Harrison ran to the fence, talking enthusiastically to his teacher. I followed and shook hands with the slender man.
“I’m Jake.”
“Hi. Carter Price. Nice to meet you.”
“Yeah. Um, sorry I haven’t had a chance to come say hi before now.”
Carter waved a hand in dismissal before pushing his glasses up his nose. “Oh, please. I’m just as guilty. How do you know Harris?” he asked.
“Jake is Coach’s boyfriend,” Harris piped in before I could explain.
Carter tilted his head and looked at me knowingly. He was a bit shorter than me, with a slender frame and short brown hair. Wyatt must have explained about Reyes and me to Harrison before he came to stay with us because from the moment he came to stay with us, he seemed completely unfazed by our shows of affection. Then again, most kids were. It was always the adults who had a problem with who I liked to fuck.
“Well, that’s great,” Carter said to Harrison. “You’ve told me so much about your coach, I know he’s a nice guy.”
“He is! He’s the best!” He looked up at me with a smile. “But Jake is pretty cool too. He’s a cop! He’s going to let me see in his cruiser tomorrow!”
I laughed and ruffled his hair. “You’re not so bad yourself, Sport.” As soon as I said the words, I realized I meant them. Harrison truly was a great kid, and having him around wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. It was still awkward as fuck, but it hadn’t been horrible. So far, anyway.
Lady nudged Harrison’s hand, reminding him of her presence, and Harris ran off to throw the ball for her again.
“Forgive me if this is intruding, but is Harris staying with you? I heard he was being placed somewhere else for a while, but wasn’t sure with who. I thought Rey was just helping with afterschool things when he picked him up.”
I nodded. “Yeah, he is. Just until Wyatt’s home from the hospital.”
Understanding passed over his face. “I see. That’s really nice of you. How is Wyatt?”
“He’s good, I think. We haven’t really heard much about his treatment yet though.”
“Well, I hope he’s okay.”
“Yeah. I do too.”
A silence fell over us, and after an awkward minute, Carter gestured back to the barbecue. “I better get back before that burns, but if you need anything, just knock, okay? I’m happy to help.”
“Thank you.”
I made my way back to the porch, where I stood huddled in my jacket with the German shepherd at my side while Harrison played with Lady for a while. I was too damn cold and tired to play with them, but neither of them seemed to mind, too busy running around and playing fetch.
I started to think about the rest of the week and what problems we’d have with our schedules in regards to who would have Harrison and when. I had the next few days off, but Rey had something going on with work almost every day, so I’d likely be in charge for a while. I wondered what else I could conjure up for Harrison to keep him busy.
I became so lost in my thoughts that I hadn’t heard Reyes come in through the house. I yelped when his arms slid around me from behind.
“Damnit, Reyes. You’ve got to stop doing that!”
He chuckled without remorse. “Oh, it’s only been a few times. But now you’ve made me want to do it again.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “You do and you’ll be punished.”
“Is that a promise?” Reyes said with a grin, kissing my cheek. “You’re cold. How long have you been out here?”
I shrugged. “About an hour, maybe? I don’t know.”
He looked back to Harrison, who was sitting on an upturned bucket talking to Lady as if she were his best friend. “He seems happy. Things went okay?”
“Yeah, I guess so. He had a moment where he wanted to check in with Wyatt, but overall we’ve been okay.”
“Good.”
“I can honestly say I missed you though,” I said, pulling his arms tighter around me, “and not just because of the kid.”
Rey rested his chin on my shoulder. “I missed you too, babe.”
