Chapter 18
Leonardo
“You ask really good questions, but I’ve found that butts are generally about size and shape giving the impression of gender without other context clues.” Pointing to the sketch on the far wall, I squeezed his hand. “That is a man and the other one on that wall…is a woman.”
“Oh, I’d have guessed backward.” Cocking his head, he studied both images. “I need to look at more people’s butts.”
Not when we were out in public.
“Let’s figure out the best way to do research on that. What do you think of looking at art models online or comparing the Leashes & Lace models to traditionally female lingerie models?” That sounded much safer and less likely to get him in trouble in public.
“That’s a great idea.” He was pleased but it took me a few seconds to figure out why he was staring at me expectantly.
“Oh. Who are they…mostly strangers, although I met a few at a fundraiser that the artist who drew them was involved in.” I couldn’t tell if he was jealous but my pretty boy hadn’t gotten much exposure to something that would lead to that kind of emotion.
“I have never dated any of them but I liked the mood they gave the room.”
His gaze shifted to something more thoughtful and less just general curiosity. “How was it to meet them?”
“Weird.” Not that I’d told that to anyone else. “That ass was an ass. Everyone else was generally polite.”
Some were so shy I wasn’t sure why they’d accepted the invitation but the event had raised a lot of money.
“Okay.” As he turned back to me, he looked ready to go but I wasn’t sure what he was thinking.
“What are you thinking about the art?” Subtle was not going to work with my boy, so straightforward was the plan.
“They’re interesting and good art…I think?
I’ve never studied that.” His head cocked as he looked at the sketches again.
“I think I would like a warning if you knew the person the body part is attached to and if you dated them because I don’t think I should be looking at them if they were important to you.
I don’t have an issue with them in general, though. Is that what you wanted to know?”
“Yes. That answers my question. You did a good job.” Giving him a quick peck on the forehead, I tried to answer completely.
“People have very interesting thoughts on art and bodies, so I didn’t want to assume what you were thinking.
I’ve done a lot of art involving bodies but I’ve never dated anyone who’s modeled for me.
Most of the time they’re annoying or dramatic in all the wrong ways. ”
For some reason that had Cece wanting to giggle, but he nodded seriously. “Thank you for being clear about that.”
“You’re welcome.” Leading him out of the room since he seemed to be done for the moment, I took us downstairs giving him time to look around at the different art on the walls and in the different guestrooms. “Let me know if you want us to go slower.”
“I’m going to have questions later and I’m going to want to look around again, but you want to take care of me and I want cookies more than I want to be nosy.” His honest answer made me chuckle, which seemed to have been his goal based on his grin.
“Cute and smart enough to be able to rank your needs accurately. I’m impressed.” And glad he didn’t have any ridiculously bad habits when it came to relationships.
“We’re both impressive.” Bouncing through my living room, his gaze was jumping along the shelves and taking in as much as he could. “Some of those little statues are yours.”
It wasn’t a question but I treated it like it was. “Yes. About half of them.”
He nodded sagely. “I knew it.”
“Because you’re smart or because you’re starting to know your Owner?” What would he say?
“No.” His cheerful response immediately made me skeptical. “You’ve put yours in the best spots.”
I just laughed.
He was right.
He was also pleased with himself as I took him into the kitchen. “You’re so cute, Master.”
No, if either of us were cute, it was him.
“Those are how I explore new ideas. Most of the time I’ll make a small version first and it’s the most personal version of any project for me.
” Every artist I knew did it differently, but that was how I’d always done it.
“I usually keep those because they’re what I’m connected to and the larger versions I sell are copies of what I love. ”
“Because you don’t want to sell what you love.” Cece nodded like that made perfect sense. “What kind of cookies do you have?”
I should’ve made sure he’d eaten more and cuddled less at dinner.
“I have a very well-stocked pantry.” My stall tactic got a skeptical look from him which earned a glare from me that made him giggle. “I can’t remember if I ate the last of the chocolate chip ones or not.”
“Master’s got a sweet tooth.” Nearly dancing over to the pantry, he bounced excitedly and waited for me to open it. “Oh. You’ve got good snacks too.”
I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to thank him for that or not, but showing him the cookies seemed more important. “Okay, we do have chocolate chip along with the little striped circle ones and fancy oatmeal ones with raisins.”
Hmm.
“What are your thoughts on raisins in cookies?” I thought it was a logical question under the circumstances but my pretty boy’s blank expression made me question that. “Let me guess, Grandma didn’t like junk food?”
“No.” Cece inched closer to the package and frowned at it. “Do you like them or do you have them because you thought someone else might like them?”
Again…another interesting question.
“I like them but a lot of people have strong opinions on what goes in cookies.” He was right.
There really was a lot he didn’t have a broad knowledge on.
“How about we make a point of picking new cookies every time we go to the grocery store? That way you can do research over time and make up your mind on the debate.”
“Yes.” He released my hand and threw himself at me. “We found something new.”
He clearly wasn’t getting nearly enough cookies from the coffee shop where he’d been stalking the models from.
He had an Owner now, though, so we’d fix that and anything else that popped up.
****
“I don’t know how I feel about this…he’s angry.” Cece had spent several minutes doing circles around my current project, looking adorable in his nightie and the sneakers he’d needed to put back on to go into the workshop.
He hadn’t liked that at all and had immediately added cute shoes to my shopping list. But this time it was my art that was frustrating him. “Were you angry when you started him?”
Possibly.
“I think I was pouring a lot of negative emotions into him.” Describing the mass of metal as male was interesting and made me wonder how he saw it. “I have a tendency to be influenced by how I’m feeling.”
My pretty boy sighed and shook his head. “Well, we need happy and pretty for your next project or I’m not doing my job as being your doll very well.”
Mumbling something about me being without a doll for too long, my pretty boy finished his circle and shook his head at me. “You’re entirely too talented for sad, Master. That can’t be allowed.”
Really?
“Thank you for worrying about me, sassy boy.” Stealing a quick kiss brought a smile back to his face. “This one is almost done, so you don’t have to worry.”
For some reason I’d just been dragging my feet about finishing the final pieces. I knew what I had to do and I already had a buyer for it, but making myself do it hadn’t been as easy.
“That’s good.” Hands on his hips, he sighed. “I don’t want to have to worry about your mental health. We need to focus on mine. The real world is crazy and you need to be healthy enough to help me sort through all that.”
At least he was honest.
“There is nothing to worry about.” Now that I had my boy. “Come here.”
As he bounced over, I swept him up in my arms which got a giggle from him as he wrapped his legs around me. “Now I know why you’re so strong. You build big things.”
“About half the time they’re this big.” I stole a kiss and got another happy sound from him. “But yes, they’re a good workout.”
He kissed my cheek as I set him down. “I approve.”
“Silly boy.” Taking his hand, I glanced around the studio. “Is there anything else you want to see?”
We’d done a tour of the main spaces and he’d marveled at all the different ways I got my creativity out, but he was starting to sag and was doing his best to hide his yawns. “I think…”
He paused, blinking like his brain was lagging behind, before getting the words out. “I think I want to ask more questions later.”
That was a good idea.
“Okay, then let’s get you cleaned up and we’re going to snuggle in bed.” I could see the questions whirling around in his head, but I wasn’t sure he’d be able to catch any of them. “I can make the decisions for us or I can give you choices as we go.”
Sagging into me, Cece let out a dramatic exhale. “Oh good. I’ve never done this, so I didn’t know what we do next.”
Ah.
“You just continue to be my good boy and let me know if there’s a problem.” He seemed to appreciate that plan and perked up again as we headed toward the door.
The walk through the backyard and into the kitchen got him a second wind, but I didn’t think it would last long.
“You need to tell me what you do for breakfast and stuff because I don’t know those rules either and I couldn’t figure out what to do online.
People are all over the map with that. Some people think guests are supposed to leave first thing and others say you have to make them breakfast and some say just coffee and some say they’re supposed to leave in the middle of the night, but you’re not going to want me to do that. ”