Page 69 of A Little Bit Naughty

Isaac: Sure.

Isaac sent his address, and Remi fought the urge to be a crazy stalker and use a map app to see where he lived.

Isaac: Thank you!

Isaac: Sorry for the trouble.

Remi didn’t like how that felt. It was almost too normal. Like Remi wouldn’t have done absolutely anything to make Isaac happy, and they both knew it. But he didn’t have the right to anything more.

Remi: It’s no trouble.

Remi: I’ll put them in the mail tomorrow.

Remi: Just let me know when they arrive.

Isaac: OK. ;)

Well, that was the end of that. Remi took the laundry to his bedroom, then rooted around the house for an appropriate-sized box. There were quite a few sitting in the garage from all the packages that had come in. In fact, some of them were still packed. He hadn’t had the heart to open them without Izzy there.

He opened the smallest box and discovered a package of plastic dinosaurs rattling around inside the oversized cardboard. He started to take them out… but why? They were meant for Izzy anyway.

Remi knew it would be much more fun for him to open the package with an extra surprise inside. Not to mention that the porcupine onesie was already a gift from him. He could just put in a note explaining everything. Surely that wouldn’t be too much.

Feeling a thrill of happiness for the first time in days, he tucked the clothing in with the plastic toys. There was still a bit more room in the box. So maybe just one or two more things could fit…

16

Isaac

Isaac’s phone rang just as he was walking into his apartment building. He pulled it from his pocket and then very carefully returned it without touching any of the buttons.

It was Tommy. If he even turned off the ringtone too soon, he would realize that Isaac was avoiding him.

Well, the slew of texts said that Tommy probably already knew that. But Isaac knew what he wanted to talk about, and it just felt like it was too soon. He would send a text back in a little while. Texts were much easier.

Isaac had spent the past week throwing himself into his work. When he was taking classes or working with patients, he could just immerse himself in it, his whole focus on learning techniques and connections within the human body.

It was when he was alone at home that was difficult. He’d been studying at the library. Joining his new roommate—a new guy in his program who he barely knew—for movie nights. Playing soccer with friends on his pick-up team.

He might not have been sleeping enough, but if he wasn’t in his bedroom, he didn’t have to see the suitcase full of toys and little outfits that he still hadn’t unpacked, or imagine Remi holding him at night.

Really, it was much better this way. He’d been making it just fine for years without a Daddy, and he could do it again.

He stopped by the mailroom automatically, grabbing the stack of credit card offers and a health magazine that he’d certainly never ordered but came to him monthly anyway. Just as automatically, he checked for any packages. There was one with his name.

His eyes darted to the corner. It was from Remi. And… dammit… there was a little doodle of a dinosaur next to his name.

Isaac picked it up reluctantly. If he didn’t open it, he wouldn’t have to see the porcupine onesie that Daddy had gotten for him. He wouldn’t replay their first evening together, when he slipped shyly down the stairs and Daddy made him feel so comfortable and adored. He wouldn’t have to remember how Daddy had cleaned the chocolate from his face during the silly game at the mixer, or how Daddy had been such a warm, doting presence during their first playdate.

He also wouldn’t have to remember how Daddy had woken him up from a nap in the playroom at his house and gave each of his little claws a kiss—first on his hands and then on his toes—until he was giggling with delight. He wouldn’t have to hear Daddy telling him that he and Roary and Lizzy were his three favorite dinosaurs in the whole wide world.

He wouldn’t have to…

He really shouldn’t open this package.

Remi had told him to text when it arrived, but he could do that without opening it, right?

Isaac: The box arrived.