Taylor paused, glancing back, the roughness of his stubble grazing Johnny’s fingers. “Yeah?”
“Do you… do you want to stay over?”
There was silence, the weight and implication of Johnny’s invitation hanging heavily between them. It dragged on, a moment turning to several seconds, and just as Johnny was about to pull his hand away and retreat into his room, Taylor let out a breath and said, “You sure?”
Johnny let out a shaky breath of his own. “Yes,” he replied, turning on his heel and moving across the landing before he could chicken out.
Yanking the curtains closed, he dropped onto the bed and pulled the thin cotton sheet over his body. It was comforting in the dark, but it still didn’t dull his bundle of nerves as Taylor closed the door.
Then the lock clicked, the mattress dipped and warmth spread up Johnny’s left side.
Taylor climbed under the sheets; something he’d done a thousand times before, but this time it made all Johnny’s hairs stand on end.
“I know you’re mad at me about William,” Taylor whispered, his elbow bumping Johnny’s ribs. “But I?—”
“I’m not.” Johnny cut him off, his voice tighter than he would have liked.
“Yeah you are, JP. You don’t need to lie.”
“I’m not mad, Tay. I was worried. I’m still worried. About you, the pack, William. But I know you just did what you thought was best.”
Johnny rested his bandaged arm across his stomach. It ached like a bitch as the pain medication slowly started to wear off.
Taylor shifted slightly, dipping his head and pressing his mouth to Johnny’s shoulder. “Do you think we could take him to the pack house tomorrow? If Kat says it’s okay? I’d really like to show him the pigs, and the sunflowers, and maybe he can try some of Maman’s cooking. The lad looks like he needs several decent meals.”
He shifted again, nuzzling into Johnny’s armpit.
Johnny hummed, turning his head to brush his mouth through Taylor’s hair. “Mhm. And maybe the dens in the woods. You’ll have to ask Marty, though. Those two have beef, remember?”
Taylor snorted, tangling his and Johnny’s legs together. “Yeah, as much beef as a nine- and eleven-year-old can have.”
“William hurt him, remember? He’s forgiving, but the girls aren’t.”
“Maybe if we send him in with sweets,” he replied, dragging his face up to Johnny’s neck. “Do they still like those sour strawberries?”
Johnny shivered, his voice dropping to a whisper. “I think they like the pineapple ones now.”
“See? Perfect. Like a sweetie-laden grenade—just roll him in and hope for the best.”
Johnny huffed out a laugh, hand drifting to his aching cock and giving it a sympathetic squeeze. “Or blow up the whole house in the process?”
Taylor shrugged, the movement jostling Johnny’s arm and making him wince. “I’ve been told I make an excellent human shield.”
“We could try, I guess. So long as the police aren’t on our doorstep tomorrow morning for abducting a child. It’s a good job Kat trusts us, Tay.”
Taylor hummed. “Eh, just quote a load of safeguarding buzz words at her. Bamboozle her with safety plans and‘it was my honest held belief that the child was in immediate danger.’”
Johnny tutted. “The fuck do you know about safety plans, PC Campbell?”
There was a long pause, then: “I was on one, remember? For six years before you guys took me in.”
Johnny slowly turned onto his side so they were facing one another. “Sorry,” he whispered. “Sometimes I forget that there was a time before us.”
Taylor bumped their foreheads together, his voice low and rumbling. “I’m glad,” he said, tracing a thumb around Johnny’s ear. “I’m glad you forget, because it means I’m normal. Sometimes. Not all the time. But, like, maybe I’m not the problem kid anymore.”
Johnny slipped his bandaged arm over Taylor’s waist, pulling him closer. It hurt, but it was worth it for the way their bodies pressed together. He felt warm. And solid. And safe.
Taylor groaned, pushing his face back into the crook of Johnny’s neck.
