Page 48 of Forever Ink

“Yeah, but not like if we were at home.” I lowered my voice slightly. “He woke up regressed. I think he needed a break from everything going on. His little space is his safe place. I had some of his things and he got to play in our room for a while.” I smiled, remembering.

“You’re loving your life. Daddy heaven is what you’re in.” Callum almost sounded wistful.

“Yeah, I am.” I huffed out a loud breath as we stepped out into the yard. I could make out Rhys and Mouse’s footsteps in the snow. It looked like they’d stopped in the middle of the yard the way the snow was churned up. Glancing up at the hill, I chuckled. Mouse must’ve shown Rhys the troll rocks.

“Alice is going to have me up right early. Did you see the size of her eyes when she saw all the presents under the tree?” Callum smiled like he only did when he spoke of Alice. Anyone with eyes could see how proud Cal was of his little girl.

“You heard anything from Penny?”

Callum barked out a humourless laugh. “Haven’t heard from her in nearly two years. Last time was when she swanned back into town to say she was getting married, promised Alice she’d be a flower girl. That was the last time I heard from her, not a bloody call or a birthday card for the wee one.”

I couldn’t imagine what Cal and Alice had gone through the last few years. We were all a little shocked when Penny had come to Tewsbury announcing she was carrying Callum’s kid. Cal had been flying the pan flag before there was one, so that hadn’t shocked us. It was more how vanilla Penny was. Cal had always been a Daddy dom, though not in the age play scene like me. He was also a Master Sadist, with a reputation amongst the masochist community of being a Masso’s wet dream.

“I never begrudged her leaving. I could see she wasn’t happy, and being a parent isn’t something we all want in life. Fuck, I didn’t think I wanted a kid until I held Alice for the first time. But to cut all ties with Alice, that just doesn’t sit right with me.” Cal sighed, looking towards the barn.

“What will you do if she turns up?”

“Let her spend time with Alice, of course. It’s not my place to tell Alice she can’t spend time with her mum. But the sad thing is, I don’t think Alice wants to. Penny didn’t even contest it when I sued for full custody, just sent her lawyer along to argue why she couldn’t pay child support—not that I wanted any mind you. But enough of me being a maudlin bastard. Want to bet we find two drunk lads asleep in a pile of hay?”

Laughing, I slung an arm over Callum’s shoulder. “Mate, there is no way I’m taking that bet. All I want to know is how drunk they got and what they are both going to be like come morning.”

“Your brother’s going to be grumpier than a flea in a dog bath when he realises we’re sleeping on the fold–out tonight. I put Alice in the spare room to stop the little sneak peeking looks at the presents under the tree.”

The barn door was slightly ajar when we got to it. Pulling it open further, I had to stop myself from laughing out loud. Mouse and Rhys were cuddled on the top of the straw, asleep. What I didn’t expect was to see Ragnar curled up in the straw next to them.

“Aw, shit.” Ragnar’s mad little ram eyes narrowed when he saw me. “Hey, you grass–chewing bastard, looks like you’re guarding the guys.” I moved slowly, not daring to take my eyes off the ram, who only watched me suspiciously.

“What do we do? Can you just go over and grab him by the horns and just… shoo him back into his stall or something?”

I glanced over my shoulder. Callum was still standing close to the door, ready to move if Ragnar so much as twitched an ear. “I’m the only one he hates. You can come in, I’m pretty sure he won’t attack you.”

Callum stood firmly by the door, shaking his head. “Don’t take this personal mate, but that sheep has way too many horns that look wicked sharp. I’d rather have something between me and it, and if that’s you, then so be it.”

“Bastard.”

“Never claimed to be otherwise. Now be a good daddy and move that thing, then we can get the lads back inside.”

Without taking my eyes off Ragnar I walked towards his open stall. One of the lads must have opened it up, but I couldn’t fathom why they’d do that. Inside, hanging from a peg in the wall, was his empty food bucket. Ragnar was still watching me with an unfathomable expression. I swore to God that if I ended up with horn marks on my arse, there was going to be hell to pay.

I grabbed the feed bucket and headed back out of the stall to where Dad stored the feed in a small room off the side of the barn.

“Simon, what the fuck are you doing?” Callum had stepped into the barn but still kept himself close enough to the door that he could bolt through it the moment Ragnar moved.

“The stroppy bastard loves his feed. If I put some in his feed bucket he might head back to his stall, and we can get Rhys and Mouse back to the house.” I squared my shoulders and glared back at Ragnar. The four-horned son of Satan could smell fear, and I wasn’t going to give him the opportunity to murder me.

“Sounds like a solid plan, but I hear a ‘but’ in there.”

“The feed is stored in the tack room behind where the boys are. Which means I’ve got to get past the devil’s woolly pet to get to it.”

Ragnar stood as soon as I stepped forward, stomping his leg down in annoyance when I stepped closer to the boys. “Don’t even,” I growled out as Ragnar dropped his head. Those four curly horns could do some damage if he really wanted to. He stamped and huffed as I got near them. My body was coiled tighter than a spring ready for Ragnar to charge.

Ragnar lowered his head as I came closer. I tried to keep myself as close to the barn wall as possible, but to get past the straw pile I was going to have to skirt pretty close to those horns of doom.

All the warning I got was a loud bleat before Ragnar moved. It was only pure luck that I was next to the ladder up to the loft, and I moved with a speed I didn’t think I possessed, clinging to the ladder just as Ragnar lunged.

“Holy fuck, that sheep is out for blood!”

“Right? He’s normally a stroppy bastard, but this is ridiculous.”

---