“Humph!” Colin huffed. “I suppose. But those moments are getting rarer all the time. Usually anymore, he’s his old, sweet self.” He huffed out a sigh and lowered himself to the floor next to where Joshua slept. “I just fuckinghateit that he’s had to go through this.”
“Just likehehated seeing you in pain when you were shot,” David said. “Life has handed you two a couple of hard knocks, but you’ve helped each other through them.” He bent and laid a hand on Colin’s shoulder. “You should feel proud.”
“Proud?”
“Proud of the relationship you’ve built together. It isn’t easy. God knows Nate and I have had our moments too. But it takes a lot to make a relationship truly flourish, especially in the face of the misfortune you two have had to deal with.”
“Josh makes it easy,” Colin murmured. He reached to touch his husband’s hair, gently sliding a lone, dark curl off his forehead.
Joshua stirred and opened his eyes, then smiled when he saw Colin sitting close to him. “Hey, baby,” he murmured, his voice still sleepy. “Did you eat?”
“I did,” Colin said. “Now it’syourturn.”
Joshua wrinkled his nose and shook his head. “Maybe later.”
“You said that an hour ago. Please, sweetie. Eat something for me.”
“I made egg saaaalad,” Nate crooned, waving a sandwich underneath Joshua’s nose. “Just for youuuuu.”
Joshua laughed and sat up on the couch. “OK,” he laughed, taking the food from Nate’s hand. “Since Nate laid the eggs himself and whipped them into egg salad sandwiches just for me, I suppose I’ll have to eat one of them.”
Colin sat down next to Joshua and pointed to the sandwich. “Eat!”
Nate sat on the floor at their feet. “He’s right...for a change,” he said, winking at Colin. “Eat up, Josh. You’re too thin.”
“Now you sound like my Jewish mother,” Joshua said around a mouthful of egg salad.
“But he’s right,” David added. He sat on the floor next to Nate then lifted an arm to wrap around his shoulders. “Youaretoo thin, Josh. You’ve had a lot to deal with. Now it’s time to rest and get well.”
Joshua’s gaze moved from one of them to the other. “I don’t think any other human on earth is as lucky as I am,” he said finally. “Evenwiththe bullshit I’ve had to cope with lately. Look what Ihave!”
He turned toward Colin, then touched his cheek and kissed him. “The most wonderful man in the world is in love with me,” he whispered.
Colin recoiled in mock terror. “Is hebiggerthan me?”
Joshua laughed, then indicated David and Nate. “And the twosecondmost wonderful men on earth are my best friends.”
“Well, I, for one, resent having to take second place to this Irishman,” Nate mocked, jerking his thumb toward Colin. “But, on this one occasion, I’ll let it pass.”
“It’s getting dark,” Joshua said as he finished the sandwich. “And I want to walk down to the lake before we go to bed.”
“There’s still enough light out there,” Colin said. He got to his feet and held out his hand. “C’mon, darlin’.”
Nate handed Joshua the cane. “Here you go, Josh.”
“Aren’t you coming?”
“Nah,” David said. “You two to go on. We’ll see you when you get back.”
* * *
Joshua leanedon the cane as he and Colin wandered down to the lake. “Feels weird to be using this,” he told Colin, indicating the cane in his hand.
“It’ll help you balance.”
Colin took Joshua’s hand and lowered him to the ground, then sat down beside him. For several minutes they sat together in silence, gazing across the small lake. “You looking forward to going back to work?” Joshua asked finally.
Colin shrugged and lowered his gaze, staring at the waves lapping against the shoreline. “I dunno, baby. I am and I’m not. I don’t like leaving you.”
