Chapter 18
Briar
After breakfast, the guys spread out for various activities, many of them outdoors.
“Would you like to go for a walk around the grounds?” I asked Rivi.
“Sure.”
“Go get your boots and change into pants that aren’t pajamas.”
“Okay.” He ran upstairs so fast he was a blur.
We met by the front door this time. Trent’s estate was huge but there were many paved pathways. Some of the snow had melted and we found it pretty easy-going.
Rivi skipped ahead, enjoying how his breath made white clouds on the air, and pointing at every tree and rock he saw. When he tired, he came beside me and gently took my hand, swinging it a bit.
“I can’t wait for our date.”
“Me, too.”
“Will we take your car?”
“Yes. Unless you want to drive.”
“I’ll let you. You already know where we’re going, right?”
“I made the plans last night after you went to bed.”
“Even though I’m a little, going on a grown-up date is special.”
“You can still be little even on a date.”
“I can?”
“You can do whatever you wish. I think I’ve said it before, I don’t make many rules.”
“But some rules?”
“Yes.”
“What are they?”
He was so curious.
“Honesty. That’s one rule. I want you to tell me whenever you’re uncomfortable. But also, when you like things. We have to have open communication. That’s my first request.”
“No pretending, then.”
“No.”
“Except when I’m playing make-believe with my stuffed toys.”
I chuckled. “That is acceptable.”
“But I am pretending to be little.”
“I think that’s different. Don’t you? Isn’t it true to being who you are? What makes you feel the best, the safest. And isn’t it mixed in with your adult self?”
“Yes. No one ever explained it to me like that. Not even stuff I’ve read or seen online.”
“We call it kink because it’s what we fantasize, those of us who partake. It’s a need, part of who we are. The fantasies aren’t lying, just stories to help us achieve what we want in a safe and consensual way.”
“I like how you talk about it. You make things make sense.” Rivi swung his arm, taking mine up and back with it. “I’m so happy I met you.”
“I’m happy I met you.”
“It’s such a pretty Christmas day. Everything sparkles. Oh! Look! A rabbit!” He pointed with his free hand.
I saw the cottontail disappear into a frosted bush. Otherwise, everything was silent. Like the entire world had found peace for one day. It was magical.
When we returned to the house, we took off our snowy boots and left them by the front door to dry along with our coats and scarves. We went to the dining room to find lunch being set up. I didn’t realize we’d been gone for so long.
We went up to the fire to warm ourselves. Rivi was shivering.
“We stayed out too long,” I said.
“I loved it.” He stood closer to the hearth.
We had thick turkey sandwiches for lunch.
Tonight, we would miss the big Christmas dinner, but we would be fine.
I made sure the restaurant we were going to was open on Christmas.
It was, as so many establishments were these days.
In the past that wasn’t the case, but businesses found that people enjoyed going out on holidays. I still felt sorry for the employees.
Rivi spent the afternoon in the lounge with Ozzy and Maddy, who wanted to show him their presents. I tagged along and watched as only a good daddy would.
By five o’clock, as the sun started to set, I got up and reminded Rivi we had to get ready.
He jumped up, clapping his hands. “I’m so excited.”
I went straight to my room and put on my best suit. As I was straightening my tie, my phone beeped. It was a text from Rivi.
Rivi: I need help. I don’t know what to wear.
Briar: On my way.
I knocked on the door to his room. Immediately, it opened.
Rivi stood before me in a bathrobe looking frazzled. When I glanced past his shoulder to the room, his bed was piled with clothes, and his suitcase was strewn on the floor.
This boy needed a daddy. Badly.
“What’s going on? Did a sudden windstorm hit?”
Rivi stood aside to let me in. He bounced on his feet. “It’s my first date and I want to be prefect. I don’t know what to wear.”
I shut the door behind me and followed him into the room. “First off, there’s no such thing as perfection. Second, did all these clothes come from that one little suitcase?”
“Not all of them. Ozzy left some for me to look through. They’re wonderful, but…”
“But what?”
“His are so elegant.” He looked me up and down. “You look elegant. Should I match?”
“You sound unsure. Pick what you like.” I picked up a beautiful black blazer. “Is this one Ozzy’s?”
Rivi squinted at it. “Yeah.”
“It’s nice.”
“It’s black.”
“Yes. You don’t like black?”
He shook his head.
“What do you like?”
“Pink.” He squished his lips together in an almost-frown. “And purple, too. And shorter than that one. It’s too long over the hips. When I put it on I felt like I was wearing a dress.”
Noted. No dresses.
I went to the bed and picked up some items. I could immediately tell which ones were Rivi’s.
They were the more colorful clothes, and t-shirts with cute pictures on them, some with glitter.
He had two pullover sweaters, a pale pink one and a red one.
I loved how he looked in red, so I took that one and a pair of black slacks that were probably Ozzy’s and held them up.
“These would look very good together.”
He leaned his chin on the palm of his hand and contemplated.
“No?” I asked when he was quiet for too long.
“Yes. I like it. But is it too casual?”
“Not at all.” I glanced about and saw his purse. I snatched it and held it up, knowing from my past experience that littles often wanted a childish offset to an outfit. “Look, this would look very good with it, crossed over your shoulder and chest.”
“Pink with red?”
“Of course.” It wouldn’t fit for every man, but for Rivi it would be right. And incredibly cute.
“What blazer, then?”
“Well, not the black,” I said, laughing. It would be nice, but for someone like me, not this forlorn little.
I sorted through the pile of clothes and found a fancy white jacket with a pattern of thin, black squiggly lines. It was shorter than the other blazer. I held it up. “This?”
“Really? Stripes?”
“They’re not stripes. They’re curvy lines.”
“I love them. But….” He chewed on the palm of his hand.
“But nothing. You should wear what you love.”
“Thanks for saying that.” He jumped forward, grabbed the clothes from me and ran toward his bathroom. “I’ll be out in a minute.”
While he was gone, I tidied up the clothing, folding some, finding discarded hangers for others.
When the bathroom door opened, Rivi stood before me. The clothes looked great on him. And suited his personality. I handed him the purse, and he put it over his shoulder. Too cute.
“That looks fantastic,” I said.
He kicked up one leg. “My feet are bare.”
“Easily fixed. Where are your socks?”
He showed me where he’d put them in a dresser drawer. They were bright socks. Neon. What else was I expecting?
I took a pair of blinding green socks and said, “Let’s add a spice of color down there.”
“Yes!” His eyes were bright.
He sat on the bed and bent over to put them on.
I knelt before him. “Here. Let me.”
I took the socks from him, and he let his feet dangle. His toes wiggled. He couldn’t have been more adorable.
When I touched one foot to put on the first sock, he inhaled. Some boys liked their feet played with. I had a feeling Rivi was going to be sensitive all over.
When the socks were on, I said, “What shoes did you bring?”
He jumped up and went to where he’d lined them up. Fuzzy pink slippers. Two pairs of tennis shoes, one red, one blue.
“My snow boots are downstairs still wet, I think,” he said. “They’re brown.”
“I think these will be fine.” I picked up the red pair.
He put them on, then stood and turned for me. “Well?”
On anyone else, the outfit might be too much. On Rivi it looked natural. In fashion, too, for his age of twenty-one. And the purse gave it an odd runway look. I hadn’t realized he might make a great model… if he’d been taller.
“You look like you’re ready to go out on the town on your first date.”
He pouted, then hung his head. “You’re just being nice.”
“I’m the one who dressed you. I think you look great.”
“The purse isn’t too much?”
“Not at all. It’s the icing on the cake, little Pan.”