“Yeah, I do.” Jack didn’t even wait for me to finish my question. “I’m not sure if he’s little, but he’s definitely a boy in need of someone to help him. Maybe there’s a reason your paths crossed. Maybe you’re supposed to help one another.”
“I wouldn’t be any good for him,” I scoffed. “He shouldn’t be someone’s secret, and you know as well as I do, there’s no way I could introduce him to Stephen and the rest of the guys.”
“Stephen might surprise you.” Jack only knew him in passing, but the two of them got along whenever they spoke. “And if you’re happy, I have a feeling he’d have your back no matter what.”
I didn’t tell him Stephen had alluded otherwise earlier today. A lot of people didn’t understand what Stephen’s life was like, or how his loyalty was tested on an ongoing basis. Sometimes, I felt like he resented the direction the club was going but felt helpless to do anything about it.
The door opened and Slade didn’t acknowledge me on his way to Jack’s lap. He curled against Jack’s chest and whispered something in his ear. Jack chuckled, then swatted him on the ass.
“Apparently, the boys want to move the party to the basement.” Jack stood and stared down at me. “Think about what I said, okay?”
“I’ll think about it,” I promised. Thinking was probably the only thing I’d be able to do. I’d think about it while cataloging every smile and laugh. I’d wonder about him when I went to bed tonight. I’d imagine him as I jerked off in the morning, just like I did almost every day.
Everyone was lining up to get their food when I got back inside. And just my luck, Maverick was at the end of the line. He turned and offered me a friendly, if somewhat half-hearted, smile. My fingers twitched with the urge to reach around him and put his plate together the way the Daddies were for their boys.
But I didn’t because he wasn’t my boy. He wasn’t my anything. He was just some guy who eagerly got on his knees for me one time last year.
“I’m sorry about earlier,” he apologized without looking at me.
“You have nothing to apologize for, sweetheart,” I assured him.
“I should have looked where I was going,” he explained.
“It’s fine.” I took a chance and ran my hand down his arm. He shivered, then tensed. “I’m the one who should apologize. I didn’t react well, and I think some wires got crossed. Will you let me explain?”
“Yeah. Sure.” He shrugged, grabbed his plate, and our exchange ended as both of us grabbed something to eat.
I didn’t take much because my appetite was MIA. I followed him to the basement, frowning when I realized he was barefoot. It was chilly down here and I could see the goosebumps on his skin.
Take a chance.I could almost hear Jack encouraging me from across the room. Our eyes met for a few seconds and he gave me a quick nod.
I sucked in a deep breath. This felt like diving into the deep end when I didn’t know how to swim. Maverick startled when I grabbed his plate. “Why don’t you go put on something a little warmer and some socks? If you’re going to play down here, you’re going to get cold.”
“I’m fine,” he insisted.
“I can see you shivering from here,” I pointed out. “I’ll put your plate by the other boys.”
“O-okay,” he stammered. I patted his hip and he bit back a groan.
Good. He reacted to me like I did to him. Maybe this would be okay. I still had no fucking clue what I was doing, but we were going to see.
“The sooner you do what you were told, the sooner you’ll be back with your friends,” I reminded him, giving him a gentle push toward where the rest of the boys were eating.
I set down his plate and he flashed me a nervous smile before bounding up the stairs. I joined Jack and the other guys at the home bar in one corner of the room. As I slid onto a stool, Jack flashed me a knowing smile.
“Didn’t realize you had it in you,” he teased. I flipped him off. “I’m serious. You know about us, but suddenly, I feel like you’re an enigma. Would’ve never pegged you as a Daddy, too.”
“Yeah, well that makes two of us,” I scoffed. I still wasn’t confident I was, but guiding Maverick felt right in that moment. And there was a chance he’d come to his senses while he was upstairs and storm across the basement to tell me to fuck off for being presumptuous.
“You don’t have to have all the answers right away,” William told me. He was another of the managers, and also organized most of the educational events at the club. “If it feels right, test the waters. Just make sure you talk to him sooner rather than later. You don’t want there to be any confusion as to what each of you wants.”
“It’s way too damn soon to even think about shit like that,” I argued. That was only our third interaction ever—if you included him manipulating me into giving him a tour of the club so he could seduce me. It wasn’t as if I’d been an unwilling participant, but I didn’t, for a second, believe he hadn’t at least wanted something to happen when he made the request.
“You’d be surprised how quick shit can blossom.” William and Jack both gazed across the room to their boys. Theron crouched beside Sam, giving all of the boy’s cups of juice. I wondered if Maverick would feel left outnothaving a kiddy cup. Or maybe he’d feel a kinship with Slade, who hung back slightly, watching over the boys the way he always did.
It was strange to see how this found family worked together. It didn’t feel like role play, and it felt as normal as anything for the littles to regress, for Slade to take the role of protector, and for the men around me to dote on their boys the way any good Daddy would.
“What are we talking about over here? You all look far too serious,” Theron quipped when he joined us.
