He smiles against my Adam’s apple. “I had Everett put him there for safekeeping.”
I inhale raggedly, biting down hard on my lip. It does nothing to stop the tears spilling down my face.
“Youremembered,” I choke out.
All traces of sleepiness disappear from his expression and he sits up. He slowly straddles my hips, careful not to add too much pressure as his hands skim my belly and chest. “How could I forget?” he whispers.
We were the only ones left in the station and he wanted a burger and a beer. I wasn’t going to let him break the law in some unfamiliar place, so I took him to my favorite hole-in-the-wall. By the time we got into our homebrew, he had me laughing hard at the antics of Mama and Papa Bash. When he asked me about my family, something I never talked about, I told him about the night of the fire and how I ended up in foster care.
That was just one of the many times I fell in love with Odd Bash. He never looked at me with pity, only warmth. When I was taken into child protective custody, I managed to grab the one thing I still had from my mother. It was the teddy bear she gave to me when I’d have nightmares as a young boy. She said it was magical and could chase away the bad dreams.
Blinking back to the present, I ask, “How did you remember that? I only showed it to you once.”
“You told me the name of the bear.”
“Dylan.”
He hums, smiling at me. “I looked it up and had the artist add the details.”
“When did you get it?”
“After your wallet was stolen.”
“But I got it back…look,” I say, grabbing it from my nightstand. “I still have it.”
I pull out the picture and his sticky note falls out with it. He grabs the paper, holding it up between his pointer and middle finger, examining it before handing it back to me with a smile.
I would ask him why he did something so meaningful. Permanent. But the answer is obvious on his face. “You really love me, don’t you?”
His smile is sweet as he dips his head, almost self-conscious. “Isaid.”
“So when you say that the burns would’ve never stopped you…”
“I was telling the truth.” He lifts his gaze back to mine and his eyes are a steady fire: confident, resolute. Had I only said yes that night, he would’ve loved me through everything.
I’m reminded of the night before my grandmother died. I used to think about it a lot as a kid. We said our prayers, she reminded me that Jeannie next door was taking me to school in the morning, and then she kissed my forehead like she always did. By the time I woke up the next morning, she had died. It was the last night I went to sleep knowing I was loved and protected.
Until now.On this beautiful, sunlit morning I find myself lying in a bed that’s suddenly become cozier than it’s ever been. We’ve only had one night together, but it’s been years in the making. And I feel like I’ve been given back the peace I lost when my grandmother died. The thought hits me like a tuning fork and the feelings quickly become too big to process. I shift underneath him and peck his lips. “I need to piss, brush, and shower.”
He winks at me, then rolls to his side, releasing me. “Do you need some alone time, or can I join you in the shower?”
I grab the cage, fiddling with it. “Is it okay if I say yes to both?”
“Absolutely.” He accompanies his declaration with an accepting smile and a squeeze of my hand.
“Maybe give me twenty, then come on in.”
His soft lips touch mine. “Sounds perfect.”
My knee protests as I stand, but I grab my shower cane and give him a little strut—as much as a broken-down man can strut, that is—while I walk into the en suite bathroom. He whistles and my stomach reacts with an honest-to-god flutter. I wink at him over my shoulder then hurry into the private space.
I do my business, brush my teeth, and recite the capitals in my head while I stand under the hot spray of water. The clean-up is quick and efficient, and I wrangle myself into the cage.
I lean against the fogged glass, letting the water beat down on my shoulders until a gentle press of lips lets me know he’s there.
“Already caged up, I see. Efficient,” Odd says, his sweet grin contradicted by the lust in his eyes.
Instinctively, I turn away from him, hiding my cane on the other side of me, as though he didn’t see it during my goofy strut to the bathroom. He’s not buying it. “I literally licked my cum off your chest last night. None of this shyness around me,” he says, stepping into the steamy shower.
