Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

Corey

Ashley’s asspressed against me as he shuffled over in the bed. I’d been awake for nearly an hour already, my body eager to start the day.

It had become my normal since he’d shown up at the ranch. I went from wanting to sleep in to having my internal clock go off earlier than my alarm. It would have been frustrating as all get out if not for the fact that it gave me the chance to watch my boy sleep.

He was so peaceful in his dream state. The worries he wore fell away once his body drifted off. While I knew some of said worries were from his time away, I also knew that I was the cause of some of it.

Ashley had been willing, if not eager, to tell the others how we knew one another. There’d been more than one moment where sharing the news would have fit easily into conversation. And yet, I hadn’t said a word about it.

We’d both pretended not to have years and years of history between us for the sake of me keeping this one thing close to the chest. It was time I let it go and tell them the truth.

More than that, it was time I give my boy what he truly deserved — all of me.

Decision made, I wrapped my arm around him and stroked his chest. My lips grazed along his ear as I rocked my hips forward.

He woke with a start, his body moving from sleep to rigid in a second.

“Easy, baby. It’s just me. I wanted to spoil you this morning. Will you let me?”

His nod was quick and told me all about how happy he was for whatever I had to offer. My hands roamed over him, feeling and exploring in a way I had yet to experience. We’d traded a couple more blowjobs, but we hadn’t gone any further. Even those moments were stolen from the times we were working or gathering with the others.

“Daddy,” he gasped when my fingers ran over the front of his boxers where his cock was already hard as steel.

“I’m right here.”

His hips moved in pace with mine as I rubbed against him. There was no way he missed the way my body was reacting to him. Even so, I needed verbal confirmation before I took this to another level.

“Baby,” I said to get his attention.

He turned to me. “Yes?”

“I want to make love to you. Is that ok?” With the light on, and me speaking on his good side, I knew he’d heard my question. I waited patiently for his answer as he mulled over the thought. His eyes roamed all over my face like he was trying to memorize every detail.

It was another few seconds of him watching me before he gave me another nod. “If you’re sure…”

“I’m more sure of this than anything else in my life. I want this with you. And then today, once everyone is awake, I want to tell them the truth about us.”

His gasp brought a grin to my face. “You’re serious?”

“Absolutely, baby. I don’t want to pretend like we don’t have a strong foundation anymore. This here, me and you, is the real thing. They don’t and won’t understand that until we share. Plus, I think it would speed up the process of you bonding with all the guys if they knew you were also my boy.”

The smile he gave me told me I’d made the right choice. His lips pressing forcefully against mine only further reinforced it.

“Please, Daddy. Make love to me. Fuck me. I don’t care which so long as it’s you.”

I held back the urge to rip our clothes off in a hurried frenzy at his permission. Instead, I took my time stripping his underwear and then mine. From there, I explored his body with my hands and mouth until he was a wriggling mess on the bed.

My baby was desperate for more. He’d kept his volume down, but nothing could hide his eager whimpering from my attuned hearing.

“Look at my boy all needy for Daddy’s cock. You’re practically begging for it.”

His blown pupils met mine as he clawed at the sheets. “I’ll beg if you want. Please. Anything you want.”

I tsked him as I pulled lube and a condom from the bedside table. “The only thing I want is you. No begging needed. Now lift those legs.”

He did as I asked, lifting and spreading himself wide for me. I knew it had been a while for us both, which meant prep was key.

The game of teasing him from before didn’t last once my fingers circled his rim. I eased my way in, then began stretching his hole right away. Grunts and whimpers floated around us as I focused on my task. I didn’t stop until I knew he’d only feel the small twinge that came with how thick my cock was.

I slid on the condom and added a touch more lube before lining up with his entrance. Taking one last deep breath, I focused my gaze on his as I guided myself inside his body.

Every centimeter of movement felt more divine than the last. His body welcomed me better than I could have imagined, and I was loath to think of a time I’d have to leave it. Here, buried in him, was where my life should be spent. Anywhere else wouldn’t feel nearly as heavenly.

“You’re taking my cock so beautifully, baby. Daddy’s almost there…”

He squeezed the back of his legs tighter for me as I finished the rest of my journey. Only once I was fully seated did I relieve him of his duty so I could hold him just how I wanted him.

Looking down at how our bodies locked together, I felt an overwhelming sense of perfection. This man was made for me. His body and his heart and his entire being. There wouldn’t be another day in this life and the next that I’d spend without him by my side.

I fucked him slow and steady. Then I fucked him fast and hard. Somehow, we both managed to stave off our orgasms until I’d given him every bit of me. I broke first, though he followed quickly after by painting his stomach and chest in white.

I’d never seen such a beautiful sight. When I told him so, he chuckled. “Daddy, you’re such a sap.”

“Yeah, baby, I am. For you, I am.”

The plan had beento tell everyone at breakfast. Of course, life loves to throw a wrench into things. Bobby Allen got a call about some horses first thing, so he and Elton loaded up to take a look. With the search for Gerald handed over to the authorities, the rest of us split up to take care of our duties after grabbing a quick bite.

Ashley could tell I was upset because he grinned at me as he bumped my shoulder. “Don’t be sad, Daddy. There’s always lunch time.”

I agreed with him, then left him in the stables with Travis to get Bobby Allen’s normal routine done with. My focus turned from focusing on telling everyone to speaking with one person in particular.

Sean was exactly where I expected him to be. In Atticus’s office. He was perched on the edge of the desk, his legs kicking out as he waited for Atticus to come back. I only knew he’d left because I passed him on my way inside.

“Hey, Corey! What are you doing in here?” He frowned as he looked me over.

I gave him an easy smile. “I needed to talk to you alone for a second. It’s about medical stuff.”

The caution in his eyes turned to worry as he motioned me over. “Tell me what’s going on. I don’t know if I can help, but I’ll try.”

I took off the ball cap I’d thrown on that morning and squeezed it between my hands. Having this conversation went against what I would have thought to be right before. But having my boy here meant I had to follow my nature. And that part of me knew the best option for everything was to step into the caregiver role I was meant to be in.

“It’s about Ashley,” I started. “He’s dealing with some hearing loss in his right ear. I’m worried about how bad it is and how long he’s neglected it.”

“Hearing isn’t really my specialty. I could perform a basic test, but even then, I would only know enough to recommend he see someone in the ENT field.”

I pointed at him. “Yes! That’s what I wanted. Do you have a recommendation for someone? I didn’t expect you to know everything. I was just hoping you’d have connections or something. Is there like a doctor club out there or something where you all chat?”

He giggled at my teasing. “Not really. I do happen to know of someone though because we went to school together. I’ve kept up with his path through the years. He’s just over in the city. You could easily make the trip.”

“We could. That’s great! Can you text me his details? I’ve still got to get my boy on board.” The words slipped out without thought.

To his credit, Sean didn’t point out the words. Instead, he tugged out his phone to do as I’d asked. With a couple of taps on his screen, he managed to send me the contact info.

“Thanks for this. You’re a big help.”

“Anything for a member of the family.”

I paused at his words. It struck a chord with me how they’d already welcomed Ashley into our fold with such limited knowledge of him. I’d claimed him as mine and that was all they needed to know in order to say he was ours.

Leaving him to wait for his Daddy, I stepped outside and put in the call to the doctor right away. I knew enough of Ashley’s information to tell them the details so they could put him on the schedule. If all else failed, I’d cancel it later. But if he let me take care of him the way he deserved, well, then I wanted to be prepared.

With the appointment scheduled for two months from now, I went to start my own tasks for the day. There was a bit more pep in my step too as I thought of all I’d already accomplished. I’d made love to my boy, further connecting us in every way possible. I’d spoken with Sean and scheduled an appointment to help take care of Ashley’s hearing loss.

And above everything, I’d realized that being who I really was didn’t mean everything had to change. Being Corey the goof instead of Daddy Corey had kept me where I wanted to be for a long time. Time had changed though and now I couldn’t spend another minute pretending.

When lunchtime rolled around,I felt near bursting. My body was strung tight with the need to spill all the details. I knew it was ironic given how tightly I’d kept the secret from everyone.

I waited until we’d all sat down for lunch before cutting through the sounds of small talk and men chowing down. Clearing my throat, I locked eyes with my boy from across the table and started talking.

“There’s something I want to tell you guys,” I said to the room as a whole.

Everyone went quiet. I don’t know if it was the look on my face or the tone of my voice, but they could tell right away that this conversation would be different than others we’d had in the past.

“You’ve got the floor, Corey. Tell us what’s on your mind.” Atticus motioned for me to continue when I didn’t immediately start again.

Sucking in a deep breath, I launched into everything.

“I didn’t admit the truth to everyone when Ashley first showed up. He and I do know each other, but it’s a bit more complicated than I led you to believe. I’d never actually seen him in person until he showed up at the market. I had a photo, but nothing more.

“Years ago, I felt a little lonely despite being surrounded by people all the time. Back then, there was no talk of Daddies and kink and all the fun stuff we have now. Instead, it was all about work, and I really needed someone to talk things out with. Through my own mental processes, I decided finding someone in the military who was stationed overseas to write to would be the solution to my problem.”

Ashley chimed in with, “It was me. I was the guy.”

The men around the table chuckled and giggled in various degrees. It was good to see them laughing as I told the story. I’d been so focused on the fear that they’d be upset that I didn’t imagine a version in which they found it all normal.

“I wrote him that first letter as a way to connect with someone away from here. Over time, we learned more about each other and the people around us. He couldn’t talk a lot about where he was stationed or what he was doing, so I did a lot of the talking for us both.”

“No surprise there!” Beau shouted. More laughter.

“Yeah, yeah. Anyway, I shared bits and pieces of those around me. I talked about you guys and about the animals. I shared parts of myself that no one else knew. Hopes I’d had. Desires I wanted to fulfill. The shift from pen pal to long distance relationship kind of morphed on its own. I found myself desperate for his letters. It was the tiny glimpses of him that kept me going.

“I’d told him that if he ever made it stateside, then he and I would meet up to see if this thing between us worked in person. I had no clue he’d be here so soon after my offer,” I said the last part in a teasing tone as I winked at my boy.

“What a lovely story.” Elton pressed his hands to his chest as his watery eyes floated between me and Ashley.

“It is an amazing one. And I think we’re all ok with the fact that you talked about us. We’re family here, so it makes sense that you shared a bit about us,” Atticus said, not a drop of anger in his tone.

“That’s not the end though. As I mentioned earlier, I’d needed someone to talk to and once the barrier between us broke, I didn’t hold back. I told Ashley everything in this big head of mine, including the fact that I was a Daddy.”

The room got quiet before several of the men tugged money from their pockets. They all piled it up in front of Travis as he grinned widely at me.

“What the hell is going on?” I asked.

“You just won me a bet that’s been running for AGES. I really should be charging interest to you guys.” The tiny man looked around the table as he swept up the bills laying in front of him. “All these guys swore up and down that you’d be a little one day. I told them that there was no way. My Daddy-dar knew there was no way the silly version of you would stick. There’s been a Daddy in there the whole time.”

Ashley’s foot nudged against mine to get my attention. He mouthed told you so, Daddy across the table, and I couldn’t hold back my laughter anymore. The cat was out of the bag. They knew my truths. Since the world didn’t implode and they didn’t say they hated me, I considered it a win.

Now I could look to the future without worrying. I never doubted they’d judge me for who I was at my core. It was more about me having hidden parts of myself through the years. No one liked thinking they’d been lied to.

“Let’s get through the rest of lunch without any more revelations, please.” At Atticus’s words, we all dug into the meal with sly grins, and for Travis, a nice wad of cash richer.