“Yay!” she exclaimed, clapping her hands together. Bear barked and dropped onto his belly, with his tail wagging in the air. “Have you set a date then?”
Callum rolled his eyes. “He wanted to wait to make sure I was in the clear.”
“Well, you are, so what date are you going to pick?”
That had been the million dollar question. Ever since the sit down he and Jack had with Verity and Aaron, Jack had been doting on Callum in ways he never had before. Jack had been treating him like he was a fucking prince, in the bedroom and out of it.
Callum caught him sometimes, with a worried and hesitant look in his eye, but every day that passed, it happened less. Callum had been seeing a therapist to talk through the fears that had developed after the attack at Rapture and had been feeling more like himself after every appointment. Paired with the support and the attention Jack had been showering on him, Callum felt like Callum again.
“Two weeks,” he told her with a sly grin. He pulled the sliding glass door open to let Bear out, gesturing for Samantha to follow them into the yard.
“So soon?” she questioned, dropping into one of the mismatched rocking chairs Callum and Jack had picked up at an estate sale a few weeks after they’d moved in.
“It’s not soon,” he admonished, throwing a stick for Bear. “We’re already married.”
“Where are you getting fake married?” Samantha squinted her eyes at him. “Is this like a vow renewal? We’ve been married for two months; let’s do it again,” she mocked.
“You don’t need to come.” He raised his eyebrows at her.
Bear trotted up to the chair Samantha was rocking in and dropped the stick at her feet. He turned in a circle twice then plopped down with a huff. She rubbed her foot along his belly and eyed Callum speculatively.
“I’m just giving you a hard time,” she said. “Can you get me a drink or something? You have two arms and are a terrible host.”
Callum snorted and retreated to the kitchen, grabbing a can of Coke from the fridge and taking it back to Samantha. He sat down in a chair across from her and closed his eyes, enjoying the silence.
That was something new since the attack. Callum had been alone for a long time before he’d met Jack, but his mind had always been on. Always going, always thinking. Now, he found peace in the moments between—the small silences that made life worth living.
“I saw on the news,” Samantha said quietly.
“Then you know as much as me,” Callum blurted, using his feet to stop the rocking of the chair.
Samantha was referencing the report that the two men who attacked him and Keith had accepted a plea. There hadn’t been any point in a trial. The cameras outside the building caught the entire attack. Callum and Keith didn’t even need to formally testify. The man with the goatee knew Keith; a scorned ex-boyfriend that he’d broken free from years ago who tracked him down and wanted him back. The other man, the one who had gone for Callum, was a friend of the ex.
“We don’t need to talk about it,” she soothed. “I just want you to know you can if you want.”
“I have a therapist, I’m good.”
Callum’s earlier thoughts about his return to normalcy started a backslide and Bear whimpered, scooting away from Samantha and bumping Callum’s knee with his snout. Callum reached down and stroked Bear’s fur.
“I like your dog,” she observed as Callum’s heartrate returned to normal.
“Me too.”
“When are your other friends getting here?”
Callum pulled his phone out and checked the time. He had a text from Jack that needed attention.
“They’ll be here in ten or fifteen minutes.” He stood up. “Can you hang out with Bear for a sec? I need to use the little boys’ room.”
Samantha huffed. “I’d gladly spend time with my adorable four-legged nephew.” She shooed Callum away and held her hand out for Bear, who dutifully returned to her feet.
Callum slinked inside and locked himself in the bathroom, opening his messages and re-reading the one he’d received from Jack.
Daddy:I need you to do something for me before everyone shows up.
Me:What Daddy?
Daddy: Are you alone?
