Chapter 25
Twenty-Five
Hawk’s mom cheated at Boggle.
Helene was a really neat lady. She had gorgeous eyes that lit up with sweet laughter, the lines around them showing that she did it all the time.
Her voice was low and melodious and filled with French that Caleb only half understood.
She clearly loved Hawk and her husband, and she was incredibly kind to Caleb.
But she cheated at Boggle.
“That is not an English word,” Caleb complained.
Helene went for innocent, her eyebrows up, her eyes wide. “Really? Sometimes I get confused. We Quebecois having trouble with staying in English sometimes.”
“Mom,” Hawk warned, “Behave yourself.”
Hawk’s dad, David, just shook his head, his expression sorrowful. “She doesn’t know how. She never has. How many years has it been? She doesn’t behave.”
“Well-behaved women don’t make history,” Helene said. “I think I won that round.”
Caleb shook his head, going for a sorrowful expression. “You cheated, Helene.”
Helene stared at David. “Are you going to let him talk to me like that?”
David’s lips curved in a fond smile. “Absolutely.”
God, these people were nice. And funny, and Caleb felt guilty for liking them more than he did his own parents.
Hawk seemed kind of unhinged with happiness actually. His face was constantly split in a smile, and he kept ordering food and cooking food and coming up with games for them to play together and just essentially acting as if he were the happiest man in the world.
Caleb felt cool with that. He figured this was like their trial run from being public together. If they could just be casual and on the record with Hawk’s parents, then they could start doing it with acquaintances and strangers. Randomly touching each other in public and shit.
The warm glow that caused in his chest should panic him, but it didn’t. Caleb wanted Hawk to be his. All the time, in all ways. It was probably way too deep for a guy like him, but he thought maybe he’d fallen for Hawk that first day in Korea, and now he was getting his chance to lean into that.
“Anybody need anything while I’m up?” Hawk rose from where he was sprawled on the floor by the coffee table. “I’m gonna grab a drink.”
Caleb admired the long length of Hawk’s body and the flex and pull of muscles under his tight performance tee. “I would take a drink, like a Sprite or something.”
“You got it, baby.” The casual use of baby in front of Hawk’s parents made Caleb’s cheeks heat. With pleasure though, not with anything weird.
They waited for Hawk to come back before they reset the Boggle board and turned the timer again.
Hawk’s mom still cheated.
By dinner his cheeks hurt from smiling so much and Hawk was humming as he moved around the kitchen, creating some sort of stir fry, he thought.
The guy worked out like he was still a hockey player, and for the most part he ate like he was one too, despite their forays into pizza and the occasional fast food. Caleb appreciated it because he knew he would prefer to keep his own body in good shape. It would help with the RA, if nothing else.
“How’s your foot babe?” Hawk glanced at him when he sat on a bar stool at the pass through to the kitchen, his foot propped up on another stool.
“Good. It feels really good. I think I’ll totally be able to get out of this little boot next week and wear slippers and stuff and only have to wear the post-out bootie when I go out in public.
” The X-rays looked great, and he thought he’d healed well considering he had been controlling his inflammation and everything seemed to be working out.
“Good deal.” Hawk glanced out to where his mom and dad were sitting on the couch, leaning on each other, talking quietly. “They really like you. So do I. In fact, I more than like you, Caleb.”
That silvery gaze locked with his, and there was a whole wealth of information there, an entire realm of emotion that Caleb could barely fathom. It made his heart beat faster.
“I more than like you. Like I said before, I’m falling for you. Actually, I think I’ve fallen pretty hard. I’m just not sure—”
“We don’t have to say words or make promises or anything, Caleb, but I’m glad.”
Hawk reached over and put a hand over his for a second, squeezing before going to the stove where the wok was heating up and tossing in a bunch of veg.
Caleb sat with that feeling for a long moment because he wasn’t certain what to do with it but in his heart he knew what to call this.
It had to be love.
He’d expected, if he ever felt that way, to experience more panic, to freak out about losing his independence or his autonomy or whatever.
Becoming part of a we had always seemed counterproductive, thanks to his parents.
Maybe worse than that, maybe damaging, the way his father sort of had gotten subsumed by his mom; it seemed like it was a bad thing to become part of a couple.
But now he knew about things like support and having each other’s backs and spending time together and having someone to share things with.
He’s been alone most of his adult life. In fact, pretty much all of it up until now, and he realized he didn’t want to be alone anymore. Specifically he wanted to be with Hawk.
So he took a deep breath and stood, hobbling over to wrap his arms around Hawk’s waist from behind, his cheek against the Hawk’s back between his shoulder blades. “I love you.”
Hawk immediately turned off the stove before turning around and grabbing around the waist. “Oh, thank God. I love you too, baby.”
Caleb pinched Hawk’s nipple through his shirt. “Were you ever gonna tell me?”
“Ow, hey! I was being patient.” Hawk bent down to kiss him, a lingering contact, making him hum. “I kept worrying that it was too soon, and I didn’t want to fuck up and tell you and have you freak out.”
“I’m not gonna freak out.” He was going to revel in it, in fact.
“So does this mean you’re going to move in permanently?”
His heart raced, and he reached up to the cup Hawk’s cheek in his hand. “Do you want me to?”
“Hell, yes. Why waste time running back and forth to a soulless condo in Vail when you could be here with me or in Idaho Springs or wherever? You could even travel with me when I have to.”
“Sure, as long as I can get into an online school until I have to do hands-on training or whatever.” He had talked to Hawk about doing physio work, but he had never actually made concrete plans.
“So you’re going to go back to school and do the sports trainer stuff?”
“I think so. I really love that idea.” Things seemed to be falling into place, and it kind of scared him, but it also made him incredibly proud and happy.
“Then that’s what we’ll do.”
“Do I need to come in there and cook supper?” Helen called.
“I think you might. We’re having a moment,” Hawk yelled back.
“I love moments!”
Caleb broke down into hard laughter because Helene and David were such amazing people, and he already adored them. He felt like he now possessed more family than he’d ever had in his life.
“Come on then, you can have a moment with us.” Caleb wasn’t about to deny her this. Seeing her son in love had to be amazing; at least he hoped so.
Helene and David both appeared in the kitchen and Hawk pulled them into a group hug, which felt stunning to him, making his eyes prickle with a little bit of wet happiness.
Caleb knew what he wanted to do with the rest of his life now, and he would do anything he had to do to stay on his feet when they landed.
This time he didn’t think it would break anything though.