The three young women rose from their table and headed toward the exit, leaving their trash behind.
James wanted to yell at them. Seriously! How hard would it have been to stop by the trash to throw their cups and napkins away. Instead, James grabbed a towel from the sink and headed to the front of the store.
He cleaned up the table the women had been at before walking around and straightening chairs and checking on the customers that were still there. Slowly, he made his way toward the back corner.
Josh was still sipping from his cup as he read the book that had brought so much attention to him.
His friend looked up as James approached.
“You good?” James asked. “Need anything?”
Josh shook his head before his gaze went behind James toward the counter and back to him. “Are things going to be weird between us now?”
“Weird?” Since they weren’t busy at the moment, James pulled out one of the spare chairs and sat across from Josh.
“Because of this.” Josh waved the book that he still held.
“My older brother is a little,” James confessed. “I’m familiar with the dynamic.”
“Huh,” Josh grunted. “I didn’t know that.”
James shrugged. “It’s not something he advertises. He gets enough shit having two partners.”
“I can see why that would be hard.” Josh grinned. “But I’m glad it doesn’t freak you out.”
James shouldn’t ask. He really shouldn’t. Leaning forward, James made sure that he kept his voice low. “But you are a Daddy?”
Slowly, Josh closed the book and set it down on the table in front of him. He didn’t look away when he answered, “Yes.”
James nodded. “That’s cool.” It was on the tip of his tongue to admit to playing superhero earlier. Nah. That had been a one-time thing. James wasn’t a little. “Do you have a little?”
Josh’s gaze flicked to the counter and back. “No, I never have.”
“Really?” James scooted to the edge of his chair. “But you’re sure that you’re…” He waved his hand.
Josh laughed. “Yeah. Two of my teammates were in a Daddy and little relationship. They never hid it from us. I have another friend, Maverick, from my second team that just found his little. I’m sort of surrounded by the dynamic.”
James knew just how that felt.
“I first started to explore this side of myself in clubs,” Josh explained. “I wasn’t sure what kind of Daddy I wanted to be, so it was good to get some experience under my belt before I started to look for a partner.”
That was interesting. Not that James had the time or money to join a club. “I wasn’t aware that there was more than one kind of D…Daddy,” he confessed.
Josh nodded. It appeared that he was taking this conversation seriously, which James appreciated. Normally James would never be so bold, but if Josh was willing to answerJames’s questions, then James would take advantage of this moment. Maybe Luca’s nosiness finally came in handy.
“Finn, my brother’s Daddy, is kind of stern. His other partner, Jackson, isn’t a little but I’m not sure that he isn’t submissive. At least for Finn.”
“It’s possible that Finn fulfills something different for each of them,” Josh offered.
“Maybe. I don’t know.”
“I’m sure they would answer your questions if you asked,” Josh said.
James reared back. “Oh! I have no doubt that Jackson would tell me way more than I wanted to know. Michael would probably stammer and blush. No, I’m good. I don’t need to know more than I already do.”
“That’s fine too,” Josh told him. “I’m not a stern Daddy. I’m more of a caregiver.”
“Caregiver,” James repeated. He had no idea what that meant.
