Chapter 24
Twenty-Four
Caleb lay in bed with Hawk, tracing patterns on his chest. They were back at the condo and, he had to admit, the view there made a lot of things worth it. Even if the pizza wasn’t as good as it was in Idaho Springs.
Hawk seemed to be dozing, his chest rising and falling evenly. They’d gone to bed when they got home, letting Caleb rest after physio, letting him get over his folks just… showing up. Like they would actually help by being there. As if they had a right to after everything.
Jesus.
“Mmm.” Hawk reached up to grab his hand, yawning. “You’re getting all tense again.”
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you up.”
“No biggie.” Hawk grunted. “I need to hit the head, anyway.”
He chuckled but moved off to let Hawk go to the bathroom. Caleb grabbed his phone to scroll through simple egg recipes, wanting to make some food for him and his hero boyfriend.
Yeah, he was at the point where his socials needed to say, In a relationship, for sure.
He decided on a frittata before rolling out of bed to grab his crutches. His knee scooter was out in the main room, and he would use that to support him while he cooked.
Man, he was ready to walk again on both feet.
“Hey, where’d you go?” Hawk wandered out from the bedroom wearing a pair of boxer briefs that clung to his ass and package like a lover. “You wandered off.”
“I want food. I know it’s not breakfast time anymore, but I can handle an egg thing.” He pulled out a skillet.
“You need some help?” Moving close, Hawk kissed the back of his neck, lips warm, the touch lingering.
Goosebumps rose on his skin, making him gasp.
“You could, uh, figure out the veg situation if you want.” At this point he might cut off his fingers if he tried to chop anything.
“Sure.” Hawk moved to rummage in the fridge, handing him the egg carton before pulling out mushrooms and greens and peppers. He grabbed an onion off the counter, too.
Caleb could get used to this shit. Hawk had people, man. Like a housekeeper who stocked his kitchen when he called and asked her to.
“So when are you back at work?” Caleb asked, cracking eggs into the bowl he’d grabbed.
“Day after tomorrow, and I’ll be pretty busy.” Hawk had done some podcasting while they were in Idaho Springs, and some Zoom calls, but he had broadcasting stuff to get back to, Caleb knew.
“Life gets back to normal, huh?”
Hawk chuckled, nudging him as he set up a cutting board. “What passes for it. Uh, I do have some news though.”
Caleb glanced over, eggshell in hand. “What’s that?”
“Well, when your folks left the therapist’s, I called my mom. I needed to hear her voice, you know?” Hawk was so not looking at him.
“Sure.” He cracked another egg, checking the heat on the pan after that.
“Well, she and Dad want to meet you so, they’re coming down in two weeks for a visit.”
“Oh. Okay, wow.” He stopped cracking eggs to stare at Hawk. “Is that good?”
“I mean, yeah. Is it okay with you? She really wants to meet you.”
Caleb stood there, an egg in his hand, staring. Then he literally shook himself. “Of course, babe. It’s your folks.” And if he was terrified by the idea, that was on him.
Hawk chopped mushrooms, the knife flying in his hand. “Cool. I know she’s going to love you.”
He wasn’t so sure about that. His folks didn’t. Why would Hawk’s?
“I— yeah.” He wasn’t good at family stuff, but this seemed important to Hawk. He wouldn’t be so elaborately casual about it if it wasn’t. “I’m happy to meet them.”
“I’m glad.” Hawk came to put the veg in the hot skillet, stirring it up. He paused, then took a deep breath. “I think your dad felt bad.”
“Huh?” He bumped Hawk out of the way, since he was meant to be doing at least a little of the cooking.
“Your dad. He’s the one who got your mom to go. I think he felt bad.”
“Oh. Well, I wish he wouldn’t go along with her so much if he didn’t want to.” Not that Caleb didn’t get it. His mom was hard to say no to.
“I can see that. I just thought you might want to know.”
Caleb pondered that while the veg softened, then poured eggs into the pan. “You think I’m being too hard on them?”
“Fuck no.” Hawk wrapped around him from behind, hands on his belly. “They aren’t good for you? Then don’t deal with them. I can tell you’re really down about it.”
“Honestly?” He glanced up, begging a kiss. “I just don’t want you to think poorly of me.”
“I don’t. We all have our shit, baby. I think you’re amazing.”
He grinned, his heart lighter at the idea that Hawk really liked him as he was. “Good. Now, don’t let me burn these eggs. I have no idea what I’m doing.”
The airport felt even crazier than normal. Traffic had been a bear on the way, but Hawk had made it on time to meet his folks at the curb and not have to drive around or wait in the cell phone lot forever.
“Hawk! Oh, honey, it’s so good to see you!” His mom rushed forward to greet him, his dad wheeling two roller bags over to the curb, smiling indulgently at Mom.
Hawk caught her into a hug, lifting her clean off her feet.
She laughed, whacking his shoulder. “You put me down. Oh, it feels warm here compared to Maine.”
“It should be in the seventies today.” Early April had turned off warm in Denver, while they were still dealing with the snowstorm fallouts in Maine.
“That’s wonderful. I want to go to the zoo.” She let him hand her into the passenger seat then helped Dad with the suitcases. He got a back-pounding hug from Dad, too.
“How’s it going, son?”
“Good.” He grinned. “I put the seat up for Mom, so sit behind her.”
“Where’s Caleb?” Mom asked. “I want to meet him!”
“He’s at his final doctor appointment today for his foot. They’ll clear him to walk, I hope, though he’ll still need physio. He took a ride share, but we’re picking him up for lunch.” He got them moving, ignoring the honking and craziness from the airport drivers. “How was the trip?”
“Fine, fine,” Dad boomed from the backseat. “We had a nice breakfast at the airport, but that was a while ago.”
Mom rolled her eyes at him, the gray he got his from, her lashes insanely long and dark. “We had a breakfast sandwich at Dunkin’.”
“Ew.”
His dad made an outraged sound, but honestly, that was foul. One thing he’d learned in Colorado was the appreciation for good coffee. Coloradans loved that stuff almost as much as craft beer.
“Well, I’ll get you something great for lunch, okay?”
“ca a l'air incroyable.” She beamed at him, then proceeded to quiz him about Caleb until they pulled up at the ortho’s office half an hour later.
“Mom.” He parked, then turned off the car to turn to face her. “Be good, okay? Caleb hasn’t had the best family life, so he’s a bit skittish about meeting you guys.”
Dad snorted, the sound loud and full of humor. “Pure futility, son.”
“I have to try.” He tugged out his phone to text Caleb.
We’re here. You ready?
OMW
“Let me get in the back. I know he’ll probably still be very sore and want to stretch out his legs.” Mom patted his shoulder.
“Oh, but—” He sighed, because she hopped out and moved to sit in the back with his dad, and Hawk rolled his eyes before getting out to wait for Caleb, leaning on the SUV to watch for him.
When Caleb came out, he was carrying his crutches, but still wearing a small air boot, which made Hawk frown.
“So you’re not cleared yet?” He asked when Caleb got back to the SUV, helping him layer his crutches in the back over the suitcases.
“Oh, I’m in the clear, but he wants me to ease into wearing regular shoes. I’m supposed to wear the boot for another week or two, depending on where my pain level is at and that kind of stuff.” Caleb snorted. “I think he’s afraid I’ll start snowboarding again or something.”
“That’s my man, jumping off mountains.” He got Caleb settled, then slipped into the driver’s seat before making the introductions. “Caleb, this is my mom and dad, Helene and David Montineau. Mom, Dad, this is Caleb.”
“Bonjour, Caleb.” His mom reached forward and put a hand on Caleb’s shoulder. “So nice to meet you. Hawk says we’re going to lunch, so I actually get to look at you face-to-face. You’re going to have to sign an autograph for me, you know.”
“Mom’s fangirling.” Hawk tried not to roll his eyes, keeping his voice monotone.
“I’d be happy to sign anything you want, including your son,” Caleb said, his wicked sideways glance made Hawk hoot.
“Oh, I like him already.” Mom sounded so pleased, and he could see her smiling at him in the rearview mirror.
He took them to a Mexican place for lunch, the one where they did the diving off the fake cliff. The food there wasn’t anything avant-garde, but it was fun and cheesy, and his mom thought it was hilarious.
She was relentless, chatting with Caleb, while he and his dad sort of just sat there and quietly ate chips and salsa.
“So tell me how it feels to win a gold medal, since my son never did.”
“Ouch, way to check me right into the boards, Mom. High stick to the back of the head, ba-bang!”
Caleb gave him a bright grin. “I love her. Can I have her?”
“Only part-time. Dad and I need her the rest of the month.”
God, he loved this. Hawk had never once imagined introducing somebody to his parents, but Caleb felt so much different than anyone else he’d ever met. He wanted his mom and dad to know him and to like him because Hawk was planning on keeping Caleb around.
Even his dad, who Hawk kind of took after as far as being awkward, opened up and started laughing and talking with Caleb, and it amazed him always how Caleb put people at ease. He was just so laid back and happy and easy to be around.
By the time he dropped Mom and Dad off at the hotel so they could have a nap and get ready to come over to his place for dinner, they were all laughing together and just gelling perfectly.
Caleb gave him a bright grin and reached over to touch his leg once his folks were settled, and they were back in the SUV. “I really like them Hawk. Thank you for letting me meet them.”
“Thank you for being so good with them. My mom loves you. I think she’s going to adopt you and get rid of me.”
“She’s a hoot.” Caleb patted his leg before letting go to let him drive. “So not like my mom.”
“Yeah, that sucks. I’m sorry your parents are hard.”
Caleb shrugged, turning to stare out at the passenger window. “My mom’s brother was great. I miss him a lot.”
“He sponsored you, right? Like, he was the one who paid for all your snowboarding stuff.”
“I think he knew what it was like to be the weird outsider. I told you he was a downhiller, right? He was so far removed from what everyone else in my family did that he never hardly even got invited to Thanksgiving, you know?”
Hawk thought that sounded like the worst thing he could ever imagine, being ostracized, but then his family was great, so he supposed it all came down to everybody’s different experiences.
“Well, like I said my mom is willing to adopt you. You have us now.”
Caleb glanced at him, just a slice of bright green eyes that were glinting with some emotion that he couldn’t quite name. “Be careful, babe. I might hold you to that.”
“I’m counting on it, Caleb. I really am.”
That might be as close as he was willing to come to a declaration today, but he meant it. The words come along in their own time. He didn’t want Caleb to panic.