Like the Seasons

by Tymber Dalton

  “Dad, what are you—”

  “I’m going to change my ticket on Sunday, give it to you, and you’ll fly home with Caleb. We’re going pack your apartment, and I’ll drive the moving truck to Florida. Won’t take Caleb and me more than a weekend to pack. You don’t have a lot.”

  “But—”

  “No. I’m not arguing with you. We’ve already decided it. This is what will happen.”

  She looked like she wanted to do just that when she slumped, defeated, and started crying. “Could my life get any crazier?”

  “Yeah, a little.”

  “How?”

  “Because of who tried to run you over.”

  She met his gaze. “It was Rick, wasn’t it? That motherfucker. I’m going to kill him.”

  “You won’t have to.”

  Her eyes widened as his meaning finally hit home. “What?”

  “The cops need to talk to you. Let me call the officer back in. I already told him the backstory.”

  “But…dead? How?”

  “They think he wasn’t wearing a seat belt when he crashed and he sustained a severe head injury in the wreck. He was also probably very drunk.”

  She stared at the ceiling as she wiped away tears. “Holy fuck,” she whispered.

  “Yeah. So.” He waited until she once again met his gaze. “You can’t live alone right now anyway. You can’t work, so that’s settled, regardless. We good? Any other objections I need to deal with, or are you going to let us take care of you?”

  She nodded, which he took as agreement.

  He had the officer come in and talk to her. Once they were alone again, Boyd pulled a chair close to her bed and put the side-rail down so he could hold her hand. “I know this sucks, but this could have been so much worse.”

  “I know.”

  “You’re going to love Caleb. He can’t wait to meet you.”

  “He sounds like a great guy.”

  Boyd smiled. “Your step-dad.”

  It finally pulled a tired smile from her. “I like calling you ‘Dad,’ but I’m not calling him ‘Daddy.’”

  Boyd’s mind flashed to Tim and Paul and their dynamic, and how Caleb had started using the title for him, too, and he embraced the evil.

  “Yeeeaaah, considering Caleb sometimes calls me that, I don’t think that’s an option.” He smiled.

  Her mouth gaped, eyes wide, before she howled with laughter.

  Chapter Twelve

  Caleb fought the urge to bounce in his seat like a kid as the plane made its final approach to Portland. This week had sucked, and their family leisure weekend had turned into a work weekend.

  Worth it.

  Totally.

  He’d even driven Boyd’s car to the airport at the man’s suggestion because it was larger and would be more comfortable for Ella to ride home in. Caleb couldn’t wait to turn his phone on when they landed, to find out where Boyd awaited him, to find out if Ella had been discharged yet.

  To see if the baby was okay.

  Yes, his life had taken a seismic shift. The plans he and Boyd originally thought would happen had changed, and changed again now.

  He didn’t care.

  They had a family—a good, loving, accepting family, not the Dumpster hellfire he’d grown up in. And he still hadn’t heard anything from his family, which he was beginning to look at as a total win.

  As soon as the plane finally touched down, he switched his phone on and stared at it, awaiting his text messages. It was the last one he was most interested in.

  Waiting just outside security area. Love you.

  He quickly texted him back.

  On ground, see you soon. Love you, Sir.

  Boyd loved him for who he was. Despite what others might think were strict demands on him in some ways, they were all demands Caleb felt perfectly fine with. He loved being Boyd’s slave, because he loved Boyd.

  He never thought he wasn’t “enough” for Boyd. Boyd wasn’t constantly trying to change him or remake him.

  He’d felt far more freedom as Boyd’s slave than he ever had while growing up, or even after moving out of his parents’ home.

  Being seated near the middle of the cabin, Caleb had to wait what felt like forever before he could get out, grab his carryons, and head for the door. On the jetway, he wanted to stampede over a couple of slowpokes who were in his way.

  At least he hadn’t checked any bags. After the developments of last night, he’d left everything except his tablet behind and used his carryons for what he’d need that weekend. That way, Ella could check a bag in his name for the flight back to Florida on Sunday.

  Following the signs, he found his way out to the main terminal, and there stood Boyd, leaning against a column. He practically threw himself at the man, relishing his embrace, in no hurry to move after a week apart.

  “Hello, boy,” Boyd whispered against the top of his head. “I missed you so much.”

  He squeezed Boyd tighter. “I missed you, too, Daddy,” he whispered. He deeply inhaled, comforted to have the man back in his arms.

  “Any checked bags?”

  “No, Sir.”

  Boyd patted his back and Caleb finally looked up into his smiling face. “Let’s go out to the car.” He leaned in for a quick, public-appropriate kiss.

  Out in the car, once they were both inside, Boyd pulled him into his arms for a longer, deeper kiss that left Caleb wanting to blow him right there.

  “Thank you for not saying, ‘Fuck this shit,’ and bailing. I wouldn’t blame you for it.”

  “Never. You’re stuck with me, Sir.”

  “Did your parents give you any hassles?”

  “Radio silence from them.”

  “So she probably didn’t tell your dad.”

  “Probably not. She’ll pretend like nothing was wrong, if I have to guess. How’s Ella?”

  “Still in the hospital for tonight. Just a precaution. She was in a lot of pain this morning, and a huge goose-egg had developed on her head last night. They wanted another round of scans to make sure they didn’t miss any brain bleeds or internal injuries or anything, and to make sure the baby’s okay. And it’ll give her another day of no weight on her pelvis or her bum leg.”

  “But the baby’s fine?”

  He didn’t understand Boyd’s smile. “So far, the baby seems fine.”

  “Oh, good.”

  Boyd cupped his cheek and turned the full force of his blue eyes on him. “You’re really looking forward to being a grandfather, aren’t you?”

  “I mean, I’m never going to be a father, so yeah.”

  “You’re actually a dad already. Well, as soon as I marry you. That’ll make it official.”

  The familiar thrill rippled through Caleb, the same one he always felt when Boyd talked about marrying him. “I can’t wait, Sir.”

  Boyd pulled one of Caleb’s hands into his lap, over his bulge. Beneath Boyd’s jeans, Caleb felt the hard outline of the man’s cock. “Something else I can’t wait for.” Boyd squeezed Caleb’s hand around it. “I bet my boy needs some attention, too.”

  He softly moaned. “Yes, Sir.”

  Boyd reached into Caleb’s lap, finding his cock already hard, and he couldn’t help rocking his hips against the pressure from Boyd’s hand cupping him. “Just a little while longer, and once we’re alone, Daddy’s going to reward his good boy for being alone all week.”

  Caleb moaned. “Thank you, Daddy.”

  Boyd kissed him once more before sitting back and removing his hand from Caleb’s cock. “Hungry?”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  Boyd reached down, squeezed Caleb’s hand, and pulled it from his own jeans. Then he kissed Caleb’s palm before placing it on Boyd’s thigh.

  “We’ll stop by and get something on our way to the hospital to visit her. Another thing about her being in there is that she’s out of our way while we’re packing.” He patted the top of Caleb’s hand on his thigh and started the car.

  “I know thi
s sucks for her, but is it horrible that I’m glad we’re moving her?”

  “No, because that would make me horrible, too.”

  * * * *

  The resemblance between father and daughter was both more striking and undeniable when Caleb saw them together in person.

  Caleb didn’t bother shaking hands with her—he leaned in to gently hug her when Boyd introduced them upon their arrival in her room.

  “It’s so good to finally meet you,” Caleb said.

  She looked tired, the dark lines under her eyes aging her. “Nice to finally meet you, too. Dad’s told me a lot about you.”

  Caleb smiled and looked to see pride flash across Boyd’s expression over her calling him that. “I’m sorry it took this to get you to move, but I want you to know I’m two hundred percent for this. We’re your family, and we want you with us so we can be there for you.”

  Boyd had set their food down on the rolling table over her bed. As her eyes went bright with tears, he reached over and handed her a tissue from a box also sitting there.

  “Thanks.” She dabbed at her eyes. “I still can’t believe Rick…”

  She didn’t finish.

  “I say you should sue the hospital,” Boyd told her. “Lorena Calgary called me this morning to tell me four more nurses have filed statements about McDorman. That he threatened their careers if they spoke out. She suspects there will be more people who come forward now that he’s gone.”

  “What’s that going to do, Dad? He’s dead.”

  “It could get your insurance and living expenses paid for the next several months, at the very least,” Caleb said. “Don’t dismiss it out of hand.”

  “Especially if you ask for a quick settlement,” Boyd added. “Volunteer to sign an NDA if they’ll pay you what you want and pay it off fast. That way, once you can be independent again, we can move you into Caleb’s apartment and transfer the lease into your name. It’s about the size of your apartment now. And that’ll give you breathing room to find a new job. Or if you still need to live with us even once the lease is up on his place, that’s fine, too.”

  She looked from Boyd to Caleb and back again. “You’ll both tag-team me until I agree, won’t you?”

  “Yep,” they said in unison.

  She rolled her eyes, but Caleb didn’t miss the little smile she wore. “Fine, but how am I supposed to file a lawsuit against the hospital if I’m moving?”

  “They have these magical things, honey,” Boyd said. “They’re called phones.”

  “And computers,” Caleb added.

  “Yeah, that,” Boyd said.

  Her smile widened a little.

  “If you think he’s pushy now,” Caleb said, “wait’ll you’re living with us full-time.”

  * * * *

  Boyd resisted the urge to ask them if they liked each other. Because he had an almost desperate need for them to like each other, so they could be a family.

  But asking them that right now…

  Yeah, like that’d be mature.

  From the way Caleb acted, Boyd suspected he liked her. He wasn’t going to try to interpret Ella’s reactions because not only was she not at her best, he couldn’t claim to know her a fraction as well as he knew Caleb.

  How fucking sad is that, that I know my fiancé better than my own child. Literally.

  It was nearly nine by the time they left the hospital and headed back to Ella’s. Boyd had gone out that morning and purchased moving boxes and arranged for them to pick up the truck tomorrow. He’d spent most of the day packing, including her kitchen stuff and clothes, saving back clothes she’d need in Florida before he arrived with her things. He already had a pile of packed boxes stacked in the corner of her living room, ready to load into the truck.

  When they pulled into the parking lot and Caleb got out, he looked around. “Walk me through what happened, Sir,” he quietly said.

  The crunched Dumpster had been removed, and another brought out, but it was occupying three parking spaces until the enclosure that usually held it could be repaired.

  Boyd pointed. “He came from that direction. Apparently, he’d followed Ella home from work. I was parked three spaces over on this side, right there. Ella had parked on the other side, and she bounced off the front driver’s side quarter panel and ended up between two cars.” He traced Rick’s path. “He crashed there.”

  “What did he seriously think he was going to do? Run her over and get away with it?”

  “Nobody knows. They didn’t find a note, so they don’t have any idea. I’m sure when the toxicology results come back it’ll turn out he was stinking drunk.”

  “He would have had to know they would suspect him first thing, right?”

  “You’d think, but then again, apparently he was a serial predator. So…who knows? He’d just been fired, and he knew he wouldn’t get a good reference from them. Maybe he was using a burn-it-all-down approach. We’ll never know.”

  Boyd led the way up the walk to her apartment and let them in. When he closed the door behind them and locked it, he grabbed Caleb and slammed him against the door, slanting his lips over Caleb’s in a crushing kiss as Caleb started working on the man’s belt.

  “I don’t know if I want to fuck your mouth or your ass, baby,” he rumbled against Caleb’s lips.

  Caleb tried to unfasten Boyd’s jeans. “Yes,” he said. “Either. Both. Now, please.”

  “I missed you so fucking much.” Boyd stopped what he was doing and pinned Caleb against the door with a hand around his throat. “Tell me what you want.”

  “I want to come, Sir.”

  “Were you my good boy this week?”

  “Yes, Sir. I didn’t come.”

  “I guess you didn’t earn a spanking, hmm?”

  * * * *

  More heat flared in Caleb’s belly, driving his need even higher than before. “I didn’t say that, Daddy. Don’t good boys get spankings?”

  Boyd sucked on Caleb’s lower lip. “Depends on how nicely they beg Daddy for it.”

  His knees unhinged and he slid down Boyd’s body until he knelt on the floor in front of him, still trying to get the man’s jeans open. “Please, Daddy,” Caleb begged. “I need a spanking.”

  Boyd’s hands closed on either side of his head, and as Caleb finally lowered the man’s zipper and fished out his cock, it was immediately sliding between his lips.

  “Hands behind you,” Boyd ordered.

  Caleb complied, the beloved feeling of subspace gripping and tugging him under.

  Boyd took his time and slowly used Caleb’s mouth, rewarding him with tantalizing drops of pre-cum but not the hard face-fucking Caleb craved.

  Caleb needed this man, the peace this part of their relationship gave him, shutting his brain down with trust taking over completely.

  “Did you bring your cuffs and collar with you?”

  “Yes, Sir,” he mumbled around Boyd’s cock.

  “Good boy.” Boyd scratched his head like a beloved pet, and it sank Caleb even deeper.

  Unconditional love.

  Something he’d never felt from his family.

  Then Boyd’s fingers curled around Caleb’s head again. “Take it for me.” He started fucking Caleb’s mouth, hard, deep fast. Caleb’s cock throbbed inside his slacks as he took every thrust, loving the feel of Boyd’s hot flesh against his tongue.

  “Not gonna last long,” Boyd grunted, each stroke buried in Caleb’s throat. He was ready to swallow when Boyd exploded. Every drop went down his throat as he moaned, happy to be back with his Sir.

  Boyd’s grip on his head eased again, his fingers stroking, not pulling his cock from Caleb’s mouth yet. Caleb had eased up, lightly working the head of Boyd’s spent cock with his tongue, trying to tease every last drop from his slit without overstimulating him.

  “Such a good boy,” Boyd hoarsely said. “See if you can get me hard again. If not, that’s okay. I’m sure spanking you will help me.”

  It only took him a
few minutes to coax interest out of Boyd’s cock. The man pulled Caleb to his feet and kissed him again. “Let’s take this over to the couch.”

  Five minutes later they were spread out on the pull-out bed, both naked, with Caleb cuffed and collared and facedown over Boyd’s lap.

  Boyd held Caleb’s collar with his left hand, and with his right stroked Caleb’s ass cheeks. “Somebody really wants a spanking, hmm?”

  Caleb wiggled his ass at Boyd. “Yes, please!”

  “Let’s make this fast and quick so we don’t scare the neighbors.” He proceeded to do just that, hard, quick strokes that made Caleb’s ass burn. His cock rubbed against Boyd’s legs, and he loved how the heat quickly took over, making the pain sweet and dumping another load of endorphins into his system.

  “Look at that,” Boyd said as he had Caleb stand up. He fisted his own cock, which had once again gone hard. He handed Caleb the lube. “Get ready to ride, baby.”

  * * * *

  Boyd rolled a condom down his shaft and laughed as Caleb eagerly tried to climb on. “Hold on, baby. Little more lube.”

  Once Caleb had slicked Boyd’s condom-clad cock with extra lube, he straddled Boyd’s lap and slowly impaled himself all the way to the root, making both of them groan.

  He captured Caleb’s mouth with another kiss. “Ride me until you get off, baby. You earned it. Take your time.”

  Caleb leaned forward and draped his arms around Boyd’s neck, kissing him as he slowly rose and fell on Boyd’s cock. At this angle, Caleb’s cock was trapped between them and Boyd knew the man had just the right amount of friction to slow-burn his way to a hard orgasm.

  Wasn’t their first time like this.

  He slid his arms around Caleb, cupping his warm ass cheeks, squeezing, digging his fingers in and loving the moans Caleb made into his mouth as they kissed. Dumping his first load early meant he’d last as long as Caleb needed to get over, and his boy had well earned his release after a week apart.

  “Eyes open,” Boyd said.

  Caleb wore a deliciously sexy glazed expression, his hooded gaze fixed on Boyd’s as his cock rubbed between them. Pre-cum slicked their flesh, and every stroke rode smoother between their bodies than the last.