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Trent took a deep breath, steadying himself as he aimed at the target in the distance. He pulled the trigger, and the gunshot echoed across the open land. A satisfying thunk confirmed his shot had found its mark.
“Ho-ly shit! Doctor Death never misses,” Chuck called out, clapping him on the shoulder. “Now let’s see what I can do.”
Trent stepped aside, watching as his older brother took his place at the firing line. As Chuck prepared to shoot, Trent couldn’t help but get lost in his thoughts. Ever since he’d disciplined Patti for hiding her idea the other day, he couldn’t shake a nagging feeling of worry. Had he been too hard on her? Was he jeopardizing their relationship? Was he acting the way a good Daddy Dom should act?
His brother’s gunshot pulled him out of it.
“Fuck,” Chuck said, as his bullet whipped past the target.
Duke chuckled, and said something, but Trent was still thinking about Patti. He should have had sex with her. He shouldn’t have spanked her. He furrowed his brow as the doubt grew.
“Trent?” Duke barked. “Did you hear?”
Trent looked up at Duke. “Sorry, brother, I just…”
“Jesus, Trent, could you just be present, for once? We haven’t seen you in god knows how long, and now you’re here… well, you’re not.”
“Sorry,” Trent said. “It’s just… you know, I’ve got a lot on my plate at the moment.”
“It’s healthy to take a break from work, though,” Chuck said, calmly. “Helps the quality of your work in the long run.”
It took Trent a moment to realize that Chuck was talking about the cryptosporidium outbreak.
“R-right,” he said. “Exactly. It’s a lot of work.”
“Well, this should take your mind off work.” Chuck sighed, heavily. “Duke, I already mentioned this to Trent, but I wanted to speak to you together about it, too. I… think I’m going to ask Millie to marry me. Once things calm down a little at the ranch.”
Duke slapped him on the back, his grin almost matching his brother’s. “Well, I’ll be damned! Congratulations, Chuck. It’s about time!”
Trent forced a smile, trying to share in their joy. But his mind was still elsewhere, consumed by thoughts of Patti and the delicate balance between discipline and support in their blossoming relationship. He could feel the weight of guilt pressing down on him, the fear that he had been too hard on her and would ultimately ruin what they had.
“Hey, Trent,” Chuck suddenly snapped, his brow furrowing as he noticed his younger brother’s distant demeanor. “What’s going on? Do you think I’m doing the wrong thing in asking Millie?”
“What? No! Course not.” Trent rubbed his face in frustration. “I’m sorry, Chuck, I really am. I’m happy for you. Look, I… it’s Patti. I’m struggling.” It took a huge effort to admit his feelings. He always felt inferior to his brothers—less kind than Chuck, less charismatic than Duke.
“What’s up?” Duke asked, genuine concern on his face.
Trent hesitated before speaking, feeling a mix of relief and vulnerability as he admitted his worries to his brothers. “I’m just not sure if I’m finding the right balance with her, you know? I don’t want to push her away. I don’t have much experience.”
Chuck shook his head, but he looked kind as he spoke. “Trent, I remember having virtually this exact conversation with you when I first got together with Millie.”
“You do?”
“In fact,” Chuck said, “I think we were in this damn shooting range when you asked us about it.”
“That’s right,” Duke said, smiling.
“You gave me some kind of perfect advice,” Chuck said. “Don’t remember what it was now.”
“I reckon I probably teased you for being an expert in theoretical age play,” Duke said, smiling to himself.
His brothers didn’t know that Trentdidhave some age play experience. He was too ashamed of what had happened—of what he’d done—to ever tell them about his one, disastrous attempt at being a Daddy Dom.
“Yeah, well, theory and practice are two different things,” Trent admitted. He went on to explain what had happened with Patti, how she’d kept her findings from Trent and had lied to him about not knowing what to say at reflection time.
“I was so hard on her,” he said. “I’m just worried that I’m going to force her to be even more secretive. If I punish her when she’s honest with me, won’t that work against what we’re trying to achieve?”
Duke raised an eyebrow, clearly impressed by his brother’s vulnerability. “Being a Daddy Dom ain’t an easy role to take on, Trent. But you’re a good man, and I know you’ll figure it out. In fact, it sounds like you already are. I bet you gave just the right amount of punishment, in just the right way.”
