Chapter 10

Fraser

Under any other circumstances it wouldn't have been suspicious at all. I'd taken other scientists out and had gotten very good at keeping myself mentally occupied while they studied trees and mushrooms or even listened for birds.

But with Paxton, it was suspicious.

His explanations were entirely too vague and he was trying way too hard to look innocent when he spouted off his nonsense.

They were just well-camouflaged?

That was it.

His description didn't get any better when he started carefully searching the area I'd picked either. But it got downright weird when he strapped on a GoPro and made sure it was recording everything he did.

Because the bugs were fast at camouflaging themselves.

Oh, this had shenanigans written all over it.

I wasn't sure who'd done it or what the fuck they'd done to the bugs, but the ridiculous answers were shouting mage nonsense was afoot. Paxton didn't seem to understand that, though. His responses said he'd realized something was weird, but he wasn't ready to explain just how weird it was.

Not that I blamed him.

If I was human and thought bugs were disappearing or doing weird shit, I wouldn't want to admit it either. Humans had a history of locking up people they thought were seeing things, and Paxton would be especially worried about what would happen considering his job.

Yeah, that explanation wouldn't go over well in most human circles.

Thankfully, my circles didn't contain a lot of humans, but I was still going to have to figure out what was going on and who needed to know about it. Because there was definitely an it , and judging by Paxton's excited inhale, he'd caught it on camera.

Fucking dragons above.

Boyd was going to have a cow.

"That's fascinating." The awe in Paxton's voice made me want to curse, but I waited quietly in an area he'd already combed through and watched his face light up with wonder at whatever he'd seen. "They just…it just…"

Once he finally remembered he wasn't alone, he blinked a few times and peeked over at me. "They have such good camouflage. You found the perfect place. Thank you."

I was clearly the best guide he'd ever had but that was because I knew which parts of the mountains were closer to moron mages with impulse control issues. "You're welcome, and I'm glad I could help."

Because something had clearly gotten out of hand.

Who'd decided we needed disappearing bugs?

There had to be a completely stupid and utterly logical explanation for it, but I couldn't come up with any. Whatever mage had done this would have a great story and think they were completely justified. They were always right. But this was going to make the council nuts.

Oh.

Paxton had found them other places and they'd been mentioned on the internet.

They'd already spread.

Fuck.

Reminding myself that the silver lining in all the crazy was that it'd brought my mate to me and he was the one who'd found them, I actually felt better as he kept sucking in his breath and then sighing in disappointment as the damned things disappeared.

"There has to be a nest somewhere." Paxton was back to talking to himself within a few minutes, so I stayed quiet and watched as he crawled on the ground and peeked under all the dead wood. "Just because they disappear doesn't mean they don't have a home. Everything has a home, even crazy old men who talk about marriage after a first date."

Oh.

Yep, that would've done it.

I wouldn't have gone back to the bakery either if I hadn't known what was going on.

Humans had it hard and the crazy old men were just making it more and more difficult.

"I just need to find your home and then you'll tell me all about yourself and we'll figure out how you do that without making me sound insane." Paxton just kept chattering to himself as I did my best to blend into the background a tiny bit more.

It actually didn't take much effort to get him to forget I was hanging out there because the only thing he was focused on was his bugs.

Every bit of dirt was studied.

Every log was investigated.

Every bug was awwed over.

Every beetle was sighed over as it disappeared.

Every insect got a sweet little pep talk…except for the spider, who was told he'd made a terrible web and to try again. Most of them also got rambling notes about them read into his camera as well, but those weren't as interesting as the encouragement.

Who knew someone could be so proud of ants and so frustrated with uneducated spiders?

That was curious and had my list of questions growing by leaps and bounds, but it took him nearly two hours to realize where he was and that he'd forgotten me. By that point, I'd stopped being still or subtle, though, and he found me playing a game on my phone.

Thanks to knowing a guy who knew a guy, I had badass cell service and could probably make calls to Mars.

"Oh." Paxton tried to balance on two feet as he crouched on the ground, but he lost his balance when seeing me startled him. "You're…oomph."

As he went ass over teakettle and landed flat on his back, he lifted his head. "You're here."

Duh.

"I think we need to have a limits conversation on how long you work before we come out again." I was being half-serious and half just fucking with him, but he flopped back and sighed.

"There are conversations for everything around here." Groaning in frustration and probably pain, he sat up and looked around. "I think I need to apologize to you? Oh, and I'm hungry."

And Daddies were in charge of food, so I needed to know that.

Once he learned a lesson, it stuck.

"Alright, first, no apology is needed because I knew you were going to be here a while. I've kept busy and it looked like you gathered a lot of data, which is why we came to begin with." We could go over the impact of his new find later. "Secondly, I'm not surprised you're hungry. You've done a lot of work and it's time to go home and relax."

Paxton nodded immediately, but he also turned and gave his next pile of dirt and logs a longing glance. "Yes, that makes sense, but—"

Oh no.

I knew that look.

"But you're going to need water and probably a massage too. Luckily for you, I'm a world-class massager." I winked when he tried to hide a giggle, but I also got up and immediately started moving to help him stand. "What kind of drink do you want and do you have any requests for your food or massage?"

Thankfully, I had more interesting things to offer than the bugs did…even if they were vanishing.

"There are different kinds?" As I pulled Paxton up and he turned off his camera, he realized he'd left out part of his question. "Of massages. There are different kinds of massages?"

"Oh yes." Giving him a quick peck, I leered at him and got another laugh as he packed the camera back in his bag. "Several different kinds."

Glad I had something to keep him moving with, I helped him pick up his gear and teased him again. "Deep tissue or Swedish. All business. All erotic. Or a mix of both. Shoulders and back or full body. I could keep going."

Paxton licked his lips and stepped closer without realizing it. "I've…I've only had the back and shoulders kind."

"Then I think we're going to need to do another experiment to see what you like." Given how labor intensive his job was, I couldn't imagine why he'd only had a half-assed massage before. "Food first, though."

Then he could take a nap after I'd given him a massage and an orgasm.

"And a drink." Not quite as big as he'd been before, Paxton looked earnest and stubborn. "You said I could pick out a drink too."

Food was definitely his little spot.

"I did." Kissing his forehead, I took his hand and started leading us back toward the trail. I knew it like I knew the back of my hand, so I only had to keep half my mind on it. "Do you remember the cooler I put in the car?"

Digging a bottle of water out of the side of my pack, I released his hand long enough to open it and hand it back to him. "Drink this first, but in the cooler, I have Gatorade, more water, some orange juice, and some lemonade."

Paxton made a thoughtful hum as he started drinking the water. If he'd worked much longer without coming back to the real world, I'd have made him take a break, but he'd had plenty to drink before we'd started.

When he was done, he handed me back the empty bottle and frowned. "I don't know. They all sound good."

Definitely not the grown-up answer he would've given in the diner.

"If we were playing restaurant, what would you tell the waiter you wanted to drink?" My silly response had him snickering.

"I'd have told him to come back in a few minutes because I had to use the bathroom." Still giggling like he was a kid who'd told a fart joke, he did a tiny potty dance wiggle. "I think I have to find a tree, Daddy."

And I was Daddy again.

He bounced between using it and not, but I could see he was ready for Daddy to make the decisions.

"Then let's get that taken care of before we get back on the trail." My senses were better than a human's and I knew there was no one around us, but he wouldn't understand that. "Do you remember the important words?"

His enthusiastic nod said he didn't have to guess what I meant. "Red and yellow. Stop and pause. Yes."

"Good boy, little bug." With that out of the way, I stepped closer and steered him toward a tree that would give him privacy if he wanted it. "Let's get you all fixed up so you don't pop."

Instead of being embarrassed, he giggled. "I'm not a balloon, Daddy."

"I don't know." Shaking my head, I gestured toward his groin. "Let's not find out."

That got me more silly laughter and he tried to turn around for a hug. "Still not a balloon."

Still getting distracted.

"I think you are technically a big balloon with smaller ones inside of you." That had Paxton going between snickering and trying to think through my statement logically.

He thought I was ridiculous but entertaining based on his reactions, and I was also highly distracting because he tried to turn around again. "But, Daddy, I'm—"

Going to pop, based on how he was wiggling.

"Around again, cutie." He looked a bit like he'd been possessed as his face stayed focused on me and his body turned around. "Oh, no, that's creepy. Head and body in the same direction, please."

No.

That was a no and I didn't care how flexible he was.

Thankfully, Paxton obeyed but he was back to laughing. "Found Daddy's first red."

He wasn't wrong, so I nodded. "Yes, we did. That was an unexpected one too."

Who knew my mother was right and I shouldn't have watched that stupid horror movie as a kid.

"That happens. The internet said so." Paxton shrugged and seemed like he was trying to look serious even though he was barely holding back giggles. "Sometimes that happens and it's okay. We don't know what will make us uncomfortable or sad until it happens."

Someone had been researching.

"That's right." Kissing his cheek, I decided he was never going to pee if left to his own devices, so I just stepped to his side so I could help. "What else did you learn when you were reading last night?"

"Lots." Hiding that he'd been researching didn't seem to have occurred to him because he just kept going as I reached for the button on his pants. "Daddies and Doms can safeword too. See? That came in handy. I'm so smart."

And so adorable too.

"You are." Giving him another peck, I tugged down his zipper and opened his pants just enough to fish his cock out. "What else did you learn? I'm glad you were figuring out more questions."

"I have lots of questions, so I kept looking and looking." He was looking down at my hand at that point, but it was in a detached way, so I just aimed him toward the tree.

"Pop." That made him giggle as he started to piss. "Good boy."

"The internet said Daddies do a lot of stuff for their littles." He was still studying his dick like he'd never seen himself piss before, but he didn't safeword or try to take over. "They like control and they like taking care of their littles and they like making decisions. Just like you, Daddy."

Was he glad I fit the stereotype or was he glad I knew what I was supposed to be doing?

"Yes, just like me." Ignoring the bits I didn't quite understand, I shook him off once he finished and tucked him back in his pants. "What else did you read about Daddies?"

"Hmm." Looking thoughtful and adorable, he shrugged. "They like it when their littles talk and they like playing. They like all the stuff you said, so you weren't just being nice."

Had that been something he was worried about?

"Well, sometimes Daddies are nice and do things just because their littles want to, but that's usually things like having tea parties or eating dino nuggets every night over and over." My answers got another giggle out of him and I couldn't resist kissing his nose as he turned around. "But I won't just be nice about doing grown-up things with you and I won't just be nice about doing personal things. Do you understand what I mean?"

I wasn't sure he was in the right headspace for that conversation, so I was glad when he nodded. "Yes, grown-up and personal."

Telling myself we'd come back to that later, I nodded. "That's right. Okay, you grab the wipes out of my bag for me. It's right up front. Do you remember?"

I'd given him a run-through about what was in my pack before we'd left, so I wasn't surprised when he bounced and nodded. "I remember. Got to wash hands."

"That's right." As I shifted so he could get into the correct pocket, I kept chattering to do my best to keep him in the right headspace. "Hey, you never told the waiter what you wanted to drink."

And the giggles escaped again.

"Oh, I'm a naughty customer." He snickered as he finished fishing out the wipes. "Like the naughty men at the diner. Oh, I don't know what I should have ."

His fabulous impression of one of our disgruntled busybodies made me laugh.

" I shouldn't have the coffee. You know what that does to me. But your juice is too sweet ." Grown-up Paxton had been pretending not to listen but little Paxton had been hanging on every word and could repeat the conversation without thinking. " Gonna have a rough afternoon either way, so I might as well have both ."

Good grief.

"He wasn't talking about his poop in the diner, was he?" That must've happened before I'd come in because Paxton started laughing and laughing and could barely hand me the wipe so I could clean my hands. "That's terrible manners."

What the fuck had he been thinking?

"He was naughty, Daddy, but the food lady frowned and frowned and told him he'd get prune juice if he couldn't remember his manners." Paxton thought that was hilariously funny and just telling me what had happened set off the giggles again.

Paxton liked gossiping just as much as the rest of them, but it seemed like little Paxton was the only one who could tell me about what he'd heard.

"She's going to get mad and punish him if he's not careful." Reaching back behind me, I managed to tuck the wipe in a side pocket and took his hand. "Miss Nancy doesn't like people being naughty in the diner."

As we started heading back to the trail, Paxton sighed and nodded. "The Kenzie person had to eat soup when he was naughty. He doesn't like soup."

Ignoring the ridiculousness of him already knowing that, I nodded. "Yes, he was dramatic in the diner and Miss Nancy said he could only have soup and he doesn't like soup. He was glad when his punishment was over."

We'd all been glad when that was over.

"I'm not naughty, Daddy." Paxton's eyes widened and he shook his head. "No, I'm a big boy with manners in the diner."

Limit or personal rule?

"I think that's very reasonable, little bug." For a variety of reasons. "Big boy with manners in the diner and then fun little boy at home with Daddy."

Paxton was back to beaming. "That's what the internet said too."

The internet was clearly very helpful, but I just hoped his research didn't take him places he wasn't ready for.