Fuck. He really knew how to draw me out of my downward spiral.
Love you, too. Talk soon.
I needed to gather my thoughts. I couldn't let this bullshit situation go on. I seethed with anger. How could parents be so cruel? My mind raced for a way to keep defending children like him. We were lucky there weren't cases like the Davises pouring in every day, but I wasn't foolish enough to think this was an isolated incident. There would be other parents who couldn't accept their children, and they relied on me to be able to turn off my own emotions to help them.
The air was thick with the scent of pine when I finally pulled up outside Danny’s house. He and Blake had done well for themselves, finding a home on the outskirts of town. The old wooden porch creaked under my boots as I approached the door. My chest tightened and I clenched my jaw as the weight of the day pressed down on me.
I had called ahead, so Danny and his husband, Blake, were expecting me. My other brother, Carson, was also there. When I entered, I was greeted by the sight of my brothers huddled around the coffee table, their faces grim.
“What’s going on?” Carson asked, concern etched in his features. “Blake said you had Danny pretty freaked out when you called him but wouldn't tell him what in the hell was happening.”
My voice caught as I started speaking. Danny’s eyebrows knitted together as I described the confrontation with the Davises. “I’d say he was talking about James as if he wasn’t even there, but I don’t think that’s the case at all. He wanted to cut his son deep, and he achieved his goal. God, it sucked so bad.”
Danny's jaw clenched, and I could see the veins in his neck pulsating with tension. His fists were balled up, the skin across his knuckles stretched white. Blake’s eyes, on the other hand, widened and seemed to darken like an impending storm.
I continued, describing how James tried to make himself as small as possible, his eyes pleading. “James is such a good kid. All he wants is someone to love him for who he is, but apparently that’s too much for his asshole father, and I get the impression his mom would never do anything to anger Mr. Davis.”
Blake's gaze was fixed on something in the distance, as if replaying my words in his mind. His lips were a tight line, and his shoulders were drawn back, rigid as steel.
Danny broke the silence, his voice barely audible. “That's messed up, man,” he muttered. Then, with sudden ferocity, he stood up and paced across the room, kicking a stack of magazines.
I looked to my brother-in-law, waiting for him to scold Danny about his outburst. Not because it was unwarranted but because that was their dynamic, and unlike Michael and me, theirs was more formal and 24/7. No admonishment came, showing me they all felt the same as I did about the situation.
When I was finished, I took a deep breath. My throat felt scratchy and my voice was hoarse by the time I finished. “Basically, I need to know where things are for you guys as far as getting your foster license. It's pretty clear at this point James isn't going back to his family.”
“Good! That's a pile of horse shit. They don't deserve him!” Danny stopped and shook his head incredulously. “How can people be like that? Seriously.”
“Sweetheart, sit down.” Blake's voice left zero room for doubt he was being serious. If Carson wasn't here, he'd probably have threatened Danny with a spanking, but he respected Danny's need for certain things to stay private.
Danny stilled immediately. His gaze fell to the floor as soon as he turned to face Blake. “I'm sorry. I just—”
I stepped closer to Danny, and with a comforting voice I said, “We know. We're all devastated by James's situation. But he's safe now, and we'll do whatever it takes to make sure he's happy again. That's all that matters.”
“We're still jumping through hoops, but it shouldn't be too much longer,” Blake explained. He pursed his lips and sucked in a deep breath. “Ironically, I'm pretty sure our caseworker is being extra thorough because we're gay men. The fact we don't meet the proven parenting experience requirement isn't helping things at all.” He tilted his head to one side and then the other. “I get why they need to have policies in place, but how many good foster parents don't even start the process because they think that'll disqualify them?”
“I completely agree with you.” There wasn't a way for me to soothe his anger. Hell, I was angry for them. I'd faced the same when I'd become licensed, and there wasn't this ticking time bomb of a kid who needed a good home right then in front of me. “I'll reach out to some of my contacts and see if we can't expedite things a bit since I don't want to bounce James from one house to another more than necessary if you’re seriously interested in taking him in.”
“Where’s he at now?” Danny asked.
“He’s staying with Mrs. Fisher,” I informed him. “The problem is she’s traveling quite a bit now that she’s retired and has a big trip coming up in just a few days. That means we don’t have time to waste.”
Danny slumped onto the couch, and his shoulders sagged in resignation. “What can we do?” he asked helplessly. “There’s no way we’ll get our license that quickly.”
I couldn’t bear the thought of James not having a place to stay, and I could tell Danny would lose his shit if I even hinted that a youth shelter might be an option. My brother and his husband were exactly the people James needed in his life. They'd fight to make sure no one, not even his parents, was able to hurt him again. We just needed to finish cutting through the tangled mess of red tape first.
I looked at Danny and said, “I’ll talk to Michael about us giving James a place for now. Just until you guys get your license sorted out. That way, you won't have to worry about where he's staying.”
Danny’s eyebrows shot up. Carson, who'd been a silent observer to this point choked on his drink, spluttering sugary soda all over the place. Blake seemed to be the only one unaffected. “You’ll talk to… Michael?”
The room seemed to close in on me. The warm air suddenly felt suffocating, and the soft ticking of the clock on the wall amplified into an oppressive thud. All eyes were on me. Carson looked confused, Blake intrigued, and Danny… His eyes glistened with the pain of betrayal.
Fuck. Things had just taken a very wrong turn. He was never supposed to find out like this.
“What do you mean by ‘us,’ Billy?” Carson asked. “I know the two of you are buddies, but you don’t need to ask his permission to foster a kid for a little while.”
I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling the heat rising to my face. The worn rug under my boots felt like it might swallow me up. I didn’t want to spill my truth all over the place but lying wasn’t an option. Danny was already hurt; lying to him would be an even greater betrayal.
“Well…” I hesitated, my heart racing. “Michael and I… we’re sorta… together. And I’ve pretty much been living at his place.”
