Abel frowns. “Did it work?”
“You sweet summer child,” Lisa says.
Abel’s frown deepens. “I wasn’t born in the summer.”
I snort. “How about we get you to bed? You probably have work in the morning.”
“I do. I think.” Abel tips his head. “Pretty sure.”
“Get that boy in bed,” Bette says.
I pull out my wallet, as does Perry. Abel’s staring at a corner and I’m not sure what that’s about. Bette waves us away. “Dinner is on me. Go get your guy in bed and smother him in your pheromones.”
Abel pushes his chair back, but instead of getting up, he drops his head in his arms on the table. “Nappy nap,” he mumbles.
“Not yet,” Perry says, and we both haul Abel to his feet.
“Sleepy!” Abel says and clutches the table. Thankfully, he doesn’t pull the tablecloth off, but he grips it so tightly it takes me and Perry to pry his hands free.
“Come on, sweetness. A bed is so much nicer than a hard table, isn’t it?”
“Maybe, but the table is right here.” He drops his head so hard I cringe.
Perry just laughs and settles down beside him again. “You are going to be so embarrassed if you remember how you acted tonight. I hope you don’t, but I also don’t think you drank enough to erase your memory. You’re just very inexperienced. Come on, sweetness.”
Finally, Abel lets us pull him to his feet. He’s practically dead weight, so I carry him to the truck. We buckle him in and let him lean against the window.
“I feel bad,” Perry says. “He’d never had alcohol before and we let him?—”
I hold up a hand. “Wecan notbaby him. He’s twenty-three, and he chose to drink. He probably wasn’t aware of how it’d affect him. All we can do now is clean him up, get him into bed, and?—”
“Scent him.”
“Exactly.”
“I don’t want him to wake up alone, though.”
“I’m taking you both to my place, unless you have objections?” I say.
“None.” Perry’s hand drops to my thigh and he squeezes. It’s not sexual, just comfort and I lean in to him.
We get to my place and wrestle Abel from the truck. He semi fights us at the same time he leans into our touches.
“Sweetness,” Perry laughs when Abel sticks his tongue out and scurries back into the truck for the third time.
“Cozy!”
“It’ll be more cozy inside. I promise,” I say. “I have lots of cozy cozy blankets. We can wrap you up like a burrito.”
He perks up at that and slides from the truck. I sigh out, relieved he’s not fighting us anymore. But it’s obvious his legs aren’t exactly stable, so I carry him again. His head drops to my chest.
He’s out before we get to my bedroom. I look around, then down at Abel.
“I don’t think it’s the best idea to have him share the bed with us.” I backtrack to the guest bedroom.
“You’re probably right.”
I set Abel down gently on the twin-sized bed. We pull his shoes off, then his belt. I go to remove his pants so he’s not uncomfortable, but freeze.
