Published: April 29th 2022, 7:16:37 am
Ch. 1 Ch.2 Ch.3 Ch. 4 Ch. 5 Ch. 6 Ch. 7 Ch. 8 Ch. 9 Ch. 10 Ch. 11 Ch. 12 Ch. 13 Ch. 14 Ch. 14.1 Ch. 14.2
"Are you sure you're okay eating in a big boy chair?" asked Colt in a hushed voice as he led Robbie by the hand down the stairs.
"Of course I'm sure... come on, Daddy, I'm not that helpless..."
"I'm just makin' sure," said Colt, being his overprotective self. Robbie rolled his eyes and almost lost his balance.
"Whoa there buddy, eyes forward when you're going down the stairs."
Robbie blushed, embarrassed at the stumble.
"I'm such a klutz. Why am I such a klutz" he said, as he reached the bottom step.
"I wasn't kidding when I said I'd make you crawl, kiddo," said Colt, smirking and giving his little man a crinkly pat on the butt to usher him forward. "Go on then. Get in your seat, before I change my mind and put you in a high chair..."
Robbie seemed reluctant, so Colt gently took his hand again.
"You wanna stick close to Daddy aftrer all, huh? That's what I thought..."
"Such a Daddy's boy," said Roy, startling them both. Robbie blushed hard, while Colt was flustered and tried to recompose himself. "Heh. Sorry."
Roy looked a little sheepishly at the two of them.
"You two look great together, really. I just want to give you fair warning. I'm gonna poke fun at you, but I do it to everyone. Try not to take it too personal..."
"Oh, we won't," said Colt, squeezing Robbie's shoulder, "But if you go too far, I'm gonna give you fair warning - I'll give you a good spanking no matter how big you think you are. Try not to take it too personal. Right Robbie?"
The two of them watched as Roy's face went bright red.
"Hehe, yeah. That's fair, that's fair. Erm... I really just wanted to warn you about Mom... she's... sometimes a little... judgey... with her comments. But don't worry, bro," he said, punching Robbie lightly on the arm. "Your bros have got your back. Just... be yourself, you know?"
"See, Robbie?" said Colt, kneading Robbie's shoulder and looking down at him with a smirk. "Isn't that just what I always tell you?"
"Yes... Daddy," said Robbie, forcing himself to say the 'D' word despite how embarrassing it sounded in front of his brother.
"Come on, lil boy. Let's go into the dining room before dinner gets cold."
The three of them went forth, both Robbie and Colt's hearts hammering in their chests.
The other guests looked their way as they entered, and Robbie's adorable outfit raised a few eyebrows.
"A sleeper?" asked Mom, pausing. "I guess it is getting warmer."
"Oh, isn't it adorable?" asked Aunt Rosie, looking to Mom and back to Robbie. "I haven't seen the little guy in one of those in ages! Not since at least junior high!"
"Don't remind me," muttered Robbie, thinking of his embarrassing sleepover where all his friends got to see what pajamas he wore. That was the last time he ever wore a sleeper before Colt came along.
"Well, we like to keep him comfortable," said Colt, leading Robbie by the hand, to the table and pulling in the chair. "Come on, buddy boy. Up you go."
Colt helped Robbie up into the chiar, lifting him up under the arms despite the fact that he didn't need the help, then sliding him in and tucking in his napkin in his collar before he could protest.
"That's better. All good?" he asked. Robbie just blushed and nodded, looking around the room to see who was staring. Everyone was, with varying degrees of trying to hide it. His dad, Ronald, had already taken a bread roll and was chewing on it, to hide whatever expression he had, while Rosie seemed enamored with the love birds.
"Colt, I have to say. I'm so impressed with how well you take care of Robbie. I think I speak for all of us when I say that."
There were some nods and some clinking glasses at that comment as people cheersed with their drinks.
"You can have sparkling apple cider," said Colt, to Robbie, pouring him some of the non-alcoholic beverage before thanking everyone for the kind words. "But really, I'm the fortunate one, you know... I really lucked out with this guy. Robbie's the sweetest love bug I ever met. I can't believe we found each other."
More happy murmurs at this comment. But now Rosie had a question that Rob wasn't prepared to answer.
"How did you meet, anyway?"
"Well, it's a funny story," began Colt.