Page 56 of Father Figure

Shuckin’ shack, now.

Of course, he would pick that, his favorite restaurant. Grateful for the distraction, I grabbed my keys and wallet and headed out the door. I arrived first and waited in the parking lot for him. A smile tugged at my lips when I saw him pull up in his red Jetta. It really was the perfect car for him—tiny and bold and bright, just like my Nicky. I rushed to open his door for him, and he sprung to his feet excitedly, wrapping his arms around my neck and planting a giant smooch on my lips.

“I’ve missed you so much!”

Untangling his arms, I laughed. “I missed you too, squirt.”

It’d only been two days since I had last seen him, but I missed him terribly. Starting my morning without walking into the kitchen to see him shaking his butt in his purple boxer shorts, or pink bikini underwear to whatever song was playing on his headphones was such a disappointment. I missed his run-on sentences and endless questions about ocean stuff and marine life. I missed his sunny smiles and even his giggling. After spending almost every day of the summer with him, I just didn’t feel like myself without him anymore.

When he pulled back and got a good look at my face, he gasped. “What happened to your lip?” he shrieked, looking concerned. “Did my dad do that?”

He knew. I wondered what Brian might’ve said to him. “It was nothing I didn’t deserve.”

“How can you say that?” he cried.

“It’s between me and your dad. I really don’t want to involve you in it.”

“How can you not? It has everything to do with me.”

“Nicky, I handled it. Your dad and I came to an understanding. It’s over. Let it go.”

“Well, now that he knows, at least we don’t have to hide anymore.” He popped up on his tiptoes to kiss the side of my lip that wasn’t scabbed and busted. “I’m sleeping over at your house tonight.”

“You are? You told your father that?”

“Yep. Like I said, we don’t have to hide anymore.”

“And what did he say?”

Nicky scuffed the toe of his sneaker with the other shoe, averting his gaze. “He asked if Sam was going to be there.”

“Jesus Christ, he must think we are…”

“Wonderful,” Nicky cut in. “He thinks you’re wonderful because he knows you. So, is Sam going to be there?” he asked, looking up at me shyly with a wicked smile.

Only Nicky could pull off shy and wicked with the same expression. “Do you want him to be?” I asked, raising my eyebrows as I smiled.

“I mean, I’m not gonna complain if he is.”

I pulled his hips tight against mine. “My sweet boy is turning into a horny little brat.” I pretended to eat his ear, making him giggle sweetly. “You hungry?”

“I'm always hungry for conch fritters.”

“You seem extra excited today,” I noticed, smiling. “Extra bouncy,” I laughed.

“I just finished orientation! I can't wait to tell you all about it.”

Another relief—he was excited to start school. “I can't wait to hear all about it. Let's go order some food first,” I suggested, opening the door for him.

We snagged a table on the dock like always so we could watch the boats sail by and listen to the crashing waves. Nicky tossed bits of bread to the seagulls that dashed by, swooping low to catch their bounty.

“So, I have to take a bunch of boring classes before I can get to the good stuff. They're called prerequisites,” he informed me, as if I'd never been to college. I listened to everything he said, nodding and smiling as if it were all brand-new information. “My economics teacher, Professor Brantley, seemed really nice. He gave me a syllabus, so I know what to expect. I'm not great at numbers, but there's a couple of hands-on projects he wants us to work on in small groups, and I think it'll make it more interesting.”

“That's great. I know you're going to be great at this—like you are with everything,” I praised, earning a sweet smile. “Don't forget, me and Sam were also students once upon a time. If you need any help with your classes, you can ask us. I can't guarantee we'll have any answers for you, but you can try.”

“Thank you, Daddy,” he said quietly, so as not to be overheard.

I didn’t know what felt warmer, my chest or the fire those words ignited in my belly. I hadn't heard them since the last time I had my cock inside of him three days ago. Our waiter slid our plates in front of us and Nicky dove in, happily munching on his fritters while I dressed my blackened grouper sandwich.

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