Seth glanced Beck’s way, then turned his stare on Heavenly. “They do, and I’m glad you noticed. Now we don’t have to hide anything. Beck and I are both engaged to Heavenly. That a problem for you?”
Hudson gave him a long look, then pointed between him and Beck. “You two gay?”
“Would it bother you if we were?”
“No.”
Seth didn’t believe Hudson, but he figured there was no sense in yanking the kid’s chain. His life had just been uprooted, too. “We’re not gay.”
“We don’t…what’s that phrase?” Beck put in. “Cross swords.”
“Ever.” Seth nodded.
“So you two…share her?” He tossed his head in Heavenly’s direction. “Well, at least I know where I got my kinky streak.”
Great. Another problem to contend with. Seth tried to keep the oh-fuck off his face. “Have you shared a girl?”
“No.” Hudson grinned. “But I’m damn good with rope.”
Holy shit. His teenage son apparently took after him in more ways than one.
Heavenly gaped. “You’re only sixteen!”
Hudson’s grin widened. “What can I say? I’m adventurous.”
Beck clapped Seth on the back with a grin. “Well, like father, like son.”
Seth dropped his head into his hands, then glared up at Beck. “You’re not helping.”
That just made Beck laugh.
He and Heavenly were being understanding, but Seth knew they must be asking themselves the same obvious questions he was. How was this going to change their dynamic? Their plans? Their future?
Seth had no fucking idea. All he knew was that his carefully constructed life had just been blown apart, and he was going to have to figure out how to put the pieces back together.
Seth looked at his son—christ, that was going to take some getting used to—and felt the weight of sixteen missing years pressing down on him. But dwelling on what he couldn’t change wouldn’t help either of them move forward.
“Let me put on something more comfortable.” He gestured to his travel attire. “After that, how about we hang out downstairs? Play some video games and talk.”
Hudson shrugged. “Whatever.”
Seth tried not to let the casual dismissal sting. The kid had every right to be guarded. Seth had his work cut out for him.
He grabbed his carry-on and headed upstairs, Beck and Heavenly following close behind. In their bedroom, Seth stripped off his button-down shirt. As he did, it felt as if he was shedding an older version of himself—one who’d boarded his flight this morning without knowing he was a father.
“I’ll unpack for you,” Heavenly offered, reaching for his bag.
Seth almost smiled despite everything as he kicked off his pants. “You’re welcome to try, but you know I’ll end up reorganizing everything.”
She shot him a look. “I’m well aware, Mr. OCD.”
“I’m not OCD, just particular.” He pulled on a tank top and shorts, feeling more like himself already.
“Bullshit,” Beck fake-coughed the word.
They shared a momentary laugh before Seth sobered. “Seriously, are you two really okay with Hudson staying? I wasn’t misreading those nods downstairs?”
Beck leaned against the dresser. “The kid needs to stay. He’s exactly like I was at that age—all attitude to cover up the hurt.”
