Chapter Nine

Rocky

His sweet boy had been through so much pain. How was it that a person who radiated such acceptance of everyone, had never felt acceptance himself. Not even from the men he called brothers. Oh, the club would accept Aiden as he was, there was no doubt about that, but Aiden hadn't felt that acceptance. Not enough to let them all in. Not yet. But Rocky intended to change that.

Rocky held Aiden on his lap just a bit longer, loath to give up the warmth and comfort he felt just yet. If he could have his way, Rocky would hold Aiden like this all day every day. Eventually he had to let go, however; there was a new project in the bar that needed their attention.

Lifting Aiden's face toward him and tilting it up just a bit, Rocky kissed his forehead. "The contractors will be at the bar soon," he murmured. "We should probably get ready to meet them."

Aiden smiled brightly before his smile faltered and his shoulders slumped. Rocky wasn't sure what had caused the reaction, but he was determined to fix it. He hoped Aiden would share without having to be asked so Rocky kept silent for a bit and waited. To his great delight, Aiden spoke as he rose from Rocky's lap.

"Yesterday, I dreaded working with you. I wasn't sure how I'd manage to hide my desire around you. Now that I don't have to hide it, the thought of being with you all day is a dream come true. But..." Aiden sighed and he didn't have to continue for Rocky to understand.

"The contractors, right? You don't know them or how to speak to them?"

Aiden's wide eyes found Rocky's and he just stared for a moment before stuttering out, "H-how did y-you..."

"I told you, baby. I've known you for a while. I know your difficulties. Talking to new people, especially when it's in a leader type role, is one of those. You don't need to worry about that. Just tell me and I'll tell them. Problem solved."

A hopeful half smile graced Pup's face as he nodded once and turned to gather his things. When Aiden lifted his messenger bag, he did so with more force than was needed, used to the extra weight of his computer. Rocky remembered that Aiden had mentioned needing a new computer and adjusted their timetable to allow for a trip to an electronics store before getting to the bar.

Rocky texted Blade, explaining the situation and asking him to meet the contractors on arrival and led Aiden to the car. As he placed his phone in the holder on the dash, the reply came in from Blade.

Blade: No problem. Do what you need. I'll get them going.

With the confirmation received, Rocky set his GPS to take him to the well known computer store a couple of towns over. It wasn't until they'd bypassed the turn to the Hell Hole that Aiden noticed something was amiss.

"You missed the turn, Daddy."

Hearing Aiden call him that did things to Rocky he hadn't felt in ages. It lit him up inside, warmed his soul, settled something in him that he hadn't even realized had been agitated. Hearing Aiden call him Daddy felt more right than Rocky had ever thought he'd feel again.

"We aren't headed to the bar yet, baby. You need a new computer, remember? I texted Blade. He's going to get the contractors going so we can get you what you need."

Aiden didn't say anything else, just stared at Rocky with his mouth hanging open and his eyes as big as saucers for a bit. When the shock had apparently worn off, Aiden still didn't speak, just faced forward to see where they were going. The only sign of any nerves were his fingers tapping on his thigh in a rhythmic pattern. Aiden had social anxiety so Rocky knew he was working up the fortification he'd need to face the salesclerks and other customers. Rocky didn't speak or play music on the drive. They rode in silence so Aiden could gather as many of his defenses as possible.

They'd just entered the parking lot of the strip-center that housed the electronics store when Rocky heard a clicking noise that was most certainly out of place in the quiet of the vehicle. Checking around to be sure his actions wouldn't cause a traffic incident, Rocky stretched one arm in front of Aiden and hit the brakes.

Once he was sure his sudden stop hadn't put Aiden in any danger, Rocky placed the car into park, right there in the middle of the parking lot. He hit the button for his emergency flashers and turned to raise an eyebrow at Aiden.

Aiden just stared at him, obviously not understanding what had just happened. Rocky's heart thumped wildly in his chest as he fought the urge to reach over and redo Aiden's seatbelt right that second. Finally, the silence had stretched longer than he could handle, and Rocky voiced the first of many questions running through his mind.

"Had I pulled into a parking spot?"

Once again, Aiden just stared for a moment, but realization seemed to dawn and he said, "No, but you were about to."

"So, I was not in a parking spot and had not put the vehicle into park, but you thought it wise to undo your seatbelt?"

Sometimes it was hard to remember that sarcasm tended to pass Aiden by, but in moments like these, it became impossible to overlook. There was absolutely no hesitation whatsoever in Aiden's reply. No hint that Rocky's words might have given him pause. He simply said what his thought process was. "We'd pulled into the lot, we're already running late, and this is likely to take a bit of time, so I wanted to save us some by being ready to exit when you did park."

Rocky took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. They'd barely established their new dynamic; they hadn't had time to go over rules and limits yet. Rocky repeated that in his head like a mantra as he tried to pack away the panic he knew was a bit misplaced, and gather up all of his patience.

"Baby, until the car is parked, you do not undo your seatbelt. In fact, let's go one better, you don't undo your seatbelt at all. I'll unbuckle you when it's time."

Aiden just stared in confusion, his mouth working like he wanted to speak but hadn't yet figured out what to say, so Rocky continued, "Just because we've pulled into a parking lot does not mean all danger has passed. What if there had been a car I hadn't seen barreling through the lot and it had hit us?" The thought alone made that panic in his chest tighten further, but he pushed past it and finished making his point, "At no point when a vehicle is still in drive is it okay for you to unbuckle. Do you understand?"

Aiden nodded his head but didn't say anything so Rocky pushed, "I need words, baby. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Daddy." The sound of Aiden calling him Daddy helped immensely to settle some of the swirling emotions inside Rocky, as he reached over and pulled the seatbelt back across Aiden's chest and clicked it into place.

Rocky turned off his signals, placed the car back into drive and navigated his way to a parking space, making their first rule as went, "It's now a rule that unless I specifically say differently, I will undo your seatbelt when it is safe to do so. You are not to touch it. Understood?"

There was a bit of a smile in Aiden's voice that warmed Rocky down to his very soul when Aiden replied, "Yes, Daddy."