Page 5 of Not the Punk

Outside, I handed off the beer for Saxon and then grabbed a rib-eye steak and potato salad. When I turned to find somewhere to sit, Joe waved me over. “Sit here, Colten.” Yay!

“Thanks, Joe.” Honestly, I couldn’t think of anywhere else I would have rather sat.

“Oh, you need a beer.”

I looked around and noticed I’d left mine somewhere but couldn’t figure out where. “Uh, yeah…”

“I’ll get it.” He jumped up and scurried off before I could say anything else. He came back with a cold one and a paper towel. “Here you go. I always make a mess. So…”

“Thanks.” I took a swig of beer and dug into my food, while Joe did the same across from me.

“Glad you’re here. I mean, like, it was nice of you to surprise Saxon like that.”

“It was Kay’s idea.”

“I know, but you didn’t have to go along with it. I guess you wanted to see your friend. Right?”

“Seeing you isn’t bad either.” I winked. He had to know I was interested, but I wanted to make it clear. Plus, flirting with him was fun. I loved how he smiled and how his long, brown bangs fell over his eyes when he ducked his head.

We chatted a while longer until Saxon came over and handed me another beer. “You’re staying here tonight, right? I want some time to catch up. Gossip about the guys at the firehouse.”

“Uh…yeah.”

“Cool.” He patted my shoulder. “We’ll catch up later for sure. But I need to get another round of burgers on the grill. These guys can seriously put away the food.”

“We love to eat.” Joe grinned and held up his empty plate.

“I’ll bring you more. What would you like?” Saxon asked.

But Joe shook his head. “I’ll get something else later.”

“Cool. The guys are inside if you want to hang out with them in the AC too.”

This was the life for real. Good food—good friends.

Flirting with Joe.

The day turned out fantastic. When everyone left, including Joe, I helped the guys put away extra food and clean up, then I crashed on the sofa while Saxon took the boys to get baths and get in bed. Taking care of someone was part of the lifestyle that I was missing out on. I had no one to tuck into bed or read a story to. I wasn’t exactly jealous of Saxon and his Boys, but I did envy him. I wanted someone in my life, in a relationship. Maybe I was starting to need more than sex with strangers, even Littles.

Saxon came back downstairs and joined me in the living room. “Bath time can be a handful with those two, but they were good today. They said goodnight, Uncle Colton.”

“Oh, is it Uncle now?”

“Apparently…” Saxon chuckled and smacked my arm. “Saw you sitting with Joe today. For like most of the day. You like him or what?”

“I don’t know. We have chemistry.”

“Well, you shouldn’t lead him on by flirting if you’re not really interested.”

“No, I am really interested. And before you go there, it’s not because of the rockstar thing.”

“Will you feel the same way even if he’s not a Little? I know how you are.” He glared at me with a raised eyebrow.

That was something to think about, but I really liked Joe either way and hadn’t had luck with Littles anyway. Maybe he wasn’t a Boy at all, but I liked him way more than I should. “I hear you, Daddy Saxon. Not sure that’s as important as it used to be.”

“You’re super lonely, huh?”

I shrugged, not wanting to make him feel guilty for moving out here. I understood. Him following his Boys was a no-brainer. So, I kept my mouth shut.