Page 8 of Learning to Run

Bates just grinned.

Yep, smart people were a pain in the ass.

Chapter 3

Bates

“He’s fucking with me, right?” Gareth was trying to be quietas he pestered Cashel in the kitchen, but his voice carried a bit too well forthat to have worked.

“Probably? But maybe not?” I could hear the shrug inCashel’s voice as he continued to chop the veggies he’d picked out. “Planning ascene is important, but he does like driving you crazy.”

Laughing would’ve made me a terrible Dom but they were socute.

“He’s making me insane.” Gareth’s pouting tone, and probablydramatic expression, had Cashel sighing.

“I think that’s the goal either way.” Cashel’s answer mademe think he’d realized keeping Gareth slightly off balance kept him fromworrying about the spanking. “But there’s a fine line between being curious andexcited and being a pain in the ass. I’d recommend you not cross that line.”

Gareth’s groan had me imagining him curling into Cashel toget attention and cuddles. “But I don’t know where the line is. What if Ialready crossed it?”

“Then your spanking might go from quickly get you anorgasm to your Master is going to drag it out and make you insane.”Cashel’s tone was dry but I could feel his delight at the way he was getting tomess with Gareth.

His Dom side was definitely coming out.

“But I’ll still get an orgasm either way?” Gareth’s curioustone made me smile. “I kind of like the teasing, dragging things out part. Hedoes it really well and it makes me all squirmy inside. But I was promised anorgasm.”

And he wasn’t going to let anyone forget it…includingBrady’s mother.

Meeting her had been fascinating, but it was clear Jude andBrady needed a few more boundaries because the boys were mine to take care of.And they didn’t need saving from me. I was hoping they would understand thatafter their talk with Brady’s mother but some people were stubborn.

“Bates doesn’t break his promises. He just might drag it outand torture you first.” Cashel had decided to start the torture bit earlybecause he seemed like he was enjoying making Gareth squirm.

“How? I don’t even know how to research that. Do you knowwhat comes up when you look up torture and BDSM online?”

Oh dear.

Cashel snickered, not worried about how scarred my curiousboy was.

“You’re insane. Stop googling shit.” He was still finding itentirely too much fun because he decided to be helpful again as he moved aroundthe kitchen. “One. He’s not going to really torture you because that wasn’t onhis list. Two. I mean, he might do things to drag out the scene and make youwait longer to come. He’d edge you and tease you.”

“I know that one.” Gareth seemed pleased about that but Icould hear naughty curiosity in his voice too. “But how would he do it?”

He seemed to be already edging himself, but Cashel didn’tpoint that out.

“Well, he might…” The thoughtful silence stretched out for afew seconds and I couldn’t decide if it was nerves, just another way of fuckingwith Gareth, or genuine thoughtfulness because he didn’t know what I would do.

When he finally started talking again, I still hadn’tdecided, but he wasn’t too stressed, so I didn’t worry about it. “He could playwith your ass between spanks, you know, finger-fucking you. Or he could juststop between spanks and be really sweet.”

I wasn’t sure what that meant, but Gareth explained it forme.

“Ugh, he’d ask me how I was doing and he’d make me talkabout it.” Gareth’s dramatic groan had me barely holding back laughter.

“Yep, feelings and all.” Cashel nearly giggled but he keptit under control. “He might even do both, fuck you gently and talk to you andthen start up again.”

“God.” Gareth’s sigh was the cutest thing I’d ever heard.“That would kill me.”

“Yep, so don’t cross the line because I kind of want to seehow desperate you would get if he did it.” Cashel’s honest confession hadsilence coming from the kitchen for several seconds.

“Yeah, you’re a Dom, alright.” Gareth sounded like he wasshuffling around. “Light switches. Man.”

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