Chapter Eight

Jack

Going ashore without Vale was harder than I'd anticipated. Sunning on the beach alone wasn't for me. How was I going to handle the long months apart that lay ahead for us? I brushed off the sand and strolled down the row of shops, hoping a trinket or two to treat my boy with would catch my eye. In the end, I snagged a couple of goodies but midway through the day I'd had enough and returned to the ship. I took a chance and shot off a text to Vale, not positive when or if it would go through.

Me: Called it a day, back in my room. Pop in if you're nearby.

After I stored his gifts in an empty suitcase with the others, it was time to shower the salt and sand away. What I didn't expect to find when I stepped out wearing only a towel around my waist was my sweet monkey jumping on the bed.

"Daddy!" He squealed and ran across the room to me. "I missed our lunch date."

"Me, too, but having you call me Daddy more than made up for it."

"Sorry, it just came out." He snuggled into my arms. This was what I needed. Instantly, my soul settled once I held him.

"Don't apologize, I loved it." Shit, my towel slid off. "My turn to say sorry."

Vale giggled and slid his hands down and grabbed my ass. "Don't apologize," he used my words on me. "I'm enjoying this."

"Cheeky boy."

Vale stood back and let his hungry gaze roam over every inch of me. I felt exposed and adored at the same time, cherished even. This was the most attention he'd paid to my body. Perfectly fit, I was not. A six-pack and all the goodies guys ogled wasn't a part of my physique and based upon Vale's reaction he was pleased with me as I was. Every interaction with this sweet boy turned the lock on my heart tighter, in his favor. He'd soon own it and the key.

"My Daddy is yummy."

"Yummy? Not sure that's ever been used to describe me. But yes, I am your Daddy and yours alone, and as long as you're pleased that's all that matters to me." I drew my sassy boy in for a heated kiss. "Be careful, you don't want to start things you don't have time to finish."

"Grr," he growled. "This is becoming increasingly difficult, isn't it?"

"It is, dear boy. What is it you desire right now? For Daddy to take care of you and make you come?" I rubbed against him, and he was just as hard as I was. This may be pushing the envelope given we'd not discussed copulating, but we both had those pesky erections to take into consideration.

"That's not fair, Daddy." It appeared the nickname that he'd lovingly adopted was best suited for manipulation. Not sure how I felt about that, but he was cute as hell, and I'd table that discussion for another day.

"Then what are you suggesting, sir?" My wicked, flirtatious side emerged in preparation of the salacious devouring of my dear Vale.

"Well, it's not much later than our usual lunchtime dates. And I'm guessing we both already ate. And even if we hadn't, food wouldn't get here in time. So maybe we just do a quick dine and dash of each other?"

"I like your way of thinking, but only if you're completely comfortable with that, Vale. Nothing ever has to happen that you don't want to, and nothing will ever be expected of you."

"I know, and I appreciate that and it's part of why I want this to happen. I believe this, whatever is happening between us, means more to us both. It's not just a fleeting moment on a cruise ship."

"Vale, you are correct. But remind me when we're done, I have another gift for my sweet boy."

"You don't have to buy me things to be with you, Jack."

Back to Jack are we? Time to flip that shit back around.

"Let me see, what did someone else in this cabin just say? Oh yeah, I know, and I appreciate that and it's part of why I want this to happen. Two can play the honesty game and the only way a long-distance relationship will work for us is to keep that in mind." There was so much more to say but the way he touched me clouded my mind.

Vale ran his fingers through the hair on my chest. "I do, but whatever will we do with my clothes?" Vale batted his lashes then turned serious. "I can't get them wrinkled because I still have to work after this."

"Let me do the honors." Piece by piece, I disrobed my adorable boy and carefully draped each item over a nearby chair. If anything wrinkled, I'd run a quick iron over it for him.

"Look at you, such a beautiful boy. I always enjoy unwrapping a gift." The gift of a beautiful boy, that was. "Now, whatever shall I do with him?" Vale had been so good, not fiddling as he stood there—until I asked that. His beautiful cock bobbed as he hopped up and down.

"Make me come, Daddy. Please?"

Dear God, this boy would be my undoing. He would break me and put me back together in a mold that suited him, and I couldn't wait to enjoy every sexy moment of that. Was it possible to have a teenager's libido again? I laid him back on the bed and gazed down at his beautiful body lying amongst the starched linens. How perfectly he belonged there. I firmly gripped the base of my shaft to stave the pending release. I hadn't been this, for lack of a better term, prematurely active since my early teen years. Everything about Vale was beautiful inside as well as out and that combination was lethal.

Unfortunately, time wasn't on our side today, and I couldn't spend the limited amount worshiping his body the way he deserved. This was gonna be quick and normally quick meant dirty, but I wasn't about to diminish how important this was to us both. My lips trailed kisses down his torso as I gently spread his legs and knelt between them. I wanted Vale to feel, not think, and enjoy the moment while it lasted. My shaft eagerly bobbed, awaiting its turn, but it could wait. It was important that Vale saw that he was first with me.

When I took his cock head into my mouth, he moaned and arched up. Drawing more of those illicit sounds from him was my new goal, along with making him scream my name as he came. Up and down his shaft my lips slid, and my tongue swirled around every inch of it. Over the vein and under the crown, down along the underside.

"Daddy," he panted. I held his hips firmly in place as they tried to thrust up again. It didn't take long before my eager boy's cock throbbed in my mouth, and with a guttural moan he came. I devoured every drop then hovered above him and pressed my lips to his. Vale wrapped his hand around my cock and stroked. My plan was to just let him have it all and take care of myself later. But who was I to deny my boy this? He wished to touch me, to take care of me and I'd longed for it to be his hand and not mine, so I'd let him have his way.

"Baby." I gazed into his beautiful eyes. He stroked harder, faster. Given my current mindset and the pent-up way I was before we even began, I'd be no better than him at holding out. I'd make it up to him another time when we could enjoy making love all night long. As my release barreled forth, I pressed my lips to his and thrust my tongue inside his mouth and came harder than I had in a long time. Then again, I'd been the only one to touch me for, Jesus, who knew how long? But it wasn't all about the act so much as it was who you performed it with and in this case, being with Vale only served to intensify and elevate it to a level I hadn't reached before. I knew the reason behind it, but I wasn't ready to admit it to myself, nor say it aloud and risk scaring Vale away. He was already unsure and far too important to me to fuck this up.

"Let me grab a towel and I'll get us cleaned up." I was only gone a second and in that time, Vale was already mid-dressing. I wiped the come from his chest as well as the bit that got on me and tossed the towel across the room toward the bathroom. An uneasy feeling shot through me at how quiet Vale had become. Had this been wrong?

"Is everything okay, Little Monkey?"

Downward his gaze remained as he briefly nodded. Not. Good.

"Wait, I have something for you." I ran over to the closet and pulled out the item I wanted to give him today and handed him the bag.

"Really? For me?" He shook his head as if in disbelief. "This is usually the point where I get ghosted, just it's the first time I'm walking away with a parting gift."

"Sweetheart, I'm not dumping you and we need to shift your mindset on that. I understand this," I gestured between us, "hasn't been long. But I'm doing my best to prove to you that I've meant what I've said. What more do you need to understand I'm all in?"

He reached into the bag and pulled the gift out and tears welled in his eyes. "You got me a monkey backpack. He matches the stuffy you gave me."

"Yes, he does." I wiped the tears away. "Please don't cry, Little Monkey. What we just did was beautiful and only the beginning. We will have the rest of our lives to do that and more." I feared he still didn't believe me. "Vale." I lifted his chin for him to see the sincerity in mine at my next words. "I'm falling for you. Hard and fast. I'm trying not to scare you away with this revelation, but I can't help how I feel." Before he could say a word, I drew him to me and pressed my lips to his, conveying all I could through our kiss.

"You-you mean it?" he stuttered, clutching the backpack to his chest. "I mean, you get me, and that's what scares me even more, because nobody ever has. And then you buy me stuff, which isn't necessary, but nobody's ever done that either. It just makes my head spin. And then I worry. And then my heart hurts and I don't want my heart to hurt. It's hurt too much already." He rambled on in that adorable way of his, though I knew the words hurt for him to say.

"My Sweet Monkey, I would soon cut my own heart from my chest before I hurt yours."

"Oh, Daddy." He whimpered and pressed tighter against me. "I hate that I have to return to work after this. I just want to be with you all the time. It's gonna be so hard when you leave."

"I know, but we'll talk as often as we can, I promise." Speaking with a conviction I barely held took all I had. But I was the Daddy here and it was my job to calm and reassure my boy. "I'll probably drive you insane with the number of messages and emails I'll send you. Waiting to hear from you will make me crazy."

Finally, a cute giggle escaped. "Okay. Thank you for my backpack. It's perfect but unfortunately, I have to get back to work."

"No pouting," I tugged his bottom lip free. "I love these lips so no abusing them. Tonight, I'll wait in the usual spot for my silly monkey." Vale pressed his lips to mine once more and then he was out the door and took a piece of my heart with him. While I was a bit sad, I was elated that I'd brought a parting smile to my boy's face. Hopefully, it brightened his day and would help get him through his long work shift.

The remainder of the afternoon was spent lounging around my room, rotating between work related things and internet scrolling. My thoughts were filled with all things Vale. I received an email notification that his new costume shipped but alas, it would wait for weeks before his contract ended, and I could see the little cutie in it. Was it wrong of me to hope that he left when I did? But I couldn't do that to him. This was his employment and his friend got him the job. Being selfish wasn't who I was, nor was that fair to Vale.

For dinner, I dined on the balcony in my room as opposed to going to the restaurant. And instead of binge-watching mindless television, though I'd never gotten anywhere with that series, I instead picked up a book. With a breeze in my hair and the warmth of the sun, I got lost in the worlds of mythical beasts.

This page-turning novel with dragons who hid amongst the humans in secondary personas but could shift into their true forms in the blink of an eye captivated me. Sent to Earth to guard the lost treasures that had been hidden here from their realm thousands of centuries before. The author was truly gifted and had a way with words to where you felt you stood beside these magical beasts while they battled evil. Though I enjoyed the tale, I was all too happy to set the book down when my alarm went off to go meet my sweet Vale.

"Daddy," he whispered as we embraced.

"Yes, Sweet Monkey, I'm here. Ready to play?" He wiggled out of my arms and hopped over to the harness area. "I'll take that as a yes. Let's get you suited up." I enjoyed learning how to do this myself. It would serve us well in the future. Not all our time would be spent indoors as I had a plethora of outings planned for Vale.

Off he went, scaling up the wall like the monkey he was. The boy was brilliant, the course engrained in memory as he glided over each hold with ease. Tonight, he was on a mission to climb to the top without the aid of the footholds. They were there if he needed them, but his iron will and determination had him relying on his upper body strength to reach the top and sure enough, when he rang the bell all eyes were on him.

"Way to go, Monkey!" the handlers shouted as the pets' padded claps rang out.

But monkey wasn't done. He rappelled down and yanked at his harness. "I get the hint, little imp." After he was free and clear of all restraints, he bounded over to the obstacle course and dove into the tunnels and raced the pups through. His energy drew the other pets to follow. Round and round they went until the pups tuckered out and monkey moved onto the cat scratcher.

Patiently I waited for my little monkey to tucker out. Hell, I'd only watched, and I was exhausted. Imagine having that much excess energy? I could've repainted my condo already.

"Ready for bed, monkey?" A big yawn rushed forth before he could reply. "I'll take that as a yes. Time to go."

The brief kiss we shared in the hall before parting wasn't enough.

How could I get more time with my boy before this trip was over?