Page 26 of Imperfect Skin

CALLUM

“No.” Mouse crossed his arms and stuck out his bottom lip. If we weren’t running late for our appointment with Doc I would have found it adorable, but right now I was close to my wits’ end. Mouse had woken in a grump, and whether he knew it or not, he’d regressed in a similar way to Rhys, just not as young. More like a stroppy ten-year-old with a nettle stuck in his kegs. I wondered if it had something to do with the trauma he’d suffered last night, or if there had always been a Little or Middle hidden behind all those barbs. The idea was both baffling and strangely appealing to me.

“Boy, I am not going to argue with you. Eat the damn cereal then we can head to Doc’s.” I slid the bowl towards him and had to hide a laugh when his nose scrunched up and his lip pouted out further.

“Not hungry.”

“I heard your damn stomach growl, Mouse, and Doc said you can’t take the antibiotics on an empty stomach.” I wasn’t sure why I’d picked this hill to die on this morning, but I wasn’t going to let the little shit get away with not eating.

Something had shifted between us last night. We’d always had a funny sort of relationship. Often, I felt my old Dom instincts taking over when dealing with him, and more times than not he’d responded well. Now, knowing more about him, I was beginning to see that he needed that guidance and structure—the sort of structure a Dom or a Daddy might provide. I felt I should have been surprised about wanting to be that for him, but I wasn’t.

“Shit, I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Woke up grouchy.” Mouse scooped a spoonful of cereal into his mouth.

“I’d be more worried if you’d woken up bright and cheerful after the night you had. Look, we’ll go down, see Doc, let him check you over, then we can spend the rest of the day watching telly and eating junk food. How’s that sound?”

Mouse looked up, smiling slightly. “That sounds good.” He scooped another spoonful of cereal into his mouth, chewing loudly until he caught sight of me looking at him. He then slowed his chewing, eating at a more reasonable pace and quieter volume.

“Good lad,” I murmured, taking a slow sip of my coffee as a soft blush crept up Mouse’s cheeks.

Mouse’s forehead creased in concentration before he let out a soft breath. “Cal, what are we doing?”

“For now, eating breakfast.” I held my hand up to forestall Mouse’s rebuttal, “I know what you’re asking, but I need you to give me some time to get my thoughts in order. I can promise you I’m not going anywhere. I care about you a lot, even when you’re a grumpy shite. When we get home from Doc’s we can talk. I promise.”

“Fine. I’m not grumpy, by the way. I’m a fucking delight,” Mouse huffed, scooping another spoonful of cereal into his mouth. He gazed into his bowl, a soft smile gracing his still-blushing face.

“Alice won’t be back until tomorrow night, so you’ve got the weekend to prove to me just how much of a delight you can be.” I smirked over the rim of my coffee cup at the surprised look on Mouse’s face.

Mouse lowered his spoon, giving me a searching look. “What is that supposed to mean?”

I scratched my chin, noting I really needed to give my beard a trim. “Well, that’s up to you. You’ve got ten minutes to finish up and get changed.” Moving around the counter I went to the sink, leaving Mouse to consider my words.

Upstairs, in the privacy of my bathroom, I allowed myself a come-to-Jesus moment. Was I really going to go through with the harebrained idea I’d had as Mouse slept in my arms?

It had seemed like a brilliant plan at three a.m., when I’d been holding Mouse. I’d offer to be his Dom, give him the pain he was craving, but also make sure he was looked after. I’d glimpsed another side of Mouse, one that lined up to a burgeoning kink of my own. Stripping my sleep pants off, I chucked them in the hamper and turned on the shower. The pipes groaned and I waited for the old hot water system to kick in.

The idea of Mouse calling me Daddy was undeniably arousing, but it also called to something baser, something possessive inside of me. I wanted to explore that, but would Mouse? Was I projecting onto the man? I didn’t think so. He’d come close to calling me Daddy a couple of times during the night. I was willing to put my neck out and say he’d developed feelings that were more than friendly for me, just like I was coming to terms with the feelings I had for him.

I lathered my chest and abs as I mulled over how I was going to approach this with Mouse. There was no point beating around the bush, and I’d already let myself slip into a caretaking, Dominant mindset with him last night and this morning.

He’d be a handful, that was for certain. A smile tugged at my lips as I thought of the fire Mouse had. I didn’t want to douse that flame, but I wanted to encourage him to think he was worth more than he saw. To convince him he was worth loving.

I was growing hard at the thought of the experiences we could have. I poured more of my body wash into my palm and slicked my cock. I could picture Mouse on his knees, begging to suck Daddy’s cock, his dark hair tumbling around his shoulders, messy and so soft between my fingers as I clutched it and brought his mouth to my cock. I let out a slow breath, easing my strokes, not wanting to rush. I liked to tease myself, to draw out my pleasure. I was almost there, but I stopped, savouring the moment.

I started to speed up my strokes, my toes curling as that deep throb in my balls increased. I was so fucking close, just a bit m—Jesus suffering fuck!

I yelped as the water turned to an icy torrent, and I swore I could hear Mouse’s laughter from downstairs. That damn brat of a boy must have turned the kitchen hot water tap on full. I sighed, looking down at my shrinking cock. I was going to get him back for this—and I was going to have fun doing it.

Mouse was sitting at the kitchen table, dressed in a pair of jeans, with his zip-up hoodie and T-shirt in his hands and a smile like butter wouldn’t melt in his goddamn mouth.

“I need a hand,” Mouse said sweetly, holding his T-shirt out.

Without a word I took the T-shirt and helped him put it on. His movements were stiff, but not as restricted as I’d thought they might be. The worst of the wounds seemed to be focused on his shoulders.

I fixed him with a stern glare. “You know, spanking your arse would just be giving you a reward.” I grabbed my keys, ignoring the outraged huff I got in return.

“I didn’t do anything.”

“C’mon, we can’t keep Doc waiting. He’s bad-tempered enough.”

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