“Yes. But no more pokes,” he added, lip pooched out. Marty sure hoped there were no more. All he wanted was to take Cameron home so they could get settled in this new phase of his life.
Chapter 6
“I UNDERSTANDthat it’s time for Cameron to go home,” Grant said as he strode into the room. Cameron was dressed and sitting on the side of the bed, his feet swinging. The IV had been removed and all the monitors disconnected. Marty looked a bit like a pack mule with his computer bag over his shoulder, a bag in his left hand, and a box balanced with the other. Grant had given Marty a ride into the hospital that morning with the idea of helping them get settled at home.
“Yes,” Cameron said excitedly. “And I get my own room.” He looked around. “Where’s Dexter?”
“He’s at my house for now. But we’ll stop by and get him on the way.” He took the box from Marty and thanked him.
“Donald dropped off all the paperwork to the house last night and did the inspection at the same time. So everything is good to go for now.” He held out his free hand, and Cameron jumped down and took it. “All the discharge papers are set, so we can book this clambake.” He looked both tired and excited.
Grant led the way to the elevator and then out of the hospital to his SUV. Carter had given him a booster seat, courtesy of his husband, and Marty got Cameron belted in. “We need to stop at Target, and then we can get this one some lunch if that’s okay.”
“Sure. I’m off, and we have the whole day,” Grant told him and received a relieved smile. Grant slid behind the wheel and drove across town to the Target parking lot.
“What are we here for?” Cameron asked as they went inside. Marty still held his hand while Grant grabbed a cart, and they headed to the boys’ department.
“You need a few more clothes, so you get to pick.” They stopped in the middle of the section. “How about three shirts? You can get anything you like.” Marty smiled, and Cameron looked all around and then at him. Grant expected the kid to go on a shopping spree, but instead he just stood there and then burst into tears.
Marty scooped him up in seconds. “Why the tears?” He rocked him gently until Cameron calmed. “Is it too hard to choose?” Cameron’s tears settled, but he didn’t answer, and Grant figured this was going to be one of those things where the reason was locked up in the mind of a seven-year-old who had been mistreated for months. “How about we choose together?” Cameron nodded and Marty walked thought the department. After making two trips, Cameron finally pointed to a dark blue shirt with Lego bricks on it. “That one?”
Marty found the shirt in Cameron’s size and put it in the cart.
“What about this one?” Grant asked, holding up a green shirt with a train on it. Cameron nodded, and Marty got the right size. Cameron then pointed to the Lego shirt in red, and Marty put that in the cart too.
“Now we need pants and shorts for summer.” Those were easy. Cameron got two pairs of jeans and tan and light blue pairs of shorts. Underwear and socks followed before they headed to the shoe department, where Cameron decided on shoes that lit up when he walked.
“What else?” Cameron asked and then yawned.
“How about a jacket, and then we can eat,” Marty said, They found a simple blue jacket that met with Cameron’s approval before checking out. “Donald gave me a gift card for some of this,” Marty supplied as he paid the bill. They headed out into the spring afternoon and walked across the parking lot to Red Robin, where Cameron ate his weight in chicken nuggetsand french fries before leaning against Marty and nearly falling asleep.
Grant paid for lunch, and then they got Cameron out to the SUV. They stopped by Grant’s place to get Dexter and then drove to Marty’s.
Cameron seemed completely energized by his short nap and went inside, where Marty showed him to his room and helped him put his things away. Grant gave them some time alone and sat in the small living room while they finished upstairs. Dexter sat on the floor next to him, tail thumping with excitement. They were just coming down the stairs when Grant remembered the box in the back of the SUV. He left Dexter to play with Cameron, retrieved the box, and brought it inside, where he opened it and set a cloth bag on the floor.
“What’s this?”
“The guys at the station all heard that a certain boy really likes Legos.” He smiled as Cameron hurried over. He opened the cloth bag and peered inside.
“Is this for me?” Cameron asked.
“Yes. A lot of the guys had Legos when they were kids, and they brought them in. So all of that is for you.” Grant grinned and Marty smiled as Cameron dumped the bag out on the floor with a cry of delight.
“This is really all for me?” Cameron asked. “I had to share the Legos with Billy, and he was stingy.”
“These are all for you. I hope you’ll share with Marty and me sometimes,” Grant added, but it was clear that the Legos had captured all of Cameron’s attention, which was fine. He was happy. Grant pulled a few sets out of the box and handed them to Marty. “These have been put together before, but the guys said the pieces and the instruction books are there, so maybe you and Cameron can put the robots together.”
Marty set the boxes aside as Cameron began building with Dexter lying next to him and tilted his head toward the kitchen. Grant followed him. “Thank you for that. I think you made his year.” He shook his head. “I know you’ve made this day special. I keep wondering if I’m making a mistake. What if I’m not good enough? What if I completely mess up?”
Grant moved closer. “Will you stand up for him, love him, and give him the best home you can?”
“Of course,” Marty said, blinking.
“That’s all anyone can do,” Grant said and then closed the distance between them. Their lisp touched gently, even as the electricity between them sizzled to life.
“Oooo, kissing,” Cameron sang from the other room. “That’s yucky.” He made a face.
“Who says that?” Marty asked.
