Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-Four
“ H ey, buddy. Welcome back.”
“Hey, Kase.” Brooks gave Kase a smile, even though worry was riding him like a prize pony. He needed to get to Coop.
“You get all your shit sorted?”
He hefted his bag, grunted. “I did. I didn’t check anything. The straws will be coming by courier.”
Kase shook his hand and man-hugged him. “Well, let’s get you to the hospital.”
“Sounds good. Who has the kids?” They got out to the truck, and he settled in so they could hit the road.
Kase glanced at him as they headed out of the airport. “Ryder took them to the ranch. Watson is helping keep an eye on everyone.”
“Good. Good.” Jesus, he should have been there. He would have taken Coop in to the hospital long before he fell over, dammit.
“You want to talk about it?”
He shook his head, but his mouth opened and words started falling out. “I’m so fucking scared, man. ”
“Yeah. He’s gonna be okay.”
“He has to be. I have a lot of things to tell him.”
“You got a lot to deal with, too,” Kase said knowingly.
“Lord, don’t even get me started.” It was safer to talk about the shit with the kids.
“You mad at Ricky?”
“No. Yes. No.” He sighed, knowing that he was conflicted as hell, but also knowing it felt like a reasonable response.
“I’m disappointed for Ricky; this wasn’t the smartest thing to do.
I’m trying really hard not to be mad because I was a horny teenager, and the only reason I didn’t get some girl pregnant was I wasn’t screwing girls. ”
“Yeah, and from what I understand, your brother?—”
“Do not talk ill about the dead.” He stuck one finger up and waggled it, chuckling. “Don’t do it, man.”
“So what’s the plan? I know that Ryder is talking to her family.”
Brooks kind of winced. “I guess better him than Coop.”
Coop was horrified to think anyone—anyone—would turn their backs on a child.
“I think that is a reasonable response. Ryder will be calm, cool. Possibly icy, and he will get signed whatever it is that Coop wanted him to get signed. No question.”
“Yeah?”
Kase nodded and rolled his shoulders. “Coop’s pretty damn hot.”
He wanted to ask if Coop was mad at him, but he kind of knew the answer to that question. “I wasn’t screwing around out there. He wouldn’t give me my money.”
“I don’t think Coop thinks you were out there being an ass.
Coop’s not a horse guy. You know that. I mean, he knows how to keep them fed, but he’s not fond, not like you, not even like that little girl.
” Kase shook his head, moving them faster, the miles getting eaten up.
“And then? Well, it’s been a few days. Johnny’s ended up at the home school with us for now, Mason is still suspended, and Mina’s wetting the bed again.
They’re just—they’re not ready for anything else to change and having all this happen has been a nightmare. ”
“You’re absolutely right. I didn’t… I thought I’d be gone a week, and I’m going to apologize, and I’m going to make it right, and I’m going to take whatever licks Coop decides I need.” No matter what. He was going to make it up to his lover.
“Buddy, Coop just wants you home so you can make dinner and let him sit for a minute and get well.”
“God, I want that too. I want to be home with my people and my horses. I want to sit down and talk to Ricky and Bella and find out what their damn plans are because they’re going to have to raise a baby.
And I want to know that they have the sense God gave a goat between the two of them.
” All of this would happen. Coop would make it, and he would get well, and…
“Yeah, otherwise Coop could be raising an infant.”
He shook his head. “Nope.” He’d thought about this the entire flight home. “We’ll be grandparents; that’s fine.”
Even though that was terrifying beyond all reason and it kind of made him want to throw up.
“But we are not raising another baby. We’re being a family and helping out.”
Kase’s shoulders shook as he fought his laugh. “You just grasp onto that, man. You just keep holding that rein, see what happens.”
“Kase. I love you dearly, but if you don’t shut up, I’m gonna beat you to death with your own tongue.”
“Yes, sir. Driving. I’m just driving the truck.”
“Thanks.” He glanced over, his fingers sliding over the seatbelt, the dash, his worry about Coop riding him hard. “Why is Johnny in homeschool? ”
“There was a pretty big fight on the playground. Johnny got his butt handed to him, and then Mason lost it. Johnny was having meltdowns at the idea of going back, and Coop was overwhelmed, so Benji asked if he could start taking classes with Watson, at least until you came home.” Kase put on the radio.
“You doze or sing, buddy. Or ask me about my kids.”
“Okay. How are your kids?” he teased.
They chatted for a bit, and he closed his eyes, but it wasn’t a long enough drive to the hospital for him to sleep. He thought.
“Hey, we’re here, Brooks,” he said when they got to the big hospital.
“Shit. Thanks. Thanks, man.” He sat up, ready to hit the ground running.
“Do you need me to bring anything?”
“Not from here. My bag is full of presents. All my clothes except my hat and boots are coming with the courier. I didn’t travel too heavy anyway. I have stuff for Dani and Nell, too. And a T-shirt for Elijah, since he’s too cool for weird tchotchkes now.”
“Oh, did you get him some kind of Bondi thing like yours?”
“I did. At the airport.” He chuckled. Airports always had shit from all over the place, not just the local economy.
“He loves that rescue show. Watches it on YouTube.”
“Go me, then.” He winked. “Thanks for coming, Kase. Are you gonna head back home?”
“Not now. I’ve got us a room over at the Spring Hill. It ain’t far. Give me your sizes and I’ll grab you some clothes for the next couple of days. Coop’s in a private room.” Kase rattled off the number.
“Thanks, Kase. Seriously.”
“His folks are with him. Just be aware.”
“Gotcha.”
He hustled into the hospital, stopping at the desk to find out how to get to Coop’s room. He needed to see his lover’s face. Needed to know he was still here. Brooks was damn near desperate at this point.
He ran upstairs and buzzed the nurse’s office. “Hello, this is Brooks Whitehead. I’m here for Cooper Adams.”
“Are you family?”
“Yes ma’am, we have six kids together.” That was family, all the way.
“Let me buzz you in.”
He walked in and headed around this long corridor until he found the nurse’s office, and he stopped short because he thought for sure he saw Coop standing right there. He looked a little older, sure, and a little taller, but not by much. It was kind of unsettling, and he stopped short. “Oh… I?—”
“Brooks.” Coop’s dad held one hand out. “Dallas Adams. Amanda is in there with Coop. Glad to finally meet you in person. He’s in there. He’s gonna be okay. It’s just going to be a tough row for a little bit. They had to go clean him out again. Inside, I mean. There was some ruptured goo.”
“I hate that ruptured goo.” He tried to joke, but failed miserably. “I swear to God, I’m gonna have that horse put down.”
“Oh now, that would make Cooper cross. In fact, he said to tell you that he loved you, and he didn’t want you to have the horse put down. He was just being a horse.”
Brooks was going to lose it. He was going to burst into tears all over this man. He was so fucking tired and so stressed out. “I need to see Coop now.”
He didn’t wait for an answer. He just walked into the room, nodding once to Coop’s momma, who was sitting there playing on her phone. “Ma’am.”
All he could really see was Coop—pale and drawn and frowning, hooked up to all these machines. That was all he wanted to see. Hell, it was all he intended to see right now. “Hey, babe, I’m here. I got here as soon as I could. You stubborn old son of a bitch. No offense, ma’am.”
“None taken.” She looked up from her phone. “When I do take offense, you’ll know, and trust me, you’re going to get an earful about leaving him for so long with those kids.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Momma, be nice.” Coop sounded like he’d deep-throated a corn cob. “Brooks didn’t know he was gonna be gone so long.”
“And I didn’t know that you were going to get up close and personal with horses. You gonna be okay?” Brooks asked.
“It’s going to be fine. Just tired. I actually feel better. I ain’t got a spleen no more though. Don’t know what I needed it for.”
“Well, obviously if they took it out you didn’t need it too bad,” Coop’s momma snapped. “I’m going to go get a cup of coffee with your daddy. I’ll be back.” She gave Brooks the stink eye and walked out.
Oh. He was in trouble, he could tell.
“Yeah, she’s pissed. Sucks to be you.” Coop shifted in the sheets and groaned a little bit. “You’re home.”
“I’m home.”
“Good. Kids need you there. Me too.”
Right now, Coop needed him more. The kids were fine. They had Ryder, they had Wat, they had Benji.
“Benji’s at home with them for a couple of days before he flies back out.”
“Oh, good.” He sat in the chair and grabbed Coop’s hand, the one without all the IV stuff. “God, babe. I’m so?—”
“Nope. You didn’t do this. Now, you leave me and go gallivanting off to Australia again? Then we’ll have words.”
“No way. If I go back, you and the kids will come with me. ”
“You get your straws?”
“They’re coming by courier next week. You’ll like him. He’ll stay and help out, I bet. Just to see what he can see.”
“Help is good as long as he’s not after your ass.”
“God no.” That made him laugh. “No. My ass is yours.”
“Mmmm. And me too laid up to do dick-all about it.” Coop grimaced. “Don’t make me laugh, honey.”
“I’ll try not to.” But he was relieved that Coop did feel like laughing.
“I got to sleep a little, honey. Stay with me?”
“I will. As soon as I go pee and get a cup of coffee and maybe a doughnut. Your dad is outside. I’ll spell him in ten, okay?”
“Okay…” Coop trailed off, slipping into sleep between one breath and another.