Prince of Darkness vs Prom Queen 04

"WAAAHHH!!!!"

"Okay, this is getting weird. Are you sure you don't understand all this? I guess not. Well, I went to the island and Harding followed me and he had a gun and had it pointed at me and Victor. I was yelling my head off to try and warn her, but she doesn't always listen. In this case it was a good thing because she has this skill. She is really good at using a whip. She walked into the room with this look on her face like she was sick of all of us but she had a whip hidden behind her back. Damn! You would have been proud of her. She barely moved, but she flicked the gun right out of Harding's hand, then she moved again and coiled the whip around his neck. It was kind of awesome. Victor does have some use, because he grabbed the gun. I was too busy staring at her, kind of like you keep staring at me. Anyway we got rid of Harding and Victor told me some stuff about what happened to your mom before I met her and that was kind of when I first knew she was special. The thing is, I'm always in control. It's what I do and it works really well for me, but when I tried to talk to her I turned into an idiot."

"Gurgle."

"Yeah. I know, but it always happens when I talk to her. See, the thing is, I'm in control all the time except when she's around and that's when I say and do some pretty stupid things. The first time I tried to talk to her, I ended up naked and tied to a door. Then when I tried again, she called Victor for help because she thought I was having a breakdown. After that we were sitting on the beach and I was trying to explain things and I started to tell her a story about a boy unicorn with a magical golden horn that got all big and hard when he saw a pretty girl unicorn. She looked at me like I was a lunatic. Luckily she agreed to come here to Georgia with me and Victor, although I'm pretty sure it was out of pity. I swear, Matt, I'm really good with the science and math stuff, but if I was studying Laci Grace Corbett, I'd get an 'F' minus. Hell, I'd get a negative, double 'F' minus. Every single damn bit of that insight and control I usually have, vanishes. Poof! Vanishes every single time. Don't understand it at all."

Matthew continued watching with intent interest.

"I wonder where your mom is. She should be home by now. Hold on and I'll try calling again." Donovan grabbed his phone and dialed. "It's just ringing and going to voice mail," he announced. "I'm starting to get worried. I'll give her another little while and then I'm calling Marian and Victor. Marian's her boss so she might know what's going on. You're still not tired? I guess that means more talking. Well, I guess I can tell how it was when we came to Georgia."

Matthew was kicking again. He must be enjoying himself.

"When we first came to Georgia, I was living in this house and your mom was living in the guesthouse and she started working for Marian at the magazine. She was already friends with Victor and she got to be friends with Marian, but she wasn't exactly friends with me, at least not the kind of friend I wanted her to be. I don't think she really trusted me yet. You see, your mom's a girl and I'm a boy and that's really good because girls and boys like to do certain things. One particular thing. You're a boy so you'll understand one of these days although you really shouldn't think about doing it until you're older. A lot older, and how the hell am I going to explain this to you when you are older. I can't explain it now and you haven't even asked yet. Just promise me when the time comes you won't ask Victor, or you'll end up believing in storks and cabbage patches and I've already traumatized you enough with the smoke alarm and the powder bomb and the fucking pee-cones. Sorry. I'm really trying to watch my language. I'm still trying to adjust to you, so the bad word thing is going to take a little while."

He could swear the kid was giving him a dirty look. Great. Just great.

"Now it gets a little complicated because even though I'm still good at understanding other people, I wasn't ever good at understanding Laci and I really thought when we left Kalake things were going to be a certain way, but nothing turns out the way I think it's going to when I'm dealing with her. See the way it works is since I'm the Dominant, she's supposed to be the submissive, but her way of submitting and my understanding about submitting don't exactly mean the same thing. She was making me crazy. Victor would say crazier than I already am, but you have to understand something. Your mom is really beautiful and really smart and the more I got to know her, the more I wanted to do what boys and girls like to do. And she was the one I wanted to do it with, but she didn't seem to understand that. Maybe she did. I don't know, but I tried to convince her. I really tried. I didn't think she'd ever say yes. I tried everything I could think of. Nothing and I mean nothing, worked. I was just about ready to give up."

He was almost positive Matthew was looking at him with sympathy.

"Then one afternoon, we were sitting right in this room. It was kind of cold and really rainy outside and I said I was going to make a fire in the fireplace. This house is really old and there are three fireplaces. There's the one in this room and the one in the living room and the one upstairs in the master bedroom. They're all kind of unusual and they have this special stonework and we started talking about the fireplaces. She always likes to know about stuff like that and I asked her if she wanted to see the one upstairs, and stop looking at me like that. I swear, I didn't have a single ulterior motive. I was just showing her the fireplace and that was when it happened. She got this look in her eyes and we didn't leave the bedroom for the rest of the weekend. Damn! It was fucking fantastic! Sorry. Bad words again, but it was fucking fantastic. I mean I wanted it to be really good, but it was so fucking fantastic. Who the hell knew the damned fireplaces would make her so horny? See what I mean about not understanding her?"

He was staring again.

"I'm not sure if I should be telling you this stuff. You're not going to have nightmares or anything, are you? I was actually hoping you would start sleeping more. Like at night. Like when I want to spend some time with your mom. Like when I want to show her the fireplace. It would be really good if you slept through the fireplace seminar. We had a lot of fireplace showings before you were born. She really liked the fireplaces. We talked about them constantly. We even talked about them in rooms that didn't have fireplaces. She really liked talking about the fireplaces. I really miss not talking about the damned fireplaces. You have no idea how much I want to talk about them."

Another dirty look. Victor said the kid was a genius. Hopefully all the talk about fireplaces wouldn't come back to haunt him when the kid started asking questions about Santa Claus coming down the chimney. How the hell was he going to explain that?

"So, your mom and I were getting along pretty well, but I wasn't really sure about everything and then this guy named Trent Nichols made friends with your mom. Not fireplace friends, just friend friends. Except I thought she wanted them to be fireplace friends because she went to California with him and that wasn't fair because I wanted to be her only fireplace friend. Then Victor told me he and Marian were getting married and I got all mad and decided I didn't need her or anybody and that I could take care of myself. You know how the dining room looks now? Well, when I was done taking care of myself, the kitchen looked a lot worse. Naturally, that was the day she came back from California and she almost killed me again, only this time it was with manual labor. Damn she's bossy. She made me scrub every inch of the fucking kitchen. I work every day, but never like that. Then she made me eat pizza with pineapple, which is actually pretty good. Then she taught me about tying privileges, which are also pretty good. I'll explain those when you're older. A lot older. Maybe."

Skeptical? The look was skeptical. The kid was two months old. How the hell did he know skeptical?

"After the scrubbing lesson and the pizza lesson and the tying lesson, we were talking. She told me some stuff we had never talked about before and this is kind of hard for me to tell you, but it's important. I don't bother with my family because they're worthless and they don't care if I don't bother with them, but your mom's parents treated her really badly. I'm almost as mad at them as I am at Frank Harding, because they had no right to do that. Not to her. She's very special and she's the kindest most amazing person in the world. It makes me so mad they hurt her and if I thought she wanted them in her life and it mattered to her, I'd hunt them down and drag them here. Believe me Matt, I know how to persuade people to do what I want them to do. Well, not her, but other people. The thing is, she's not one of those people who let things get to them, you know. I admire that about her. She could have been a really angry and bitter person, but she's not. She's happy. She's happy with me, and she's happy with you and our strange little family with Victor and Marian. The important thing I want you to know is that's not happening with us. I'm not good at pee-cones and I may have come close to choking you with that damned onesie thing, but I will never turn my back on you. Ever. We probably won't always agree about things, but that doesn't matter. I will always be here for you and your mom. I promise."

The kid looked like he understood every word. Maybe he really was a genius.

"Anyway, that was the first time I told Laci how I really felt and how much she meant to me. And that I love her. Then she told me she loved me. Wow! I didn't know I could feel that good."

Matthew erupted in a series of loud burbles and sputters. Was he asking a question?

"I'm not exactly sure what you mean, but I'm guessing it's about what I just said. I suppose it's a little hard to understand, but your mom is really special. She made me believe love is a real thing. Before her, I thought it was only in books and movies. It's good I have my work, because my work keeps me sane. Usually when I'm around here with your mom, I'm a mess. She confuses the hell out of me and I feel all kinds of things I never felt and I don't understand any of it but it's a good confusion. She understands me and that's an incredible thing because I don't even understand me, especially after a conversation with Victor. The thing is, before your mom, I just did stuff. Now I experience everything. Like pineapple pizza. I would never have tried that if it wasn't for her. She gets me to try and do all kinds of things. She makes me happy. I wasn't happy before and I didn't even know it. And I want to make her happy. I love it when she's happy. Hey! I have another good story for you. Want to hear it?"

More kicking.

"Well, I knew I loved her and wanted to get married to her and I bought a ring with a blue diamond. That's what you do when you want to get married. You give the person you want to marry a special ring. I bought a blue diamond because she likes blue and it matches her eyes. She has really pretty eyes, only I wasn't sure how I wanted to give the ring to her. I knew she would like it but I wanted her to really like it and I was all nervous and confused like I always am. I thought of about a hundred different ways but none of them seemed right, so finally, I got an idea. She loves pineapple pizza and we had it the first time we said we loved each other so I got her a pineapple pizza. I asked the pizza place for an empty box, and I put the ring in the empty pizza box, so when I gave her the boxes, she thought she was getting two pizzas. You should have seen the look on her face when she opened the box with the ring. Wow! She kissed me about ten thousand times."

Matthew appeared to be gurgling his approval.

"Yeah. I did good with that one. See. I'm not always crazy. The day we got married was really good, too. We didn't have a big wedding, but that was what she wanted. She looked so beautiful. She's always beautiful but she looked like an angel that day. Or maybe a Prom Queen. Laci has this special kind of glow thing. It's like sunbeams are shooting from her and that day she was lit up like you wouldn't believe. For our honeymoon she wanted to go to Kalake. I would have taken her anyplace in the entire world, but that was where she wanted to go. It was really great. We talked about fireplaces all day and all night long. We talked about them all over the place. Inside. Outside. There's a little hidden cave down by the beach and we even talked about fireplaces there. I never talked about fireplaces so much in my entire life. She knows a lot about fireplaces. She knows things about fireplaces even I don't know, and I'm kind of a fireplace expert. You know, Matt, I'm hoping you'll try and have a really good and long night of sleep tonight. It's been quite a while since your mom and I discussed fireplaces and I really want to talk about them with her. For a long time. We need to have a very long and detailed discussion about fireplaces. Where is your mom? Maybe I should try calling her again."

Donovan dialed Laci's number, but again it went straight to voice mail. Next he tried Victor. No answer. He tried Marian's phone. No answer. Finally he tried Laci again. He left another message. "Hey! Where are you? Matt and I are getting really worried. Call me. Love you." He smiled down at his son. "We both love you. Call me."

Chapter 7 Mission: Submission

Laci wasn't far from the house. She knew every time Donovan tried to call and she'd heard every one of his messages. Now that she'd finally heard the one she had been waiting for, it was time to head home.

Her little Dominant needed a few kisses and cuddles. Her bigger Dominant needed a lot of kisses and cuddles. She had known exactly what she was doing and what to expect, and now she couldn't wait to get home to see them.

Matthew was still watching Donovan with wide and curious eyes. Instead of being tired, he was contentedly listening to every word his father was saying.

"I really am starting to get worried. I wonder if there's something wrong with her phone. I know she can take care of herself, but I still want to know she's okay, and I miss her when she's not here. Man, she shocked the hell out of me the night she used the whip on Harding. A few months after that I asked her to show me what else she could do. Trust me on this, Matt. Do not make her mad when there's a whip around. Actually it's wise not to make her mad anytime. Even though she looks really tiny and delicate, she's not. She's a steamroller masquerading as a Prom Queen. One time she even kicked me in the balls. There's this saying about how people who get hurt see stars. Yeah, well, it's true. I saw all kinds of pretty little stars that night. She didn't really do it on purpose. It was my own fault because I sneaked into her room, but I was not prepared for Ninja Laci. That was the only time I was glad to see Virgil. He sort of cushioned the blow. Do you feel that thing under you that keeps getting hard every time I talk about your mom? I'm not sure it would be working as well as it does if it wasn't for Virgil. Still hate him though. Stupid unicorn. Hate the fucking horse, too. Want to know about the horse?"

"Gurgle."

"Well, there's a ranch not too far from here and your mom used to work there. She likes to go visit whenever she can and I used to hate that, but then she told me about the people who own the place and how nice they were to her. They're like her family and anybody who's nice to her is okay with me. She'll bring you up there when you're older. You'll like it, but it's kind of dusty and dirty and ranch-y. You may recall our earlier discussion about me not doing too well with dirt and mess. There's this big horse up there and she made friends with him. She calls him Prince. They call him Ogre. They're right. I used to ride horses, but I rode real horses. Not monster horses. Prince Ogre is huge and grey and mean to everyone except her. His head is bigger than you and he's totally and disgustingly in love with your mom. I've seen it with my own eyes. He'll be stomping and snorting at the people who work there, but when she calls him, he gets all mushy and he tries to hug her and nuzzle her. It's revolting. He'll probably like you, but he hates me. He growls at me. Horses aren't supposed to growl. It's kind of unsettling to be in competition with a stuffed unicorn and a growling horse, but I keep reminding myself I'm the one who talks about fireplaces with her. Speaking of fireplaces, can I remind you again that I really want to have a talk about fireplaces with her? Tonight would be a good night for a talk about fireplaces. It would be a perfect night for a fireplace conference. We have a lot of fireplace talking to get caught up on. Your mom and I haven't talked about fireplaces since you were born and I really need to talk to her about them. A good long talk."

He could swear Matthew was burbling in agreement.

"You know, I was in this room when I realized you were coming. She gave me that picture on my desk for our first anniversary. Kind of appropriate. It was the very first picture of you for our first wedding anniversary although I thought you were a peanut. I couldn't understand why she was giving me a picture of a peanut. That's a good name. I can call you Peanut. Hell of a lot better than Noodle-bug."

There was a lot of leg kicking in agreement.

"Okay. I'll call you Matt or Peanut, although I'm pretty sure Victor is going to stick with Noodle-bug, so you might as well get used to it. I suppose I should get a new picture of you, but I kind of like the peanut. Anyway, I got so nervous when I realized what was happening I knocked over the table by the door. Luckily it only has some books on it, but you should have heard the crash. It was almost as bad as the smoke alarm. See, your mom didn't exactly tell me about you. She was giving me hints and sort of let me figure it out myself. I guess it was her version of the pizza boxes. It was a good surprise but I was really nervous. I'm still nervous, although taking care of you today has turned out pretty well. Victor will probably be shocked considering what he saw earlier. He knows I'm not even good at taking care of myself. That's why he's here. He and your mom take care of both me and you. Don't tell him I said this, but Victor's a good guy even though I'm pretty sure he wakes up every day planning how he's going to annoy me. Annoying me is kind of like his hobby, but he really cares about all of us. I care about him too. He'll never let any of us down. Hey! That sounded like your mom's car. Good thing I didn't break you. I don't think she'd want to discuss fireplaces if you were broken. Let's go meet her. C'mon."

Donovan got to his feet and headed for the door. A couple of seconds later he opened it for Laci. Her sunshine smile could not have been any brighter at the sight of her favorite man in the entire world cradling her second favorite man in his arms.

"Hey!" he greeted her, "we were worried about you. Everything okay? I left a bunch of messages."

"I know," she responded reaching up to give him a kiss. "I heard every one of them. It looks like you've got everything under control here. What time did Victor leave?" She leaned down to kiss Matthew.

"A couple of hours ago. How did you know he wasn't here?"

"Marian told me she had tickets for the symphony."

"Victor is with Marian at the symphony? What the hell does he know about the symphony? He spent all morning singing the Dominant song."

She gave him a quizzical look. "There's a Dominant song? Is there a secret Dominant handshake, too?"