Page 33 of Screw Me Daddy

‘Hey there, baby boy,’ I say, getting up from my armchair and crouching down next to Xander as he opens his eyes. ‘You had a great little sleep. How are you feeling?’

‘Mmmmm… I’m feeling good, Daddy,’ Xander says, rubbing his eyes.

I offer my hand and lift Xander up from the super-comfortable beanbag bed that I put him down on when he drifted off to Snoozetown.

‘You certainly look well rested,’ I say, ruffling Xander’s chestnut-brown hair. ‘Here, drink some water. It’ll get your hydration back on point.’

I pass Xander my bottle of water and he happily glugs it down.

‘Boy, youwerethirsty!’ I laugh.

‘Yeah, I always get extra-thirsty after milk and nap time,’ Xander smiles, a bead of water dropping off his bottom lip. ‘I slept for three hours once. Nanny Josephine had to sprinkle little drops of water on my face to wake me up!’

‘I can imagine,’ I chuckle, the innocent enthusiasm in Xander’s face bowling me over. ‘I think I might need to give napping a try one day.’

‘Hehe, a Daddy having naptime?’ Xander giggles. ‘Okay, sure… wanna wear a diaper too?’

‘Hey, enough sass boy,’ I chuckle. ‘Don’t think that just because you’re fresh from a nap I won’t paddle that butt.’

Xander immediately dials the sass back and instead begins to get changed back into his clothes. I already put my t-shirt back one when Xander was sleeping, so we’re pretty much good to go.

‘I’m thinking we grab a bite to eat somewhere in the marina?’ I say, my stomach rumbling. ‘How about that?’

‘I’d love to…’

‘I sense a but is coming,’ I reply, arching my eyebrow.

‘I think I’d like to go back to work with the rest of my crew,’ Xander says, impressing me with his commitment to the rest of his team. ‘They’ve been working hard all morning while I’ve been taking my time to get my head right. It’s only fair I support them now. Please don’t be mad.’

‘Boy, I think that’s a great idea,’ I say, wrapping my arm around Xander’s waist. ‘I’m proud of you for knowing when it’s time to show your support to your fellow boys. No matter how big and successful I got as a player, I was always there for my teammates. It’s a sign of a true champion.’

‘So am I your Little Champion?’ Xander says, blushing sweetly.

‘You sure are,’ I say, planting a kiss on his forehead. ‘I’ll drive you over to the site and we can do something this evening instead, okay?’

‘Yay!’ Xander replies.

‘Well let’s not waste another moment,’ I say, opening the door to the room and walking out with Xander into theMorning Milkcafé. ‘I’m about to show you that my driving can be just as quick and controlled as my skill on the soccer field.’

‘After you, boy,’ I say, opening theMorning Milkdoor and allowing Xander to step out onto the street. ‘Wait! Come back here.’

In the blink of an eye, I haul Xander’s large frame back inside.

‘Daddy, what’s wrong?’ Xander says, a look of concern on his face.

I bury my head in my hands for a moment. I can’t believe what I’ve just seen…

‘Across the road, right behind that Ford Bronco,’ I say. ‘See him? It’s TonyfuckingRipper and he’s got his wide angle lens out again.’

‘Oh no!’ Xander says, his bottom lip trembling. ‘B-b-b-but… how did he know?’

‘I don’t know boy,’ I say, a steely resolve coming over me now that the shock of seeing Ripper has sunk in enough for me to process the situation. ‘But I know one thing… we’re not going to let that sonofabitch bully us any longer. Come on, follow me!’

And without a second’s pause, the pair of us burst out fromMorning Milkand run across the road toward Ripper.

But before we can get to him, Ripper manages to hop onto this scooter and power away into the distance.

‘We’ll catch you one day!’ Xander bellows, his voice full of anger. ‘Won’t we Daddy? We’ll catch him and tell him not to print anything about us. Right?’

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