Chapter Twenty-Two
For a moment, Dean didn’t know how to react. Then he remembered his manners. “Come in.” He stood aside to let Robin’s dad enter, then closed the door after him. “Would you like to take off your coat?”
“That depends.” Mr. Davis looked him in the eye. “On how long I’m staying.”
“How about long enough to drink a cup of coffee?” Dean was determined to be civilized. Robin’s relationship with his parents was at stake here.
Mr. Davis nodded. “That sounds good.” He shrugged off his coat, and Dean hung it on a hook. He glanced at Mr. Davis’s snow-covered boots, and seconds later they stood on the mat beneath the coat hooks.
Dean pointed to the living room. “Go on in. And I hope you like cats, because you’re about to be investigated.”
“Yeah, I like cats.” He frowned. “Is Robin in there?”
“He’s taking a nap in his room.”
Mr. Davis’s eyes widened. “His room?”
Dean shrugged. “It’s his for as long as he needs it.”
“No, I meant—”
“Yes, I know what you meant,” Dean interjected. “And if you’re here to talk about him, I really think he should hear this, don’t you?” He didn’t break eye contact.
Mr. Davis regarded him steadily. “Can I have my coffee first? We’ll let him sleep a little longer.”
Dean got the message. Mr. Davis wanted to talk ‘man-to-man’.
Fine. He could do that.
“Take a seat and get warm. I’ll be in with the coffee.” Then he left Mr. Davis in the hallway, and went into the kitchen to make coffee. He leaned against the countertop, his stomach clenched. What the fuck do I say to him?
Dean did not want to screw this up.
He set up the machine, his mind racing. By the time the coffee had finished brewing, he’d come up with—and dismissed—several different possibilities for starting the conversation. But as he placed two cups on a tray, along with the coffee pot, Dean realized he had this all the wrong way round.
Robin’s dad had to be the one to get this particular ball rolling.
Dean carried the tray into the living room, not surprised to find Lady stepping delicately into Mr. Davis’s lap. “You’ll take cuddles from anyone who has a pulse, won’t you, Lady?”
Mr. Davis stroked her back. “She’s gorgeous.”
Okay, that thawed Dean a little. “Watch out for your ankles. Loki may be small but he’s mighty.”
Mr. Davis peered at the kitten, who was already approaching in stealth mode. “Loki by name, Loki by nature?” He reached down and scritched Loki under the chin.
“You’d better believe it.” Dean set the tray down on the coffee table. “How do you take yours?”
“Black, thank you.”
Dean poured him a cup, then put it on the side table near him. He poured himself some, then took a seat in the armchair.
“I like your tree.”
Dean glanced at it. “Robin helped me pick it out. He chose it. Then he helped decorate it.” He cleared his throat. “I’m Dean, by the way.”
“I’m Mike.” He sipped his coffee. “This is good.”
Dean had had all the small talk he could take. “You didn’t come here to compliment me on my decorations or my coffee. So why don’t we talk about what’s really on your mind?”
“Right to the point. I like that.” Mike took another sip, then set the cup down. He took a breath. “Last night my wife decided it was time for some ‘plain speaking’ as she put it. What she actually said was that I needed to pull my head out of my ass.”
Dean already liked Robin’s mom a whole lot. “Yeah, that sounds a lot like ‘plain speaking’ to me.”
“Then my son Ryan got in on the act. He didn’t pull any punches either. And I couldn’t rebuke him for it, because he nailed it. They both did.” Mike swallowed, then reached for his coffee.
Dean waited, his stomach tight.
“This is an awkward situation, all right? When I had it out with Robin the other night, I said a few things that have since come back to haunt me.”
“Such as?”
Mike sighed. “My wife—Petra—reminded me of something my father-in-law said, the night she brought me home to meet her parents.” He put down his cup.
“I don’t know how much Robin has told you about our family, but…
She was eighteen when we met, and I was twenty-six.
Her dad wasn’t too happy about that. He yelled at her, and I thought at the time that I’d never forget his words.
” He swallowed again. “Apparently I did.”
“What did he say?”
Mike stroked Lady, avoiding Dean’s gaze. “She told him she loved me, and he hollered, ‘You’re eighteen! What do you know about love?’”
Dean cocked his head. “Let me guess. You said the same thing to Robin Sunday night.”
Mike nodded. “Okay, I got it wrong. I forgot I’d ever been Robin’s age.
I forgot how… deeply you feel things when your heart is all caught up, and your emotions are all over the place.
” He expelled a long breath. “It took my wife and son to bring it all back to me. But that doesn’t mean I’m happy about this situation.
Can you blame me? I think any dad would have reacted the same way. ”
“Like your father-in-law did,” Dean observed, and Mike winced. Dean put his cup down and leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees, hands clasped between them. “Look… maybe I should speak plainly too. I didn’t intend to fall in love with your son.”
Mike blinked. “I… I see.”
“I had all kinds of misgivings about starting down this road. And I threw every objection at him that I could think of.”
“Robin said he did all the running.”
Dean bit back a smile. “Your son can be very determined when he sets his sights on something. But in the end, the difference in our ages didn’t matter anymore.
I know it seems enormous now, but the age gap isn’t as static as you might think.
Wait till he’s twenty and I’m thirty-four.
Or better yet, when he’s thirty, and I’m forty-four.
I could go on, but I think you get the picture.
” Dean sighed. “I know it’s a cliché—the older guy falling for the younger man—but hey, that’s how it is. ”
Mike cleared his throat. “The main thing I’m taking away from this, is that you don’t see this relationship as short-term. You’re talking like—”
“Like Robin and I are going to be together for many years to come?” Dean smiled.
“I’m not naive enough to suggest that. There are no absolutes in life.
Shit happens. People fall in and out of love.
You and I both know that, right?” He took a deep breath.
“But that’s not going to stop me from hoping. ”
Mike stared at him, and Dean hoped to God he’d gotten through.
“Maybe I should be a little more… open-minded,” Mike said at last. “Maybe I should give you the same benefit of the doubt my father-in-law gave me.”
“And how long did it take him to come around?”
Mike lowered his gaze, focusing on Lady as he stroked her gently.
“He was hardassed about it at first. He told Petra she couldn’t see me anymore—exactly like I did with Robin.
That didn’t stop us, of course. We were in love.
Pet said her dad flew off the handle easily, but he usually came around once he’d had time to stew about things. ” Mike chuckled. “Sounds familiar.”
“So he did come around eventually?”
“Yeah—once I’d showed him I treasured his baby almost as much as he did. And starting up my own business was my way of proving to him I could provide for her. Maybe him riding me so hard was what pushed me to do that. Mind you, it took almost a year before he gave in, grudgingly.”
Dean’s mind went to Robin. “Your son is fiercely independent. I think we both realize that. I’ll take care of him—if he’ll let me.”
Mike chuckled. “Yeah, he’s a lot like his mom.
She’s not afraid to speak her mind and let me know when I’m wrong.
And after nearly twenty years of marriage, I find admitting I’m wrong works wonders—in moderation,” he added, raising his head, his eyes twinkling.
Then he sighed. “In the end, all my father-in-law wanted was for Petra to be happy, and she was—with me. And that’s all I want for Robin—to be happy.
” He studied Dean. “Robin says he loves you. You say you love him. Maybe for now that’s enough. ”
“What’s enough?” Robin stood in the doorway, his hair in its usual tousled state. He stared at Mike. “Hey, Dad. How long have you been here?”
“Long enough to come to a decision.” Mike gently put Lady on the seat beside him, then got to his feet and walked over to where Robin stood.
“Come home for dinner this evening?” When Robin opened his mouth to respond, Mike got in first. “And… bring Dean with you.” He turned to face Dean. “That’s if you’ll come.”
Dean smiled. “I’ll be there, you can count on that.”
Robin’s eyes were huge. “Really?”
Mike nodded. “I think it’s time we got to know each other a little better, don’t you?”
Robin’s chest heaved. “You mean that?”
“I do. So now I’ll leave you alone. Besides, I need to go home and tell your mom to set another place at the table.”
Dean walked across to Mike, his hand extended. Mike contemplated it for a second, before giving it a firm shake. “I’m glad you came over.”
Mike chuckled as he relinquished Dean’s hand.
“I had little choice in the matter, believe me. I had Petra and Ryan giving me grief. Now maybe I’ll get to enjoy my Christmas in peace.
” He gazed at Robin. “But before I go…” He laid his hand on Robin’s shoulder.
“I guess it’s a hard thing for any father to accept his kids have grown up.
I trust you with so much where the business is concerned.
I tell folks how mature you are. Maybe I should start meaning what I say, and trust you now. ”
Dean’s throat tightened as Robin hugged his dad. Way to go, Santa. Dean didn’t believe for a second that he and Mike were suddenly bosom buddies, but it was a start.
Dean and Robin stood at the front door, waving as Mike got into his car and drove off. Dean closed the door, and a second later, Robin leaped into his arms.
“Did that just happen?”