on me?”
“Maybe,” he mumbled.
“That’s a very smart boy,” I praised him. “You can never be too careful, and I’m proud of you for asking about me before anything happened. I’m assuming you received positive references?”
“You make it sound like you were applying for a job.” Sam giggled. That was going to become my favorite sound.
“I am, in a way. If you accept me, I will take my job as your Daddy very seriously,” I promised him, then held him tighter. “But first, I think we need to be clear about the job duties, so I know if I’ll be able to fulfill your expectations to the best of my ability.”
“You’re silly.” Sam laughed again, a bit louder this time. “Being my Daddy shouldn’t be like a job. It should be fun.”
“Oh, I have no doubt it will be,” I assured him. “So, tell me, Sammy, what do you want your Daddy to do for you?”
“I don’t know.” If he wasn’t slipping into a little headspace, I would have called him on his bullshit. William and I had talked a bit more the other night once Sam went to work, and I knew he’d tailored the playroom at the club to be his own little fantasy world—pun intended. He probably knew more about the lifestyle than half of those who were active in it, but from what William knew, he’d never done anything more than think about what the future could hold. I wanted to be the one to make his fantasies reality.
“Would you like to try again?” I used my principal voice on him. It wasn’t full-on Daddy, but close. He needed to be eased into the dynamic, but not too slowly. “Tell me what you think about when you imagine what having a Daddy would be like. Do you want a strict Daddy who will discipline you when you break the rules, or do you want a loving Daddy who will take care of you and play with you?”
“Would it be greedy to want both?”
“Absolutely not. That’s my favorite, too,” I admitted. There was nothing that brought me more satisfaction than being the person my boy turned to, but there was also something to be said for knowing he wasn’t going to be able to follow every rule to the letter and then being able to punish him. “How are you even real?”
“I feel the same way about you,” Sam admitted. Crap. I hadn’t meant to say that out loud, but I wouldn’t take it back, especially when the feelings were mutual. “I don’t want to ruin a good day, but I need to tell you I’m not sure about the sex stuff. I mean, I’d like to take care of you and there are things that feel good to me, but intercourse is something I’m not sure about.”
“That’s not something we need to worry about right this minute.” I’d spent more than a little time over the weekend reading up on what to expect when in a relationship with a trans man. Yes, the differences were very obvious, but I didn’t want to make any assumptions. Whatever his limitations, I was willing to respect him. Sex wasn’t the be-all of a relationship to me. “I know you have schoolwork to get done, but what would you say about a shopping trip first?”
Sam’s back arched and his jaw cracked when he yawned. I took a closer look, not happy about the dark circles under his eyes. “Sorry. Yeah, we can do that if you want. But I can’t spend much. I’m trying to save my money so I can get an apartment of my own once our lease is up.”
“You have roommates?” I didn’t know them, but I got the impression they played at least a small role in his exhaustion. Sam nodded, holding up four fingers. “Well, if you ever need a break from them, I have beds you can use, and I’ll even tuck you in at night.”
“That sounds really nice.” Sam’s body sagged against mine. If we didn’t get moving, I was pretty sure he’d be sound asleep in minutes.
“When we get home, I want you to tell me what all you have going on this semester. I have a pretty steady schedule, and we need to figure out when and how we can spend some time together.”
I might have gone overboard at the store. I couldn’t help it. Since there weren’t any brick and mortar stores that catered to littles and Daddies, the superstore was