Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
Michelle
“Mommy?” Corvus quietly mumbled against my chest. I pulled back a little to look down at him, smiling softly when I found him already looking up at me through tired, bleary eyes.
“Hey, bub,” I softly greeted him. “Feel a little better?”
He nodded then rolled onto his back and stretched, groaning as he did so. And that was when he noticed Kip wasn’t in bed with us. He frowned, glancing over at Kip’s empty side of the bed.
“Where’s Daddy?” he rasped.
Fuck, Kip would be so upset he missed the first time Corvus called him Daddy. I knew how much it meant to have him hear Corvus call him that. He’d been waiting so patiently for Corvus to come around—a hell of a lot more patiently than I’d been, that was for sure.
“He got a call for a tow and left to handle it.” I leaned in and pressed my lips to his in a soft kiss. I wanted so much more, and I knew Corvus would be all too willing to give me what I wanted, but I wanted our first time together to be shared with Kip. That was non-negotiable for me.
“That sucks,” he muttered. Yawning, he sat up and rubbed at his eyes before sliding out of bed and heading for the bathroom. Once the door was shut, I sat up, as well, and grabbed my phone, pulling up my text thread with Kip.
Michelle:
He’s awake. He called you Daddy when he asked where you are. I’m sorry you missed it.
Kip:
It’s okay, tsuma. I’ll hear it from him soon enough. Only about five minutes from home now.
Michelle:
DON’T TEXT AND DRIVE!!!!
He didn’t respond, so I hoped that meant he listened to me.
I hated it when he texted and drove. It always made me nervous something would happen to him when he glanced down at his screen.
It was a bad habit he was shitty about breaking.
He thought he had to respond to my messages immediately when, in fact, I was just fucking fine waiting until he was safely parked somewhere to get a response.
If what I was texting him about was that important, I’d just call him.
Corvus emerged from the bathroom looking a little more awake.
“Coffee?” he asked hopefully.
“I could go for some coffee.” I pushed off the bed and gestured for him to follow me as I made my way out the bedroom to the kitchen. I headed straight for the coffeemaker and set about popping in a new pod and sliding a cup on the little tray beneath the spout.
“Anything I can do to help?” Corvus asked, standing awkwardly in the entrance to the kitchen. “You both did so much for me, and I feel a little like a burden—”
Kip, who I hadn’t realized made it home already, silently came up behind him.
“Don’t, chibi,” he gently chastised Corvus, his arms sliding around Corvus’s waist. Corvus jumped in surprise then leaned back into him instinctively.
I smiled a little, loving the sight of my two men together.
Kip pressed a kiss to Corvus’s temple. “We want to take care of you. Let us do that. This is part of our dynamic.”
“And speaking of dynamic, I’m going to order breakfast to be delivered, so we can all sit down and talk about all of this,” I said, gesturing between the three of us just as Corvus’s coffee finished brewing. “How do you take your coffee, bub?”
I wasn’t sure if he preferred black coffee or if he’d requested that last night because dairy and liquor didn’t mix well.
“No sugar, just flavored creamer, if you have any.”
Kip snorted. “My wife drink coffee without flavored creamer? Hardly. We have a whole collection.”
Corvus’s eyes brightened, and when he wiggled a little, Kip let him go. I gestured to the fridge.
“Pick,” I ordered then set about making my own cup. “You need coffee, baby?” I asked over my shoulder.
“No, I’m good,” Kip said, suddenly much closer. He palmed my hip then leaned in to press a kiss to my cheek. “Good morning, tsuma. I apologize for texting and driving. I was at a red light, though, if that counts for anything.”
I snorted. “I’d prefer if you didn’t pick up your phone at all while you’re on the highway.”
He hummed. “Noted.” He kissed my cheek one more time then left my side. “I’ll be in the living room.”
Corvus finished doctoring up his coffee then looked toward the living room, something akin to trepidation lingering in his gaze.
“Can’t we just figure it out as we go?” he asked, swallowing nervously. “Talks make me feel sick.”
“Come here,” I murmured, holding my hand out to him.
He placed his in mine and allowed me to pull him closer.
Looking up so our eyes met, I said, “This isn’t a bad talk, bub.
This is just to lay out boundaries and expectations, so no one gets hurt.
That’s all. There’s nothing you can do or say during that talk that will make it negative, okay? ”
He nodded, his shoulders deflating a little.
“Sorry I’m always such a discombobulated mess, Mommy,” he whispered.
I squeezed his hand. “Don’t apologize for being yourself, bub.” I leaned up on my tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “Why don’t you go on and sit with Kip in the living room? I’ll be there in a moment once I order breakfast. Anything you want in particular? Protein is non-negotiable.”
“Pancakes?” he asked. “And sausage? Eggs?”
“Doable.” I smiled. “Go on now, bub.”
He nodded and slipped away, leaving for the living room.
I headed for the bedroom to get my phone off the charger then made my way back to the kitchen while ordering food on the delivery app.
After the order was made and I had my coffee, I headed into the living room.
And the sight that welcomed me filled me with warmth.
Corvus was curled up on the loveseat with Mercy. Clearly, our pittie had taken a liking to our boy, which just further proved Corvus was meant to be ours because she didn’t warm up to just anyone. And this talk would help put us in the right direction, so we could keep Corvus.
I took a seat in the recliner then pulled up my feet to sit cross-legged.
“Food will be here in about thirty minutes, so let’s go ahead and knock this out,” I said then took a sip of my coffee.
“All business,” Corvus muttered, tucking his face into Mercy’s fur. She lolled her tongue out and pushed her head back against his, making him laugh softly.
“Don’t be a brat, chibi,” Kip warned. “Brats get punishments.”
Corvus’s cheeks darkened a little.
“Sorry, Daddy,” he mumbled, tightening his arms around Mercy.
Kip smiled softly at him, and I knew hearing Corvus call him that immediately eliminated punishment thoughts. “All’s forgiven.” He looked at me. “You want to start, or do you want me to take the reins on this one?”
I inclined my head to him. “You can start,” I said. He was better at this than I was. “But take it easy on him. He said talks make him feel sick.”
Corvus refused to look at us, but Kip nodded, showing me he understood and would take this easy on Corvus. He was officially our boy, after all, and I had a feeling this talk—laying out rules, expectations, and punishments—would give Corvus the freedom he’d sought for so long.
And I couldn’t wait to give that to him.