When Sir went to get himself ice cream later, he had to dig for it. He didn’t say anything, but he gave me a sympathetic look from the kitchen. When he came to the couch with his bowl, he patted my knee.
“You’re such a good boy, Bear.”
Somehow, the sting of not being able to have ice cream vanished.
I felt restless and wrong when we were on our way to Mal and Jamie’s that Saturday. Sir, of course, noticed. I had taken Tonya with me, because I wanted to show her to Jamie for some reason. I couldn’t stop jiggling my knee and it took Sir putting his hand over it and the heat of his palm seeping in through my jeans to make me calm down. Not much, but a little bit.
He didn’t say anything, because he didn’t need to. I clutched Tonya in against my side and tried to not freak out even more. I didn’t even know what I was freaking out about!
When the car stopped at the house in a nice neighborhood, I immediately calmed somehow. Maybe it was because something about it reminded me of where I was from, even though that had been farmlands.
“My childhood home was almost the same exact shade of pale blue,” I murmured when we climbed out.
“Oh, it is pretty, isn’t it?” Sir grinned at me. “I may have helped them pick the color a few years back.”
I giggled, and just like that, he took my hand making me relax even further.
Before we even got to the door, it opened, and Mal stepped out.
“Hey guys,” he said, seeming serious. He grimaced a little as he addressed Sir. “I told you Jamie wouldn’t be in little mode today, but he had a horrible day at work yesterday and then had a bad phone call with his brother today, so….”
“It’s okay. We don’t mind, do we, boy?” Sir squeezed my hand and glanced at me.
I cleared my throat. “No, we don’t.”
“Good.” Mal and Sir exchanged a look that I couldn’t decipher.
I lifted Tonya. “Maybe he’ll want to meet my tiger even more now?”
Mal chuckled. “I’m sure that’ll be the case. Please, come in.”
The house was so homey it made me let out a happy gasp. It seemed like the perfect place for two people who had high stress jobs and needed a safe, comfy spot to land on every day.
“I love your home!” I blurted out, looking around at the little details.
“Thank you, Bear. We love it too.” He led us through the first floor into the back. “He’s in the sandbox.”
“Okay.” I squeezed Tonya and then peered up at Sir. “You two go do something Domly.”
Sir’s expression was amused. “Well, normally I don’t take orders from the subby types, but this time….”
Mal opened the glass door and closed it behind me.
The yard was bigger than I’d anticipated, very green and well-maintained. The back deck was just as cozy as the house was inside. The only things hinting that a Little lived here were a large swing set that looked like fun, and the square sand box that was about the height of what a half of an above ground pool might’ve been and the size of one, too.
“Hey, Jamie!” I called out as I jogged closer, interested in seeing what he was working on.
He glanced up, eyes shining with glee. “Bear! Hi, Bear!”
“What are you up to?” I asked, then remembered my manners. “Can I come in there?”
“Yup, but take your shoes off. The sand feels so nice on your toes.” He grinned widely. “Socks too! Oh, who’s that?”
I sat on the wooden edge and set Tonya next to me while I took off my shoes and socks. “It’s Tonya, she’s a tiger.”
“Ooh, she’s awesome. Is she your best friend?” Jamie leaned forward curiously.
“Yeah, my sister gave her to me ages ago. That’s why she looks well-loved.”
