Side by Side: A Paranormal MMM Daddy/little Romance (Forest Edge Book 2)

by Alexis Woods

  Dylan had eagerly put him on his knees. Would that dominance swing over to physically pushing him around? Would Christian want to spank him for misbehavior? Sure, he could handle pain. He didn’t think that would be a problem, but punishments had a huge psychological component to them. That was the sticky part.

  As he tabbed from one website to another, Brian noticed that they all had the same three words: safe, sane and consensual. Christian—and Dylan—would have to agree to Brian’s terms, and that made him feel better. Thankfully, physical punishments didn’t always have to be part of any dynamic. Could he rule out emotional punishments as well? He still had a lot of questions, but without talking things out, he’d get nowhere.

  He had to buck up and face the music.

  Brian took his tablet with him as he slowly made his way to the door. He knocked softly, his stomach tied in knots. How should he address Christian: Sir or Daddy? The former seemed safer, and he’d been using it already. “Sir?”

  “Kit,” came the fast reply.

  “Am I in trouble?”

  “No. Absolutely not.”

  “Promise?” Brian fumbled with the tablet, turning it on and off. He nibbled on his bottom lip, his nervous belly writhing.

  “Yes. I would never punish you for being scared. Your wellbeing is my utmost concern.”

  There was a soft shushing as if Christian dragged his fingers along the wood, and Brian wanted those caring fingers to touch him, to smooth away his worries. Now or never, Bri. Christian’s agreement that he wasn’t in trouble helped, so without fear of consequences, Brian unlocked the door, turned the knob, and allowed the door to swing open into the room. He stood off to the side and watched Christian and Dylan come into view.

  Dylan sat on the floor, his arms wrapped around his knees, but when he saw Brian, he scrambled to his feet. Christian had his hands stuck deep in his pockets. Both were disheveled, with red-rimmed eyes and sad but hopeful expressions.

  “Bri?” Dylan whispered, taking a half step forward. The restraint he held sparked a kernel of optimism within Brian, and he acted without thought, holding his arms open. Dylan leapt into them.

  “I’m sorry, Bri. It’s my fault. I should have listened to Daddy. He told us the rules, and I didn’t follow them.”

  Brian wasn’t about to let him totally off the hook. “Maybe, but I didn’t either. We both got caught up in the moment and forgot.” Brian leaned down to whisper in Dylan’s ear. “I think Sir forgot, too.”

  Dylan giggled, hugging Brian tighter and pressing his cheek to Brian’s chest.

  “I’m sorry, too, kit,” Sir admitted. “I could’ve easily stopped both of you, and I didn’t. I’m equally at fault.”

  Brian forgave him, of course, but he still made Sir wait. He pursed his lips and lifted his gaze to the ceiling. “I don’t know.”

  Christian’s crestfallen expression undid Brian, and he quickly relented, releasing Dylan with one arm, and inviting the sexy fox into a three-way hugfest. He still held the tablet and accidentally bumped Christian with it.

  “Do you have something you wanted to show us, kit?”

  Brian nodded. “Can we go downstairs and sit in the living room?”

  Christian agreed, and they trooped down the steps. Dylan plopped himself on one corner of the couch, Christian on the other, spreading his thighs and inviting Brian to sit between them. When Brian did, Sir maneuvered him so his feet were on the center cushion, allowing Dylan to tangle their legs together.

  Settled, Brian toggled on his tablet and handed it to Christian.

  Sir was silent while he read, except for the slight, sharp intake of breath when he started. After a few minutes, he curled an arm around Brian and asked, “Service submission? Are you sure?”

  “I think so. The description ticks a lot of boxes for me. You know I love to cook and take care of the house.”

  “I do. Can I assume you want to include the sexual aspect of service?”

  Brian blushed. “Yes, please.”

  Sir reached past Brian to hand the tablet to Dylan, who glanced down at the open page. “What do you think, darling?”

  “Hmm. I think it’s perfect, but there’s a lot of different types listed here.” Dylan eyed Brian. “I’m going to need a list so I don’t forget and overstep with you.”

  Ducking his head, Brian whispered, “Okay, I thought that, too, but I wasn’t sure if I was allowed to bring it up.”

  Sir squeezed him. “Yes, definitely you can. It’s an excellent idea. We should draw up a contract for the three of us with limits and expectations. I happen to have lots of experience with contracts, being a lawyer and all.” Sir chuckled at his terrible pun, but quickly sobered. “I do have one request before we continue.”

  Brian twisted so he could look at Christian. “What, Sir?”

  “I enjoy my job as a business lawyer, especially when I could help one of Mr. Charles’ littles or other shifter clients. Adult foxes by nature love to nurture our kits, and my work fulfilled that desire for the most part, but recently the urge has become all-consuming. I actually have Ryan to thank for putting me on the right track to connect with you, Dylan. He made me take a good hard look at my life and see what I was missing: the right person or persons in my life. Kit, I’m so sorry that I didn’t recognize how right you were for me sooner. Perhaps it was fate that we needed our pretty bird here to bring us together.” Christian held out his hand and Dylan took it, allowing Christian to pull him forward and sandwich Brian between them.

  Brian stroked Dylan’s hair and back. “He is pretty, Sir.”

  “Yes, he is. But back to my request, kit. I realize that even though you’ll be doing a lot of caretaking with the cooking and cleaning, I hope that you can look to me to guide you and protect you. To that end, I’d rather you call me Daddy then Sir.”

  Oh! Brian’s heart lurched, and he had to clear his throat to respond. “I’ll try to remember…Daddy, but forgive me if I forget?”

  “Thank you, kit.” Christian nuzzled Brian’s neck.

  It wasn’t long before the heat of their bodies and the decline of the adrenaline rush from earlier caught up to Brian. He yawned and, in turn, triggered Dylan to yawn.

  “I agree,” Daddy murmured. “Time for bed. Let’s go, you two. Pajamas and teeth brushing.”

  Brian and Dylan grumbled good-naturedly as they got up and followed Daddy’s orders, and if they walked side by side, linking pinkies on the way, so much the better.

  Chapter 21

  Ryan

  After Eli’s admission regarding the whole wolverine mess, Ryan had a restless night. He’d drifted off but had woken several hours later and been unable to relax enough to fall back asleep. After a half hour of tossing and turning, he carefully escaped his place in the center of the bed, grabbed Tanner, and took residence on the living room couch with a favored navy blue crocheted blanket wrapped around him.

  There were enough moonbeams shining in through the windows, in addition to the various low-level motion nightlights along the hallway, he hadn’t needed to flip on any light switches. They blinked off after a few minutes, leaving him in silent contemplation with only Luna for company.

  Ryan’s shifter genes blessed him with excellent night vision, and the ambient light was enough he could discern the artwork with ease. He studied the paintings of various members of the skulk: foxes at play or sleeping, kits tugging on a parent’s ear or napping in a pile of fur, tails curled around their bodies, noses tucked to toes. A tall bookcase sat to the right of the television, its shelves filled with books, mementos, and a selection of DVDs, barely watched nowadays with the advent of streaming services. Beneath the TV rested several gaming systems and all their accoutrements.

  To the left, another bookcase, this one filled with fabric boxes containing an array of toys for littles. Marco and Ryan each had their own personal box, but there were also several for littles, based on their “ages” or preferences, when they visited with their Mommies and/or Daddies. Ry
an had found he enjoyed playdates with other littles, especially ones who regressed more than him. He got to be the babysitter as a middle, without having to be the teacher he was when he worked with the homeschooling network of the skulk.

  Even though he’d lived there for only a little over three months—almost five months since he signed his final contract—he loved Eli’s home. Eli, Jon, Luis and Marco had become his family. Even Miss Jen and Brian held a special place in his heart. Christian was like a favored uncle. To think of his home, his family, threatened…

  Ryan fumed. What were these wolverines doing? The obvious seemed too simple. Of course, they wanted their land back, their homes, their community, but to destroy it was counterproductive. If you burnt a house down, then you’d have to rebuild first. Thankfully, the damage they’d done had been minor nuisances, though they still required some financial payout to fix.

  A faint squeak disrupted Ryan’s thoughts, and he frowned, glancing around the room. It sounded again, followed by a longer creak, coming from the kitchen. Quietly, Ryan stood, letting the blanket puddle on the floor. He cautiously tip-toed towards the kitchen, peeking his head around the doorway, but didn’t see anyone inside. When another squeal of metal came through the window over the sink, Ryan realized it was coming from the playground. He moved toward the window to look out.

  “Sweet Mother,” he gasped, seeing a lone wolverine—he recognized it from the online pictures—nimbly walking from end to end of the teeter-totter, the squeak coming from the middle joint as it tipped up and down. “How did you bypass security?”

  Ryan watched the shifter scurry back and forth along the center pipe. Joyful and happy they seemed as they played, trying to balance the bar and sliding down when it tipped. Once or twice they fell off, only to run to the end, jump on, and try again.

  “Ry?”

  “Shh!” Ryan hushed Jon, waving his hand to tell him to be quiet first, then waving him forward.

  “What is it?” Jon whispered, slipping an arm around Ryan’s waist and pressing his chest to Ryan’s back.

  Ryan pointed out the window. “We have a visitor.”

  Jon tensed. “Goddess. I better wake Eli.”

  “No.” Ryan turned to face him. “I want to see if I can talk to whoever that is first.”

  “I don’t think so.” Jon gripped Ryan’s upper arms. “Eli would have my head.”

  “If we get Eli or Luis or Kev, they’re going to scare them away. Let me try.”

  “Fuck. If I let you, Eli won’t kill you; I’ll be the first on the chopping block.”

  Ryan rolled his eyes. “Stop being so dramatic. You stay in the doorway and call Kev. I won’t go any further than the patio.” The three by three stoned area in front of the door would keep Jon within arm’s length.

  “Fine. I’ll grab my phone. Don’t move until I get back.”

  Famous last words, but Ryan didn’t give voice to the thought. He waited until Jon left the kitchen to hurry to the back door. Unlocked and open, he watched the wolverine leave the teeter-totter for the slide. When the shifter reached the top, Ryan stepped outside and moved to the edge of the stone square. Down the wolverine slid, freezing when they turned and saw Ryan backlit by the small wall sconce.

  Muscles tensed, the wolverine dropped lower to the ground. A repetitive, grumbling chuff rolled across the yard. Ryan raised his arms slowly, showing empty palms, and trying to portray no harm in his expression.

  He attempted to keep his voice calm even though his heart raced. “My name’s Ryan. I live here. You look like you’re having fun playing. I like the teeter-totter and slide, too.”

  The wolverine glanced back at the slide before refocusing on Ryan with another burst of growls. The shifter turned in a slow circle, checking their surroundings.

  “You can go again if you like. The slide is my favorite.”

  The wolverine’s front legs dipped. They pushed to their hind legs and then bounced towards the slide’s steps. Ryan relaxed as he watched the wolverine’s progress up then down, seemingly without another care. They were cute, in that “it’s got big teeth and can hurt me” kinda way.

  “Ryan!” Jon harshly whispered. “I told you to stay put.”

  Ryan scoffed, but didn’t turn his attention away from their visitor. “You know I don’t listen.”

  Jon gave a short bark of laughter. “I know. Kev’s a minute out. I told him to come on foot and to just let himself in.”

  Ryan nodded. Brown bear versus wolverine was a much better match up than human or coyote or fox. Not that this adorable wolverine looked vicious, the way they were playing.

  “I’m here,” Kev said, pushing open the door and joining Ryan.

  “As am I,” Eli growled. Ryan rolled his eyes, safe in the knowledge that Daddy couldn’t see him.

  They crowded the tiny patio, whispering bewilderment. Why was the wolverine here, how did they get here, how did they bypass security, and what was Ryan doing out of bed in the first place? The last one from Eli to Jon, but it was Ryan who answered.

  “Couldn’t turn my brain off, and it’s a good thing too, wouldn’t you say?”

  Eli grumbled, and Ryan smirked at the stubborn alpha’s grudging agreement. “Fine, but can we get back to what do we do now?”

  “Well, Daddy, now I’m gonna go play and see if I can get them to shift.” Ryan took off before they could stop him, ignoring their hushed demands to return. He proceeded to the end of the slide and waited until the wolverine caught sight of him when they reached the top.

  They froze until Ryan waved them to slide down. “Come on. You first, then I get a turn.” The wolverine bobbed their head and stuck out their front paws. Swoosh, down they went, head first and chuffing. Ryan raced to the stairs and clambered up. The spacing of the slide’s steps were set for a shifter’s animal gait, thus inconvenient to human arms and legs. At the top, he sat and threw his hands in the air, yelled, “Here I come,” and down he went.

  They took a few alternating turns before Ryan plopped on the ground. “I’m tired and thirsty. Daddy Jon, will you get us some juice?”

  “Sure.”

  The wolverine startled and huddled behind Ryan, hiding their face against Ryan’s back. Their cold nose hit bare skin and Ryan yelped and rolled, laughter bubbling. He let it out, determined the wolverine see him as friendly and harmless. “Your nose was so cold!” He shiver-laughed, hugging his body.

  His new friend gingerly stepped closer before laying down on their stomach and placing their chin on Ryan’s stomach. He carefully stroked the wolverine’s fur.

  A low growl from Kev had Ryan frowning. He turned his head, looking in Kev’s direction to determine what caused the bear shifter to rumble. The wolverine followed his gaze, his muscles tensing under Ryan’s hands.

  Kev shuffled towards them at the same time the wolverine stepped over Ryan in Kev’s direction—drawn like magnets, one to the other. When the wolverine reached Kev’s feet, they stopped and looked up, body lengthening and morphing into a young man with hair no darker than his naked, pale skin tone.

  Kev lifted one hand, palm up, and tipped his head towards the wolverine. Ryan jumped to his feet and circled slowly towards Jon and Eli, passing a bewildered Jack. Ryan’s gaze remained fixed on Kev and the wolverine, who shyly smiled and placed his hand into Kev’s.

  Jack stopped beside Kev, his eyes darting between the two shifters. “Kev?”

  They turned towards the fox, and Kev drew Jack to his side before returning his regard to the wolverine. “We’ve been waiting for you.”

  The wolverine gasped. “For me?”

  Kev nodded. “We knew there was a space between us, and as soon as I saw you, I knew. I felt it in my gut and…in my heart.”

  “Oh.” He gave Kev a broader smile before turning to Jack. Ryan swept away the wetness on his cheek as Jon wrapped him in a hug from behind.

  The wolverine laced Jack’s fingers with his own. “What’s your name?”

  “Jack. And
yours?”

  “Storm. It’s a silly name, I know.” With the coming sunrise, and his excellent sight, Ryan could see the blush growing on Storm’s cheeks.

  Kev let go and touched Storm’s hair. “It’s not. I like it, and I’m betting there’s a story behind it.”

  “Me, too,” Jack added. “I like it. It’s better than plain ol’ Jack.” The trio continued to speak in quiet tones, rendering Ryan unable to hear them.

  Eli stroked the back of his fingers down Ryan’s cheek, leaned in, and pressed a kiss to his temple. “I’m proud of you, kit, but we will discuss your blatant disregard of our orders later.” He then cleared his throat to get the trio’s attention, and Ryan was happy to have the reprieve from whatever punishment Daddy Eli decided.

  “How about we take this inside and find Storm some clothes?”

  Ryan chuckled. Yeah, they’d been ignoring the fact that Storm was butt naked, not that they could see much with Kev’s broad body blocking their view.

  With unspoken coordination, Kev turned to stand in front of Storm while Jack took up position behind him. Jon herded Ryan into the house, nudging him towards the bedroom and telling him to find some sweatpants and a T-shirt for their guest. Being the smallest, Ryan went straight for his own clothing. Besides, he didn’t want Storm in his daddies’ clothes. He was a tad possessive that way.

  His pajamas were damp from the dewy grass, so Ryan did his own fast change while he was there. Jon’s lounge pants and one of Eli’s tees would appease his daddies. Eli might even overlook Ryan ignoring Jon’s order and heading outside without waiting. Possibly… But, damn, the alpha fox had an excellent memory. Ryan smiled to himself though, because after almost every punishment, Ryan would cuddle up on Daddy Eli’s lap while Daddy discussed Ryan’s behavior. Like he’d change just because. Ryan rolled his eyes, then quickly looked around, making sure neither of his daddies had come in unnoticed.

  Safe, he gathered the clothes for Storm and headed back into the common area. He found them all in the kitchen, Jon and Eli sitting on the island’s stools, Kev, Jack and Storm at the table. Storm was happily munching on a sandwich, a tall glass of juice half consumed. Everyone else had mugs of coffee, the seldom used pods in a tidy pile beside the machine.