, I can still go to school. I wish you guys could have seen the smile on my face when she told me she could get all online classes.

In other good news, I have a release date for Saved by the Dominant! As of now, SBTD will be released on September 7th. It's the first Monday of the month as per usual. Speaking of SBTD, I have the synopsis finally done. Over the next month or two, it may change, but for now, I'm pretty happy with the way it came out.

Zade is the last of his friends to be single. He's tried, and failed, for six years to find the right Dom. Zade is ready to give up and accept his fate when Morgan Finley comes to town and seemingly has eyes for Zade only.

But Zade's had his heart broken in the past and he's not sure if this new guy is for real or if it's just his imagination.

I think that's all the news I have for this week. So, I will see you guys next week with the last chapter!

Stay safe and have a great week!