“So, how long have you been with Gabe?” he asked.
“I met him last February and moved in with him in August.”
“Okay, so a while then. It’s great when you find someone so closely matched to what you want in life.”
“Yeah, I’m really happy with Gabe and the whole master and puppy dynamic. I’ve wanted something like what I have with Gabe for so long. All of what we’re doing with you is like icing on the cake. He was mostly concerned with potentially injuring me, or the wear and tear on my knees.”
“This will put his worries at ease, and you guys will be able to play rough.”
It was oddly easy to talk with Gray. He seemed genuinely interested, or at least intrigued, in my relationship with Gabe. Gray had finished his bottle of water by the time his watch beeped. He pressed another button on the watch and then took the ice bags to his sink at the counter.
“Let’s do the other hand and wrist,” he said and moved the tray cart to the other side of the bed.
Now that I knew what to expect, I leaned back and relaxed a little more while Gray worked on my hand and wrist. At our next break, I took him up on his offer for something to drink. We chatted more during this break about The Pound and exactly how I’d met Gabe that night.
“People can be assholes,” he commented after I finished telling him about being beaten and wrapped up in barbed wire.
“For sure,” I agreed with him.
Gray moved to my knees next, which only took one hour each. By 3:30, he was done with those and then went downstairs to get a late lunch for us. I ate the slices of apples and a few slices of bread with peanut butter on them while we talked more about The Pound.
He worked all the way up until after 8:00 and had finished all of the titanium foam injections. Even though I had just laid here most of the day, I was kind of tired. Gray brought up some soup and a couple of dinner rolls for me, and he even stayed with me while I ate.
“You should try to get some sleep, Dusty. Tomorrow will be a little more intense than today was. But the good thing is that the nerve blocker is flowing, so you’re not going to feel much of anything.”
“Okay, thank you. I am kind of tired. Who would have known that by watching you work all day that it would have made me tired?”
“I’m going to go straight to bed as well. I’d like to start early in the morning. Let me help you to the bathroom so you can pee and brush your teeth.”
I thought I would be able to make it to the bathroom on my own, but I didn’t balk at him or argue when he wrapped his arm around my bicep to help me. As I walked with him to the bathroom, I felt a little stiff, but I didn’t think it was anything more than stiffness from lying around in a bed all day.
“Go ahead and do your thing, and I’ll wait out here. I’ll get one of your pairs of socks for you to sleep in. They’ll help keep you warm.”
I nodded and stepped into the bright light of the bathroom. There were lights on in Gray’s workroom, but the bathroom lights were almost blindingly bright. I pissed like a racehorse and then quickly brushed my teeth. As I finished up, Gray appeared in the doorway.
“I forgot to tell you that there are some face wipes in the top drawer for your use.”
“Okay, great. Thank you,” I said as I pulled the package out of the drawer. I used one of the wipes on my face and neck. It felt really good, and I was happy he had mentioned it.
By the time I was done in the bathroom, I felt extremely groggy and physically exhausted. Gray walked me back to the bed, and he even put the socks on my feet for me. I was silently hoping for both blankets because truth be told, I was chilled to the bone. I remembered what Gabe had told me about not being afraid to speak up.
“Gray?”
“Yes?” Gray looked up at me, giving me his attention.
“Do you think I could cover up with both the blankets? I’m very cold and shivering.”
“Of course, Dusty. One of these blankets is a heated one.”
Gray opened the blanket and showed me the attached cord. Apparently, it plugged into the bed frame, and I guessed there was a socket in the floor that things for the bed could plug into. As I pulled the blankets up, Gray pushed another metal tray close to the bed and within arm’s reach. A bowl, towel, a plastic container, a bottle of water, and something that looked like a detached doorbell sat on the tray. Gray picked up the bottle of water and unscrewed the cap. He set the bottle back on the tray and placed the cap beside it.
“I’ll leave the light on a dim setting before I leave you for the night. Here’s water for you if you wake up thirsty. I removed the cap so you don’t have to put stress on your hands tonight. The bowl is in case you feel nauseated and get sick to your stomach. And this plastic container is if you need to piss. This button is for you to use if you need anything. If you get sick to your stomach, I want you to use the button to alert me.”
“Okay, got it. Thank you.”
Gray pulled out one of the “bed belts” and stretched it across my legs. I wasn’t panicked, but I definitely didn’t want to be strapped down.
“Gray? Sorry, but would it be okay if you didn’t strap me down? I haven’t been restrained since the barbed wire thing at The Pound, and I’d rather not be restrained without Gabe. Or you in the room,” I blurted.
