Page 73 of The Intimacy of Control

Absolutely fucking crushed.

“Can we get out now? I, uh. I’m not sure how much longer I can handle it.”

I started to help pull him up. “Yeah, sweetie. You did really, really good. Let me get you dried off.”

“Thanks.”

I helped him out and unplugged the drain. We hadn’t even used the jets, but maybe one day he’d use the ones in my bathtub at home. Baby steps.

Grabbing a towel, I started to dry him off, going over his shoulders and chest first. His hair was starting to dry already, so I didn’t bother with it. When our eyes locked again, I thought back to Mamá and River and how I’d cried to River about how much I was going to miss them. The way Jack looked at me like I’d hung the moon for him. “When we get back, will you join me, Mamá, and River for dinner? I want you to meet them. Officially.”

He froze for a second, staring at me blankly. I started to wonder if I’d done something wrong at first, but then his lips turned up in a smile. “Yeah. Yeah, I’d love to. Do you think you’d be willing to meet Callum and Tobi officially? I know Tobi still feels awful about what happened.”

“Absolutely. I want to meet everyone important to you. But Tobi doesn’t need to feel bad. I know he was trying to protect you.”

“He’s a good guy. He’s been through a lot. Like, a lot.” He shook his head. “He and Callum both have. I’m really fucking proud and happy about how far they’ve come.”

“I don’t doubt that for a second. I’d love to meet them and all of your other friends, too. I hear about them through Riv, but just snippets. They sound like a solid group of people.”

He smiled. “They are. They really, really are. I didn’t realize that becoming friends with Callum meant I’d inherit all these awesome people as friends, but I’m seriously thankful.”

I wrapped the towel around him, pulling him into a hug. Resting my chin on top of his head, I couldn’t help but thank the universe for making all of this possible. “I’m thankful you have them, too. I’m thankful I found you.”

“Me fucking too. I’m getting tired. Can we cuddle?”

“You never have to ask. Let’s go.”

The bed was huge, too, but that didn’t matter. We found the center of it, curling into each other immediately. With Jack in my arms, I found a home I didn’t realize I’d been missing. Funny how that worked. We never knew what we needed until we had it, and we never knew what we missed until we didn’t.

Jack’s breathing evened out within ten minutes of being in my arms. He didn’t stir. He didn’t twitch. He fell asleep and stayed that way with his face pressed into my chest, right where he belonged. It seemed I’d taken his nightmares again.

chapter twenty-five

It’d been a mostly peaceful couple of weeks. Forrest and I had spent time settling into our new normal, which was proving less difficult for me than I’d expected. There were a few things I struggled with, especially if I thought too hard about everything, but I could handle it. For the most part.

When I got overwhelmed, all I had to do was find Forrest, and he made it all okay again. He took my breath away, reminded me how much I loved him, how much he loved me, and why this was worth it. God, being with him was worth the whole planet and more.

I slid my phone into my pocket and flopped onto the comfy couch, curling up into Forrest’s side. “They should be here any minute.”

Forrest pulled me further against him, wrapping his arm around my back. “Okay. Do you think they’ll like me?”

“They’ll love you because I do. I think having them come here was a good idea. It’ll probably be easier for Tobi.”

“I hope so.”

“Don’t worry too much.” I leaned up, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “This’ll be good for all of us.”

We’d decided to have Callum and Tobi meet us at Pride and Pages while it was closed. It was still light outside, but it wasn’t by much. The sun would be setting soon, and the moon would take over for all the city lights.

There was a knock at the door, signaling their arrival. “I’ll let them in. You just sit here and look pretty.” I patted Forrest’s thigh.

“I can do that.”

“You can. Very well, might I add.”

He smiled. “You flatter me.”

I made my way to the door, unlocking it before opening it. Callum was the first to slide inside, a big grin on his face. “It’s been a minute.”