Chapter Eight
Jacob
Turning his head, Jacob tried to get away from whatever was tickling his face. A giggle had Jacob opening his eyes in shock.
James grinned back at him as he peered at Jacob from where he rested his chin on Jacob’s chest.
Jacob licked his lips and cleared his throat. “Morning, baby.”
“I can’t believe that you slept all night on the couch with me.”
Neither could he. As Jacob struggled to sit up, his body was already protesting. He groaned. That had been a bad idea. Not that he could regret the choice when James appeared so much better than the previous night. And the boy had slept hard. Had been comfortable.
“What’s wrong, old man? Sore?” James teased.
And the brat was bratting. Jacob had to hide his amusement. “If you’re not nice to me, I’m not going to make your breakfast,” Jacob warned.
“What kind of breakfast?” James batted his lashes as he asked.
The boy was pushing boundaries. Jacob wasn’t certain if it was out of defense or if James was showing how comfortable he was. Until he knew for sure, Jacob needed to tread carefully. “I was considering making you French toast and sausage.”
James’s stomach growled loudly, cutting off whatever James was going to say. James’s cheeks turned pink as he nodded. “That sounds so good.”
“Then help me up,” Jacob ordered with a scowl.
“Fine.” James slid off him and Jacob didn’t miss the feel of hardness that had been pressed against his thigh.
The boy’s reaction was natural. They’d been lying against each other, so Jacob didn’t need to call attention to James’s morning wood.
The previous evening Jacob had noticed James’s erection as he hand-fed the boy.
Again, he hadn’t said anything. James needed a safe space and Jacob wanted to be able to offer that to him.
There should be no embarrassment when bodies react to stimulation, or something that made either of them feel good.
He just needed to be careful how he handled things between them.
Standing next to the couch, James held out his hand.
Jacob allowed the boy to pull him up and was more than a little impressed by the strength that James showed. He must have shown his surprise as James looked quite pleased with himself.
“You like that?” James asked as Jacob stared down at him.
There were only a few inches of height difference.
But over the last year, James had filled out.
Widened. Bulked up. Being long and lean himself, Jacob found James’s muscles sexy.
Not that he planned to act on his attraction.
He’d promised. “I do.” He still needed to be honest. To show James that he never needed to change himself.
James’s eyes widened. “Really?”
He licked his lips again. Damn, he wanted to kiss the boy. That wasn’t the relationship they had though. They weren’t boyfriends. Jacob was just being a safe person for James. “I like your muscles. They show all the hard work you’ve put into your training.”
“I thought you’d prefer a slimmer boy. You know, someone that was smaller than you.”
“Baby.” Jacob couldn’t stop using the pet name.
He needed to. Jacob didn’t want to send mixed messages to the boy.
James wasn’t his boyfriend. Wouldn’t be his boyfriend.
Jacob grabbed the back of James’s neck and squeezed.
“What did I tell you about assuming?” There were a ton of assumptions in James’s text questions.
James sighed. “Every Daddy and boy relationship is unique and geared toward that specific couple. What works for one couple might not for another.”
“Exactly,” Jacob praised. He was pleased that James recited that statement almost word for word. “You are perfect just the way you are. The right partner for you would never want you to change.”
James scowled. “The right partner.”
“Whether you decide to explore your interests or not,” Jacob clarified. “Your partner should be proud of you and the way you look.”
Slowly James nodded. “Right.”
Jacob released the boy. “You have the afternoon shift at the coffee shop?”
That question brought a smile to James’s face. “You really do keep up with my schedule.”
He was going to ignore that. The answer was obvious. “Let me clean up and I’ll make us breakfast. You can use the bathroom around the corner. There are extra toothbrushes under the sink.” Jacob walked James toward the open bathroom door.
“Of course you have extra toothbrushes. That is such a Daddy thing,” James muttered.
Jacob chuckled. “If you say so. I just happen to buy them in bulk.”
“Okay.” James rolled his eyes. “Whatever you say.”
The boy needed a butt smack and Jacob’s hand itched to serve it but he resisted. “I’ll meet you in the kitchen.”
Heading down the other hall, Jacob moved to the back of the house. He passed the open door to his office and the playroom. He considered calling James over to show him the newly decorated space but the bathroom door closed.
Another time.
It would be better if James actually agreed to exploring age regression before he learned about the playroom.
Jacob didn’t want to pressure him. He went about taking care of his morning routine, skipping a shower until later.
By the time he was refreshed, Jacob was ready for breakfast himself.
He had an appointment to meet with the contractor that Jesse had lined up for the affordable housing project.
Jacob was excited to get another opinion.
Leaving his room, Jacob strolled down the hall but stopped as he spotted James hovering just inside the playroom.
Damn! He should have closed the door.
Jacob stepped into the room behind the boy. He placed his hands gently on James’s shoulders as the boy stood frozen. “It’s just a room,” Jacob said gently. “There is no pressure. You never have to come inside here again.”
James turned toward him. “I didn’t know you had this here.”
“It’s new,” he admitted. “Something that I just started working on.” James didn’t have to know it was all because of him.
“Because of me?” James asked point-blank.
Jacob pressed his lips together. He didn’t want to lie.
“It is,” James continued. “You’re acting all calm and saying that I can decide when I’m ready. You’re also going around and decorating full rooms for me.” He waved his hand around. “Sometimes you really confuse me.”
“Hey!” Jacob reached for him. “I mean what I say. This doesn’t have to mean anything. There’s no pressure.”
“What if I want you to pressure me?” James demanded.
“I can’t,” Jacob replied honestly. “This has to be your choice.”
James huffed. “I have to admit that I want a Daddy?”
“No,” Jacob drawled. “You might not want a Daddy at all. Not every little calls their caregiver—”
“I know!” James stomped his foot. A little tantrum. “I’m not talking about other people! I’m talking about me.”
While James’s voice rose, he wasn’t yelling. Not yet. Jacob needed to get control of the situation. He nodded. “Would it help if we only talked about what you’re looking for?”
James rolled his eyes and huffed. “No. I like seeing how other couples work things out. Seeing that there’s more than one way to be…little.”
He held back his amusement. “So this is just you being a brat?”
“Yes!” James threw his hands up again. “I’m a brat. Pretty sure that was established a long time ago.”
“I got the memo,” Jacob teased.
James began to smile. “If we had agreed to trying this. The Daddy thing. How would you handle that?” James asked. “Me being a brat.”
Discipline had been one of the few topics that Jacob had stayed away from.
In his opinion, every new little needed the freedom to push boundaries but also their caregiver or Daddy should hold them accountable.
Jacob wasn’t called a brat tamer for no reason.
It was his favorite aspect of a scene. The thin line between a little learning how far to push and getting what they wanted was special.
“Does your lack of response mean that you haven’t thought about it?”
Quite the opposite. Jacob didn’t want to scare the boy. “We’d discuss what you were comfortable with. I think the punishment would have to fit the brattiness. For this, I would probably make you stand in the corner. Reflect on why you’re acting up.”
“You’d put me in the corner?” James sounded scandalized.
“Not really worthy of a spanking, although we are getting close,” Jacob warned.
James’s face turned red.
It always surprised Jacob that the boy blushed so easily. Even with his tan, the reaction was hard to miss. “I get the feeling that you might not be opposed to punishment.”
The boy frowned at him. “Funny.”
“Feel better?” Jacob asked gently.
“I was fine. Just surprised. You said you didn’t have a boy of your own but then I saw this room.”
“You will be the first boy to ever play in this room if that is what you chose,” Jacob assured him.
James shrugged. “It’s fine. I was just curious.”
Jacob wouldn’t push for more of an explanation.
James was doing a good job of sharing his feelings and asking questions.
Over text messages there wasn’t anything off-limits for the boy.
Jacob hoped the more time they spent together that James would become just as comfortable asking in person. “Breakfast?”
“Yes. French toast and sausage. That’s what you said.”
“It is. Then you can go get ready for work. We slept in.” Which was extremely rare for Jacob to do. He was usually up at the break of dawn.
“What are your plans for the day?” James asked while leading the way down the hall.
“I have a meeting after lunch,” Jacob replied.
“Meeting? At school?” James turned and looked over his shoulder as he asked.
“My brother makes sure they we keep ourselves busy with other ventures. This is a business meeting,” Jacob supplied.
James turned and bounced as he walked backwards. “The multi-millionaire brother?”
Jacob barely resisted pointing out that he had nearly as much money as Jesse. He should not feel the need to justify his wallet. “I only have one brother.”