4. Lee Has A Revolution At Sea

Chapter four

Lee Has A Revolution At Sea

I sat at a table with Drew, who seemed to be the central person in the group. His best friend Ward was there, as well as Quinn who worked for him. But there was also a guy named Larry, and I wasn’t sure exactly how he fit into the group. We all sipped Old Fashioneds and basked in the sun while our boys played. It had been a fun enough trip. Danny was certainly enjoying it. In fact, he was dancing along the pool with a few other boys and pups, though I wasn’t sure who was who. I didn’t care much, either. It was nice to watch my Danny shine, while chatting with other adults.

But that was part of the problem. I was more interested in chatting with the adults than my boy. I was afraid we were growing apart as partners. And that was down to me. And my job.

It turned out, that someone else from my company was on the cruise. And her brother was Danny’s new Little friend, Levi. I had a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that Brianna’s brother was now Danny’s friend. They were even setting up play dates for after we returned home. Not that it mattered to me. What mattered was that Brianna was a huge reminder that I had a shit ton of work to do. The only thing I hated about vacations was catching up after them.

I threw back the rest of my drink and raised my hand to get the server’s attention. I needed another one to drown those thoughts. There would be time to think about work later.

A huge part of me wished that later would never come. I was enjoying my work less and less over the past few years. I would much rather hang out with Danny. Or these guys.

One of the boys rushed over and jumped in his daddy’s lap. I was pretty sure it was the effervescent boy who owned the vacation company. Seeing him cuddle his daddy made me want my boy. I looked around but didn’t see him.

“After this cruise, it’s going to be boring going home.” The boy pouted.

His daddy, who was Drew’s client, cuddled him closer. “I’ll find fun things for you to do, pup.”

That’s right, they were into pet play. At Afterglow, the pets almost always wore masks or at least collars. Here, there was no way to tell, so I called them all boy and daddy. That worked well enough.

The server brought a second round for everyone. And the pet went to find trouble elsewhere while we talked. Well, they talked. About investments and banking or the next vacation they were taking. Or how they were going to spoil their boys. And I realized something fundamental.

I didn’t belong at this table. Not yet.

These daddies were rich. Wealthy. Billionaires. I knew Drew had money, of course. He was Danny’s boss. But the rest of them? Even that Larry guy had money. Though he seemed more down to earth than the others.

Another rich guy came over and joined our group. His boy, Levi, who was Danny’s new friend, rushed over and hugged him. “Ugh, Levi, you’re all wet.”

“Sorry, Daddy.” Then he ran off.

The man shook his head and sat with us. He leaned over and offered me his hand. “Hi, how are you today.” Then he shook a few others. Except the Larry guy. That guy, he shoved. Apparently, they were long-time friends.

“Hudson, dude. Knock it off. Get a drink, man.”

Yep. And that meant Hudson was rich too. Great.

I hated my job and wanted to give it up. But I wasn’t independently wealthy like these guys. I couldn’t do whatever I wanted. I needed to stick with it. Get another promotion and save my money. Make good investments. So that I could have this lifestyle someday. Danny deserved to have a daddy who could give him this. I leaned in and subtly turned the conversation back to investing. I wanted their advice. Who better to give it?

But underneath it all, I hated it. I didn’t want to feel like this. I didn’t want to work so hard. But at the same time, I felt compelled to. I owed it to Danny, right?