“Yeah. Yeah, Tag and the boys brought the RV. Coke got us a good deal.” Beau stared at him as if he was the most important thing in the world.
“Good.” He could walk pretty good, could handle himself in the bathroom. Hell, he’d managed to shower without falling and stuff. Now, he just needed someone to stop fussing over his head and let him have his hat and find him a pair of jeans and boots and he could go.
“Jenny says it will be late this evening, Poot, so you might as well sit tight.” Beau squeezed his hand.
He rolled his eyes and Chrissy laughed. “Shitfire, you ain’t any less impatient, are you?”
“He’s worse.”
“That ain’t possible.” Brian came in, grinning at him. “Got you a hat, man. For when you can wear one again.”
“Thank you.” They’d tried to tell him he couldn’t wear a hat, but he wasn’t having none of that shit. None of it.
“I got you one, too.” Adam came in and waved a tiny cowboy hat, made for a doll. “For on top of your crash helmet.”
He glanced over, judging the distance between him and Adam Taggart. If he pushed himself up, he could deck the smartassed son of a bitch. He wasn’t wearing that fucking head deal, he wasn’t going to look like an idiot no more. He wasn’tdoingthis, Goddamnit!
Beau squeezed his hand again. “No ass-kicking, baby.”
It was utterly gratifying to see the expression on Tag’s face when Beau called him that.
“You. You do shove that up your butt, Skip.” He knew the last wasn’t right, but it didn’t matter. He knew what he meant.
Adam made a good comeback, grinning at him. “Nah. I’ll wait until you can try to put your boot up my butt, Sammy. That’s way more like you.”
“Make Beau jealous then.” He winked, then they all cracked up.
“Hey, Chris. Let’s go get some food.” Adam clapped the youngest triplet on the back, and they left, leaving just Bri with him and Beau.
Bri sighed. “Man, I bet you’re ready, Sammy. You want anything from the grocery? Something special?”
No. No, he wanted Beau’s gumbo.
“The therapist says nothing too solid, but he’s sick of Jell-O. Maybe the stuff to make a nice chicken soup.”
“Can he have booze yet?”
“No.” Beau cut him off with a glare when he would have protested.
He stuck his tongue out at Beau. The man was being unreasonable on the doctor stuff.
“Hey, did I not arrange it so we could go home?” Beau stroked the back of his hand where a needle had recently come out.
He nodded, eyelids suddenly heavy. He wanted to curl up with Beau, sleep.
“I’ll go get the stuff at the store,” Bri said, as if he was reading minds. “Y’all have a bit before Adam and Chrissy come back with the fast food.”
“Thank.” He tugged at Beau, needing his cowboy.
“Hey.” Beau kissed his mouth gently, still too worried about his lips. They’d been cracked a little when the tube had come out.
“Hey.” He met Beau’s eyes. “Okay? Us? Okay?”
“Shit, yes. We’re good, you and me.” One thumb rubbed his cheek a little.
“‘Kay.” He let his eyes close a second. “Love.”
“I love you, too, baby. We’ll be home in no time.” Beau paused, lips moving on his cheek. “Adam will be good.”
