Sawyer
“Do you really think that’s a good idea?” Watching Cooper eat was giving me a stomachache, but when he started eyeing another cotton candy, it was time to draw the line.
“But…” He gave Jackson a pouting took.
Jackson shook his head like we were both silly and leaned close to whisper in Cooper’s ear. Whatever he said was probably dirty, but it kept Cooper from begging for more sugar, so I was grateful. Cooper just grinned and gave me a wicked look before nodding. “Yes, Master.”
Yup, dirty.
Jackson didn’t seem to mind. He smiled at Cooper and reached out to cup his cheek. “Don’t drive Sawyer nuts.”
Cooper didn’t even bother to hide what he was doing. “But it’s sooo much fun.”
Laughing, Jackson gave him a look like Cooper was the funniest thing he’d ever seen. “But you’re already getting a spanking tonight. If you push Sawyer too far, he might not want to play with us later.”
Play?
Like puppy or spanking?
Cooper sighed. “I didn’t promise to be good. Besides, Sawyer loves me.” Cooper leaned into Jackson’s touch but peeked over at me and blew me a kiss. It wasn’t terrible as far as PDAs went, but the lady standing beside us waiting for her chance to order blinked wide, and her mouth fell open.
She’d either been eavesdropping or had a dirty mind, because we hadn’t been that bad.
“Come on.” I tilted my head, trying to point out the nosy woman. “Let’s drag him away before he makes himself sick.”
“No fun.” Cooper straightened but started cleaning up his mess from the cotton candy. I thought he was going to behave, but as he stood up, he leaned close to Jackson and kissed his cheek. “I’ll be a good boy.” Then the minx leaned over and kissed mine.
Shocked didn’t even begin to describe her face.
But any guilt I felt fell away when instead of spewing religious shit at us, she just brought out her cell phone and took our picture. Some people had no boundaries.
Cooper loved it. He beamed and giggled as we all stood up and started walking away. I thought we were in the clear, but then he looked back over his shoulder, whispering loudly. “It’s even better than you’re imagining.”
Lord.
I was going to kill him.
Jackson wasn’t helping the situation either. He laughed and brought his hand up to ruffle Cooper’s hair like he was a cheeky little sub, not a naughty slut who needed a spanking.
Wait.
Damn it. Either way, the shit got what he wanted.
Shaking my head, I herded them away before we ended up YouTube sensations or worse, a Facebook meme. “You make me crazy.”
Jackson reached out and cupped my face, seemingly unconcerned about the show of affection. “He keeps us on our toes.”
I hadn’t been sure how everything would work on our date. It wasn’t so much worrying about how we would get along or if he had the patience for an excited Cooper, but it was the little things that made me nervous: affection in public…how to hide that we weren’t just three friends hanging out…how to open up and ask for what I wanted.
Little things.
Tiny.
But so fucking big.
Cooper must have sensed my worries. He reached out and grabbed my hand, smiling sweetly. “Let’s go do one more roller coaster.”
“With your full stomach? Hell no. Let’s go do the bumper cars again.” He might not barf on those.
Jackson was laughing again. “I’m going to have to agree with Sawyer, pup. I’m not taking you on another roller coaster with all that sugar in your stomach.”
Cooper started to pout, but a yawn ruined the effect. I wasn’t surprised he was tired. He’d been up since first thing and had bounced all the way to the park. Spending hours wandering around and running from one ride to the next would have exhausted anyone.
“Okay, bumper cars. But we can come back another time and do more roller coasters?”
“Of course. We can even get season passes if we want to.” Jackson said it like it was nothing big, but to me, the words were significant.
“Yes!” Cooper’s eyes lit up, and he grinned. He could see the long-term meaning in the words, and the minx wanted another excuse to act like a nut and get more sugar.
“All right, then. We’ll talk about it with the park people on the way out. Most of the time, you get a discount at these kinds of places when you upgrade at the park.” Steering us toward our new destination, he laughed as Cooper bounced forward to look at a stand selling stuffed animals.
Jackson took my hand and gave it a squeeze as he watched Cooper. “He’s exhausted.”
“He was up at the crack of dawn.”
“I knew I should have had you guys stay over.” He let his shoulder bump into mine.
“Between his job and your family, it would have been hard to make it all work. He’s just going to sleep all the way home, anyway.”
Jackson gave me a grin, and I rewound what I’d said.
Oh.
We were going back to Jackson’s immediately after the park. Blushing, I glanced away to see Cooper pulling out his wallet to try to win a stuffed puppy by throwing rings at a moving belt of glass bottles.
Jackson chuckled. “He knows those are rigged, right?”
“Yes, but he’s going to spend five bucks attempting to anyway.” He had to. Cooper had this innate belief that all he had to do was keep trying, and it would work out. It’d kept us going through long nights, but sometimes it was overwhelming.
“It’s what makes Cooper unique.” Then Jackson leaned close and pressed a kiss to my head. “But we’re not trying to keep up with him or compete in any way. We all do things at our own pace. Right?”
Cooper had tattled.
“Yes.” But I didn’t like my own worries holding me back. “But—”
When I couldn’t finish the sentence, Jackson took over. “But sometimes we need help to give us a push?”
The answer came out quietly, but I was proud that I didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”
“That’s all I had to hear.” Jackson spoke confidently, like he knew exactly what needed to happen, and his calm demeanor soothed the jumble of emotions inside of me. “Now, come on. Let’s figure out how to win him a puppy before he spends a fortune on that thing.”
“I’d wish you luck, but I’m not sure that would help.” I shook my head as Cooper refused to give up.
“I don’t need any more luck. I’ve got plenty.”
He must have seen my confusion, because he gave me a tender smile. “I found you two, didn’t I?”
****
I’d been right; five minutes into the drive and he’d been out. With the stupid stuffed dog as his pillow. I really didn’t need any more alone time with my thoughts, but the ride to Jackson’s gave me plenty.
Grumbling low, while Cooper shifted and made quiet little noises, I tried to get comfortable. “I don’t care how crazy the schedules are to match up. The next time we go anywhere together, we’re taking one car.”
By the time I pulled into Jackson’s driveway, I was tired, hungry, and curious about the rest of our night. Food that didn’t list sugar as the first ingredient was my main priority, but I had a feeling sex was going to be Cooper’s.
I just wasn’t sure about Jackson.
The look he’d given Cooper as he’d said good-bye to him had been heated and wicked. When he’d turned that heat toward me, it hadn’t faded, but it had turned sweeter, and I could see a confidence in his eyes that wasn’t always there.
Whatever Cooper had texted him, I was glad it made Jackson feel better. I hated that I was the reason he worried about what was happening between us. In a warped way, though, it made me feel better. Just knowing he was thinking about us, and about the future, made it easier for me to admit how attached I was growing to him.
Cooper was beyond attached. He was head over heels in love with Master, and the only thing that held him back from jumping around telling Jackson at the top of his lungs was me. I couldn’t decide if he was rushing or if it was just the way he was. Cooper went into everything full speed ahead, and love seemed to be the same way for him.
Had it been the same way for us?
Once I’d gone from being his friend to being his family, had it been the same way? I never questioned how he felt about me. He’d said the words, and I could see them in his eyes. Looking back, I couldn’t really say how long it had taken before he told me he loved me.
I remembered wrapping myself around him in that dingy little motel room and holding on to him for dear life. I remembered knowing we would be together forever and telling him how much I loved him, but I couldn’t say if it had been days or weeks after we’d moved in together.
Did it matter?
As I glanced over at Cooper, curled up against the car door, relaxed and beautiful, I wasn’t sure it did. I knew he loved me, and I knew we were tied together forever. But I also knew that there was room in our lives for someone else, someone like Jackson.
We didn’t need a Dom to keep us on track, and we didn’t need someone to make decisions for us. We were pretty damned functional and had accomplished a lot since we’d first left home. But having him there was relaxing and soothing in a way that nothing else was.
There was nothing to worry about, and nothing that was up to me. Cooper’s pleasure…my pleasure…Cooper playing as a pup…punishments…none of it was my responsibility any longer. Every time I thought about completely submitting to Jackson, it sent a wave of need and nerves through me.
I’d dated and fucked enough guys in high school to know I was submissive. I knew the types of things I wanted to explore, and Cooper had opened my eyes to even more, but there was a difference between a bit of rough sex that made someone curious and true submission.
What I wanted with Jackson was so much more than just bottoming while he slapped my ass a couple of times. But it was that desire for more that made me wary. Cooper had spanked me before, and he caressed me while I was a pup, and he was an aggressive top when he needed to be, but that wasn’t the same.
Or maybe it was, and I was just a worrywart—as Cooper liked to tease.
If I ended up with Wart as my pup name, I was going to kill him.
Finally turning off the car, I reached over and rubbed Cooper’s leg. “Coop, we’re back at Jackson’s now.”
He shifted and scrunched his face up. “We’re home?”
Basically, yes.
“No, we’re at Jackson’s, remember? We were going to stay here tonight.” We’d all agreed that after the long day at the park and then dinner and hanging out, we probably wouldn’t have the energy to go back to our place.
Well, that had been the excuse we’d used to justify sleeping over with Jackson—not that Cooper had needed one. He loved staying at Jackson’s, and he didn’t bother to play hard to get…and I had to admit, I didn’t either. Even though we’d only known him a short while, relaxing at his house, even if we didn’t do anything sexual, felt natural.
However, Cooper made sure that something sexual always happened. Not that we’d had that many dates yet in the two weeks since that first meeting—but Cooper was doing his best to get me more comfortable. I couldn’t decide if I appreciated his version of “helping” or not.
Jackson finally gave up waiting for us to get out of the car, and he walked over toward my side and opened the door. Bending over, he looked in. “Is he still sleeping?”
I nodded while Cooper shook his head, eyes still closed, and grumbled. “No. I’m here.”
Jackson grinned and leaned close. In a bad stage whisper, he spoke again. “Does he know that here and awake are not the same thing?”
I shrugged, playing along. “That’s a very good question. I’m not sure. You might have to do some investigation to see if he’s really awake or just talking in his sleep.”
Trying to hold back his laughter, Jackson leaned over me and reached through the car. Letting his fingers trail over Cooper’s groin, Jackson did his best to sound serious. “I think he’s dead. His cock isn’t hard.”
“Yup. He’s always hard. If he’s soft, he must have kicked the bucket. It’s very sad.” I gave Jackson a quick kiss. “Does that mean I get to eat his portion of dessert?”
At that, Cooper decided playing possum might not be the best idea any longer. “Dessert?”
Jackson and I laughed as Cooper looked up at the house. “What did you get?”
“Nothing.” Jackson gave Cooper’s cock one last teasing caress and then moved back to stand up. “You’ve had enough junk today.”
Cooper pouted. “But, Master, I was so good.”
Shaking his head, Jackson ignored the sexy expression. “Dinner and then we’ll relax. Sawyer, I grabbed that action movie you were talking about, so we can see if it’s any good if you want to.”
Pleased that he’d remembered, I unbuckled and started climbing out of the car. Giving Jackson another peck, I smiled. “Thank you. I can’t wait to see it. Lots of mixed reviews but as long as they didn’t show all the good parts in the trailers, it should be great.”
Once Cooper decided that being awake was a better option, he didn’t waste any time jumping out of the car. “What’s for dinner?”
I might not be as bouncy as Cooper, but I was just as curious. Jackson had said he was going to teach us to cook new things, but there hadn’t been enough time yet. “I think we were promised something delicious.”
Cooper managed to get his excitement under enough control to grab the bag out of the trunk, but then he came dancing around the side and threw himself at Jackson. “I’m starving.”
Jackson wrapped his arms around Cooper, grinning. “How can you be hungry? You ate about every hour today.”
Cooper beamed at him. “I’m just special that way.” Then giving Jackson a passionate kiss, he pulled back, breathless. “All this fabulous excitement takes lots of energy.”
“Fabulous excitement, huh?”
“Yes, and I’m going to need lots of energy for later.” Cooper wiggled his eyebrows up and down, lecherously.
“I’m not sure you need lots of energy for watching a movie. I think that’s quiet and relaxing.” Jackson tried to keep a straight face while he said it, but the laughter in his eyes ruined it.
Cooper wasn’t going to let him even tease about something that horrible. “Oh, no. I was promised a spanking if I was good. I was perfect today, and that means spankings and incredible sex.”
I snorted. “You almost gave that one couple a heart attack when you grabbed Jackson’s ass.”
Cooper stuck out his tongue at me. “They shouldn’t have been gossiping.”
Jackson choked back a laugh. “And what about the lady in line?”
Shrugging, Cooper blinked up innocently. “I don’t remember any lady.”
“You have a very selective memory, my boy. Come on, let’s go inside. Dinner’s almost ready.” Jackson gave Cooper a pat on the ass, urging him into the house, before reaching out to take my hand. “You were very good today, but I don’t think I remember what you wanted for a treat.”
Because I wasn’t a nut who needed to be bribed to function or a flirt who liked pushing the limit.
“Um, a treat?” So maybe that wasn’t the best answer.
Jackson’s smile turned tender. “How about I give you what I think you want?” His free hand came up to cup my cheek. “Something you need but haven’t talked about yet.”
Stupid tattletale.
“Um…”
Cooper thought it was so perfect he was nearly wagging his nonexistent tail as he waited on the porch. “Yes, Master! That would be a great idea! Sawyer was very good too today. He didn’t even get frustrated with me at all.”
Because Jackson had been there to keep the little minx in line. It was easier to relax when it wasn’t my responsibility. It was really too bad I couldn’t think of a good reason for Jackson to go grocery shopping with us too. It would probably save us a ton on impulse purchases.
And I was trying to find any excuse in the world not to think about what might happen later.
“Thank you, Master.” It wasn’t quite admitting what I wanted out loud, but I wasn’t going to lie to him or myself. Taking a deep breath, I stepped closer and curled into him.
Closing my eyes for just a moment, I pushed the nerves away. I wanted this. I wanted Jackson. I wanted to see where everything would go. I wanted to hear the words come from him one day. I wanted to see his face light up when Cooper said the words to him.
I wanted so much it was frightening.