Page 101 of A Little Bit Naughty

Daddy chuckled. “Good. Because I was worried that Christmas presents might be too much. I mean, if you don’t want them, I don’t have to give them to you…”

“Daaaaaddyyyyyy! I want all my presents!”

“I know, darling boy. And I don’t think I can hide this one anyway, because it’s very big. And it’s in the playroom.”

“What is it? What is it?”

“A surprise.”

“Noooooo! You have to tell me!”

Daddy grinned. “I do have a hint for you, though. Remember when we first met?”

As if he could forget.

“Well, you chose canoeing, but we missed out on something else instead.”

They did? He could remember every moment of that canoe ride, the sun warming his skin as he paddled across the smooth water, bubbling over with excitement that Daddy was checking out his muscular body. And even more when Daddy asked such thoughtful questions, giving him all of his attention. It was a whole day that shone in his memory like a jewel, especially the electricity that raced through him at their first kiss.

But something else they could have done instead? First thing tomorrow he was looking up the Meadowlark Lodge. Maybe he could still figure it out. Tubing? Hiking? Birdwatching? What would any of that have to do with the playroom?

Daddy smirked. That meant he was never going to tell. Dammit.

“How am I supposed to wait?” Isaac wailed.

“You’ll just have to be a very good boy. And do all of your schoolwork and take good care of your patients so you can come see me as soon as possible.”

“And then it’ll be the first thing we do when we get off the airplane, right?”

“The very first. But for now, my sweetheart, I think it’s time for a sleepy boy to go to bed.”

“I’m not sleepy, Daddy. I’m excited.”

“Well, get under the covers anyway. And turn off the lights. I want you and Roary and Lizzy all tucked in.”

“OK, Daddy.” Isaac arranged himself under the covers, then gathered his stuffies close.

“Are you comfy?”

“Yes, Daddy.” His bed was soft, and he really was pretty tired. He’d been going all out with finals. It wasn’t until he laid back that it really hit him.

“Then I’ll have to give you each a kiss.” He pressed his fingers to his lips, and then in the direction of the camera. “One for Roary. One for Lizzy. And the biggest, squishiest, loviest kiss for my darling boy.”

“Mmmm… Here’s your kiss too, Daddy.” He puckered his lips and made a dozen kissy sounds.

It sucked not having Daddy close by. But Daddy had figured out every trick in the book to make it work. He even went on playdates with other littles and got special permission to bring his phone so Daddy could be with him.

It turned out, being physically separate didn’t matter as much as he’d worried it would. Not when Daddy was with him for every part of the day in his own way.

“Eight more days,” Daddy reminded him softly. “Then eight more months. And then you’ll be all mine.”

“I’m all yours all the time.” Isaac yawned.

“That’s right. All mine, every day of the week.”

It was true. He was Daddy’s every day of the week. The next eight months until he graduated and moved to Portland were nothing next to that. Daddy had already booked tickets for both of them to visit each other every six weeks or so until then, but it turned out that having Daddy there in person wasn’t the most important thing when just having Daddy in his life filled up everything inside of him.

He knew that the months in front of him would fly by like nothing. Every day apart was worth it when he’d already secured a job at Tommy’s clinic, guaranteed for him next fall or the following year if he did another year of training in Portland.