Her expression softens, and I can tell she sees my point, at least a bit. “I can’t promise I’ll have a job waitin’ for ya,” she warns, which kinda feels like her way of wishing me luck, so I give her a smile in return.
“I understand, Miss Maggie. I really appreciate all you done for me over the years. I won’t forget it.”
“Course you won’t,” she agrees before sniffling. “Well, get over here and give me a hug.”
I slide off the stool and come around the bar. In all these years we’ve known each other, I can’t say we ever hugged. But it feels real nice to have her arms wrapped around me. It’s kinda how I imagine a hug from my mama woulda felt if she’d ever bothered. When we part, she wipes her hands under her eyes and then shoos me. “Go on now. You better go before you miss your chance.”
I want to tell her I don’t think Barrett’s gonna leave without me, at least not in the next few minutes, but instead I just kiss her cheek.
“Take care, Miss Maggie.”
“You too, Sterling.”
Barrett
A knock at my motel room door drags me away from answering my many emails that have piled up in the last two days. I thought I put a ‘do not disturb’ sign for the maid, but maybe I forgot to. Putting my laptop aside, I get off the bed and stride over to the door, primed to ask the cleaning service to come back later. But, when I pull open the door, a surprised smile spreads over my lips, my heart leaping when I see that not only is Sterling standing at my door, but he seems to have bags with him.
“Hey, little rabbit,” I say smoothly.
“Hey…Daddy.” He dips his head and peeks up at me through his eyelashes, the word sounding so fragile and hopeful on his lips it nearly undoes me.
I bury my fingers in his hair and drag him in for a kiss, loving the way his mouth yields to mine the same way it did last night. The bags thud gently against the floor, and Sterling wraps his arms around my middle, hanging on tight like he’s afraid I might disappear at any second.
I walk backward without breaking the kiss, pulling him inside the room and letting the door swing closed behind him. He stumbles along after me, letting me pillage his mouth with my tongue. His erection presses against my thigh, his hips jerking in desperate little motions as he sighs against my lips.
As tempting as the idea of stripping him bare and exploring his body is, the sheets on the bed are more than a little questionable, and I’d rather not be worrying about needing a tetanus shot the first time I get him naked.
I break the kiss, and he whimpers, tightening his arms around me again. I press my lips gently against his forehead and disentangle his arms.
“You’re sure this is what you want? To come to Vegas and be my boy?” I check, and Sterling nods his head rapidly.
“Yes.”
“Are you ready to leave now? Or do you still have those loose ends to wrap up?”
“I’m ready. This is all I’ve got,” he says, gesturing to his bags. “And I told Miss Maggie, she owns the bar, that I’m leavin’. The only thing is I don’t know what to do about the house. I want it there in case mama ever comes back, but then I’d have to keep payin’ every month.”
“Let me take care of that. Give me the information and I’ll make a payment to cover the next twelve months, and then we can reassess from there. I like the idea of you still having the house anyway, just in case.”
His face falls, and I realize how that must’ve sounded to him. Cupping his face, I stoop to catch his eyes, waiting for him to look at me so I can be sure he’s fully listening and understands before I explain myself. “I don’t ever want you to feel trapped with me. I told you last night that in a healthy Daddy/boy dynamic, it’s about your wants and needs, that you’re ultimately in control. But you can’t be in control if you feel like I hold all the cards or that you don’t have any options if I don’t treat you properly. Do you understand?”
He chews on his bottom lip, searching my eyes for several seconds before finally nodding. “I understand.”
I smile and press another kiss to his forehead. “Good boy,” I murmur. He practically vibrates at my praise, and I file that knowledge away for the future. “How did you get here anyway?” I realize for the first time that he couldn’t possibly have walked all this way. At least I hope not.
“I took a cab. Well, not exactly a cab, but Ed, he’s one of the regulars at the bar, he gives rides for cheap, so I asked him to drive me,” he explains, and I scowl. “He hadn’t started drinkin’ yet,” he rushes to assure me.
“Next time, call me. I would’ve come to get you.”
“I don’t have a cell phone,” he says. “And I didn’t want to call you from the bar phone with everybody listenin’ in.”
I growl a little at that. I should’ve guessed as much, but I really don’t like the idea that he’s been walking around without any way to call anyone if he ever got into trouble. “We’ll stop and get you one on our way to Vegas. And, on that note, why don’t I go settle up at the front office, and we can get the hell out of here? It’s a long drive, but we’ll stay somewhere much nicer than this tonight.”
He nods again, and I pick up his bags to take them out to my car before returning to toss my own stuff hastily into my suitcase. Within a few minutes, the grungy motel is a distant memory in my rearview mirror, Sterling is settled into the seat beside me, and my Las Vegas address is plugged into my GPS.
Chapter 8
Sterling
When Barrett said we’d stay somewhere fancy tonight, he wasn’t kidding. A valet takes his car and a man in a suit gathers up all our bags to take inside. I blush when he grabs the paper grocery bag full of my things. I’m sure anybody who can afford to stay here can afford a proper suitcase.
Something tells me I’d better get used to feeling out of place if I’m making a go of things with Barrett.
“I’ll buy you luggage once we’re home,” Barrett says as he slips his hand into mine and leads me inside so we can check in.
“You don’t gotta do that.” A cell phone is one thing, but I gotta draw the line somewhere. He’s already doing more than enough for me.
He stops and turns to face me, doing that thing where he looks right into my eyes again. I can’t decide if I like it or hate it. It’s nice to be someone’s entire focus for once, but it makes me a bit squirmy too.
“I told you I want to take care of you. Be a good boy and don’t argue.”
My body wants to melt at the words I’m growing addicted to, but my pride gets right in the way, and I bristle instead. “You also said I had some control,” I point out. “I wanna get a job when we get to Vegas.”
“I’ll find you any job you want,” he offers, and I shake my head.
“I wanna do it myself,” I insist. I want to be his boy, but I also want to know I can stand on my own two feet, not only because he’s bound to get tired of me eventually, but also just to know I can. “Please, Daddy.”
He puts his hands behind my neck and tilts his head down to press a kiss against the top of my head.
“Anything that will make you happy, Pretty Boy.”
My heart dances, and this time I do melt into him. I should probably care about the fact that we’re standing in a hotel lobby with people giving us sideways looks, but leaning into his big, sturdy body just feels too dang good to think about anything else.
“Come on, let’s get checked in and then head up to the room and order every item on the room service menu.”
I chuckle, the sound muffled by the fact that I have my face now firmly nestled against his chest. With a reluctant sigh, I step back and let him lead me up to the check-in desk.
It’s not until we make it up to the room a few minutes later that I realize two things: one, I know Barrett said he was rich, but I don’t think I truly understood how rich until we step into the hotel room that has to be at least as big as the whole house I just left behind with floor to ceiling windows that we can see all of Albuquerque throug
h. And two, we’re spending the night in a hotel room together. I know I’m a bit slow that it took me so long to realize the second one, but the imposing sight of a king-size bed is a jolt to the system.
Barrett sits down on the edge of the bed and removes his shoes while I continue to stare at it, my insides squirming with nervous anticipation. I invited him in last night, and he said I needed to make my decision first. Well, here we are, decision made and a whole night together in a fancy hotel room ahead of us. Heck, not just one whole night. I’m guessing he didn’t invite me all the way to his house in Las Vegas just to stick me in a guest bedroom anyhow.
“Come sit here, little rabbit,” he says, patting the edge of the bed. I do as he asks, shuffling forward and sitting down. “Tell me what’s making you nervous. Are you worried I’m going to do something you aren’t ready for?”
I think about the question and shake my head. “No, Daddy,” I answer easily. I think any man who would turn down an invitation to come inside last night is a man who will listen if I ask him to slow down.
“What then?” he asks.
“What if I don’t know what to do? And I’m not sure how I should act…” I trail off, nibbling on my bottom lip as I turn my head to look at the massive bed. When I look back, Barrett’s grinning at me.
“I planned on sitting down when we got home to talk about our relationship, but why don’t we start slow right now,” he suggests. “I’m going to tell you what I expect from you tonight. All you have to do to be a good boy is listen, understand?”
His voice holds that edge of authority that my dick is already learning to love, perking up as I hang on his words. I bobble my head up and down. “Yes, Daddy.”
“First, I want you to take off your shoes and get comfortable. I’m going to place an order for dinner and after we eat, I’m going to draw you a bath. You have one decision to make and that’s whether you want to take that bath alone.” My heart starts beating faster, my cock getting even harder at the thought of squeezing into a bathtub with his big, wet, naked body. I open my mouth to answer, but he cuts me off with a look. “Think about it. I don’t want you to decide yet. The other thing I need from you is a safeword. It’s a word you’ll use anytime you want anything to stop or need to pause things and talk.”
My eyes go wide. I read about safewords, and if Barrett says I need one for tonight, then he must have something intense planned. Will he spank me? Is he into anything rougher than that? Again, he must see the nerves on my face, because he draws my attention with a soft kiss against my lips.
“A safeword can be for anything, not just scenes or sex,” he explains like he can read my mind. “And I want to be perfectly clear: you can use it at any time. If we’re having sex and you’re in an uncomfortable position, you can safeword. If we’re playing with ropes and you need to pee, you can safeword. If I’m giving you rules or explaining a punishment and you think they’re unfair, you can safeword, and we’ll discuss things. Tell me you understand.”
I consider it for a few seconds, and what he’s saying makes a heck of a lotta sense. “I understand, Daddy.”
“Good boy,” I praise. “Now, what do you want your safeword to be?”
It’s something I already thought about when I was doing my research this morning, so I have an answer all set to go. “Longhorn.”
Barrett chuckles. “Longhorn it is.”
Barrett
As promised, I order us a lavish dinner to be delivered to our room. The rooftop restaurant is supposed to have an incredible view, but, selfishly, I want Sterling all to myself tonight.
When I called to make the reservation on our way out of town earlier, I made sure to get a room with a large tub, in case Sterling opted to share it. I’m more than happy to take things slow for my nervous little rabbit, but I can’t deny that the idea of holding his slippery body close in the tub, using my hands to massage his shoulders and maybe tease him a little, is extremely appealing.
I can hardly take my eyes off my boy long enough to enjoy my own food. He’s sitting cross legged on the bed, delight dancing over his face with each bite he takes of his dinner, like it’s the best thing he’s ever tasted. Maybe it is, but I plan to see to it that he gets used to this kind of spoiling. For most of my life, I was indifferent about having so much money. I wasn’t proud of it like some people are; I saw it as a tool to shape the world little by little into a better place. And right about now, I’m seeing it as an excellent way to give my sweet boy all the things he’s always deserved and then some.
“This is amazing,” he hums, popping a fry into his mouth and making the most adorable happy noises I’ve ever heard while he chews. “Do you not like yours?” he asks when he realizes I’ve hardly touched my food.
I cut a piece of salmon and lift it to my mouth. “It’s fantastic,” I assure him once I’m finished chewing. “I was just distracted.”
The tips of his ears turn pink, and he dips his head, but not so quick that I miss the smile on his lips. “I’m eating; that ain’t distracting,” he mumbles.
“I assure you, it’s entirely distracting.”
He takes a bite of his truffle burger, chewing slowly before looking up at me again. “You always such a charmer?”
There’s a vulnerability in his eyes when he asks the question. “Yes,” I answer honestly, smirking at him. When his face starts to fall, I hurry to continue before he gets the wrong idea. “But you’re special, Sterling.”
I expect his smile to return, maybe some more of that adorable blushing. Instead, his face hardens, and he pushes his plate away, still half of his food left uneaten. I frown as I watch him swing his legs over the side of the bed and stand up. He smooths his pants down with his hands and then straightens his shoulders.
“I’m gettin’ pretty tired. I think I’ll just take a shower instead of a bath.” He starts toward the bathroom, and I grumble, pushing my own plate away and sitting up.
“Sterling, stop,” I say in a commanding tone, and he freezes mid-stride. “Tell me what just happened.”
His shoulders hunch, and he slowly turns around to face me. “Nothin’. I told you I’m gettin’ tired.”
Setting my plate aside, I stand up and walk over to stand directly in front of him, tilting his face up so he’s looking at me. “I think it’s time for your first rule, Pretty Boy.” He frowns but doesn’t argue or protest. “No lying. When I ask you a question, you will be honest with me.”
“What happens if I break the rules?” he asks.
“It depends on the rule and the severity of the infraction. You might lose privileges or be given chores.”
“You said spanking,” he points out, a hint of defiance in his voice.
“I think you’re far too eager for a spanking for it to be any kind of proper punishment,” I answer. Sterling huffs, but again, doesn’t argue. “So, let’s try this again. What just happened?”
He squirms under my attention, trying to shake off my grasp so he can look away. He gives up after a few seconds, his eyes holding a hint of pleading as he finally answers the question. “I’m not special.” It’s barely above a whisper, but the pain in his voice is loud enough to shatter my heart.
“Oh, little rabbit,” I murmur. “You couldn’t be more wrong about that.” I pull him into my arms, and he doesn’t resist. He presses his face into my chest and shakes his head at the same time.
I want to set him straight. I want to pin him down on the bed and force him to hear all the nicest things I can think to say about him. But this isn’t something I can fix in a single night. He has an entire lifetime of programming that I’m going to have to undo little by little. I hold him tight for a minute, my nose pressed against the top of his head, my heart beating a slow, steady rhythm that feels like it’s only for this beautiful, broken boy in my arms. No, not broken, he’s a little bent, but nothing I can’t fix.
“Are you still hungry?” I ask, and he shakes his head again. “Do you want to take your bath alone?�
�� He goes still, even holding his breath for several heartbeats before letting out a long exhale and shaking his head for a third time. “I need words, Pretty Boy. Do you want me to join you in the bath?”
He pulls back just enough to look up at me, his eyes brimming with vulnerability. “Yes, Daddy, take a bath with me.”
“Okay. Stack up our plates and put them in the hallway, then come join me in the bathroom.” I let him go, and he does as I asked, while I head into the bathroom and start the tub. My body hums with anticipation as I check the temperature and then add some bath salts as the tub fills.
Sterling steps into the bathroom a moment later, looking uncertainly between me and the filling tub.
“You remember your safeword?” I check, just in case he’s already having second thoughts.
“Yes,” he answers, and I lift an eyebrow at him. “Yes, Daddy,” he corrects.
“Good boy. Strip.”
He blushes furiously, but reaches for the hem of his shirt, tugging it up over his head and dropping it onto the floor. I’m pleased to see the blush extends all the way down his chest, his skin a beautiful rosy shade that tempts my mouth to chase it.
His pants are next, falling around his feet and getting kicked aside. He has on a pair of white boxer briefs that are cute, but don’t suit him. My boy deserves something nicer, and I’ll see that he has them.
“What’s your favorite color?” I ask, and Sterling looks at me like I’ve grown a second head. I suppose it is a strange question to ask when a man is standing nearly naked a few feet away, but if I’m going to buy him nice things, I want them to be his favorite things.
“Blue. I like how many shades there are.”
I nod and turn off the water before it gets too high. By the time I look back at Sterling, his underwear is around his ankles, his slender body on full display for me. His cock is hard, standing up almost completely straight, short but thick, and as beautifully flushed as the rest of his body.
Pretty Boy Page 6
