Page 18 of Warm and Dry

“You ready to go home, baby?” I went to his left side and gently helped him up to his feet.

His breath hitched and he nodded, clearly overwhelmed by everything. “Yes, Da—” He stopped and looked away. “I’m ready.”

My eyes locked on him as I filled in that unspoken Daddy. He almost said it on his own and in a moment of vulnerability. That was good enough for now. If he ever trusted me to be his Daddy, I’d take that honor seriously and never let him down. But until then, I’d take whatever hints of affection I could get. “Let’s go.”

I put him in my car and then ran back to the pharmacy to pick up his meds. It was a short regimen of antibiotics and painkillers that I planned to closely monitor. When I got back, I buckled him in and went around to the driver's side so I could take him home.

He was half-curled up on the seat, facing me. "I’m at 1700 Miller Drive."

"We can swing by to pick up whatever you need, but I’d like you to stay at my place for a few days."

He lifted his head off the headrest and looked at me. “You do?”

I put my hand on his knee and squeezed. “I do.” As soon as I got the car started, I turned back to him. “Is that okay?”

He nodded and smiled as his eyes drifted shut. “Yeah, okay.”

A few minutes before we got to his place, he put his left hand over mine and didn't say anything. I turned mine over so our fingers could interlock on his leg.

I walked him up to his apartment and helped him pack a bag of comfy clothes and toiletries. “You’ll need to take a few days off work.”

He was holding his work boots when he stopped and looked at me. “I do?”

“The painkillers will make you drowsy. You only need those for three days, so if you take the rest of the week off, you should be fine by Monday.”

He glanced at his hand and scoffed. “I guess I can’t get much done with this thing anyway.”

“I’m sure your boss will understand.”

He put his work boots back in his closet. “Yeah, they’ll just be glad my injury didn’t happen on the clock. A few days will be fine.”

A few days with Forest all to myself sounded better than fine. It sounded amazing. “What can I help with?”

He didn’t pack much, so we were heading to my place after taking some perishables out of his fridge and dropping them into the dumpster on the way out.

As soon as I got him into my apartment, I helped him out of his practice gear and into a pair of sweats and a clean t-shirt.

“I really should shower first.” He lifted his arm and took a whiff of his pit. “Obviously.”

I leaned into his armpit and took a deep breath. “I think you smell delicious.” I kissed the inside of his bicep and pulled back. “But you’re swaying on your feet, baby. How ‘bout a nap first and then a shower when you’re a little more alert.”

He grinned and let me get him settled on my bed. His hand was elevated on a pillow, and he was leaning against the headboard. “This is nice.”

Once he was comfortable, I went to get him water and the first round of pills. "Take these." I handed him the pills and watched him wash them down with water.

“Thanks.” He looked floaty, like he was a few seconds away from passing out.

I stretched out beside him, and Forest immediately shifted toward me, leaning into my side.

Just when I thought he was asleep, he sighed. "I hate that I can't play."

"I know, baby." I rubbed his arm, holding him close to me. “I’m sorry.”

"It’s dumb to be so upset over a rec league but⁠—"

"It isn’t dumb. It matters to you. Hard stop." I ran my fingers through his hair, massaging his scalp as I did. "You don't have to qualify your feelings."

He was quiet for a moment. "Kowalski's gonna be so annoying about this."