Brave Boy (Perfect Boys Book 2)

by K. M. Neuhold

  Chapter 16

  Emerson

  The second time I wake up in Kiernan’s bed, there’s dry cum crusted on my skin, and I’m all alone. Ugh, I definitely preferred the first wake-up. I yawn and rub my eyes, a bit of a sleep hangover making me feel groggy and stupid. What time is it? What day is it? And oh my god, how do I have to pee this badly?

  I throw back the covers and hurry to the en-suite bathroom to relieve my bladder. Once that’s handled, I find a clean rag and get it wet in the sink so I can hastily clean myself up a bit. The bathroom is huge, big enough to echo. The acoustics for shower singing must be insane, or even better…sex. I wander over to the massive tub and take a peek at all of the bombs and salts that are lined up along the edge. I figured he was just trying to pamper me with the box of goodies he sent, but it’s clear that Kiernan is a man who likes his luxury bath products. I strongly approve.

  “Sweetheart?” There’s a gentle knock at the bathroom door, a smile jumping instantly to my lips at the sound of Kiernan’s voice.

  I scurry over and open the door, flinging myself into his arms. He lets out an oomph but catches me with ease. Sadly, at some point while I was sleeping, he put on a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt. I have to admit that there’s something erotic about being all naked in his arms while he has clothes on.

  “M-mmm-morning,” I say, grinning as I wrap myself around him like a spider monkey.

  “Good morning.” He tightens his arms around me and presses a soft kiss to my lips. “Did you find everything you needed in the bathroom?”

  “Toothbrush?” I ask hopefully, embarrassed for the first time that the man practically licked my tonsils earlier without any regard for my dragon breath.

  “I can get you one. But I have breakfast if you’d rather eat first.”

  I tilt my head to look past him and see a tray resting on the bed with all kinds of delicious foods—quiche, muffins, an array of fruit…there even seems to be both coffee and tea on the nightstand.

  All of my insides start to feel mushy. He didn’t know if I liked coffee or tea, so he brought both. Fuck my morning breath, I tighten my arms around his neck and kiss him. All of this might be new to me, but I’m going to be the best boy in the entire world so he’ll want to keep me forever. I can be perfect for him. I have to be perfect for him.

  My heart beats a little hard, and not in a good way, as I realize I’m not exactly sure how to be the perfect boy. What if I mess everything up? What if he finds a boy who doesn’t have any issues saying the words on his mind whenever he wants to say them? What if he gets bored with me?

  “Shh, Brave Boy,” he murmurs against my lips. “What’s wrong?”

  My throat tightens, and my tongue feels too heavy, so I give a sharp shake of my head instead. I’m not totally sure how to be a perfect boy…yet, but I don’t think it involves babbling a bunch of stuttered insecurities at Daddy when he’s thoughtful enough to bring me breakfast in bed.

  I wiggle until Kiernan loosens his grip, and then I slide down his body, putting my feet on the floor again. He drags his eyes over my bare body, heat filling his expression, and I preen a little. I wonder if Daddy is going to have rules and if being naked can be one of them. Am I allowed to ask for a rule? Maybe once I have some coffee in me, I’ll be brave enough to find out. I grab his hand and pull him over to the bed, careful not to spill the tray as I climb on and get myself settled. He follows suit, and within a couple of minutes, we both have our own mug of steaming coffee and we’re nibbling on breakfast.

  “Muffin for your thoughts?” he asks, offering me a bite-size blueberry muffin.

  I smile and take it, popping it into my mouth and gathering up my courage to answer his question. “Do I g-g-get rules?”

  “You do. Do you want your rules now?” he asks, and I nod rapidly. Once I have rules, I’ll know this is really real, that Kiernan truly wants to be my Daddy. “I’ll tell you what, I’ll write up a list of rules for you today, and then I can give them to you on our date tomorrow night.”

  He says it so casually, but I swear there’s the barest hint of vulnerability in his voice. As if I would turn down a date with him. Doesn’t he know I would do anything for him?

  “Okay,” I agree with a smile. I want to ask where he’s going to take me, but if he wants me to know, he’ll tell me on his own. I trust him. With that in mind, I manage to find the words I needed a few minutes ago. “C-c-c-can I ask for a rule?”

  “You can ask.” He studies me, taking a sip of his coffee.

  “I want to be n-n-n-naked wh-wh-when we’re alone.” I hold my breath after I get the words out. The request is relatively tame compared to some of the things I told him as BraveBoy, but it’s the first time I’ve asked for something like this aloud. He teased that I’m a dirty boy, and it sounded like a good thing at the time, but what if I’m too horny. Should a good boy be more virginal? Sterling certainly comes across as shy and Barrett seems into it.

  “Mm, that’s an excellent rule,” he agrees, easing some of my worries. “We’ll have to talk about consequences for breaking rules too.”

  “I w-won’t,” I promise him quickly. I’ll be the perfect boy; I assure myself again.

  “Of course I want you to follow the rules, sweetheart, but sometimes a little bit of purposeful misbehavior can be part of the scene for a boy.”

  I blink at him in horror. I know about brats, and I guess I was a little feisty last night for fun, but it’s hard for me to understand why a boy would purposefully disobey his Daddy. The question must be written all over my face.

  “Some boys misbehave because they enjoy punishments, or funishments, as some people call them,” he explains with a wink. “Sometimes they misbehave to test their boundaries or to see how serious their Daddy is about the rules.”

  “Hmm,” I hum thoughtfully. “I’ll be good,” I say again, and he leans over the food tray and kisses me, the taste of coffee and blueberries lingering on both of our mouths.

  I’m tempted to text Sterling to ask if he can cover the shop by himself this afternoon and then beg Kiernan to let me stay here naked in his bed for the rest of the day. But, if I don’t go in, I won’t get the chance to ask Sterling the million and one questions currently buzzing through my head about all the ways to be the absolute most perfect boy who ever lived.

  When Kiernan pulls back, he drags his thumb gently along my bottom lip. “You still have a little bit of lipstick,” he explains, showing me the bit of red clinging to the pad of his thumb.

  “Did you l-l-like me wearing it?” I didn’t mind it much, except that the stickiness felt a bit strange. I’m sure I could get used to it.

  “I like you feeling comfortable and sexy,” he answers. “If that means wearing makeup, then I’ll buy you all the makeup you want. If it means being completely and utterly bare from head to toe, then I’ll make sure the house is always the perfect temperature.”

  My heart flutters happily. Is Kiernan even real, or is this some wild, incredible dream that I’ll wake up from any second? If it’s the latter, I hope I sleep for a very long time.

  Kiernan

  It’s such a shame when Emerson finally has to get dressed so I can drive him home in time to go open his store. But there’s not much that can dampen my mood after such an incredible morning and the promise of a date tomorrow night.

  My mind is already spinning over all the ways I can impress my boy tomorrow night as I pull up in front of his apartment. I park the car in front of his building and unbuckle so I can turn toward him. He unfastens his seatbelt as well, nibbling on his bottom lip and giving me an absurdly shy look for a man who was comfortably naked in my bed not half an hour ago. I grin and lean over to brush a kiss to his lips. He sighs and leans in, too greedy for the brief good-bye kiss I intended.

  “You have to go to work,” I remind him, stealing another few pecks from his lips before he leans back and makes a frustrated sound in the back of his throat.

  “C-can I c-c-call you
later?” he asks, fiddling with the door handle but not actually opening the door.

  “You can call me any time you want, sweetheart,” I say, and he nods, still looking uncertain. “I mean it. If you wake up at two in the morning and just need to hear my voice, you call. If you’re at work an hour from now and want to call me for reassurance that all of this is real, pick up the phone and make the call. I know this is all new, but the first and most important thing I need you to know is that I’m here for you, always.”

  The smile that spreads over his lips rivals the brightest sunshine.

  “How about if I j-just c-c-call when I close the shop at s-s-ss-seven?” he asks in a teasing tone.

  “Sounds like a plan,” I agree, resisting the urge to pull him onto my lap for one more kiss, or a few hundred more if I had my way. “Have a good day.”

  “Yes, Daddy,” Emerson says sweetly before finally getting out of the car. I watch as he heads inside, and then I wait a few moments longer until I see the blinds in his apartment window sway. I can’t see well enough from down here, but I think he’s peeking to see if I’m still here. Always, baby.

  It’s late enough in the day that I’ve already missed the regular brunch my friends and I take turns hosting, but if I remember correctly, it’s Alden’s turn this week, and I would bet that Barrett and his sister, Lorna, are still over there, enjoying too many Bloody Marys and speculating about what happened between me and Emerson last night.

  Sure enough, when I pull up, I see the expected extra cars in Alden’s large driveway. I park behind Lorna’s custom pink Jag and make my way inside, not bothering to knock.

  I follow the sound of voices down the long hallway to the kitchen, where I find my friends congregated, the half-empty pitcher of Bloody Marys on the counter.

  “Didn’t expect to see you today,” Alden says as soon as he notices me in the entrance to the kitchen. “You missed the food, but come in and pour yourself a drink.”

  I bypass the alcohol and help myself to a glass of orange juice instead, intensely aware of three sets of eyes boring into me.

  Lorna is the first to break. “You and that sweet little Emerson looked awfully lost in each other’s eyes last night,” she notes with a hint of amusement.

  “To put it mildly,” Alden offers helpfully.

  “Yeah, how exactly did that happen? Last we all heard you had some new boy you were excited about.” Barrett’s expression is by far the most critical when I finally turn to face the group, taking a sip of my orange juice and leaning against the counter.

  “Yes,” I agree. “Emerson is my new boy.”

  Lorna makes a rather pleased sound while Alden tilts his head, continuing to study me, and Barrett frowns.

  “And the boy from M4M?” Alden asks, for once not sounding at all bored with the conversation.

  “That was Em. It was always Em.” I mean that in more ways than one. It was always Emerson. Before I knew he existed, somehow it was still Emerson.

  “That’s the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard,” Lorna sighs, putting a hand over her heart. “I need to find a new baby girl to play with.”

  “There’s a woman at my gym who’s just your type. Shall I slip her your number the next time I see her?” Alden offers, and Barrett makes an impatient sound.

  “Can we focus for a second? I’m sure Lorna’s quest for a new girl can wait five minutes.”

  “Ah yes, lecturing me, a grown adult entering into a relationship with another consenting adult, should certainly take priority,” I say dryly.

  “I’m not going to lecture you, but Em is Sterling’s best friend, so if I don’t do my due diligence here and the boy ends up hurt, I’ll never hear the end of it.”

  “I’m not going to hurt him,” I insist.

  “He’s not really your usual type.” Alden with another classic assist.

  “Right,” I huff. “My usual type is over-primped gold-diggers who figure the fastest way to my wallet is through my dick. Emerson isn’t experienced in the lifestyle, but he’s not a naïve child either.”

  “No one is calling him a child,” Barrett assures me.

  “Great, so if you recognize that Emerson is adult enough to know what he wants, and I’ve always proven myself to be respectful to the boys I play with, even the ones who are greedy users, then I guess we don’t have a problem,” I say coolly.

  Barrett stares me down for a few seconds while Lorna darts nervous looks between the two of us, like she’s trying to figure out what she’ll do if this comes to blows. For all of Alden’s previous interest, he seems to have gotten bored with the subject and is now texting and sipping his drink without much care.

  “I guess we don’t,” Barrett finally agrees.

  With that settled, we return to the topic of where Lorna might go on the hunt for someone to play with. I’m only half-listening while I pull out my phone and order a large bouquet of roses to send to Unicorn Books for Emerson, as well as a few other little trinkets to surprise him with tomorrow night. A nice pair of gold cufflinks should make a nice gift.

  Barrett sidles up next to me, and I put my phone away.

  “I was never questioning you as a Daddy Dom,” he says softly. I bristle a little, ready to tell him that I was never worried about his approval, except maybe I was. Just a little. Not his approval, but hearing another Daddy Dom question me, someone I’m as close with as Barrett, isn’t sitting well.

  “You know I always take care of my boys.”

  “I know you do,” he agrees.

  “And you know I’ll take care of Emerson.”

  “Yes, I do know that. I was just looking out for my boy. He really cares about Em. Sterling says he’s the first real friend he’s ever had. You can imagine why I’d feel a little protective.”

  “I understand, and I appreciate that, but Emerson is mine to worry about now.”

  He takes a sip from his drink and nods. “Understood. No hard feelings?”

  “No hard feelings.” I clasp his shoulder and give it an affectionate squeeze.

  My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I pull it out to find a text from Emerson about a book he’s setting aside for me. I smile, my heart feeling full and light all at once. I may have fucked up in the past, chosen the wrong boys and looked for love in the wrong places, but this feels different. Maybe I’m getting ahead of myself, but Emerson feels different than anyone else. He feels like mine, and I’m going to make sure he stays that way.

  Chapter 17

  Emerson

  Sterling didn’t turn out to be a ton of help on the perfect boy front. He kept saying stuff like “be yourself” and “Kiernan already wants to be your Daddy, just relax.” Ugh, it’s like he doesn’t realize what’s at stake here. But if he wants to keep all of his secrets to himself, then fine. I figure I can learn to be Kiernan’s perfect boy all on my own. Which led me down a Google rabbit hole well past midnight.

  Being all tired and puffy eyed isn’t how I was hoping to spend my first official date with Daddy Kiernan, but it’s nothing a little caffeine and concealer can’t fix. Nothing is going to get me down tonight because it’s my first official date with Daddy Kiernan. I barely manage to keep myself from squealing aloud. I don’t think my neighbor would appreciate that, although he’s certainly heard much worse from my side of the wall.

  I check the time while I dab a bit of concealer under my eye to cover up the bags. I grin and wiggle my butt excitedly. Daddy is going to be here any minute, and I seriously can’t wait. I’ve been daydreaming all day about what he has planned for tonight. I’m sure he’s going to take me somewhere super fancy, but part of me hopes it’ll be somewhere more romantic and lowkey instead. I’d rather take a picnic to a duck pond and feed the ducks while we eat and talk than go to some million-star restaurant with tiny portions and weird sauces.

  A knock at my door has me jumping with excitement and nerves, nearly dropping the bottle of concealer onto the carpet. I catch it just in time, my hands shaking badly enou
gh that it takes me a few tries to get the cap on before I hurry to answer the door.

  I pause in front of the hallway mirror, taking a deep breath and mentally running through the things I found online last night, the proper way to kneel for a Dom being at the top of my list of ways to impress Kiernan tonight.

  I may have a difficult time with my words, but that doesn’t mean I can’t show Kiernan how much I want him as my Daddy. With one more deep breath, I pull open the door and nearly lose my breath at the sight of the gorgeous, impossibly handsome man in front of me. His hair is tamed today, but his beard is just as wild as always. I instinctively clench my legs together, still feeling a hint of beard burn on the insides of my thighs from the other morning. He’s wearing a navy-blue suit today, the top few buttons on his button-up shirt undone to reveal the soft, thick hair on his chest.

  “Hi, Daddy,” I say breathlessly, licking my lips. I want to launch myself into his arms like I did the other morning, but instead I drop to my knees, putting my hands behind my back and ducking my head, just like I saw in all of the pictures.

  Kiernan gasps, and to my surprise, lifts me off the floor and into his arms. “Sweetheart, these floors are wood. You’re going to hurt yourself dropping like that without any padding.”

  A hint of shame tightens around my chest. This isn’t how it was supposed to go. I thought Daddy Kiernan would be happy to see me kneeling for him. I wrap my arms and legs around him and let him carry me into the living room, frowning as I try to work out where I went wrong.

  He sits down on the couch, taking me with him onto his lap, and then runs his thumb along my bottom lip, a concerned expression on his face.

  “I want to be p-p-p-perfect for you.”

  “Oh, sweet boy, I don’t need you bruising up your knees to be perfect for me. If you want to kneel for me, we can add that to your rules, but it’s not something I need from you.” He runs his fingers gently through my hair, and I lean into his touch, closing my eyes and trying to sort through how I’m feeling. If Daddy doesn’t want me to kneel for him, what about the other things I saw last night like licking his shoes? I wasn’t so sure about that one, but I figured his shoes look pretty clean usually so it shouldn’t be too bad. How will I know how to be the perfect boy for him?