Chapter 14
FOURTEEN
DYLAN
While the bath ran, I pulled out the Tylenol, then a soft pair of pj’s.
I carried out the tasks methodically, focusing on making sure that when Cass arrived with Mikey, I could take over and look after the both of them.
Concentrating on them helped keep my anger in check.
Prevented me from stewing over Nolan and going over and over in my head what a nasty piece of shit he was.
Taking a steady breath, I went back to the bathroom, throwing in a few bubbles. Not that I expected Mikey to play, but the lavender scent would hopefully calm him a little, too, and help him settle.
Sleep would help him heal.
The front door opening and closing caught my attention. The sound of footsteps on the staircase followed, and Cass appeared in the open bathroom doorway.
A tentative smile sat on his lips as he eyed me carefully.
“I’m okay.”
He didn’t need to ask me; I knew he was concerned. Cass was smart enough to have read what went down with Nolan.
He bobbed his head and stepped farther into the room. “Okay. You still good to bathe Mikey?”
“Yeah, of course.” I took Mikey from him and frowned at the pink in his cheeks. “When did he start getting hot?”
“He was fine all morning. We went to the playground, and there was no sign of him being ill. Raced around like the Road Runner. He hit his wall and fell asleep as soon as he was in the carrier, and then he woke up ill.”
I winced, imagining just how rotten that was for the both of them. The stench coming from the plastic bag I’d shoved in the outside trash told me how bad it had been.
“These shorts?” I already had an idea of what else had gone down.
“Yeah, Kelsey saw what happened, gave me what I needed to clean up, and those.”
I nodded. From what I knew about Kelsey, she was a kind, good woman. A good mom. This confirmed it even more, helping Mikey and Cass out like that. The fuck she was still doing with Nolan, though, just brought me to new levels of frustration.
Not that I didn’t recognize that leaving was a hard choice. Hell, an impossible choice sometimes. Domestic violence was a hell of a thing.
It had only taken the first year on the job for all the bullshit, preconceived ideas of “surely the victim can just leave” to fly out the window. Experience had told me there was nothing easy or straightforward about DV incidents.
“That was kind of her.”
I just hoped the next time I saw her, she wouldn’t be wearing a bruise for her kindness. It wasn’t even like I could do a welfare check without just cause. Those only made things worse for her.
Though the next time I saw Nolan’s pickup outside his preferred bar, which would likely be in a few hours, it would be safe to stop by to check in.
“It was. Said we’d let the kids have a playdate.”
My frown was immediate.
“That not okay?”
I sighed and turned the faucet off. Aware little ears could be listening, I said, “Let’s chat later, yeah?”
“Sure.”
Worried eyes took me in. They also had me moving into his space and drawing him into a gentle hug, Mikey sandwiched between us.
The dot of a kiss to my neck did the trick of smoothing out the tension between my shoulder blades. My pulse shot high, though.
“I was worried about Mikey,” I said, pulling away, “but I knew he was in the best possible hands.”
My words hit their mark as Cass swallowed hard and emotion settled in his gaze. And I felt it. Lived it and breathed it. Cass and Mikey meant everything to me.
“But finding the two of you how I did….” I shook my head, absorbing the heat of Cassius’s hand that had found its way to my forearm.
Truthfully, I’d seen red when I’d pulled up to Nolan around the two most important people in my life. No good would ever come from them in the same breathing space as the abusive bastard.
“We’re okay too.” Cass squeezed my arm, not needing me to finish my sentence.
I nodded. “I know.”
“Right.” Cass stepped away. “It’s time to get cleaned up. Holler if you need me.”
I watched him go before turning my full attention to my boy, who was worryingly quiet in my arms. A quick check and I was surprised he was still awake.
“Come on, Mikey. Let’s get you some medicine and cleaned up.”
It didn’t take long to bathe Mikey, but he wasn’t having any of it when I tried to put him to bed, despite clearly needing to sleep.
His temperature was elevated but not worryingly high. So that was something.
It meant I lay on my bed, Mikey cuddled up at my side by the time Cass stepped out of the en suite in nothing more than a towel around his waist.
Surprise flooded his features as he took us in, his gaze softening when he saw Mikey fighting sleep at my side. I focused on his reaction rather than the trail of water dripping down his chiseled chest.
“Let me just put some boxers on and I’ll take over.”
His ability to read the situation and what Mikey needed made my heart squeeze. The throb of my heart changed dramatically and traveled south when he turned and dropped his towel to tug on a pair of boxers, revealing a luscious ass that I had no right to be mesmerized by.
Fuck. Why the hell was Cassius getting to me like this?
And now? After all these years?
And it wasn’t just when I saw his delectable ass either. This was so much more than thinking he was hot. But that didn’t stop my dick thickening at the expanse of perfect, dark skin on display.
I partially blamed my sister for her not so stealthily putting ideas into my head in that damn letter of hers.
My stare jerked north when he turned, revealing his sizable package.
The asshole smirked, all knowingly and shit.
I narrowed my eyes at him, Mikey still awake next to me preventing me from telling him to fuck off.
A twitch of his lips, and then he peered at Mikey. “How’s he doing?”
“Tired but fighting it.” I trailed my fingers through Mikey’s hair. “He’s had five milliliters of Tylenol. If you give him another dose at five o’clock, that’d be great. Hopefully I’ll be home on time tonight.”
By the time I finished speaking, Cass was on the mattress beside Mikey.
“And he’s okay if he sleeps? I don’t need to wake him?” Concern colored his words as he maneuvered Mikey to his side. I smiled, happy Mikey went willingly.
“If he’s unwell, he’ll sleep as long as he needs. I’m not making promises that tonight will be great for any of us.” I tilted my lips up.
“We’ll be fine.”
There was no doubt in my mind that they would. It made me feel a little like an asshole when I said, “There may be more explosions.”
The wince was immediate, but Cass bobbed his head. “I kind of figured.”
“You going to be okay?”
In truth, I was so fucking proud of Cass and how he’d handled the whole mishap. Explosions were the worst at the best of times, but out in public and with no backup, well, that was a nightmare. Add in Cass’s struggles, and I was legit proud of him.
Determination formed on his features. A confident nod followed. “Absolutely.”
Warmth wrapped around me. While it was a sensation I was used to when being with Mikey and Cassius, there was a stark difference that threatened to have me unraveling.
For the first time since being a dad, I didn’t feel like I was going this alone.
Needing to leave before I quite possibly lost it as I examined those feelings more closely, I eased off the bed. With my focus on pulling my service belt on, I took a cleansing breath.
I totally had this.
Familiar deep brown eyes filled with questions stared back at me when I peered at Cass. This was something I couldn’t unpack right now. So with a smile and a wink, I said goodbye and got my ass out of there and back on duty.
Sometimes I had second thoughts about the wisdom of moving back to the small town I grew up in. Last week’s bullshit with Nolan was just one of several reasons for the doubt.
As were the couple of run-ins I’d had with him since the altercation by the softball grounds.
The world was full of assholes like Nolan. I was sure there were several just like him in every town. Small-town living came with its own kind of challenges, though. Not escaping scrutiny was one of several.
It would take just one question for someone to discover where I lived. Who my child was. Who my husband was. There was a semblance of safety in that, being in a largely supportive community, though.
Folks around here tended to look after their own. While I’d left town for a few years, that I’d come back had been enough for me to be brought back into the fold.
With the exception of assholes like Nolan.
In truth, me being a cop remained at the center of his hatred. His mistrust.
That I was a gay cop simply fed that disgust.
That I was a dad to a biracial kid and the more recent development of me being married to a Black man, hell, I was surprised his head hadn’t exploded with hatred overload.
That would have been paperwork I would have happily given up an evening filling in.
But today, at the playground with the picnic table covered with balloons and a bunch of toddlers racing around, playing and celebrating Mikey’s third birthday, it reminded me why I’d chosen to come home.
“Dylan, honey, do you want to attempt to gather the kids for a photo?”
I peered over at Mama T and smiled. She lived for this stuff, totally in her element hosting and keeping friends and family—ones who I’d chosen rather than blood—happy and their sodas topped up.
That and every other loop around the park, Mikey would hug her legs hard before giggling and racing away.
“I sure can. Not sure my odds are great, though.” I chuckled as Cassius picked up Mikey and Tahlia—one under each of his arms—and pretended to be an ogre as he tried to capture the rest of the kids. “You’re best off asking that growly son of yours. He seems to have it handled.”
And like his mom, Cass lapped this up—playtime with Mikey. Not only that, he was amazing with him, stepping into parenting Mikey in a way that shouldn’t have surprised me.