8. Axel

Chapter 8

Axel

The strip was as colorful and perfectly maintained as ever. With the assortment of shop fronts and perfect mix of residents going about their daily business, it felt like an idealized scene out of a movie. And the crazy thing was that this was just another typical day in Eagle Ridge.

‘How's that little butt of yours?' Axel asked, standing to one side and holding his truck door open so that Arlo could hop out.

‘It's still a bit tingly,' Arlo said, blushing slightly but smiling too. ‘But… I kinda like it like that.'

Axel smiled. The pair of them had driven into town to collect the other parts of Arlo's camping gear that hadn't been repaired the day before. And not only that, but Axel was going to put Arlo's refurbished tent in the dry cleaners along with his own tent too. The melted marshmallow and juice stains would only attract all kinds of ants and other little critters and the last thing that Axel wanted was for Arlo to end up with a ton of unnecessary bites.

As far as the spanking went, Axel was happy that Arlo had learned his lesson. Arlo and Axel had chatted openly on the drive into town and Axel could tell that Arlo knew the spanking was well deserved – and he was also impressed how Arlo was able to own that fact so well.

Arlo might have had enough sass and spark to last a lifetime, but Axel was seeing that he had plenty of substance and character to back that up with. It might have been down in part to his military training, but Axel sensed that Arlo was the kind of boy who could be relied upon if times got tough or even a little dangerous.

As the pair of them began walking down the busy Eagle Ridge street, Axel was beginning to see that Arlo might just be the complete package. That being said, he also knew that his mischievous and wild side would always need to be watched over. Arlo had a rebellious streak, and it might take a Daddy to keep an eye on it for his own good.

Arlo's got it all.

But the boy does need something to focus on though.

He needs to be challenged.

After dropping the tents off at the dry cleaners, there was a block of time to kill. And Axel had just the idea for how to fill it…

‘Arlo, I think you're going to like this place,' Axel smiled, walking alongside Arlo as the pair of them entered Beau's Books, a bookstore that also doubled up as a micro-cinema .

Beau's Books was run by a Daddy and Little couple called Beau and Nick. The pair of them had moved to Eagle Ridge from the big city around four years ago and quickly made it their home.

‘Hey, Nick,' Axel said, walking over toward the counter. ‘I'd like you to meet my friend Arlo.'

‘Hey!' Nick said, smiling as he adjusted his red-rimmed glasses and high-fived Arlo.

‘Hey!' Arlo giggled, clearly happy to be in such a Little-friendly store. ‘This place looks awesome.'

Axel watched with a quiet delight as Nick gave Arlo a rapid-fire tour of the book shelves, play area, and then the super-cozy movie theatre room that was nestled at the rear of the store.

‘We have Disney season, Sci-Fi, action for the Daddies,' Nick said, walking back over toward Axel hand in hand with Arlo. ‘Well, I actually love the action movies too, but maybe not quite as much as Beau does!'

‘Wow, so cool,' Arlo said, a look of pure delight in his eyes.

‘But let me show you something that I love about this place,' Axel smiled, walking over toward the cozy corner that was filled with beanbags and books. ‘After your late-night mischief, I think this could be just what the doctor ordered for you, young man.'

Axel took a seat on the big stack of beanbags and invited Arlo over .

‘Pick a book,' Axel said, motioning toward the shelves around him. ‘And when you've got what you want, sit down with me and I'll read you a story. You might even drift off and have a nap. We've got plenty of time, so don't worry about that.'

‘Yeah… that sounds… great ,' Arlo said, busily eying up the books before making his choice. ‘Here, this one.'

Arlo handed Axel a book about an adventurous baby bear who has to go on a mission to find his missing honey. Axel chuckled as he imagined Arlo doing something similar himself.

‘Come on, sit nice and close,' Axel said, opening his arm out and drawing Arlo all snug next to him. ‘Now let me begin…'

With that, Axel began to read the story and felt a sense of true satisfaction as Arlo listened quietly and attentively as he read the opening couple of chapters. Soon enough though, Axel could feel that Arlo's breathing was getting heavier and heavier.

I think he might be…

I'll just check.

Yup… my baby boy is fast asleep.

Axel very carefully placed the book to one side and allowed his head to tilt to one side. Arlo might have already been soundly asleep and taking a much-needed nap, but judging from the way his own eyes were feeling heavy it might well have been the case that Axel was a due a little snooze too.

So with no further ado, Axel duly allowed himself to drift off to sleep .

Axel knew that Nick and Beau wouldn't mind him and Arlo taking a nap. In fact, the reading corner was pretty much designed with that in mind. Axel hadn't fallen asleep with a lightly snoring Little by his side for a long, long time and he was now realizing just how much he had missed the feeling.

Except this was different.

This nap felt extra-special.

And it was all down to one mischievous, sassy, adventurous young man.

Axel couldn't deny it any longer. He was catching some very real feelings and there was nothing he could do about it either. Things were about to get very complicated indeed…

The hot sun was overhead, and Axel was in the mood to power up the mountain and take in the breathtaking views. Accompanied by two of his best Daddy friends and with their trusty canine companions zooming around, it was the kind of afternoon adventure that Axel relished.

After waking from their shared nap, Axel had left Arlo and Nick to have some fun in Beau's Books together. And with the Daddy hike plans already in place, there was no better place to be than out in the great outdoors.

‘Nick's a sweet boy,' Kipp said, wiping the sweat from his brow and handing his dog Brutus a crunchy dog treat. ‘I'm sure he'll be looking after Arlo. '

‘Beau's a lucky guy,' Max remarked, his charismatic grin telling everyone that he'd more than once considered what it might be like to spend some Daddy and boy time with Nick. ‘And maybe he's not the only one…'

Axel saw Max and Kipp exchange a knowing look.

And while it might have been as predictable as the sun rising and falling every day, Axel knew that at some point he was going to need to address the topic of his burgeoning relationship with Arlo.

‘Right, right…' Axel said, a sarcastic tone to his voice. ‘I wonder what you mean by that?'

Max and Kipp both laughed.

The truth was that the three of them would often share their thoughts and feelings. Putting aside their gruff, macho exteriors from time to time felt good and between them they had helped one another to get through tough times and a few tricky situations over the years.

‘Okay, you got me,' Axel said, stopping for a moment to admire the view down toward Eagle Falls and Sunset Forest beyond that. ‘Yeah, I think Arlo's pretty damn special. It's pointless even trying to deny it. And yes… something did happen. But you'd have to ask his butt cheeks for more details.'

‘Hell yeah,' Max responded, playfully slapping Axel on his shoulder. ‘Now that's what I'm talking about.'

‘Let me guess, it was after the camping incident?' Kipp asked, his eyes telling their own story. ‘I had to administer a firm reminder to Dale over that excursion. '

The three friends laughed and continued to talk. It felt good for Axel to open up and explain how Arlo was making him feel. And for the first time in a long time, Axel didn't even think about bringing his ex-Little into the discussion. It wasn't that Axel was trying not to, it was just a case of him not coming up. This was all about how Axel felt toward Arlo, and potentially the roadblocks that might be headed his way very soon…

‘I'm not going to try and stop him from leaving,' Axel said, in between glugs from his water bottle. ‘He deserves to find his happiness. And if it's not in Eagle Ridge, then so be it. I'll have to accept that.'

Kipp and Max nodded in agreement.

However Kipp did offer one counterpoint that Axel couldn't deny…

‘But what if Arlo's happiness is with you?' Kipp asked. ‘If you want to be Arlo's Daddy, then you owe it to him to show him what that could be like. And to be honest, you owe it to yourself to, brother.'

‘ Shit . Kipp's right on the money,' Max added. ‘As fucking usual.'

The three friends laughed and continued on with their walk. Axel had a lot to consider. And knowing that he was meeting up with Arlo later at Kipp's ranch, Axel knew that he'd better be prepared too…

‘I'm impressed. Very impressed,' Axel said as he stepped inside Kipp's ongoing project to convert one of his ranch's barns into a fully loaded Little play barn.

As he scanned his eyes over the refurbished soft floor and recently added ball pit, Axel couldn't help but notice Arlo crawling on all fours in a short-sleeved romper that came down to his knees. To say that Arlo looked cute would have been an understatement…

‘Go and say hi,' Kipp said, nudging Axel. ‘I'll call Dale over so that you and the boy can have some one on one time.'

Axel smiled and walked over toward Arlo.

It was clear from the gleeful smile on Arlo's face that he was in Little Space, and Axel was more than happy to throw himself into some fun and games…

‘Would you like to play in the ball pit?' Axel asked, crouching down next to Arlo and smiling warmly.

‘Yes, Daddy,' Arlo replied, his eyes wide and a look of mischief on his face. ‘But only if you carry me. I'm too tired to walkies…'

‘ Hmmmm ,' Axel replied. ‘Why do I get the feeling I'm being hustled? Hell, I'll carry you either way, darling boy.'

Arlo clapped his hands in glee and gratefully lay on his back and waited for Axel to pick him up and carry him over toward the ball pit.

The advantage of converting the old barn was that Kipp had been able to make everything without any kind of typical size restriction. And this meant that the ball pit was way bigger and deeper than the average kind that one might find in a typical play center or Little club in the city .

‘ Weeeeeeee !' Arlo giggled, diving underneath the balls only to pop up again over toward the opposite side of the pit. ‘Come and catch me Daddy shark!'

‘I will,' Axel grinned. ‘And when I catch you, I'm going to eat you all up!'

‘Even my butt?' Arlo squealed, his cheeks turning red.

‘ Especially your butt!' Axel growled, half-joking and half-serious.

What followed was a wonderful game of tag as Axel and Arlo romped around in the ball pit, totally losing themselves in the moment as they had the kind of fun that only a Daddy and his special baby boy could have with one another.

‘Daddy?' Arlo asked, his voice a little shy.

‘Yes, baby?' Axel replied.

‘I've had a little accident in my romper,' Arlo said, his cheeks flushing bright red. ‘I've got my diapeee on, but I think I need a new one. W-w-w-would you change me please?'

Axel didn't need asking twice.

Without a single second of hesitation, Axel rose from the ball pit like Neptune rising from the ocean and put Arlo over his shoulder and carried him toward the changing area.

‘Don't worry, I'll have you feeling as fresh as a daisy in no time,' Axel said as he gently placed his innocent boy down on the changing table. ‘And after that, I think it might just be time for a milk bottle. What do you say?'

‘Yes pweeease, Daddy,' Arlo gurgled. ‘You're the best . '

Axel smiled and got on with the task of freshening Arlo up. And as he did that, he couldn't help but think how natural the connection between him and Arlo was. There was nothing forced about it, not even in the slightest. It felt right.

The only question in Axel's mind was when were they going to take things to the next level and discover whether their chemistry extended all the way?