I heldmy breath as Calvin stared up at my hands, eyes shiny. This was one'a those moments—the ones where I could go all sappy on her and risk her runnin', or I could go for the joke. Lighten the mood. Deflect feelings for another time—or, never.
I swallowed hard and tried for a middle ground. "It's just some Tylenol and a Gatorade, viper. No big thing."
She bobbed her head a few times before takin' the pills and the drink, downing both. I sat at the edge of the bed and watched her. When she finally pulled the bottle away from her lips, a lone tear snuck out and slid down her cheek.
She wiped it away quickly and scoffed. "Must be 'bout to start my period or something." She laughed a little, but it was brittle.
I cocked my head to the side. "Maybe," I hedged. "Or, maybe you haven't had anyone takin' care'a you in a real long time, and it feels kinda nice now, yeah?"
"Yeah." She met my eyes, and hers looked almost pained as she nodded again. "Maybe."
I took the Gatorade from her hand, capped it, and set it on the floor.
"What if we try to go back to sleep for a bit? It's still early," I said, layin' down and scoopin' her into my chest. "I can fuck your tits later."
Calvin choked out a laugh, even if it was a little watery.
"You got a deal, boy scout."
CHAPTERTHIRTY-FOUR
We napped,and when I woke up a few hours later, Brody was gone. So, there was no titty fucking either, which was a damn shame.
It was fine. I was fine. I didn'tneedto wake up with him.
But it was nice.
Seemed everything was goddamnnicethese days.
Gag.
The way I'd ignored my bladder earlier came back to bite me in the ass, because I damn near pissed my… skin tryin' to get to the bathroom. Tripped over Cat curled up in a sheet we must have ditched sometime during our nap.
She clearly didn't like her bed.
Or, maybe, it would grow on her.
Like mold.
I sat on the toilet, smiling like a damn fool. Couldn't remember the last time I smiled so much. Or laughed. Or just simplyrelaxed.
It was real, real nice.
A shower had me feeling marginally more human, which was about all I could ask for given the state of things.
I toweled off, pulled on clothes, and padded downstairs to find Cat sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor, staring at me like I was already late.
"Good morning to you, too," I said.
She meowed once and walked to herPrincessbowl.
I fed her, then stood at the counter drinking the coffee Brody had left—still warm, which meant he hadn't been gone long—while she ate with the single-minded devotion of a creature who had never once questioned whether she deserved good things. Just assumed it. Showed up and expected to be fed and held and loved and took it as her due when she was.
I watched her and thought that was probably the healthiest psychology I'd ever encountered.
When she finished, she sat back, licked one paw with great dignity, and looked at me.
I crouched down and she walked straight into my hands, purring before I'd even gotten a proper grip. I sat there on the kitchen floor for a minute, just holding her against my chest, her small warm weight settling into me the way it always did—like she'd decided I was hers and that was simply that. No negotiation required.
