Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 103033 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 515(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 343(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103033 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 515(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 343(@300wpm)
What I believed would make me happy today was a triad much like the one Colt had with Kit and Luke, and then we’d have a few play partners we all agreed to have extra fun with from time to time. Together.
“I’ve had one or the other in the past, but never combined,” I continued. “That’s just me, though. You gotta be flexible as it is with a single partner, make sure as many needs as possible are met, and then you add another man…?” I grinned as he chuckled. “In the end, it boils down to chemistry. Time will tell what the best dynamic will look like—what fits us best. Neither of us can know precisely what we want beforehand. But I can tell you one thing right now…” I lifted a brow and pointed my knife at him, and he cracked up—exactly the reaction I wanted. He wasn’t that much of a scaredy-cat.
“I like it when you’re being silly,” he laughed. “Okay, I’m listening—what were you gonna say?”
I smiled and lowered the knife again. “Just that I don’t want us to be casual. I would like to go all in from the beginning with both kink and dating, and then we’ll work things out together as they come. How does that sound?”
He grinned and rested his chin in his hand. “Will you believe me if I say all that sounds perfect to me?”
“Every little thing I said?” I asked to make sure.
“I mean…” He sat up straighter, thinking about his response. “Yeah. Because I can’t think of a better way to explore dirty group play than with someone I belong to. And the last part is the most important to me. Playtime and events will come and go. The one—or two—I share my life with will hopefully put up with me for longer.”
Put up with him.
“I’ll do my best to put up with you,” I drawled. “For the record, that kind of talk will get you punished in the future. I’ll be patient because of your past—that goes without saying—but we’ll be working together to dig your self-esteem out from the ground.”
We were also going to talk endlessly about limits and appropriate approaches to infractions, though that could come later. I wanted to ease into things. I couldn’t get to know him properly if we had lists of protocol encasing his behavior.
“I’ll do my best, I promise.” He didn’t look too certain anymore, though.
“Remember what I said about patience earlier, sweetheart,” I murmured. “I have my beginning now. Now we can take it easy and do what feels natural. My number one priority is to earn your complete trust and to see you relax and be the boy you wanna be.”
That seemed to put him at ease, but it was a reminder to me—and one I needed. His trauma had conditioned him to be quiet and not to step on any toes. The result could be him agreeing to things he wasn’t ready for, so we both had to be mindful.
When the pot was on the stove, set to low heat, I figured it was time to rip off the Band-Aid. Armed with coffee and lemonade, I ushered Gael into the living room so we could talk about Caleb.
I also made a mental note to pick up Little-friendly snacks. I’d glimpsed juice boxes, milk, and Sprite Zero in Gael’s fridge earlier today, and I only had the milk. And the lemonade that expired in two days. Giving up TV dinners and filling my fridge with fresh foods was only the beginning of my plan to step it up.
“Can I ask something?” Gael asked.
“Always.” I sat down on the couch and left our beverages on the coffee table.
“Does Dean play with Walker too?”
I chuckled under my breath. “I’m not surprised you’re curious. Not many know this, so it’s Dean’s story to share, but you can say they have a past that dates back from before Walker and Macklin met.” I wasn’t one to judge either way, but considering Dean and Walker weren’t actually related, I didn’t see the taboo factor that some might. “I think whatever is happening between the three of them now, Macklin included, is very new.”
“I see! I hope I get to see them one day,” he admitted with a sheepish grin. Always with the sheepishness. It was cute as fuck. Then he yawned and sat a little closer to me, and he took a big gulp of his lemonade.
“You tired, little one?” I combed my fingers through his hair.
“Yeah.” He let out a breath and set down his glass before leaning back and getting comfortable. “I woke up at three this morning, so I started cleaning.”
I furrowed my brow. “That’s not good. You need your sleep.”
He shrugged and leaned against me. “It’s all this Caleb crap. I get restless when I don’t know where he is.”