atehimrightup | (no subject)

"I like the idea of it," he says, smiling at Lee, hips pressed forward to keep him against the wall. "Of being with you like that. I don't think it's encroaching on anything. Like you said, you don't want to be a horse, and you don't want me to think of you as a horse. You want me to take you in hand." He tilts his head. "I can do that."

"Yeah, I just--" George's hips press into his and it makes it a little hard to think. And then George sums it up so simply, you want me to take you in hand, and he whimpers a little and nods. "Sometimes I feel so wild, and everything you said in there about trust and confidence, about making sure he knew his place. I just-- I want that. For me."

He swallows hard and tips his head back, looking at George through half-lidded eyes with his cheeks still flushed, messy hair spilling in his face. "Sometimes I really do feel like a spooked animal and I want you to make me calm like that."

"I'm pretty sure I can give you that," he says, brushing Lee's hair back from his face. "I think I know exactly what you want." He lifts one hand, takes hold of Lee's jaw and holds him to a firm, hungry kiss. "You want to be reminded of my expectations of you. Of how to be good."

Lee stares at George with wide, bright eyes, nodding a little and blinking slowly as George sweeps his hair back. And then he’s kissed, hard and firm and good, and Lee’s knees go a little weak.

“Yes. Mostly I want to be good,” Lee says, because it’s not about pain or being corrected or bossed around. He just wants to do a good job, and his face is pink and his voice is a little broken when he speaks next. “I want to know you’re proud of me. And that I’m safe.”

He’s never had either of those things. Not until now.

"For the complete avoidance of doubt," says George, his lips still close enough to smudge against Lee's mouth as he speaks. "You are good, and I am proud of you, and you are always safe with me." He brushes another kiss against Lee's mouth. "I don't mind showing you, though."

He squeezes Lee's jaw before he lets him go. "Go wait for me. I'll be there in a minute. I need to make sure Bramble's settled before I leave."

Lee tries very hard to keep it together, but George just said the perfect thing. He said a whole series of perfect things and Lee fully whimpers, eyes rolling back into his head a little. If there were any doubts about his praise kink before (there weren’t) then they’d be all gone now. Is there such a thing as a safety and security kink? Because he has that for sure.

“Oh god,” he says just before George kisses him, feeling a little lightheaded.

And then George squeezes his jaw and okay, yeah. He gets why Alex likes that so much. He stares at George, eyes wide and lips parted, and then shakes himself and clears his throat, two splotches of color high on his cheeks.

“Yes. Okay. Take your time,” Lee says, trying to sound calm and put together but probably missing the mark entirely. “I’ll be by the truck.”

He turns to leave the room, glancing over his shoulder as he does, and very nearly walks into the doorframe. A distressed and embarrassed whine escapes him and he flees the barn entirely, jogging toward the truck.

George is absolutely, accuately aware of the effect that all of this is having on Lee, and he'd be lying if he said he wasn't enjoying it. He does take his time, settling the blanket over Bramble, making sure that he's got everything he needs to be comfortable through the night. He grabs his coat, the flowers that Lee bought him, and his bag and walks out to where Lee is waiting.

"I do think we ought to swing by that store we've been to before," he says. "See if anything catches our eye."

While waiting for George, Lee smokes a cigarette to settle his nerves. He doesn’t smoke as often as he used to, but it’s not because of any conscious decision on his part. It just doesn’t feel like something he needs as much anymore.

He lifts his head when he hears George emerge, cheeks hollowed around the filter. He’s carrying the flowers Lee gave him, looking gorgeous and windswept, and Lee can’t believe this is his life.

“Just say you want to get a riding crop,” he teases, lifting one foot so he can stub his cigarette out on the bottom of his shoe and then toss it in a trash can. He comes forward to take George’s bag from him, then opens the passenger side door and sets the bag in the back before moving so George can climb in.

“You must not be too eager,” he jokes as he slides in behind the wheel. “If you don’t want to get me right home.”

"Is that I'm not eager, or that I want to make you wait?" Asks George, sliding into his own seat and reaching to buckle himself in. "Because, and I don't know if you know this, you're fucking beautiful when you're flustered." He grins. "And, yes, I want a riding crop. And anything else that takes my fancy."

“Oh my god,” Lee says with a delighted laugh, reaching over to playfully push at George’s face before starting the engine. “I’m going to live to regret this, aren’t I?”

He highly, highly doubts it, and he doesn’t even consider it when he heads away from their building and toward the toy shop. Because he’ll give George whatever he wants. Even if it’s going to the sex shop in that outfit so he can peruse riding crops specifically to embarrass Lee. He’s so whipped.

"Perhaps." He doesn't intend to make Lee doubt it, but he does like flustering Lee, likes getting him to the point where he's so turned on he's incoherent and blushing. "But I doubt it. I'll make it up to you."

"Of that I have no doubt," Lee assures him in a tone that's steadier, but still fond. He glances over at George, looking at home in his beat up truck holding his bunch of flowers, and Lee is so in love that he doesn't know what to do with it all.

Eventually they make it to the shop and Lee parks out front. It looks slightly more skeevy in the harsh light of day, but Lee doesn't mind. He likes this place. The people are nice and nonjudgmental, and this is where George learned the first few clues about what Lee is. It's where he told Lee that it was okay to like what he likes, and that had seemed like such a big deal then. It still does, but it reminds him just how far they've come.

"After you, darling," Lee says after he's raced around to open George's door for him, leaning over in an exaggerated bow. "Your palace awaits."

Lee's relaxed a little bit, which is good. George leaves his flowers on the seat, sliding out of the truck. He cups the side of Lee's face when he straightens, pulling him in for a kiss. "This is about you, not me," he teases. "Let's not forget that."

"You're the one who wanted to come here," Lee mumbles against George's mouth, but he knows what George means and it makes him feel warm all over. He smiles, kisses George again, and then takes his hand to lead him into the shop. He's not so flustered anymore, not like he was the first time, but it's still a trip so see so many explicitly gay things on display and to not have them hidden in a shadowy corner somewhere.

"Hi," Lee says to the dark haired girl who casually greets them from behind the counter. And then, maybe to get a jump on George embarrassing him, he continues. "My boyfriend would like a riding crop."

"Yeah, the outfit kind of gave it away," she says blandly, but she's smiling and pointing. "The pony play section is over there. Hook a right at the butt plugs."

Oh no. Before George can even say anything, Lee all but jumps on his back and slaps a hand over his mouth. "Oh no." The girl raises her eyebrows and Lee sort of wants to die. "This is going to be terrible for me."

George's eyebrows raise at what the girl says, but also the way Lee reacts to it, the hand over his mouth. He gently disengages himself, a definite smirk on his face. "Well, we should definitely go and look at that," he says. He offers Lee his hand. "Come on, love."

Lee lets out an exaggerated whine and takes George's hand as if he's being led to the gallows, but it's mostly for show. He just hates being out of his element and so vulnerable, but he reminds himself that it's okay because he's with George and although George will surely tease him, he won't actually judge him or be cruel.

"Just remember that I'm emotionally fragile," he says as he's tugged through the shop past a wide array of butt plugs and leather. And yeah, wow. There's a whole sign and everything. Pony Play. There's a whole leather mask with little leather horse ears and a mane and Lee shoots George a glare. "Don't even think about it. I will set this whole place on fire."

"I'll remember," says George, squeezing Lee's fingers. "I'll take care of you, sweetheart." His eyebrows raise at the leather mask. "Don't worry. I remember you don't want to be a horse. Though..." He tilts his head at a display of plugs with tails. "I'll admit that those are tempting."

George promises to take care of him and it might be a little sarcastic, and George might be a little bit of a bitch, but that just makes Lee love him so much more. At least, that is, until he turns to see wheat George is gesturing at and rolls his eyes expansively.

"Baby steps," he says with a smirk, then turns to pick out a black leather riding crop. He studies it, trails the tail down his arm and smacks it against his palm with a satisfying thwack. "Is there anything else you use? Stuff that doesn't--" He feels his cheeks go hot again and feels annoyed with himself. "Stuff that the horse doesn't wear, but you use on the horse." He holds out the riding crop. "Like this?"

Lee blushes, and George smirks. He can't help but imagine the way the crop would feel on his bare skin, but this isn't about him, right now. "Do you mean for correction or just in general? Because I was using a curry comb before, but I don't think that would feel good on bare skin."

"I don't think I will need to be corrected that much," Lee says in a quiet voice, biting nervously at his bottom lip. He feels insecure, suddenly. The focus on correction makes him nervous, even though he's the one with a riding crop in his hand. "I can be good."

He blinks a few times and turns to look at the wall of toys, crossing his arms over his chest as he takes it all in. When he came to something of a realization earlier, he hadn't expected plugs and toys and he can't help but to feel a little overwhelmed. Not necessarily in a bad way. He just feels anxious and unsettled, which isn't at all unusual for him. And that's the problem.

"I'm at a loss here," he admits as he keeps staring at the wall, eyes darting back and forth. "I'm open to suggestion."

"I don't think you will, either," says George, stepping in behind Lee, pressing against his back and pressing a kiss to the side of his neck. "And, honestly, I don't think we need any of that. I don't think that's really what you need." He leans his chin against Lee's shoulder for a moment. "I do like the idea of a gag, though. I wear them more often that you and I do think it'll help put you in the mind that I think you're looking for. Just listening to me and letting me handle everything."

The tension bleeds out of him a little when George presses in close, head tipping to the side as George's lips find his neck. Lee's eyes fall shut at the low sound of George's voice and he finds himself nodding a little, then opens his eyes and looks at the gags on the wall, wincing a bit when he stops on a rather complicated one.

"I want to still be able to breathe through my mouth," he says quietly. "I-- I don't want to be muzzled or anything like that. It-- I think it'd make me think too much about-- you know."

A muzzle would make him feel like even more of a dangerous animal, and he'd never be able to relax. "But-- yeah, that sounds good. I trust you."

George makes a soft, thoughtful sound as he looks at their options. "I joked about a bit earlier, but that's not a bad idea. Something between your teeth, but still pretty mobile. You could breathe around it, talk around it. Better than a ball, definitely. Nothing with too many straps."

"Okay, yeah. I could try that," Lee agrees easily, watching as George pulls something off of the wall. There are so many other things, most of which Lee couldn't even begin to identify, but he can't stop looking at George. "Is that enough to start? I kind of just imagined you using your hands."

He doesn't want to rush, and he knows that George was teasing him about drawing it out, but it's making him nervous. He feels all full of energy, like he wants to pace around, and he swallows hard as he shifts on his feet and stares plaintively at George.

"I think that's enough," says George, gently taking the crop out of Lee's hand. It's a more modern design than he would ever have used during a hunt back home, but it's graceful and he appreciates that. "You can go and wait for me, if you want. I'll pay for these."