Chapter 6

Grady

For fuck's sake.

Rubbing Alick's nose again to get him to giggle instead of worrying about the neighbors, I rose. "One second."

Two steps brought me over to the door, and I threw it open, growling at everyone gathered around the trailer. "If you don't leave us alone, I'm going to make this town so famous you'll have humans from one end to the other. You'll never get good gossip again."

Then I'd start eating them.

Chomp. Chomp.

I wasn't going to forget how tasty Alick's friend thought human shapes were.

Or had that been crunchy?

Ignoring the details, I kept glaring at the neighbors until they pouted and began wandering off. "It's your own fault. Don't give me those looks. You idiots can't eavesdrop quietly."

They were nosy and loud…those two traits didn't go together at all.

When they were all a good way away from the trailer, I closed the door and did my best to quickly shift back into Daddy mode instead of angry Dom mode. I shouldn't have worried. Alick giggled. "Chomp. Chomp."

Rolling my eyes got another happy sound from the clearly little mate I'd finally found. "I'd need at least three bites."

"Chomp. Chomp. Ch—" As he tried to get the word out a third time, he broke down in giggles and couldn't get the last one out. "You're scary, Daddy. You made them go away and you told them they were naughty."

The last bit seemed to be his favorite part.

"They were." Doing my best to listen for anyone else that had decided to hang around, I huffed to make Alick laugh again. "And they weren't very good at eavesdropping either. They're supposed to be quiet so they can keep listening."

His snickers and the way his body jerked when he laughed made him look even younger. "Not here."

Making a rude sound, I scoffed to get another giggle from him. "I'm not going to let them get away with badly done misbehavior. Only good sneakiness can be rewarded with gossip."

That should've been obvious.

"Lorne's Papa…Carrick the mage…he likes privacy and that makes everyone sad." Alick frowned and sighed like privacy was something to be avoided at all costs. "Lorne can tell us all the important stuff because his Papa said that was okay, but Mr. Kennedy and his friends don't like being left out."

Somehow, the town just kept getting stranger.

"Well, I won't leave them out completely, but they have to get better at being sneaky if we're going to reward them." I didn't think a bit of effort was too much to ask.

Alick smiled, unreasonable drama and worry fading. "Really? They'll like that. I'm sure Kenzie can teach them. He and his Daddy are really smart."

The cop?

"His Daddy is the cop, right?" Was I remembering that right?

Alick nodded, looking adorably earnest. "He's our deputy and he's human. He's very good with dealing with outside people. He loves Kenzie a lot. Even when he gets frustrated. So he'll be a good helper too."

The deputy loved his mate enough to help the townspeople learn to eavesdrop better?

Interesting.

"I'm glad he loves Kenzie and I'm glad he can deal with the outside world." Because it was obvious most of them needed an intermediary.

"He does." Rocking back and forth in the small booth seat, Alick gave me a beaming, definitely little smile. "He loved Kenzie enough to even date him when he thought Kenzie was an alien."

That was love right there.

"An alien, huh?" Thinking back about what I'd seen, I could understand how he'd come to that conclusion.

"Yeah, but he liked us anyway. He was even nice to Lorne when Lorne kept stealing watches." The way Alick said it so matter-of-factly made it clear there was a story, but I wasn't sure I was ready to get distracted by asking about it.

"That's very nice of him." Yep, I wasn't going to ask. "Alright, which one sounds best for our lunch? We can have soup and sandwiches or we can have spaghetti and meatballs."

"Oh." Alick scrunched his face up. "I like 'sketti but soup makes Kenzie sad, so I don't eat it much."

Huh?

Nope.

"Then how about we have soup and sandwiches now so he doesn't have to see the soup." I wasn't going to ask about that ridiculousness either. "I have chicken and stars?"

"Really?" Alick seemed to think that was amazing.

"Yep." Nodding, I started making circles in the tiny kitchen space, getting everything out. "For some reason, I ended up at Walmart the other day, so I bought a few things I was hoping my mate would like."

Alick's eyes went wide. "I was there. I bought the big noodle kind."

Fucking hell.

"Somehow, I should've expected that." I'd probably been just minutes behind him. "I'm very glad I found you, baby boy."

He giggled, looking mischievous. "So you don't have to drive and drive anymore."

I laughed, because he was right. "I get to spend my time with you instead."

If I never drove again, it would be too soon.

Hell, shifting and just carrying the trailer sounded better.

"You can come with me when I work sometimes, Daddy." Alick's earnest response made me smile…and it made me think.

"If you already told me this, I'm going to apologize, but what do you do, baby boy? I got distracted when we first met." My explanation got more giggles from him but he seemed to understand.

Sitting taller and shifting side to side like he was practicing being a big boy, he answered the question proudly. "I work in a plant nursery and I make people's yards pretty."

"Hey, we're both creative. I like that." Knowing we had more than just age play in common made me feel more confident.

Alick's eyes widened, though. "I'm creative too?"

Huh?

"Yes." Turning around so I could lean over and kiss his head, I nodded and did my best to look decisive. "I bet you make lots of decisions every day about what flowers and plants look pretty together. It's not just about making sure stuff doesn't die. You're an artist, baby boy."

Although I was going to have to ask more questions about what his job actually entailed.

Right away.

So as I straightened, I made sure to mention that. "You'll tell me all about it, right? I can't wait to hear all about your job."

His excitement was at enthusiastic little levels, so I knew he loved his job. "I do like making the flowers pretty, Daddy. I'll tell you all about it."

"And you can tell me all about what you like to eat and what you like to play?" Leading us back toward the information that would make it easier for us to enjoy our lunch, I shifted back to the stove and worked on opening the soup.

"And I need to know what kind of desserts you like and what foods are yucky." That got an adorable snicker out of him. "Like, I don't even know what's yucky for sandwiches."

Giving him a teasing shocked look, I held up mustard and peanut butter. "Are these yucky?"

Giggles poured out of him as he shook his head. "Just not together, Daddy. Peanut butter goes with jelly and mustard goes with meat. I like ham and turkey and tuna and roast beef…and…"

Frowning when it seemed like he couldn't remember everything he liked, he shrugged. "Um, I don't like the spicy lettuce and I don't like slimy things."

Nodding, I studied the ingredients I'd laid out. "I don't think I have anything slimy and I don't have the spicy lettuce, just the sweet and crunch kind."

"That's good. Sometimes Kenzie's Daddy only has the spicy kind, so I have to be polite." Alick sighed like it was painful. "But Kenzie only makes cupcakes and cookies, so if we eat at his house, his Daddy cooks."

That information did not surprise me.

"I'm proud of you for being a good guest." And spicy lettuce wouldn't hurt him even if it wasn't his favorite. "But do you eat slimy things over there?"

I was kind of hoping he'd give me a clue about what a slimy sandwich ingredient would be.

"No." Relief was clear in his voice. "I don't think Kenzie's Daddy likes it either."

So it was one type of food?

"I'm glad." I was still confused, but I pushed the questions to the back of my head since my current array of ingredients hadn't gotten dramatics from my cute little mate. "That reminds me, though, why doesn't Kenzie like soup?"

That got me a dissertation on textures and foods being mixed and an odd story about it being a punishment, but it was fascinating and filled in a few blanks I had about his friends. By the time I had the soup heated up and several different kinds of sandwiches made, I knew a lot more about his life than when I'd started.

"Well, what if we pick out a specific night of the week and make it a soup night just for us? Sunday soup day?" Setting a plate filled with sandwiches that'd been cut up in squares and triangles down in the middle of the table, I wasn't prepared for the way he sucked in a breath.

"Really? We get soup date nights?" For some reason, little Alick thought that was shocking…and maybe exciting…it was hard to tell.

"Yes, we're going to pick out nice date nights when we're just big mates and then we'll have little date nights where we do something special as Daddy and boy." I'd just have to see what his little scale looked like before I figured out how that would look.

I had a feeling I was seeing him at his biggest and I was curious about what the other end would look like.

"I…" Slightly speechless as I brought our bowls over to the table, it took Alick several seconds to get his words out. "I like dates, Daddy."

Had no one ever done those kinds of things for him before?

It really wasn't the time to start grilling him about past relationships, but he'd given me a whole new list of things to ask about.

"What kind of little dates should we have?" I wasn't sure where to start giving examples, so I picked up the sandwich plate and held it out to him, thanking the dragons above when Alick started chattering away.

Thoughtfully studying each option before picking one square and two triangles, he gave me a beaming smile. "When I'm a big boy, I like coloring and watching movies and I do crafts with Lorne because he likes beads and sparkly things, and I bake with Kenzie but we're very careful."

Were littles supposed to be baking?

"But I'm sure Kenzie's Daddy helps with the oven now?" Relief flooded through me when he nodded. "Do you help decorate the fun things that Kenzie bakes?"

Could that little dragon really not cook actual food?

"Yes." Nodding eagerly, he looked very serious about the conversation. "I'm very good with icing, Daddy."

Since it seemed to be a very important discussion, I tried to figure out a good response. "I've seen decorating tools that make flowers. I think there are a lot of online videos. Have you helped him make flowers for his cupcakes?"

I thought it was logical based on all his interests but Alick's mouth dropped open. How had finding his mate over lunch not shocked my mate but cupcake flowers had broken him?

"I could make flowers." He said it like the idea had never occurred to him. "Kenzie doesn't do that."

Oh.

"Well, Kenzie might not like plants as much as you do, so he probably didn't think of it." My response had him nodding slowly as he finished his first square in one bite. "How about we find some decorating videos and practice for our first little date night?"

"Really?" Wiggling excitedly and giving off adorable pup vibes, he picked up his spoon. "Date night?"

He clearly hadn't met the right Daddies for the date night idea to be so exciting, but I nodded and returned his grin. "Yes, date night with my big boy first and then we'll figure out special nights with my baby boy."

Alick quickly reached for the peanut butter and jelly triangle and shoved it in his mouth.

His little side was as subtle as a dragon.

That was going to be helpful in the long run, but for the time being, I pretended not to see. "We're going to have to make a date night list so I don't forget any good ideas."

Nodding slowly as he chewed, he eyed more of the peanut butter ones. I had a feeling if I asked about his younger little side, he'd have grabbed another, so I was a wonderful Daddy and changed the subject.

Even though part of me wanted to test the theory.

He wasn't Erin and I wasn't going to fuck with my own little…I'd just fuck with other people's.

"On our grown-up dates, I would like you to help me get used to the area. I think I spent two days driving in circles without realizing it. My GPS keeps going dead." I hadn't run into that problem too many times in the rest of the country, but it was still a pain in the ass.

"I have paper maps because I was using them to help look for you." That got a giggle out of him and he relaxed enough to start in on his soup. "But they're not detailed enough."

They were driving across the country hunting my mate maps, not searching back roads looking for a mate who was bouncing all over the mountain maps.

"I'll help." Reaching for a turkey one again, Alick looked like he would take his job very seriously. "I'm a good helper."

"I would appreciate that." Because I was pretty sure someone had spelled the roads and I couldn't figure out if it was to fuck with newcomers or just because they were assholes in general.

I was guessing both based on the locals I'd already met, but I couldn't wait to see what Alick had to say about that. Shit. They might've forgotten they did it to fuck with each other and just never took the spell down.

"Good helpers get rewards too, Daddy." Aiming for another innocent look, he carefully scooped stars into his spoon. "Kenzie's Daddy said so and Lorne's Daddy said so."

"Lorne's Papa didn't say so?" I wasn't surprised when Alick shook his head.

"Carrick says Lorne is a menace but he likes doing naughty things to Lorne anyway." Leaning over the table, Alick dropped his voice. "I can't tell you here but you're my mate, so I can tell you later."

I was going to have to remember the odd rules about privacy and to ask Alick at some point how much he planned on sharing with his friends.

It was probably obvious but I thought we needed to have the conversation just so I knew I was right. "Privacy. Yes. That's important."

And at least a few of our audience members were back because an old man was peering in the window over the sink. Turning to glare at the old fart who couldn't take a hint, I raised my voice. "That's not subtle either."

Alick grinned, thankfully not scared of his loud Daddy or the nosy neighbors. "They're naughty, Daddy."

And the head disappeared…along with their common sense.

"Does anyone know if we can be punished? I don't know the rules, but being naughty sounds bad."

For fuck's sake.

Yes, they definitely needed to be punished…but after I had lunch with my adorable mate.