Chapter 17
The next afternoon, Aiden went up to his parent’s house to have lunch with them. He usually did so at least twice a month, spending time with his family before they went off to their recreational or business pursuits. His brothers often dropped in as well, but neither of them had made it today. The meal was as delicious as always, the menu consisting of French Onion soup, sandwiches, and fresh fruit. Aiden was full and ready for a post-meal nap as he crossed the foyer to leave. His mother walked with him, her arm linked with his.
“Our fall fundraiser party is coming up. You’ll be here, right?”
“You know I will.”
“And are you bringing a date?”
Aiden thought about it. He didn’t usually bring the guys he was seeing to his parent’s parties. And his relationship with Mike was so new he really shouldn’t even consider it. But he would like to spend a fancy evening with Mike and see how he looked in a suit. “I might.”
His mother exclaimed in surprise and squeezed his arm. “I would love to see you bring someone you care about.”
“I saidmight. Don’t get too excited.”
“Of course, I won’t.”
But Aiden could see from the sparkle in her gray eyes that she was definitely excited and hopeful that he’d found someone. And well, he was hopeful that he’d found someone himself, so he couldn’t fault her for her excitement. Aiden dropped a goodbye kiss her on the cheek, called out a goodbye to his father, and stepped outside. The fall air was cool and crisp, the sun warm and bright. Orange and red flowers bloomed next to the greenery in the flower beds he passed on his way back to the guest house.
As he walked, his mind turned to thoughts of his aborted parking lot make out with Mike last night. From Mike’s reluctance to touch him with the hand that was always gloved, he’d suspected that Mike had some type of issue with his body. Now, his suspicion had been confirmed. Truthfully, he didn’t care that his lover was scarred. However, it was obviously a concern for Mike. Which meant it was a concern for him as well. Mike was now his responsibility to care for and Aiden took that responsibility seriously.
He appreciated Mike’s honesty in admitting he was bothered, but not ready to discuss it. But since they wanted to be physically intimate, they’d have to find a way to accommodate Mike’s touch aversion while exploring their desire for each other.
First, and most importantly, he would make sure that Mike knew he was comfortable with his body no matter what it looked like. Once that happened, hopefully Mike would become comfortable with it too. But that would take time. Right now, he needed a way for Mike to be comfortable during intimacy. Aiden stopped in front of his door, hand still on the doorknob.
The answer was obvious. Intimacy and sex didn’t have to equal nudity. He’d let Mike know that he could remain clothed as long as necessary, that Aiden wouldn’t touch his naked body except for where he wanted to be touched, and that he was fine with the restrictions. With the worry about being seen or touched in places he was uncomfortable removed from the equation, Mike should be able to relax so that they could move on to the next stage of their sexual journey.
Aiden went inside and pulled out his phone. He’d get started on that right now.
∞ ∞ ∞
Mike was restless at work again. The feeling had increased over the past few weeks, rather than fading away once he settled into the position as he’d hoped. He repeatedly reminded himself that he needed to give himself time to adjust to being out of the military. Enlisting in the Army at eighteen when he’d aged out of the foster system meant that the military had been his entire existence for nearly a decade. Sitting behind a desk five days a week was vastly different from what he was used to. A bit of struggle adjusting to civilian life was to be expected.
Mike determinedly refocused his attention and got back to work. There were two influencers that he needed to assist with setting up their next outdoor adventure. All of it would be filmed and photographed, with Marin’s Outdoors equipment in prominent view. One of the upcoming excursions was with Johnny, their most popular influencer. Unfortunately, his behavior was starting to swing back toward the problematic side. He’d have to speak with him to make sure there wouldn’t be any online ill-will tied to his name and by association the Marin’s brand before the event.
A knock on his open office door brought his head up. The company owner, Mr. Marin waited in the doorway, hands gripping the handles of his crutches.
“May I come in?”
“Of course, Mr. Marin. How are you today?”
“Excellent as always,” the older man said as he crossed the office to sit in one of the chairs in front of Mike’s desk. “I wanted to stop by and let you know what an excellent job you’re doing. Your contributions are giving each new project exactly what they need to have a top-notch launch.”
“Thank you, Mr. Marin.”
“How many times do I have to tell you? Call me Jaime.”
Mike agreed with a small nod. “Jaime. Thank you.”
They talked for a few minutes about the upcoming excursions and the plans Mike had for the role of the influencers to spread the word about the events before his boss rose from his seat.
“Keep up the good work. With folks like you on board, we’ll be the number one outdoor sporting goods empire before long.”
“Thank you, Jaime. I will.”
Once his boss was gone, Mike turned his chair to look out the window. In the distance he could see the highway leading to the entertainment district. As he gazed at the faraway bridge and barely discernable cars driving over it, he thought of his reaction to his boss thanking him for a doing a good job. It was nice to be recognized for his work. But Mr. Marin’s praise didn’t set off the delicious burn of pleasure that zipped down his spine every time he got a simplenice jobfrom Aiden.
A praise kink Aiden had called it. No matter what it was called, Mike couldn’t deny that he loved receiving praise from Aiden for doing a good job. And there was something that danced on the edge of his pleasure when receiving praise. A vision of silky black hair sliding over slim shoulders as he received his reward bloomed in his mind. Because rewards were supposed to go along with praise.
