“And a baby monitor.”
“Deal.”
They fell silent, and Laddin nearly slept. He was about to drift off when Bruce rolled over and fiddled with the clock. He was setting an alarm for their dawn meeting with Bitterroot. Except he didn’t set it for before dawn. He set it for two hours earlier than that.
Given that it was well after midnight, they weren’t going to have much time to sleep. Especially if Aaron woke in the middle of the night to be fed. But when Bruce saw him looking, he shrugged.
“I’m not giving up,” Bruce whispered. “I’m leaving us enough time to come up with a solution.”
Laddin didn’t think two hours would be anywhere near enough time for that. They’d already been at it the entire day and had come up with nothing. But he didn’t say that.
“If anyone can figure it out, it’s you,” he whispered.
“Me?” Bruce challenged. “Why am I so special?”
“Because you are,” Laddin answered as he pulled Bruce close and shut his eyes. “You just are.”
Bruce was silent a long time. Long enough that Laddin had thought he’d fallen asleep. But then he heard Bruce whisper words filled with awe. Awe, shock, and a strong dose of gratitude.
“I’m not a monster,” he said. “I’ve fucked up, that’s for sure, but I’m not a monster. I never was.”
“No, you’re not,” Laddin agreed. “You’re the man I love.”
“Which makes me pretty okay, I guess,” Bruce said. Then, after a long moment, “Which means you’re pretty cool too.”
“Yeah,” Laddin agreed. “I am. We are.” Then he pressed a kiss to Bruce’s lips. And when they separated, he whispered the only words they needed. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
They slept.
Chapter 26
BABY CHEESE FARTS
BRUCE WOKEwith an idea.
He also awoke with a splitting headache and a crimp in his neck. The first was eased by turning off the alarm. The second was ignored because, damn it, he had an idea!
Laddin grumbled and the baby stirred, but Bruce’s face must have shown his excitement, because Laddin abruptly sat up.
“What? What have you figured out?”
Bruce hesitated. “It’s just a thought. It may be nothing.”
“Don’t go negative on me! We’ve seen how badly that affects the world. So, what have you figured out?”
Bruce didn’t answer directly. He scrambled out of bed and headed for the bathroom. “Get dressed and—”
“I’ll go to the kitchen and make a bottle. Aaron’s probably getting hungry. Then we’ll talk.”
Bruce nodded and headed for the bathroom. His mind was racing the whole time, trying to work the angles, to figure out if his idea was possible. But right now he needed information, and that meant he had to talk to the higher-ups.
He stepped out of the bathroom and came up short. Wulfric was standing in the bedroom doorway.
“What have you got?” the man asked as he leaned against the wall. Damn, he looked half-dead beneath the fairy glamour. Bruce had forgotten he was still recovering from his near death a few days ago, but though he didn’t look any worse than he had back then, he didn’t look much better either.
Bruce waved him toward the bed. “Sit down before you keel over.” But he was warmed that the guy had stayed awake, presumably trying to help work things out.
