I hold my hand up and wiggle my fingers at him. Remington lays his hand on Austin's lower back and opens his car door for him. I smile at the small interaction, at the way Austin leans over and gives Remington a kiss as he buckles him. They're adorable together.
I turn around and head back down the hallway to the kitchen and living room. With nothing else to do, I grab my phone and send a text to Orion that I can come pick him up whenever he's ready. He doesn't respond right away and I set my phone on the counter to head downstairs and get Riley. As expected, he's curled up on the couch and that whip of a tail starts smacking against the leather.
"Hey, buddy. How do you feel about Orion coming back and staying with us again?"
He gives one solid, happy bark in response. I'm not sure how long I'll be gone, so I decide to get Riley upstairs and feed him a slightly early dinner.
My phone screen is lit up when I get back to the kitchen.
Orion
I think I deserve a gold star… or something… for getting everything done.
Garrett
I'll give you something, honey.
By the time I get to Orion's apartment, he's already waiting for me. And he has a bag over his shoulder, which is adorable for some reason. Like he's ready for a sleepover. Which is exactly what we're doing, isn't it? He gets into the car and I make sure he's buckled before pulling away from the curb. I reach over and lay my hand on his knee, squeezing lightly.
"Did you have a good morning?"
He shrugs and doesn't look at me. I know this expression already, it's one of deep thinking, borderline worry. He starts playing with my fingers, picking each one up and letting it fall back down. I wait until I'm at a red light to lift my hand and grip his chin lightly.
"Honey, talk to me." His brown eyes catch the sun. It’ll be dark in only a couple of hours but I’m hoping we’ll be back at the house by then.
"It's nothing to worry about," he says. He gives me a smile and reaches up to wrap his fingers around my wrist softly. "I promise, it's just my brain in overdrive trying to think some things through."
"Anything I can help with?" I know he said no earlier and I'm fighting that side of me that wants to tell him to let me take care of it.
He relaxes against the seat and takes my hand in his. "I'd like to just get to your place, please."
"You got it," I say. I resist the urge to lean forward and kiss him. The light turns green and I focus on driving. Even if it’s hard with the way Orion is fiddling with my fingers, brushing his fingertips over the back of my hand. It's a nice distraction.
When we get back to my house, Orion waits for me to open his door and I lead him inside. Of course, he stops and drops to his knees to say hi to Riley, who is soaking up the attention from his new favorite person. I give them a minute and move to the fridge to grab two bottles of water.
"Did you eat lunch?" I ask.
"I had a small snack at the store," he says, glancing up at me. I can see he's hesitating, hiding something.
"Orion." I set the waters down and step toward him. He stands up and I can see the worry cross his face. I don't want him to worry or to hide anything from me. I make a conscious effort to relax my expression and tone. "Did you eat lunch?"
"No. Daddy." He looks up at me through those gorgeous lashes. I press my lips against his forehead and pull him in for a hug. It hasn't even been a full twenty-four hours and I've missed him this much.
When I pull back, I keep his head in my hands, brushing my thumbs over his cheeks. "I don't want you to lie to me again, okay? Let's get you some food and we'll talk some more about… everything."
Orion nods and I direct him to take his bag up to the bedroom— my bedroom this time— and wash up. I decide on a sheet pan meal of grilled chicken with roasted veggies. He can eat now and we’ll have what’s leftover for dinner. I'm slicing up the red potatoes when Orion comes back.
"Can I help with anything?" he asks, sidling up next to me so our arms are pressed together.
"If you want to grab whatever seasonings you'd like and add them on top," I say. "Look in the pantry, third shelf I believe."
It's only another minute before I'm sliding the pan in the oven. I take Orion's hand and lead him to the couch. I grab my tablet where I left it sitting earlier. "We need to talk," I start slowly. "I want to make sure that we're on the same page for everything."
"I thought we both agreed we wanted to keep doing this?" Orion asked. He turns to face me, bending one leg against the back of the couch.
"We did," I say. "And I still do. I want to talk specifics. Expectations for…" I hesitate for a moment, but he just waits silently, giving no hint that he knows where I'm going with this. "Sex and future moments or scenes when you slip into that Little space."
"Oh." Orion shifts and looks down at the space between us.
