Chapter 10 #2
“No.” Something about the way he sighed out the word made me question if his little side wanted to pop out. “You can do it and trying new things makes you smart.”
“I don’t know about that.” I put just enough drama in my voice to earn another one of the possible giggles from him. He looked fairly neutral as he straightened and took my hand, but I was pretty sure that was just his default state.
“I do. I’ll show you.” Shaking his head like I was being ridiculous, he sighed and I had to fight back a smile. “Playing is easy. Toys are fun. You’ll see.”
“Maybe.” I kept sighing and making drama-filled human noises as he led me deeper into his home. It was basically set up similar to apartments on Earth just with furniture that looked a bit like it came from an expensive version of IKEA.
The kitchen was set up along one wall in every home I’d seen and that was where it looked like I’d landed on another planet, but luckily for me, I had a boy who wanted to take care of his Daddy.
That meant I wouldn’t have to figure out how to make the fridge box thing rise out from the counter or turn on the burner that didn’t seem to exist until someone waved their hand funny over it.
Toddlers couldn’t make any of that work, and I didn’t understand enough about magic to make it work either.
My boy had decided to step up on the caretaking part of our relationship, though, so I was hoping that would mean he’d let me step up on the Daddy and Dom side of things.
“It’ll be fine.” Klynn actually started swinging my hand as his tone sounded more like he’d always been speaking English like a local. “Daddies know how to play. They just forget sometimes.”
At some point I was going to have to sneak into his tablet and get a better idea of what he was reading.
“Are you sure? You’ve got alien toys. My boy’s not human, so I might not be able to play right.” That got another giggle out of him and it actually sounded like a quiet laugh that time.
“I’m not the alien.” He shook his head like I was ridiculous but seemed more confident as he waved his hand over another panel on the wall and made his door slide open like we were on Star Trek. “You are.”
“I’m me.” I managed to sound like I thought he was being ridiculous and didn’t laugh at the silly conversation. “You’re the alien. You do magic. You live on another planet. You have to protect me from dinosaurs.”
Those were still weird to see even if they were all smaller than I’d imagined dinosaurs being. Jurassic Park hadn’t prepared me for small plant-eating dinos that were basically like large annoying dogs that tried to push their way into any building they could find.
“I’ll protect you, Daddy.” Tugging me to walk faster, there was more animation in his step and in his voice as he led me into his room. “From food and from dinos and from naughty people.”
I thought that deserved another sigh. “You’re going to have diner men over here if we’re not careful.”
His giggle was the cutest thing I’d ever heard, but nothing beat the actual smile he gave me and the way his shoulders scrunched up. “The professor. He’s a diner man.”
Groaning, I nodded and focused on him instead of his room. “He is. I’m hoping his…friends are better behaved.”
That got more human-sounding giggles from my adorable boy and I knew his little side was finally coming out to play. “He’s got a human friend and a grumpy friend.”
It was my turn to laugh. “I think they’re going to balance the professor out and keep him from being too naughty.”
I wasn’t sure I wanted to see what he’d act like on the other side of the gate, though.
“We’re not naughty. I’m a good boy.” A good boy who’d finally led me over to a low bookshelf with some open shelving and some with doors that looked like IKEA shelves I’d bought for my first apartment.
It wrapped around two walls on the right side of the room, giving him a lot of storage but most of the objects looked like stuff I’d seen other places, decorative rocks and small statues and their version of books.
Oh, his ereader was stacked on top of a collection of books, and the way he smiled at it seemed to indicate that it worked, but I knew I’d have to ask about it later. Checking out his room and playing toys with my boy was more important at the moment.
The space seemed designed to give that part of the room as much privacy as possible because it couldn’t be seen from the doorway and a lot of it was blocked even more by a large chair that seemed out of place considering their design aesthetic. “And you’re a good Daddy.”
So we were going to talk about that?
“Yes. But just your good Daddy.” I squeezed his hand as he giggled again. “I’m Agent Murphy to everyone else.”
“Agent.” He giggled, finding that funny for some reason. “I read books with agents.”
Oh.
Raising one eyebrow, I did my best to look suspicious. “Very nice agents who are good boys, right?”
His snicker said that was questionable. “Good agents for their boys.”
So they were naughty agents everywhere else?
Should I even ask what he’d been reading?
“Agents are serious and always follow rules.” I tilted my head and frowned. “Right?”
Giggles should not be that suspicious.