Little Bedtime Snack (The Lactin Brotherhood)

4. Mason

4

MASON

The soft glow of pastel-colored lights illuminated the playroom. I really liked the way the warm hues softened the space. There were lots of Littles playing, but my attention kept getting drawn back to the adorable boy in the sailor suit across the room. He was probably in his mid-twenties, with tousled brown hair and innocent eyes that kept darting in my direction.

I shifted from one foot to the other, sipping the bottle of water I picked up just to have something to hold. As badly as I wanted to go over and introduce myself to the boy, the rules of the club were clear. On Little nights, caretakers had to wait to be approached by a Little. So now matter how badly I wanted to scoop that sweet boy up and shower him with affection, I had to wait and hope.

The purpose of the rule was safety and that was something I was 100% behind. No Little should be uncomfortable in this space, but that didn’t make it less frustrating when the Little you wanted to get to know was so shy they blushed simply from meeting your eyes.

Jeff nudged my arm, getting my attention. "See something you like?"

I nodded toward the boy, not taking my eyes off him. "The guy in the sailor suit is cute. I just wish I could say hello."

"Patience, big guy. Let him come to you."

I sighed, watching as the boy and his friend talked quietly amongst themselves before they left the couch they were on and made their way to a craft table. My little sailor boy and his friend in green overalls sat down and began playing with colorful playdough. The sailor boy was beyond adorable as the tip of his pink tongue poked out of his mouth in concentration.

I would have given anything for an invitation to go over there. I wanted to ruffle that soft hair and hear his sweet voice. The Daddy in me just wanted to hold him close and make him feel safe and loved.

After a few minutes, the friend in overalls stood up and wandered in our direction. My sailor boy continued working on his blue sculpture without even noticing his friend was gone. When I realized the guy was heading straight toward me, I tensed and prepared to politely decline his offer if he asked to spend time with me. I wasn’t a dick, and as much as I’d love an introduction to his friend, I wouldn’t use him in that way.

But then, to my surprise, he stopped in front of us with a conspiratorial grin. He wasn’t here for me, at least not in the way I originally thought.

"Hi, there, Mister Daddies." He crossed his arms over his chest and steeled his shoulders. "I’m Jeb, and my friend Eli over there would really like a snack of…you know. But he's way too shy to ask, so I'm asking for him." He gave me an exaggerated wink.

My heart leapt. “So, it’s okay for me to go introduce myself?”

The boy nodded. “Yep, you’re being invited by me…so it counts. Just go say hi.”

While I stood there with my mind racing, Jeb turned to Jeff. "You probably don’t remember me, but you were Santa, right?"

I barely registered their conversation as my eyes locked on Eli. He was still focused intently on his creation, unaware of what was transpiring over here. I was technically toeing the line of what was permitted today, and there was a chance I’d be kicked out for what I was about to do. It didn’t even take a second for me to decide it was worth the risk.

My palms were sweaty as I approached the craft table from the other side of Eli and crouched down on my knees. I was never nervous like this. There was something special about this boy. "Excuse me, but you’re Eli, right?"

His head snapped up, and his eyes went wide. “Yes.”

"Your friend, um, Jeb, mentioned you might be ready for a snack?"

Eli's cheeks flushed pink, and he looked past me to his friend. “He did?”

“Yeah. I hope it’s okay that I came over.”

He gave a single nod, and I picked up a piece of dough and rolled it between my palms. “Was he right?”

Eli cleared his throat and nodded. "Y-yes.” He pulled his bottom lip in with his teeth. “Please." His voice was so low, I barely heard it.

Relief flooded me at his acceptance. I wanted nothing more than to wrap him in my arms and never let go. "Well then, little one." I looked down at his work. "Would you like to finish up here and then we can go to one of the private rooms?"

Eli fidgeted with the dough in his hands and then put it back in the pile. "I’m done. I was just making a skyscraper. It’s not important." He glanced up at me through long lashes. For a split second, I thought they might be false or possibly enhanced with that fancy mascara that was all the rage. But they weren’t. He was born with those beauties.

I cocked an eyebrow and held out my hand. "May I take a look?"

A small smile tugged at Eli's lips as he handed it over. "It’s not very good. The windows aren’t even straight.”

"It’s awesome. I work in commercial real estate and sell buildings just like this.” I put it back in the pile and held out my hand to him. “I'm Mason, by the way. It's very nice to meet you, Eli."

"Nice to meet you too," Eli mumbled shyly.

He grabbed my hand and let me pull him to his feet. “I better tell Jeb that we’re going to a room.” He looked up and his friend wasn’t around. Neither was Jeff.

“He might be with my friend, Jeff.” I chuckled. “He seemed…interested.”

Eli’s tight grip on my hand relaxed. “Yeah, he’s definitely interested. He, um, met Jeff before. At a milk-and-cookies party last Christmas.”

“He did bring up Santa.” I half remembered that he mentioned that earlier because my focus had been on Eli, but that explained a lot. And it answered some of my questions about what Jeb was referring to when he mentioned a snack. “Were you at that party as well?”

Eli shook his head. “No, I wish. Sounds like it was…”

“Was what?” I squeezed his hand as I waved to one of the room monitors to let them know we were going into room three.

“Special.” He stopped in front of the door and looked up at me. “Are you special, like your friend?”

I grinned and guided Eli inside the room that had a bed with a plain white sheet on one side and sofa on the other side. There was also a stack of sheets and towels for our use. “Well, I guess there are some special things about me.”

His gaze went from my face down to my chest, and it was clear what he was asking. “Yeah, I think there are probably lots.”