"Of course. Make yourself at home."
I went to the sink and cranked on the faucet. Apparently, I turned it a little too aggressively because hot water sprayed everywhere, soaking the front of my shirt and splashing up onto my face. "Shit!" I jumped back with water dripping down my chest.
Without thinking, I grabbed the hem of my wet shirt and pulled it over my head. As soon as it was off, I remembered what I was wearing underneath and wanted to die.
For some reason, I decided to put on my choo-choo train onesie underneath my Wildflower Honey polo shirt. Of course, he couldn’t see the snaps across the crotch but there was no mistaking what it was and why I might be wearing it.
I froze with my wet shirt clutched in my hands, wishing I was almost anywhere in the world except Patrick's kitchen in my Little clothes.
Patrick appeared with a towel, but he stopped moving when he got a good look at me. His eyes traveled down to the onesie and then back up to my face.
I wanted to melt into the floor and somehow rewind time to before I pulled off my shirt and completely humiliated myself. "I can explain." My voice came out shaky, and I was afraid my eyes might tear up too. “Um, it’s just that…”
Patrick closed the distance between us and gently draped the towel over my shoulders. He used the edges to dab at the water on my face and neck as he carefully watched me. "Are you a Little, Allen?"
I bit my lip and looked down at my feet, unable to meet his stare as I nodded.
Patrick dropped the towel and pulled me into a hug without any hesitation. His arms wrapped around me and held me close, with one hand cradling the back of my head. "Thank you for sharing that with me, sweet boy." His warm breath brushed against my ear. "You're safe with me. I promise."
Something in my chest cracked open, and I pressed my face into his shoulder. For the first time in a long time, I let myself be really held by someone who was basically a stranger to me. “I know.”
"We have a lot more in common than I thought because I'm a Daddy Dom." Patrick’s voice was low and soothing as he rubbed my back. "If you'll let me try, I'd like to try to be what you need."
I pulled back enough to look up at him. "You're actually a Daddy? Not just hot like one but in the kinky sense too?"
He chuckled and brushed a strand of damp hair away from my forehead. "In the kinky sense too. And I have to admit, I had my suspicions. Buying milk was a pretty big clue."
I took a deep breath and pulled back. "I should have told you before. At the bar. But I..."
"Hey." His finger slid under my chin and tipped it up gently. "You don't owe me explanations. We barely knew each other. But now that we’ve spent a little more time together, I'm happy to know this part of you."
My throat felt tight as I asked the question that I wasn’t sure I wanted the answer to. "You're not weirded out by the onesie?"
"Not even a tiny bit." Patrick smiled and ran his thumb along my jaw. "I think it's adorable. You're perfect."
I wanted to believe him and to let myself sink into the warmth of his acceptance. But so many past bad experiences and misunderstandings made it hard to completely trust him.
Patrick must have seen something in my expression because he stepped back and cleared his throat. "Let me find you a dry shirt. Don’t want you to catch a cold before our date."
He disappeared down the hall and came back a minute later with a light gray t-shirt. The Sweetie Pies logo was printed across the front in bright letters. "Let’s try this. It should fit okay."
I took it and pulled it over my onesie. It was soft and smelled like Patrick. “Thank you. It’s great.”
He grabbed a small cooler from under the sink and started filling it with ice packs. "Let me get your milk ready for the drive home."
He pulled two bottles from the fridge and nestled them carefully in the cooler. Watching him handle the precious liquid that came from his body made my tummy flutter. "Actually," Patrick looked at me as he closed the cooler lid, "why don't I drive you home? Make sure you get there safely with everything."
I wanted to tear up at the thoughtful suggestion, but I had a lot to do and he needed to get back to his bakery. "That’s really nice, but I'm okay to drive. I promise."
He studied me for a moment then nodded. "Alright, if you’re sure. But let me at least get you some cookies for the road. They also go great with milk."
"I’m not gonna argue with that.” Even upstairs, I could smell all the delicious pastries that were baking.
Patrick led me back downstairs to the bakery.
When we walked in, Mia raised her eyebrows at my new shirt, but she didn't say anything.
Patrick went behind the counter to pull out a brown butter honey cookie and handed it to me in wax paper. "Try this. Fresh from the oven less than an hour ago."
