Page 48 of Spoil Me, Daddy
“That man—and I use the term very loosely—deserved everything he got. You are in no way to blame for anything that happened. Do you understand me?”
“Yes.”
“Yes, what?”
Zaire’s eyes widened as he knew what Aaron wanted. He glanced around, seeing people moving away from them now the drama was over.
“Well?”
Returning his gaze to Aaron, he saw barely leashed anger vibrating through his Daddy, and he could do nothing more than obey. Zaire shuffled over and wrapped his arms around Aaron’s waist. “Yes, Daddy.”
As close as he was to Aaron, he felt the shiver that went through him and arms enclosed him in a too-tight hug, but Zaire wouldn’t complain. If Aaron needed this, Zaire would let him have it.
“God, I’m so sorry you had to deal with that asshole. But I’m so proud of you. Standing strong and not talking back to him, not denying who you are?” Aaron tilted Zaire’s head back and cupped his jaw, pressing his lips against his in a brief kiss. “You are such a brave boy.Myboy.” He hesitated, searching Zaire’s face for something he must have found because he pressed another kiss to his lips and rested their foreheads together, whispering, “I love you, Zaire.”
Tears overflowed, and he burrowed his face into his Daddy’s neck. “I love you, too, Daddy. So much.”
They stood there for a few moments before Aaron pulled away. “Let’s go grab my things, and we can go home.” Aaron held out his hand with a smile.
Zaire grinned and linked their fingers together.
****
Zaire dropped into the booth seat, four days later, with a huge sigh of relief. That week had been easier once he became a bit more confident in himself, but the school environment hadn’t been completely welcoming. Several members of staff ignored him when he spoke unless there was no other option, but most of them were welcoming and didn’t say a word about his clothing choices.
“Long day, huh?” Nora commented.
Zaire lifted his head from the back of the seat and half-smiled at her. “Long week.” He chuckled half-heartedly.
“I know what that feels like,” she replied.
“When does Geoff get back?”
She sighed. “In three days. God, I miss him when he’s gone.”
Geoff occasionally worked away from home, and it was one of the reasons they had come out tonight. Aaron had said Nora was moping and needed cheering up, so they had changed their plans of a night in to take her out instead. Zaire was tired, but he was determined to help Aaron distract her.
“He’ll be home before you know it,” Cord said, squeezing her shoulder.
“Do you like to dance?” Zaire asked her.
“Yeah.”
“Come on.” He slipped out of the booth and held out his hand. “Let’s dance.”
Zaire had no idea how long they had been dancing before he needed to sit down. They returned to the booth, seeing Rod and Delia had joined their group. Aaron slid out of his seat and let Zaire sit next to Delia, pulling out a stool to sit on instead and passed Zaire a bottle of water. Zaire grinned at him and drank half of it in one go.
“Thank you, Daddy.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Zaire?” Rod’s voice interrupted their mutual staring contest. “We have something to tell you. Two things, actually.”
Zaire twisted in his seat to face his friend. “What’s that?”
Rod looked at Delia and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, pulling her close. “Delia’s pregnant.”
“Oh my god! That’s great news, guys!” He leaned forward and pulled them both into a hug.
