Page 5 of Now and Forever

“It won’t ever happen with me, either.”

Maybe he was too wrung dry emotionally, or maybe they both needed connection more than sex. Because while their kisses and caresses lasted for quite a while, the desire to take their affection beyond the comfort of touch never materialized.

Right before sleep overtook him, Seth realized that whatever would happen would happen. It was all going to be okay.

His Daddy had him.

Chapter Two

Malcolm glanced sideways at Seth as he drove, checking to see how he was faring. The road trip to his parent’s place in Petaluma would typically take eight hours or so if he drove straight through. However, he’d planned on making a few stops for Seth’s sake. That way, his poor boy could get out of the car and not sit the entire way. Despite Seth’s protests, Malcolm had delayed the start of their journey by one day to give Seth’s sore backside a chance to heal.

His mouth quirked into a smile. He’d resisted spanking Seth with such force for a long time, had been worried about scaring him away. And while that might’ve been true in the beginning, a lot had changed as time had passed. Their bond had deepened. Seth had been testing his boundaries, becoming stronger and more confident in himself.

Malcolm wondered how Seth would handle his stress going forward. Would he begin to act out, to check whether his Daddy was still paying attention? So much remained to be uncovered between them.

“Are you ready to stop for lunch?”

Seth had been staring out the window at the valley of farmlands and cattle as they descended on the highway into Yreka.

“There doesn’t seem to be much around here. But it’s so beautiful.”

“It is. I love this stretch of the trip. Mt. Shasta isn’t very far down the line either, so that’ll definitely have to be a stop, too. And to answer your lunch question, there’s a country diner right off the highway that I enjoy.”

Seth didn’t answer right away, and Malcolm checked to see whether something might be worrying him. He appeared lost in thought with a slight crease to his forehead.

“Baby?”

“I love diners.”

Malcolm tried to parse out what the detached remark might mean. “Well, that’s good. We should go then.”

“Okay.” Seth had still seemed far-off as he answered.

Malcolm signaled then turned off the road into the Yreka Visitor Center lot. Seth straightened and craned his neck as he gazed around.

“Where’s the diner?”

Was it weird that he loved all the little questions Seth asked all the time? Malcolm chuckled to himself. Perhaps. But he didn’t care. He’d take Seth’s innocent and inquisitive nature over the jaded, cynical brats he’d come across in the past.

“This isn’t the place where the diner is, sweetheart. It’s a rest stop that also has a visitor center for the local area. Why don’t we take a peek inside? From what I remember, there’s a lot of info on the town and county’s history.”

Seth twisted his hands as he regarded Malcolm. “Are you sure it’s okay? I’m worried we’ll be too late arriving at your parent’s place.”

Malcolm put the truck in park then angled his body to face Seth. “Remind me who the Daddy is again?”

Seth let out a snort. “Sorry.” He shook his head. “I think I’m on overload or something.”

“Oh?” Malcolm drew his eyebrows together. “Can you describe it to me?”

He gave a one-shouldered shrug. “I know you’ve done this kind of stuff a lot, but this is exciting to me. I’ve never been on a road trip. And here I thought the weekends at the beach were amazing.” His eyes widened. “I didn’t mean it to sound like that. I love our beach trips, especially Florence. I don’t think any town could ever be better than Florence.”

“I understand, baby. But this is like an adventure, right?”

Seth nodded with a smile. “It is.”

“It is for me, too.”

“Even though you’ve already been to all these places before?”

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