Mike didn’t bother to pretend he didn’t know what JP was talking about.“Tired and wigged out.”
“I had nowhere else to go.”
“Ian said this is your home, so you belong here.”Mike got him into the bathroom.“I told him to get you a hotel.”
“He’s a better man than you.”His chou was a fine man.Of course Ian wasn’t his chou anymore, was he?That had ended when he’d gotten traded to Florida, and Ian had stayed here with the babies.
“He is.He’s your husband and is raising your babies, I guess, so that’s something.”
Except he didn’t think any of this was his anymore, was it?Man, he was so fucked.
His leg, his career, his marriage, just fucked.
“So, it actually looks pretty damn good.You just need to stay off it for a while, okay?”Mike helped him get undressed and cleaned up.“I’m going to call your former team and tell them to hire me as your day nurse, or we’ll go public.You need help beyond what Ian can give you alone.”
“Talk to my agent.He’s working on getting me the rest of my contract.And he’s pretty sure he can get me a settlement from the team we were playing.He says the league’ll pony up to keep things quiet.And yeah?It looks okay?It feels like hell.”
Mike looked at him, straight on.“It looks like it’s supposed to.That’s great.And does Ian have all the numbers?He’s making mac and cheese for supper, by the way.The kids are excited.”
Mike was still ADHD boy.The good thing was the man was charming as hell, and a good, good friend.
“He has Dan’s number – that’s my agent.He’s always had it.”So that Ian always had a way to contact him if he had to.
“Good deal.Let’s get you in bed and propped up and your dressings changed.You can tell me what you loved about Florida, and I’ll tell you about my house.I bought about five minutes from here.”
“Five minutes?Couldn’t find a place next door?”
“No.That fucking bitch Alison bought it.She’s a chef at La Tous.She’s insufferable.Ian adores her.”
“Seriously?You almost bought the place next door?”That was crazy.He closed his eyes and took a deep breath as his leg was jostled and sent pain radiating up through him.
“Almost, but she wanted it.”Finally Michael stopped moving him.“Comfy now?”
“No.”Everything fucking hurt.“But I imagine I won’t be for a while.”They’d had to rebuild the freaking bones in his leg.
“Well, you shouldn’t have sharp pains, nothing agonizing.If you do, we need to get you to a surgeon.Are you hungry?Thirsty?Want to meet your children?”
“You care what order I answer those in?”he demanded, closing his eyes.His children.He didn’t recognize them.They’d been little babies he’d held in his arms when he left.
“Uh…not if all the answers are yes.”
Fucker.
“They started screaming and crying when they saw me, Mike.”Like he was some monster.
Mike rolled his eyes.“Let me tell you about your son.He cries at the tip of a hat.At a loud sound.At the threat of a loud sound.Your daughter is a screamer.She will tell you what for and protect her ‘brudder’.”
He frowned.“It sounds like you don’t like them very much.”
Michael blinked.“Are you kidding?They are the most amazing humans on the planet.Peter is so kind, so nurturing.He wants to have babies like Daddy.Victoria is fearless.She’s already on the ice.She loves her family fiercely, and God help you if you make her brudder cry.”
That was better.“That’s not what you said the first time,” he pointed out.“And yes.To all three, by the way.”God help him.
“I’ll have Ian come in with them after their baths.You want more ginger ale?”
“Please.Cold?”The last glass had gone pretty quickly.His dislike of warm pop was only surpassed by his dislike of flat pop.
“You know it.You want to try some mac and cheese?It’s homemade.”
