Chapter 22
Twenty-Two
The burns on Gideon’s hands weren’t severe enough to need to go to the hospital, though they did require his hands be bandaged long enough for his body to heal. There was also an ointment for Carver to rub on his skin daily.
All of this was good news. Carver appreciated knowing his boy would be able to recover from this with time and some patience.
What threw Carver for a loop was how much the bandaged hands interfered with Gideon’s daily life. He’d started to take care of a lot of things on his own. Now, he was forced to depend on others—namely Carver.
At lunch, Gideon was too tired to eat. Carver managed to convince him to drink a protein shake they’d concealed as chocolate milk. Food, however, was a no-go.
Dinner was different. Gideon’s stomach audibly rumbled when the scent of food reached their room. Trix was the one to deliver it with a grin.
“I needed to see how y’all were for myself,” he told Carver.
“We’re fine. Just resting and soon to be eating.” Carver’s reply didn’t dismiss Trix the way he expected it to. “Did you need something else?”
Trix looked from Carver to Gideon. When his eyes met his boss’s again, Carver saw what his silence meant. Trix had an update.
What was the update about though? Had he found Gideon’s mom? Were there other developments in the case? Was it something Angels related instead?
“I’ll come see you later,” Carver said, his expression neutral.
“Good looking out, Boss. Enjoy your meal.”
Trix left shortly after with a big smile and wave for them both. Carver pondered over whether the expression was for show or if the news Trix had wasn’t as bad as his doomsday mind created. The outcome would have to wait since his boy needed to be fed, cleaned, and put to bed first.
“Someone must love you in the kitchen. This lasagna smells delicious.”
Gideon opened his mouth at the announcement of what was in the plastic to-go containers. He was clearly ready to get the meal going. It made Carver chuckle in appreciation. He could remember a time when they had to basically force feed the boy. Amazing what changes came with time and care.
Each serving he spooned into his boy’s mouth was met eagerly. It was as if he were starved with how quickly he gobbled it all up.
Before he knew it, the plate was empty. Carver stared at it in wonder. It was so rare for his boy to finish his own serving. Usually Carver had to polish it off.
“Are you still hungry, sweet boy? I can share some of mine if you are.” Carver reached for his plate only to be stopped by a touch against his arm. The bandages Gideon wore scratched against his skin.
Gideon bumped his arm once. Carver gave a nod of understanding.
“No more? Ok, then. Let me scarf this down. I’ll help you in the shower after. We have to wrap your hands in plastic first, so they won’t get wet.”
His boy didn’t appear bothered at the news. He probably heard them discussing it in the med bay earlier. Carver couldn’t tell how in or out of it his boy was back then. He’d been too worried about his care to pay that any mind.
Now though, he thought about how observant Gideon was. He knew his sweet boy never missed a detail of anything. Does that mean he knew the cage was hot when he went to get in?
Carver shook away the idea. He had no reason to believe his boy was trying to hurt himself again. Since the last attempt, he’d been doing better. There were no outward signs of distress, no moments where Carver worried.
And yet…
No. That wasn’t the case.
When he finished his own portion of dinner, Carver tugged Gideon into a seated position and led him to the bathroom. Though his boy had been solely using the tub, Carver knew he didn’t oppose showers. He wasn’t sure which would be best given his state.
As he wrapped his boy’s hands in the plastic bags Trix had brought up with dinner, Carver asked, “Do you want a bath or shower tonight? We can do either.”
Carver watched as Gideon’s head tilted towards the bath. He grinned and shook his head.
“My sweet boy does love his bath time.” The whispered words were meant to be said in jest. It wasn’t until he felt Gideon shiver that he wondered if maybe they’d been taken a different way.
This wasn’t the time to find out. Gideon was newly injured. The wounds were in such a way he needed Carver to take complete care of him. It would be foolish to cross any lines.
“Let’s get you cleaned up,” Carver suggested when the quiet got too loud. He turned on the water to prepare the tub before focusing his efforts on the hard task ahead: touching a naked and wet Gideon.
With a sort of detached effort, he slipped Gideon’s shirt and pants off. Then he quickly removed the boy’s underwear and turned away. Only his hand extended behind him until he latched onto an arm.
Gently tugging forward, Carver got them over to the tub. He steadied Gideon as he sank beneath the water. Carver felt an immense relief once the boy’s body was hidden away.
“You should soak for a bit, then I’ll scrub you clean.” He pulled up his seat beside the bath and waited. There wasn’t anything else for him to focus on. Normally, he watched Gideon to make sure he bathed himself properly. Since that wasn’t possible, the pair was left to stare at one another.
After a few minutes, he realized the boy wasn’t all that relaxed. He decided to go ahead and rip the Band-Aid off.
“Time to scrub,” Carver said, voice infused with false joy.
His heart raced with nerves. To counteract the feeling, he decided to do what his father used to—he spoke about any and everything.
“You know, the Angels are something like a family tradition for me. One of the men in my bloodline has run it since its inception. When my father told me I would take over, I told him it was a mistake.”
Carver soaped up the washcloth. With a steadiness he didn’t feel, he swept over his boy’s face and neck, cleaning away the day’s grime.
“He’d asked me why I thought so. I told him it was because I probably wouldn’t ever have kids 'cause I liked men and men couldn’t have babies. The old bastard found my confession hilarious, especially considering he already knew.”
He rinsed away the water and soap before preparing to move to Gideon’s chest and arms.
“The old man reminded me there was more than one way to build a family. It was the fucking strangest conversation of my life to hear him go on about surrogacy and adoption. When I’d hit puberty, he’d thrown a box of condoms at me.
He figured I knew enough growing up in the club to understand the birds and the bees. ”
For not saying a word, Carver could still tell Gideon was interested in what he had to say. It was obvious he paid attention to every word from the way he watched Carver so intently.
“I hate to admit how right he was. He’s probably laughing from wherever it is we go after death. While I don’t have anybody to spend my time with like that, I’m a damn good leader to these men. This was the life I was meant to live.”
Carver believed the words with his entire being. He didn’t want to picture a life where he wasn’t part of this group. A life where he had to work an office job he hated. Being an Angel saved him from that, just like it saved many others.
So distracted in his own story, Carver didn’t realize at first that it was time to wash the boy’s lower half. He swallowed thickly, putting on mask of indifference.
This wasn’t a sexual encounter with some random at a bar.
This was a traumatized young man in his care.
It didn’t matter that he was in his twenties. Without being able to speak with him or knowing his level of understanding, no consent could be given.
“Need you to stand up,” Carver rasped. “I’ll help you. Don’t need you falling.”
He gripped the boy’s elbows and helped guide him. Once he knew Gideon was stable, Carver soaped up the towel. He focused on his stomach and hips as he trailed the foaming suds over skin. His gaze trailed the path of his hands, noting every freckle, mole, and scar the boy had.
When he reached Gideon’s crotch, he froze at the patch of curls there. Fuck. This was too much.
But he knew there was no way for his boy to get clean if he didn’t help. He’d be damned if anyone else touched Gideon this way. Knowing how much Doc had already seen of him angered Carver enough. Though it was for medical intervention, Carver’s hindbrain couldn’t separate the facts.
“Keep as still as you can. I’ll be quick.”
He didn’t talk as he washed the boy. Instead, he worked to keep his movements impersonal.
Gideon was a task. Not a person of interest to Carver.
Not someone Carver wanted to know inside and out.
Not the person who had the prez of the Angels so mixed up he couldn’t think of anyone (or anything) else.
Carver was doing fine with the entire process. Gideon didn’t get hard, even as Carver ran the towel over his length and around his balls. There was not an ounce of desire shown, which made Carver’s tense emotions unwind.
He knew how sensitive the male body could be. A strong gust of wind or a special scent could send his cock pulsing on certain days.
Then again, he still didn’t know what all Gideon had been through. There could be reasons outside of his experiences that made having an erection unlikely.
Carver breathed a sigh of relief as he picked up a fresh cloth to finish Gideon’s body. The water had turned dirty, and he refused to move from ass to feet. It was a pet peeve of his when it came to getting clean.
Reaching into the tub, he pulled up the drain to let the water out. Turning on the faucet, he went about finishing the process as he rambled on again about club life.
He felt confidence build in his chest as he scrubbed his boy’s feet. All the fear he’d had about this was silly. He could bathe Gideon and not be a perv about it. Easy stuff.
Except when he turned to look up and tell his boy it was time to dry off, he was met with a bobbing erection and wide eyes.
They stared at one another for a moment as Carver tried to figure out what this meant. When he touched Gideon there, he’d gotten no response. Yet somehow between then and washing the boy’s feet he’d become hard.
What the hell was he supposed to do with this information? And how did Gideon feel about any of it? Did he understand what was happening to his body? Or was the look in his eyes fear because he knew and hated it?
The questions piled on one after another, Carver’s heart synching to the pace. After far too long a silence, he leaned back and shook his head.
“We need to dry you off, sweet boy. Then I’ve got to talk to you about some stuff. I’d like you to listen and then we can go from there.”
Gideon nodded slowly. Carver hoped he’d find the words he’d need in the next few minutes because he was at a loss of how to handle the whole thing.