Aaron and Sam sat at the bar, talking with Eli as he cleaned the bar top with a damp rag. Secrets was packed, as it usually was. Tim had requested permission to go up to SubSpace, the club the subs had asked for. The way the boy was vibrating with excitement when he asked, Sam and Aaron would have been heartless bastards to have said no.
“You know, I have to say, I’m grateful that you and Jarod put SubSpace in for the boys. They’re a lot more…I don’t know. Settled, I guess. I know it’s worked wonders on Tim. I’ve never seen him glow the way he does after he’s visited with his friends. Oh, and Maggie, of course.”
Eli grinned. “Is that what you think we put it in for?”
Aaron blinked. “You mean it isn’t?”
Eli put the towel down, poured them each another club soda and lime, and passed the drinks around. When he was done, he leaned in close.
“Okay, what I’m about to tell you has to remain in the strictest confidence, yeah?”
It sounded serious. “Sure,” Aaron replied.
“The idea for SubSpace didn’t originate from a sub. The first person to approach me about it was Vic.”
Sam jerked his head up. “Wait. I thought Vic hated SubSpace.”
Eli chuckled. “He knows how Rob is, and if he’d said he approved of it, Rob would’ve said forget it, just to be contrary. The thing is, Rob had been looking to make friends, and Vic wanted to give him the opportunity. So he dropped a few hints about a club, and Rob being Rob, he jumped at the idea.”
“So you’re saying the club, with the No Doms Allowed policy—”
“Was set up by a Dom,” Eli finished with a hearty laugh. “It was pure genius on his part. He’d say things like, “You could have the guys over here, but you’d need to clean up the mess.” Or, “It’s too bad there isn’t a place you could all get together and, I don’t know, hang out. Get to know each other. That sort of thing. It didn’t take long, apparently, to plant the idea in Rob’s head, and he ran with it. When he first talked to Jarod, it took everything in me not to laugh, because he was so…demure. I’d never seen Rob like that before, and it was damned amazing.”
“Well, the boys love it. Tim won’t stop talking about how things go up there. They’ve got their book club, they have friends to talk to about stuff they’d rather not tell us. At least, not until they get it worked out in their head.” Aaron snorted. “And I hate to be the one to say this, because I know it’s going to come back to bite me one day, but Rob has really grown. He’s taken a leadership role with the boys. Or, at least what passes for leadership with Rob.”
“True enough,” Vic said as he slid onto the barstool next to Aaron. “That’s because they’re the first true friends he’s had.” Vic gave Eli a smile. “I’m assuming you’re talking about SubSpace??”
Eli put away the glasses he’d taken out of the cleaning machine. “Yeah, I told them how it all came to be.”
Sam chuckled. “I have to say, I’d never have thought it.”
“Well, Rob needed things I couldn’t give him. I was his Dom, not the person he could go to when he was having a bad day and needed affirmation.”
“What do you mean?” Aaron asked. “We all give our boys that.”
Eli placed a glass of tonic in front of Vic. “You’re right, we do,” he said. “But we’re in charge, so it’s our job. There are times a boy needs a pat on the back from one of his peers. I’ve seen Jarod in a right dither, and nothing I say will calm him down, but let him spend five minutes with the boys, and everything is sorted. His mood is a lot more even, and he’s much calmer.” He peered from Vic to Sam to Aaron to Wayne. “Despite what they say in the books they boys read, a Dom can never be all things to a boy. Friends are so very important too, especially those in the lifestyle.”
Wayne arched an eyebrow. “And how do you know what the stories they read have to say?”
Eli shrugged. “I might look at Jarod’s Kindle now and then. I want to know what my pet is up to.”
“Sure, right,” Wayne teased. “I read them because they’re good stories.”
“We read them because our boy likes them,” Sam and Aaron said at the same time. “We want to stay connected to his life.”
Everyone turned to Vic.
“What?” he asked, before taking a sip of his drink.
“Do you read them?” Eli asked.
“Who do you think tells Rob about the good stuff?” He smiled. “Like Sam and Aaron said, I want to be part of Rob’s life, and I enjoy reading. It was our love of books that helped bring us together. He introduced me to Grisham, and I gave him my copy of Oz.”
They all murmured their approval. “You ever think they’re the ones in charge?” Eli asked.
“Oh, we know they are,” Sam stated, raising his glass. “But we’re never going to tell them that.”
And with that, they all toasted their boys as they had a good laugh.
Rob grabbed a Fanta from the refrigerator, then stood watching as the other guys settled into their favorite spots. A few were in front of the video games, yelling about MarioKart. A couple were in the corner, their Kindles in hand, reading the book they’d be discussing next week, and then there were his best mates, Ellis and Tim, gravitating toward one another.
“How are you feeling, Tim?” Ellis asked, sitting on the couch beside his friend.
“I’m okay,” came the reply. “Masters Sam and Aaron have been treating me like I’m porcelain and they want to wrap me in bubble tape lately. I keep telling them I’m fine with my brothers going to prison, but they still keep a close eye on me.” He sighed. “I love it.”
“Have you given any more thought about going to see them?”
“Nope,” he said, relaxing into the couch cushions. “I have a family I built and love, and I don’t want them to try and drag me down again.”
“Proud of you, Tim,” Rob said, popping the top on the Fanta and taking a sip. “You’re a great man, and they don’t deserve you in their lives anymore.”
Ellis nudged him. “That’s right, you’ve got us now.”
It warmed Rob to see how Tim flourished under Ellis’s praise.
“Can I say what a genius idea having this club was?” Ellis asked. “I can’t tell you how grateful I was that I listened to you about getting together. I miss my copper friends, but having time with you all? That’s really special in my book.”
“Oh, I wish I could take credit,” Rob said, trying to stifle a grin. “But as much as I’d love to, it was Vic’s idea.”
Everything in the room stopped dead. Even the beeps and boops from the game were silenced.
“What? We all thought—”
Rob flopped down on the other side of Tim. “I did the work for it, but it was Vic’s idea. He knew how badly I needed friends, but he also knew at the time how I’d react if he suggested it. So he nudged me toward the goal.”
“And you let him?” asked Tony, one of the guys playing the game.
“Oh, I didn’t tell him I knew what he was doing. I’m not that dumb. But it was a good idea, and I have to admit, I loved the fact he was looking out for me.” Rob sighed, and let the Fanta bottle dangle between two fingers. “If you’d known me, you’d have hated me. I was a right little shit and—”
“Wait,” Ellis cut in. “Was?”
“Ha. Ha. Ha. You’re funny.” Rob grinned. “I hated myself so badly. I thought I wasn’t worthy of anyone. Vic showed me the truth, though. Okay, I’m not going to ever be the perfect submissive. I’m not sure he’d love me if I was more like Tim, because that’s not who I am.”
“What’s wrong with the way I am?” Tim groused.
“Absolutely nothing. You’re perfect for who you are,” Rob stressed, ruffling Tim’s hair. “It’s just not me. I can’t let go of the snarky attitude. It’s always been my defense mechanism, and it’s part and parcel of who I am. Vic accepts that and, heaven help him, he likes it.”
“So does that mean we’re going to allow our men to come up here?” Tony wondered.
“Are you daft? No way in hell,” Rob growled. “This is our place, and they have to suffer knowing what they started.” He chuckled. “Besides, this is a safe place for us to talk without them trying to fix everything. I love Vic, but when I have a crap day at work, sometimes I just want to kick back and whine about it to my mates, not have him try to comfort me and make things better. It’s nice to know that my friends have my back, just like I have theirs.”
“We all do,” Tim said. “We always will.”
“Besides, Vic will get his shot to fix things later, of course. I won’t ever keep anything from him. That wouldn’t be me trusting him, and I’ve learned recently that he wouldn’t ever lie to me and that I had to let go of that fear.”
Rob knew he owed Vic everything, but he was well aware he’d never be able to repay that debt. The best he could do was what Vic had said a long time ago. Take each day as it comes, face it head on, and at the end of the day, make a positive difference in the world.
“I will,” he vowed silently, then turned and looked over his shoulder. “Now, when do I get to play the winner?”