“I remember we had a snowstorm in June, too. It melted quickly, though. Sounds like this one might hang on for a few days longer.”
“Mmhm.”
Charlie settled back on the bed. I glanced over to find him watching me, staring at the holster still around my shoulders.
I pulled out the gun, ejected the clip, and ensured there wasn’t a round in the chamber before padding over, tucking it into my nightstand drawer. “It’s only for if they come back.”
“I know,” he said, still watching me.
“Does it bother you?”
His eyes tracked the holster as I shrugged it off, a dusting of pink across his cheeks. “No.”
I was already in joggers and a cozy long-sleeve Henley, so I threw another log on the fire before joining Charlie back on thebed. Together, we breathed for a while into the quiet, listening to the ice and sleet pelt against the windows.
My eyes fell on the wrapped box sitting on my desk. I reached for it and handed it to him. “This is for you, too.”
His eyebrows darted up. “Another?”
“It’s not big, but I thought you could use them.”
Tearing into the paper, he read the description on the box out loud. “Hand warmers?”
I bit my cheek, suddenly self-conscious of how small a gift it was. “Yeah. All you have to do is take the wrapper off, and they’ll warm up.” I shrugged. “Just in case your hands get cold.”
Charlie was quiet for a moment. “Thank you, Reece,” he whispered. “For these. For the lights, too, and dinner. It’s all so thoughtful. And…” he wiped his eyes. “And for coming back.”
My arms ached to wrap him in another hug. “Happy thirtieth birthday, Charlie.”
His grip tightened around the box of hand warmers. “Are you leaving again, after this?” he asked without looking at me.
Fuck. That wasn’t at all what I intended the gifts to mean. I just wanted to give him things he could use without help. I took the box and wrapping and set them on the nightstand before angling my body to face him. “I’m staying for the season, Charlie. I’m not leaving anytime soon.”
His eyes darted up in surprise.Pretty crier.
I stared at his soft, pouty mouth. “I have enough groceries for at least another three weeks, depending on how many hot dogs Randy eats,” I grumbled to get my mind off the way those big, brown, doe eyes shot straight to my cock.
He shook his head, like he didn’t believe it. “I don’t want what happened to me to happen to you, too,” he whispered.
“Are you ready to talk about it?” I asked gently.
He wiped his nose. “No, but I think I should. Now that I remember a little more, I think I need to. I just don’t want to getworked up and disappear again.” His voice trembled a little, but he remained solid next to me.
I shook out one of the blankets and threw it over his lap before scooching in next to him. “Then let’s do what we can to keep you here. Get comfortable. Whenever you want to stop, we’ll stop. And tell me how else I can help.”
Charlie’s brow creased. He leaned forward, and slowly, hesitantly, holding his breath as if he wasn’t sure what would happen, slipped the jacket from his shoulders.
Together, we watched him drop it on the floor next to the bed.
“Wow,” I said. I shouldn’t be surprised; he’d eaten nearly an entire meal tonight, but seeing him remove his jacket, the one he’d appeared in and worn for weeks now, was jarring.
“Yeah, wow,” he breathed. “I didn’t know I could do that. I thought I was stuck in those clothes forever, like some weird action figure.”
“What happens to it when you disappear?”
He shrugged. “We could find out?”
I nodded, and before my eyes, Charlie blinked away, taking the jacket with him.
