His eyebrows shot up. “I wouldn’t take rewards from you unless I had a very good reason.”
“What if I said I couldn’t look for someone? What then?”
He stared at me until my insides wriggled all around. “I’m sorry I gave you the wrong idea. I meant it… more as a motivator. There are things I would take away from you for not listening to me, but I wouldn’t wreck an entire evening for you.”
I pushed my plate away. “You don’t think I’ve thought of this? Help is expensive.”
“Three hundred a week should work to start. Use that as your budget.”
“Casey, I can’t take your money.”
He swiped his hand over his scruff. “Let’s not worry about that for the time being.”
“So, I have to do homework before we have a date?”
He nodded. “And if you pout, there won’t be pizza tonight.”
I… did not pout at him. I bit at the inside of my lip to be sure. His mouth twitched like he was trying to hold in a grin. “But I don’t want to talk to people. Let’s just eat popcorn! TV nights need popcorn. And you don’t have to watchThe Nightmare Before Christmas. You can pick the movie.”
He leaned his head back and chuckled. “You can’t just have popcorn for dinner.”
I stuck my bottom lip out at him on purpose and was surprised at how this was fun in spite of our heavy conversation.
“What are you getting out of this?” I asked, all at once concerned again. “I mean, you’re being really great. Is the stuff you’re into… the controlling stuff, super horrible?” Our conversation from last night distracted me from the excitement of the moment. The scariest part of it all was that if he actually did the good things he said he would, I might let him do nearly anything else he wanted to me. The idea of having someone to help with Dad was so tantalizing.
“You’ll find out eventually.” He smirked, and my anxiety went haywire. I took a deep breath that didn’t help calm my nerves.
“That’s the wrong type of thing to say to me.” I wasn’t sure how to tell him why what he’d done was bad, but maybe he’d guessed because he rested his hand on the table, palm up. I slid mine into it.
Casey leaned forward. “Do your homework, or maybe before you get to have your movie night, you’ll get a teeny punishment.” His eyes heated as he stared at me, and I felt myself reacting to it, my groin tingling. I spread my legs to give myself room.
“You would hurt me?”
“Not in any permanent way.” He glided his fingers over my cast. “And you don’t have to be afraid that I would hurt your arm or anything else of that nature that might be going through your head. If taking things away from you is a limit, that’s fine. I won’t use that as a way to handle discipline.”
“Okay, I’m still not sure I like the punishment part.”
“Then you better do as you’re told. But you’re such a good boy, I can tell. I wouldn’t expect anything else from you.”
I had no idea what the hell he was talking about, though I was starting to get the picture. My cheeks burned and I couldn’t make myself say anything. I kicked at his foot under the table. “Tell me. I can’t stand not knowing.”
He took my hand between both of his, and I hated the way the amusement died in his eyes as he let out a deep sigh.
“I’d like to have a middle. Do you know what that is?”
I racked my brain for every kinky thing I’d ever heard about or read about or seen in porn, but came up blank. “Uh, nope?”
“I have the need to take care of someone.”
“Control them. That’s what you were getting at last night?” Tiny trembles streaked through me. I’d worried about what his endgame was then, but I couldn’t stop thinking about how he’d jerked me off, how strong he was, and how he’d dealt with Dad for me last night. My wood that hadn’t quite settled down perked in my pants.
“In some ways. I won’t ask you to do something I think you can’t and then punish you.”
“Why does there have to be a punishment?” I asked and hated the way my voice wavered.
The grin he gave me reminded me of a wolf, and it was dizzying how fast I popped to full-mast. I gasped, embarrassed, and wished for his coat to hide in again.
“Because I want to be able to discipline you when you need it. I want to put you over my lap if you earn it—in bad and good ways. You liked being there last night, didn’t you? There are so many things we could do together, boy. Mostly I want to take care of you.”
