Little Bedtime Snack (The Lactin Brotherhood)

Epilogue

MASON

Eli’s nursery was done, and as a happy new-nursery present, I arranged for him to have a playdate with Jeb at our home.

My sweet boy was thrilled and spent the morning planning everything they were going to do. He picked the menu. He picked the activities. He even sent Jeb an email telling him which outfit to bring. They were going to have a blast.

Jeb didn’t have a Daddy, Mommy, or caregiver of any kind, and Eli and I discussed in detail what he wanted my role to be today. At no point in time did I want to make him feel uncomfortable. And as a rule, he wasn’t so great about sharing his Daddy.

But this was Jeb.

And, of course, he and Jeb had different boundaries than he would with a stranger.

In the end, we decided that I was his Daddy, just like always, and more of a babysitter for his friend. I couldn’t really tell Jeb what to do, and I definitely didn’t dress him. But I could play with him or make him meals—those kinds of things. It was a pretty good compromise, and if it worked out well today, I could see a lot of playdates in the future.

The nursery had turned out beautifully.

It was a space that didn’t have a ton of natural light, with a row of short windows along the top of the one wall and nothing more. I think that’s probably why they called it a dressing room instead of a nursery in the listing.

We painted it Eli’s favorite color—a light bluey-teal. Ultimately we opted to keep the carpet that was there and used a throw rug over it to change the theme. We already had a closet full of them—one with a jungle theme, one with an ocean theme, one was decorated with geometric shapes, and another with a castle.

The one that was there now was designed as a race track for his cars.

On the ceiling, we had rows and rows of LED lights that Eli picked out. We were able to make the room look like a night sky—minus the whole being-accurate component. We could make them look like fairies dancing in the wind or just shining a bright, cheerful light. It was amazing, all the different settings they had.

“Daddy!” Eli called from our room.

“On my way, sweet boy.”

When I arrived, he had his clothes set out, ready for me. He was also standing there completely naked.

“So I’m guessing you have a plan here?” I chuckled.

“I need a tubby so I’m good and clean when my friend comes over.”

“Well, obviously we need to make you nice and clean.”

I went ahead of him and ran the water in the clawfoot tub. It was a great one for having a nice soak or playing with toys, but it wasn’t conducive to two people. That we had to save for my business trips.

Once it was ready, I helped him in and cleaned him up while he played with his ducks and some rubber trucks that I’d found online. But as soon as the bubbles were done, so was he.

Normally, he’d stay until his fingers turned wrinkly, but today was different. Jeb was coming over.

I dried him off and helped him get dressed, including putting on his bunny diaper. He was ready to go—a solid hour before Jeb was arriving.

“Cartoons?” He needed something quiet to help settle him down before his friend arrived.

“Yes, Daddy.”

We went downstairs to the family room—since there were so many rooms, they all got their own name—and put on his favorite cartoon. He had a nice, long drink of my milk while we waited for his friend.

That was another thing completely off the menu for his friend. My milk was Eli’s and that was that. There was no room for negotiating.

And honestly? I kind of liked the possessive side of him.

My sweet boy started to doze mid-drink, and I gently woke him, not wanting him to be sleepy—or worse, grumpy—from being woken up too soon.

“I think you were slipping into a milk coma.” I ruffled his hair.

“It’s because you make the best milk, Daddy.”

The doorbell rang, and I went to get it.

Eli wasn’t embarrassed about who he was or what he liked, but that didn’t mean if he opened the door to a random postman, they wouldn’t be uncomfortable with it. Best I just took care of it.

Standing there was Jeb, his backpack slung over his shoulder, holding two kids’ meals—one in each hand.

“I didn’t know you were bringing lunch.” Eli had planned one out for me to make with his new waffle maker, but getting a present from a friend was going to be fine by him.

Probably.

If not, I could still make waffles.

“I wasn’t going to,” he said, stepping inside. “But then I heard on the commercial that they were doing Bunny Friends from the cartoon, and there was no choice. Here.” He held them out to me. “I’m gonna get changed. I’ll meet you in the kitchen before this gets too cold.”

“Works for me.”

I went and grabbed Eli, who recognized the kids’ meal box instantly and giggled as he grabbed it. Safe to say he was fine without the waffles.

“I thought this didn’t come out till next week!” And off he ran to the kitchen.

He sat in his seat, the box in front of him, waiting patiently. He knew we needed to wait for his friend and that I always put the food onto a divided tray for him—not wanting him to miss out on the experience of eating off his favorite dishes just because his meal came in a bag or a box.

Jeb was barely through the doorway before Eli dug in, grabbing one of his chicken nuggets and dipping it into an ungodly amount of ketchup, taking a big bite and speaking long before he swallowed.

“I didn’t open my toy yet,” he mumbled. “I was waiting for you.”

Jeb sat across from him and started on his lunch while the two of them talked back and forth about the cartoon.

When they were both done eating, they asked me to help open their bags. Inside, they each had a bunny from the cartoon—one the schoolteacher, the other the firefighter. They swapped bunnies and were happy as could be.

“Jeb, do you think they would fit in my car?”

“I don’t know. I wanna find out.”

Eli turned to me. “Daddy, can we go upstairs and play?”

“Absolutely.”

The two of them scurried away, and I cleaned up.

It was a balancing act—giving them their privacy while being there if they wanted or needed anything. I checked on them a few times, brought them sippy cups of juice, but mostly, I stayed close by just in case.

But all too soon, it was getting close to dinnertime, and I wanted to see if Jeb was staying—and if so, what he wanted to eat.

I stood in the doorway, watching the two of them play for a few minutes before going inside. They were having such a blast.

“It’s almost time for dinner.”

They both looked my way.

“Are you staying with us, Jeb?”

He shook his head. “Nope. I have plans.”

“Plans?” Eli smirked. “Care to tell me what those plans are?”

“On my way here, Corey called and asked if I would cover his shift. My plans are hanging out at the toll plaza.”

It would be nicer if he had plans with a friend or family or even a date, but sometimes you needed to work.

“That was nice of you.” Eli leaned forward and hugged his friend. “I’m glad you came.”

“Me too.” Jeb stood up. “I’m gonna go get changed now. Thanks for a good time.”

He crossed over to me. “Thanks for having me over, Eli’s Daddy. I was a good boy. Maybe I could come back again?”

“Anytime Eli wants,” I assured him.

As soon as he left the room to change, I squatted down beside Eli.

“Did you want to play more? Or did you want to be big after Jeb is gone and maybe go out to dinner?”

He pulled in his bottom lip with his teeth. “I think I wanna be big. Then we can try that new Chinese place.”

“That sounds good to me.”

He tilted his head, eyes playful.

“Any ideas for after that?”

“I have plenty of them.” He pulled me closer. “And spoiler alert—all of them require being naked with you, Daddy.”

I could hardly wait.