Tuck & Run: A M/M Age-Play Daddy Romance (Club Deny Book 2)

by A. W. Scott

  Unable to stop myself, I decide to rib them a bit in jest. “Get a room, you two!”

  “We have several, thank you,” Mateo throws back at me, a grin gracing his face. The group goes from clapping to nodding and laughing.

  “Yeah, yeah. We all know.”

  Something passes between Lewis and Miguel. Lewis heads toward him, while Mateo moves over to our group. When he gets close, I pat him on the back as we all congratulate him on the next step in his life.

  The conversation switches now to discuss who will live where. I ignore most of it since I already know the answer. Mateo will do whatever makes Lewis happy. It’s obvious in the way he watches his boy constantly, even when in conversation with others.

  With the sound of my name, I turn to look at the group again. When they realize I’m lost, Mateo laughs. “We were talking about good neighborhoods. Have you picked one yet? You can’t live in a hotel forever, my friend.”

  “Ahh, you see, that’s where you are wrong. I spend most of my waking hours at the club, then come home to crash before repeating the cycle. Until I feel like we’ve leveled out some things, I see no need to find a place of my own.”

  “But what if you find a Little of your own? Wouldn’t you want to take them home to your place? Don’t you want to get started on building your own playroom?” The rest of the group stands captivated as they wait to hear my answer.

  I shrug at him, my mind attempting to conjure the image. “I’ll be honest. I haven’t given much thought to that yet. I can’t say that I’ll be in a position to take on someone in that capacity for some time. And even then, with the level of access I have to the club, I could easily play with them there. It would be a good six months to a year into the relationship before I felt like they needed a personalized playroom.”

  Lies. My inner voice chants the word to me over and over, reminding me that there is one person I’d be interested in. Too bad he was unavailable.

  “I think you underestimate fate sometimes, Pat. You seem to think there’s a timeline for everything. I never would have thought I’d find Lewis the way I did. And I bet if you asked Miguel, he’d tell you that he never expected to find the love of his life in our club. Your person is likely to come when you least expect it.”

  Curtis waves his hands around. “Can I get some of your manifested juju my way? I will gladly take that.”

  I raise a brow at him, surprised at his eagerness. I had definite ‘hung up on someone’ vibes rolling off the man. He shakes his head at me slightly, almost as if he knows what I’m thinking.

  “Oh, Curt. Don’t play that game. You’re not yet ready.” Curtis’s smile falls, but he nods as if it was the answer he expected. Mateo gives him a half hug, whispering something encouraging to his assistant before they separate and Curtis slips back on his mask of joy.

  Lewis walks over to the group shortly after, his arms sliding around Mateo from behind as we all talk. “Are you ok, baby?” Lewis nods into his back.

  “I just wish Tucker had come.” The name rings a bell in my memory, though I can’t put a face with it. “He hasn’t been the same since everything that happened. He’s a mess every time I swing by the office. I mean, everything is moving smoothly there, but there’s a dark cloud over him. That asshole really did a number on him.”

  Taylor speaks up, the anger turning her pale complexion to a light pink. “It’s bullshit. Tuck is the sweetest guy ever. He didn’t deserve the asshole cheating on him.”

  “Miguel said it was worse than that even,” Lewis adds in. “He had the audacity to spew private information in the restaurant. Like super personal things that Tuck didn’t even know he knew about. It was a disaster and Miguel decided to handle it the best way he knew how.”

  “With force?” Lewis nods to Mateo. “It’s what I would do if someone hurt you, so I figured it was a safe bet. He iced him out in the entire city, right? Made him unhireable at even the lowest establishment?”

  “Exactly that. You CEOs are ruthless.”

  “Says the CEO,” I joke. “Has anyone checked on this Tucker guy at home? Maybe taken him to dinner or just seen that he’s not self sabotaging his personal life.”

  They all look at each other to see if anyone has. When none of them agree, Lewis looks at me bashfully. “He’s always been the rock for everyone. We hadn’t thought to go check up on him in that way, I guess. I’ll swing by there later today after we wrap things up.”

  “I think that’s a good idea. You never know what people are going through alone.”

  Chapter 6

  Tucker

  The beating on the door rouses me from the daze I’ve been in while sitting on the couch. I don’t stop to wonder who it is, knowing it’s probably someone for the neighbor down the hall again. They have visitors day and night who think my place is theirs. I’ve redirected traffic a few times now.

  Ripping open the door, I prepare my speech. “The guy you’re looking for…”

  “Looks like shit. Geesh, Tuck! Why do you smell like refried beans and pizza?” Lewis pushes past me while holding his nose.

  I close the door after him, then turn to see why the hell he’s here. He takes in the room, then turns to face me. “What’s the deal, Lewis? Did Miguel send you?”

  “No, but you can bet your ass I’m updating him of this little discovery. I’m here because we were all at a picnic this morning. Remember? I invited you to it and you told me you were too busy with a project. Was that project watching paint dry?”

  Dismissing his words, I take my seat back on the couch as I stare off into space again. There’s nothing he can say that hasn’t already been said to me by other friends when they found out about the asshole cheating.

  “Say what you’re going to say. It’s obvious I lied to get out of a social commitment. So what? Sue me. I’m not in the mood to be surrounded by loving, happy couples.”

  “Alright, asshole. I can’t deal with this anymore. Get up. Let’s go.” He tugs my arm, then drags me down the hall toward my room.

  “What the hell are you doing?” He doesn’t let go. He’s larger than me, but not that much more muscled. It makes no sense that he’s able to maneuver me around so easily.

  In my bedroom, he guides me inside. “Get some clean clothes out and sit them on the dresser. Then you’re going to take a shower because you smell atrocious. While you do that, I’m going to clean what I can, and then call an emergency cleaning service out to right this disaster zone. We are going to go grab something healthy and substantial, and you’re going to tell me what the fuck happened to my friend.”

  “I don’t want to. You can’t make me.” I cross my arms over my chest.

  “You’re right. I’m not your Daddy.” At his words, I freeze, my body locking tight. “I only know because Miguel wanted advice on how to handle it. He suspected I was in a Daddy/Boy relationship.”

  My voice is a whisper when I respond. “Are you? You’re a Boy?”

  He nods, his lips turning up to one side. “Yeah. I am. I know it’s not what I would have pegged for myself either, but I wouldn’t want to be in any other type of relationship with Mateo. It makes sense. And I want to help you make sense of what you’ve got going on, too, if you’ll let me. One Little to another.”

  Accepting his words along with his stubbornness, I move to get the clothes. He walks down the hall, his phone already to his ear as he gets a cleaning service on the line to come take care of the apartment.

  Ignoring everything else but the list he gave me of things to do, I step over the mess to go to the bathroom. When there, I strip down my clothes, then climb inside the stall. The warm water is a shock to my system.

  Sure, I’ve been showering daily, but this is the first time I’ve done so with a somewhat clear mind. The fog is still there for now. Hopefully it goes away now that there’s someone to talk to that gets what I’m feeling.

  I clean up quickly, the idea of picking Lewis’s brain seeming like a good idea more and more as I thin
k about it. The towel on my waist hangs low as I move from the bathroom and back into the bedroom. Once there, I close the door and take a good, long look in the mirror.

  My reflection is a shadow of the man I once was. My eyes have bags under them and my body is leaner than it’s ever been. A diet of coffee and sleep will do that to a person.

  The clothing I slip on even hangs loosely on me. I ignore it in favor of getting answers. My shoes go on next, and then I’m back up and moving into the living room.

  My brain, waking up from its safe place where it’s been hiding since the confrontation, is appalled. I look around my living room and kitchen to see it’s the worst I’ve ever seen. I wince, embarrassed that it got this far.

  “I’m sor -,” I start to say.

  “Don’t you dare! You’re going through a tough time. We’re all allowed to feel like shit and let things go. But I think we might be a couple steps too far. Let’s reel it in a bit and get you in order.” I nod, knowing there’s nothing else I can say.

  We take off for the restaurant, leaving the key above the door frame like the cleaning crew requested. They are going to report to Lewis as they finish up. They’ll lock up behind themselves and I’ll use my backup key to get inside when we’re finished chatting.

  At the restaurant, a twenty-four/seven diner that’s way below either of our normal hot spots, we sit in a booth after seating ourselves. I grab the menu, noting that everything on it will likely give me diabetes or a heart attack.

  “Don’t look so judgmental. You have lost at least fifteen pounds in the last few weeks. You need to get some food in you. It’s not good to drop weight that quick when you’re already that small.”

  I nod, looking back down at the list. I decide that if I’m going to spoil myself, then I need to do it right. The waitress comes by, asking if we’re ready. I rattle off my order of pancakes, a full breakfast platter stacked with all their meats, and a request for milk. Lewis smiles before ordering something a bit more modest.

  When she leaves, he dives straight in. “Tell me about the situation. What about being a Little makes you nervous? Why did you feel like you couldn’t tell anyone?”

  Laughter pops out of me at his line of questioning. I freeze, amazed at the sound of it after so long without feeling some sense of … well, anything.

  “How would I have known anyone knew what I felt like? Am I just supposed to walk up to one of the guys and say, ‘Hey, so I like to play with teddy bears and draw pictures with crayons. How about you?’ I think you overestimate how understanding people would be to that.”

  He looks at me sadly, a knowing expression covering his face. “Of course you don’t start with that. You would begin slowly by feeling them out. If you’re around enough people in this lifestyle, you learn to be able to recognize others.”

  “People in this lifestyle? How many do you know, Lewis?”

  Tilting his head back, he works through his mind to answer my question. I sit there amazed. Are there really that many people?

  “I can think of five confirmed and at least that many that I know, but they haven’t said it to me out loud. Some of these relationships are found through body language. After the initial contact and interest is shown, then you can break down what type of Little you are and what you want.”

  The waitress sits our food down, but suddenly I’m no longer hungry. I don’t want either of us to be preoccupied with anything other than talking about what the lifestyle is like and who we know in it. I want to express my likes and dislikes. I want to ask what he feels and see what his Boy personality is like.

  “We have time, Lewis. I’m free all afternoon to talk. And if you have questions I can’t answer, then I know just where we can go for the answers.”

  “And where is that?”

  “Eat first. Then we talk.”

  Without any further words, we both dive into the meal as if we’re ravenous. The sugary pancakes hit my sweet tooth, while the sausage and bacon appease my savory side. I’m a mess by the time we’re done eating, but I feel better than I have since before my world imploded.

  “We can take a walk through the park. It’ll be good for you to get a bit more sunshine today. Plus, I think we should move while we chat. It makes things a little less scary and serious.”

  Not wanting to risk my chance for answers, I follow along. At the park, we walk side by side quietly for the first few minutes.

  Finally, my patience grows thin and I’m the first to speak up. “I’ve always been so alone in this mindset. I had an idea of what I liked. There was just never another partner who fully lined up with what I enjoyed. They’d be into part of it, but not all. Or they’d be into it, but only for roleplaying. I couldn’t ever get them to understand that it’s not a role for me. It’s who I am.”

  “Yes. Exactly that. The moment I was offered the chance to be unencumbered by the stress of life, to have someone else take care of things and take care of me, I grabbed onto it with both hands. It didn’t make sense to me at first. Now, I know that it was that side of me, the side that longed for someone to fill the gaps where I couldn’t, that needed Mateo as my Daddy. Together, we work. Alone, I never would have known.”

  I hum along, noting the words that he speaks. “It wasn’t that way for me, obviously. I’ve hidden that part of me for so long now that I’m not sure how to unleash it again. I haven’t been Little since before the split.”

  Lewis freezes in his walk, his eyes turning wide as he looks at me. “Are you serious? That’s a really long time, Tuck. What else is going on? There’s something there. I can tell.”

  Nodding, I turn to pick up our walk again. I don’t want to look him in the eye for the next part.

  “Jalen took something from me. Something far more precious than my trust or the dream I had of getting married. He took away my ability to feel.” I point behind us. “That laugh back there was the first emotion I’ve felt in all this time. I’ve been in a void of nothingness. No anger, happiness, sadness, and so on. I didn’t even cry when he left. I tried, but the tears would never come.”

  “Oh, Tucker.” I shake my head, not wanting the sympathy right now.

  “I could have dealt if I thought it was temporary. It’s not. There’s something missing and I don’t know how to get it back.” Stopping on the bridge that overlooks the lake, I turn to the water to look at the view. “I know this is gorgeous. I used to love to come here on my days off to watch families walk around, or to see the different colors of the leaves. Now, I look around and it’s all muted. It’s as if someone has put a filter over my eyes and I can’t get it to leave.”

  “You need to come to the club. That’s the only way this will work. I may need to pull a few strings to get Patrick to let you in, but it will be worth it. I can’t let you go through life like this.”

  “Lewis, wait. What club are you talking about? Do we knit blankets or something? I wouldn’t mind that I guess, but I don’t think that will help.”

  He rolls his eyes at me. “Glad to see sarcasm is returning to the emotion list. We’ll get the rest squared away soon enough.” He pulls out his phone, then presses a button to activate a call.

  “Maybe you could give me more details before you just -,”

  My words are cut off as someone answers the line. He dives into a spiel with them about me needing access to this supposed club. I pick up bits and pieces of what he’s saying as he paces past me.

  “Little.”

  “Needs Daddy figure.”

  “Guidance.”

  “Patrick.”

  “Approve him.”

  As he wraps up the call, he walks over to me, his expression resigned. “It’s fine if I can’t go, Lewis. I won’t be missing out on something I didn’t even understand in the first place.”

  “It’s not that. You are going to go through a rapid screening process. You have over half the investors and management team vouching for you. Patrick is strict about his rules though, so you will still be vetted
and interviewed. We just granted you permission to be moved up the list.”

  “That’s nice I guess.”

  “Yes, it is considering there’s fifty plus potential members waiting on review and each of them are on level with Mateo in income and power.” I gasp, unable to understand why they’d put me ahead of all those people. “I know what you’re thinking right now, Tuck. The fact of the matter is that we all care. We all stupidly love and adore you to the point that we are shoving aside everyone else to help you get back what was taken from you. Are you up for the challenge?”

  That was the question, wasn’t it?

  Am I up for it?

  Chapter 7

  Patrick

  Monday rolls around again, leaving me with a to-do list a mile long and a stack of potential members even longer. I’m in my small office space in the club going over paperwork when my phone rings.

  I answer, my eyes still trained on the list of things I need to get done before the night ends. “Hello, this is Patrick?”

  “Hey, Pat. It’s Lewis.” The fact that he’s calling instead of Mateo is odd. “I have a specific request I need you involved in. I spoke with Mateo about this on Saturday and he thinks you’ll understand.”

  With the new information, I decide it’s best if I stop to listen. Both owners wanting something means it’s serious.

  “What’s up? Is there something that needs adjusting in the layout or have there been complaints?”

  “No! No, nothing like that.” He pushes out a breath so hard I can hear it on my line. “I need you to look over an application and push it through as fast as possible if they qualify.”

  Not expecting that kind of request, I lean back in my chair as if he physically hit me. My curiosity has me wanting to know more though, making me push where I normally wouldn’t.