Chapter 21
JACE
I still hear One Piece coming from Gerry’s room when my phone starts ringing from the small room where I had moved most of my things.
Gently, I extract myself from Ash’s koala grip to race naked up the hallway to try and catch it before it goes to voicemail.
I hate voicemails. People never leave the information you need and ask you to call them back for a thirty second message that should have been in the fucking voicemail.
Of course, it stops ringing the moment I make it to the doorway of the room.
Thankfully, it starts to ring again. Picking up the device, I see that it is the same client I had overheard talking to Justice at the club months back.
Thank God it isn’t Bradley calling about the trip to urgent care last night.
While I am glad that social services takes safety more seriously than they seemed to when they sent me back to my mother, I can almost sympathize with her if she was living with anxiety like this over every call.
It doesn’t excuse her behaviors, but I can understand the increased stress factor, at least.
“Hey, Fred,” I answer the call barely above a whisper, not knowing how loud is too loud for being in a room sharing a wall next to where Gerry is sleeping. “Gimme a sec to get to the kitchen for some coffee.”
He chuckles and I smile at the sound of a toddler babbling on his end of the call.
“Cas is still sleeping, too. That sleep sack you recommended for the sensory play has really helped him overcome some of the hurdles the asshole put in our way…. Yes, Baby Girl. Dada was so good for Papa last night that we’re letting him sleep in and take the day off. ”
More babbles and gibberish fill the silence as I pop one of my store brand arabica breakfast blend pods into the Keurig to brew.
I got a box of the fancy name brand pods that Ash likes right after I moved in here, just in case he wanted to stop over, so I pull that out of the cupboard for him when he gets up.
Fuck… Last night was amazing. My throat is still a little sore from the way he abused it by fucking my face with abandon. I would not trade a second of last night for anything in the fucking universe.
“Anyways. The reason for my call.”
Fred’s voice pulls me out of my reminiscing of the night before, and I adjust myself in the boxers.
“Cas says he is ready to at least sit down and discuss a custom piece, but with the renovation of the library, he is getting overrun with work. Is there any chance you would be able to swing by the office? My best admin is out on maternity leave, and the temp is just…” A high pitched squeal followed by a grunt interrupts him before he laughs. “Yes, Ivy. That about sums up Joyce.”
The sound of the television from Gerry’s room cuts off as I take a sip of my coffee, and I realize there is a complication to any possible design discussions.
“I’ll have to see if Ash is up to going out today,” I explain with a smile for my little brother whose hair looks like he stuck his finger in a light socket.
While he shuffles to his seat at the table, I get out a bowl and hold up two different boxes of cereal.
I am not surprised when he chooses the one with the marshmallows.
Fred asks, “What does Ash have to do with going to talk to Cas?” as I set breakfast down in front of Gerry. I forgot Fred only really knows of Ash as another bartender at the club.
“I’ve got custody of my little brother now and design discussions aren’t exactly kid appropriate. They’ve been helping me out by watching him while I work.”
Luckily for me, Gerry is too focused on seeking out every marshmallow to really listen in on my conversation.
“Just leave the kid with Ash,” Fred says in a bit of a singsong voice. Like he’s got room to talk to me about leaving a kid behind while he’s cooing and being all lovey-dovey with his boyfriend’s daughter.
“Ash hurt his arm yesterday and is on meds where he shouldn’t be driving,” I say as the person of the hour shuffles stiffly into the room with a yawn.
I can’t help but chuckle at the sight. They’re another one with a massive case of bedhead, but to me it just looks adorable.
“They can sit with Gerry in the lobby or something if they’re up to going out, but I can’t just leave them at home with Gerry without knowing if someone else is around. ”
Especially if Ash is going to act like they did last night with every pill of the Dilaudid they take.
I thoroughly enjoyed being their toy, being so thoroughly dominated while not feeling at all like I was being treated as less of a man.
The world will burn if someone else gets to experience that just because of a medication side effect.
“Well, shit. Tell Ash I hope they feel better. And yeah, I get it. Just shoot me a text when you have an answer so that I can let Cas know.”
Ash is looking at me with confusion after noticing his fancy brand of coffee on the counter. Call me a coward, but I use Fred’s request as a scapegoat to get out of explaining the coffee.
“I know the doc did say you should rest as much as possible, but do you think you’ll be up for a trip to a contracting company office this afternoon? I have to talk to a client about the custom design work and…”
Gerry looks up from his cereal, still half asleep, but he’s paying attention to the grownups in the room now.
Ash takes a few moments to come to the realization of why I am asking and the way the tips of their ears and cheeks turn red is absolutely adorable.
They nod after a glance at Gerry and pops a pod of their coffee into the machine.
Now, I just have to get through this morning without traumatizing neither my little brother nor the person I’m starting to think I might be falling for.