SCHADENFREUDE// LASHTON AU

Chapter 15: None The Wiser

Luke was having a lot of fun on his time off– so much so that after only three days away from the office, he decided that he would be taking that second week off, whether the office was reopened by then or not. His cunt of a father would have to run the place without a VP. The young Hemmings had much better things to do with his time. 

Ashton had been developing into such a sweet little plaything. Because of the boy's newfound disdain for solid foods, he'd dropped a considerable amount of weight, which Luke was beyond pleased with. His new lightweight body made him much easier to carry from the basement to the bedroom, not to mention how much less prone to resistance he'd become without all that extra muscle.

Despite the harshness of his punishments, Luke considered himself a kind, merciful master. With good behaviour came rewards; leniency. Not enough that Ashton would grow too comfortable, as that would lead to him slacking off, but just enough that the boy could feel like he was being allowed some independence. 

One of Ashton's most coveted rewards was walking the hounds– a reward which he'd earned by cleaning the house top-to-bottom without having to be asked. It was something that would later evolve into an expectation, but for now, Luke was still working on reinforcing the habit.

The nineteen-year-old, of course, still couldn't be trusted to walk the girls on his own. Luke was testing his loyalty by letting him think he was completely alone, while making sure to follow the boy with a loaded gun in the pocket of his leather jacket, just in case.

"Willow, slow down!" Ashton commanded, sighing to himself when the dog didn't listen.

Luke tried not to reveal himself by laughing. The boy couldn't even dominate a trained animal. How adorable.

It was clear from watching him that Ash was struggling to keep up with the girls, which was likely due to his malnourishment and constant injuries. The pitiful little fellow was terribly accident-prone; yet another reason for Luke to keep a watchful eye on him.

Ashton slowed his movements to a halt, squinting at the sky to check the sun's position. "Look's like the sun's starting to go down," he mumbled to Jez as he scratched behind her ear. "We'd better head home, huh, girl?"

Jez, of course, didn't reply. Luke found it amusing how Ashton insisted on talking to the hounds as though they were people– though, he supposed, they sort of were like people to the boy. They were his only friends left, the poor darling.

Ashton's master smirked as the boy attempted to whistle for Willow's attention, failing miserably multiple times. Eventually, he abandoned the idea of whistling in favour of clapping his hands, which was more affective.

"Willow! Maude! Time to go home!" the boy bellowed, cueing Luke to subtly creep out of the forest and back to the kennel, where he waited patiently for his pets' return.

"Did they behave for you?" Luke asked as Ashton and the girls emerged from the woods. "Or rather, did you behave for them?"

"We all behaved," the boy answered sheepishly, putting the hounds away in the kennel. "Thanks for letting me do this, master. It's nice to spend time with them."

"You earned it, sweetheart," Luke said with a warm smile, throwing his arm around his pet and leading the boy inside. "Now, let's get you in the bath, hm? You smell like a dog." 

☓☓☓

Ashton sat at the foot of Luke's bed, stark naked and bound with black rope. He looked positively delectable, with his eyes wide and his lips wrapped around the head of his master's cock.

"Come on, baby boy, you can go deeper than that," Luke encouraged, pushing the teen's head down further and rolling his eyes when he whined. "Don't complain, unless you want me to take you to the basement."