Chapter 4
Tristan
Daniel, the sexy silver fox who stood before me, smirked; his beautiful crystal-blue eyes shone with excitement.
“I’m sure he does. I want to buy him and be a part of his amazing new adventure.”
I wasn’t thrilled that Ember was being purchased, but Daniel had been nothing but friendly and seemed to appreciate my work. He hadn’t made fun of me for talking about Ember like he was real. He even agreed with me, and it didn’t feel like he was simply playing along.
My fingers twisted together as I thought of my response. He seemed like the perfect home for Ember. I was almost jealous. Of Daniel, of course, I definitely wasn’t wishing I could be Ember and be wrapped up in Daniel’s arms, tucked against his muscular yet pillowy chest.
I know we just met, but something about the man just screamed Daddy, and he’d been so sweet and excited about Ember, I couldn’t help but want to be surrounded by him.
His voice was deep and commanding, but also soft and gentle.
I wondered how it would sound as he held me against his chest and whispered sweet words into my ear.
I squirmed at the thought, shaking my head to clear my thoughts.
He was buying Ember. It didn’t mean he was a Daddy, I didn’t even know if he was gay.
“Embers, lucky you’re the one buying him, you seem like you’ll take amazing care of him.”
I grabbed the card reader off the table and pointed the screen towards Daniel so he could pay.
“Thank you, sweetheart, that means a lot. I promise he’s in good hands.”
I blushed at the name. I looked at the hands in question; they were big and calloused from obvious hard work, but also soft as they held Ember with such tenderness and care.
He swiped his card, tucking my Ember under his arm, and patted his head. My heart melted at the gesture, and suddenly I was tempted to put myself on the table in hopes he’d want to take me home as well. He was everything I’d ever dreamed of.
The machine beeped, signaling the end of our interaction, and I felt a ping of sadness.
“All set! Thank you for your purchase!”
“I’m excited to show this little guy his new home. I know it’s hard work running a booth, so take care of yourselves.”
“W-we will!”
Heat rose to my cheeks as he smiled and walked away. Ugh, the man was perfect.
“OH. MY. GOSH.”
I jumped as Ellery squealed in my ear and shook my shoulders. “Tristan! Holy shit, he was such a sexy silver Daddy.”
I blushed harder than I thought possible, stuttering as I tried to process the whirlwind of events. “He did have strong Daddy vibes. B-but Embers gone… I know he’ll be taken care of, but I’m sad.”
My thumb started to creep into my mouth when Ellery grabbed my hand and rubbed soft circles into my palm. “It’ll be okay, Tristan, I know you liked him… but now he’s going home with a super sexy silver Daddy.” He pouted and sighed dramatically, “I’m jealous.”
“He was extremely sexy… and he was so sweet and didn’t make me feel silly for the way I talked about Ember.”
Ellery giggled and pretended to swoon. “I know! He seemed to love Ember just as much as you do. It’s like he walked out of your dreams.” I plopped down on my chair, sighing heavily.
“If you weren’t here, I’d worry I had finally gone insane and imagined him.”
The to-go bags crinkled loudly as Ellery dug around and pulled out our food. They passed me my meal, and we both dug in.
“Hey, didn’t you say earlier that you wanted to walk around and check out the other booths?”
A smile stretched across my face as I remembered those blocks I saw on the way to get our food. My little side was fighting to come to the surface, torn between the pain of losing Ember and the excitement of possibly finding new blocks. It was getting harder to stay completely big.
“Yes! I saw some pretty wooden blocks earlier. I really, really wanna go look.” I bounced with excitement as I cleaned up our trash and got ready to go. Ellery giggled, sensing my change, knowing I wasn’t all big right now.
“You love blocks. Get ‘em! If you see anything I might like, please let me know.”
“Of course, I will, bestie. I’ll be back soon.”
Daniel
David let out a booming laugh when I returned to our table with Ember in hand.
“What is it with you and damn dragons?”
I sighed as I sat down next to David and placed my new friend in my lap. “I’m not sure, they just keep calling out to me. I mean, look at him, he’s adorable.”
“Well, I hope your future boy likes dragons because if not, you’re screwed.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right… But come on, who doesn’t love dragons or at least think they’re cool?”
I sighed, stroking the soft orange spikes on his head. The soft yarn made my heart ache to have my boy cuddled up in my lap. He’d be wearing his comfy pajamas as I rocked him side to side, soaking up the feel of how our bodies fit together as his fingers clutched Ember to his chest.
Whenever I dreamed of my boy, he was faceless—just a figment of my imagination, a placeholder. But now I could see him clearly. It was Tristan; he was gorgeous and so sweet. He was definitely on the shy side, but the way he lit up when talking about Ember and his other creations was breathtaking.
I didn’t even know if he was a little, but the way his eyes sparkled with pure joy and wonder instantly captivated my heart and made me smile.
“That dragon is cute, but I don’t think he’s the reason your face looks all dopey. What happened?”
“Tristan, the man who made the dragon.” I sighed longingly. “You should’ve seen him, David… The way he lit up when we talked about Ember was so precious, I could barely stand it. He has the most beautiful soft brown curls, and I just wanted to ruffle them.”
“Lucky bastard… did you get his number?”
My heart dropped as I shook my head. Shit. I was so captivated by how precious Tristan was that I forgot. Dread instantly filled me at the thought of never seeing him again. How could I be so stupid?
David placed his hand on my shoulder, pulling me from my panic. “Hey, it’s been a hectic day, don’t beat yourself up, man. You still have plenty of time to go back to his booth and see if he’s even interested in your ugly mug.”
I chuckled, knowing he was right. We still had a few hours to go before the fair closed for the evening. I’m not sure why I overreacted; the thought of never seeing Tristan again filled me with unease.
We were both startled when we heard a soft gasp and a whisper that I almost didn’t catch.
“Oh my gosh… so pretty.” Tristan stood before us, his delicate fingers ghosting over the blocks like it was taking everything he had not to touch them.
His eyes widened in surprise when he finally looked up from the table to greet us. “I-it’s you… And you’re still holding Ember.”
His presence was like a balm to my soul; I no longer felt the panic that had seized me moments ago. And for the first time in a long time, the dream of having a boy to love and spoil no longer felt out of reach.
“I just couldn’t help it, he’s very soft and cuddly. Were you wanting to take a look at the blocks?”
Bright pink blush dusted his adorable face, highlighting the splattering of freckles that painted his nose and cheeks.
“Y-yes, I saw them earlier, and they looked so pretty I just had to come look.” Somehow his blush deepened further as he quietly asked, “May I please touch them?”
My chest ached. I don’t think he realized the joy he gave me by simply asking my permission to touch. If he were my boy, I’d tell him what a good boy he was for being so polite… but he isn’t, so I settled.
“Of course you can, they are meant to be played with after all.”
“They’re so pretty, I don’t want to mess them up.”
David looks at me with a smirk before saying, “We used the best materials, and each block is coated with a firm protective seal that will keep them safe from little hands of any size.”
He winked at Tristan during that last part, and it was taking everything I had not to smack him on the back of his head. Thankfully, Tristan seemed unaware of the double meaning of his comment.
I nodded in agreement as Tristan took his time looking at the blocks, his eyes damn near sparkling as he slowly admired the different designs and colors.
Excitement and nerves seemed to course through him as he tentatively picked up a block that belonged to the dinosaur set.
The world around me faded away as I watched him stack four blocks on top of one another.
His curls fell in his face as he stuck his bottom lip out in the most adorable pout I’ve ever seen.
My heart nearly stopped as he looked up at me through his pretty, dark lashes. He softly poked at the blocks, the unasked question floating through the air. I gave a short nod, silently giving him my permission as I fought to keep my heart from exploding.
His eyes lit up brighter than I thought humanly possible. He looked down at the blocks, and one by one, he poked them with his finger. Each block that hit the table was followed by the most precious giggle I’ve ever heard, and it made me even more determined to make this boy mine.
David and I just stood and watched Tristan, neither of us willing to move and break the peace of this moment. I’m sure after working the event and all the stress that led up to it, he was in dire need of some playtime, and I was more than willing to provide it.
After a few rounds of stacking and giggling, he tensed up his whole body, went rigid as he seemed to remember where he was.
“I-Im so sorry, they just looked super fun and I-”
“Shh, sweetheart, it’s okay, no need to freak out, I enjoyed watching you play, it was a much-needed break from all this hard work we’ve been doing, don’t you agree?”
His curls bounced as he nodded furiously. I could still see the tension in his shoulders as he stared at the blocks, looking lost as to what to do.
“Do you think you could fix the blocks and make them all nice and lined up for me again?”
At that, I saw the last bit of tension leave his body. One of my favorite parts of being a Daddy was helping guide my boys and giving them direction when they felt overwhelmed.
“Yes sir, I can do that!”
After that, I couldn’t handle it anymore. I had to let him know how happy he’d made me.
“Good boy.”
I’m so fucked.