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“No trouble, my lord. Mr MacLove told me when he was expecting Mr Flint as he departed. Would you like some breakfast?”
“Is Ashley awake?”
“Not yet.” Karl checked his watch. “But if last night was anything like yesterday, Davy has probably had him up several times.”
Dorian clapped him on the shoulder. “Go see to your boys. I’m sure Karl will sort me out.”
“Of course, Mr Marsten.”
“I’d prefer Dorian, but if you have to give me a full name, then it’s Mr Forbes from now on.”
Ben hurried away. If Davy had given Ashley another restless night then he’d need to shoulder the weight for the day and let Ashley have some downtime. Neither of them had been prepared for how much upheaval a baby would bring. He’d expected some change, but not his life turning upside down, and he was embarrassed by his own naivety.
Their rooms were dark as he entered, and he was as quiet as possible when he tiptoed into their bedroom. Davy was still in with them, his cot against the far wall, the plan was to move him into his nursery in a few months once he was sleeping for longer. Ben peered into the crib, his heart melting as he saw his son asleep, amazing how angelic the little bugger appeared when he wasn’t screaming his head off.
He stripped down to his boxers and slid into bed. Ashley mumbled in his sleep and snuggled backwards as Ben curled around him, happy to be home, there was no place better than in his own bed with his husband. Dorian might have many millions in the bank, and the world gazing at him with adoring eyes but Ben wouldn’t swap what he had for even a minute.
* * *
The wail woke him up. Ben sat bolt up and Ashley groaned.
“I’ll get him.”
“Ben?” Ashley muttered. “You’re home.”
He checked his watch to discover he’d been asleep less than twenty minutes, no wonder he was groggy. Davy’s cries buried deep into his subconscious and wouldn’t be ignored. With difficulty, Ben got out of bed and padded over to Davy’s cot. The smell told him the problem. “What has Daddy been feeding you, stinky?”
His initial attempts at changing nappies had been poor, no awful, and Mrs Weather had stepped in with a doll borrowed from the Woman’s Institute to teach him what to do. He’d been extremely grateful, as had Ashley, who had been a lot better at the practical side of this parenting lark than Ben and had been picking up most of the rubbish jobs. Ben dealt with his least pleasant duty of fatherhood and tried to put Davy back in his cot. He wasn’t having any of it—at least his lungs were healthy.
“Probably hungry,” Ashley said as he sat up. Ben’s heart skipped a beat at the sight of his husband, bleary eyed, hair all over the place, but unquestionably Ben’s.
“Lie back down, I can make a bottle.”
They kept the magic machine in their bedroom and it had become one of the most important pieces of equipment in the hall since it could make and prep a bottle in moments. Armed with one of the few things that would soothe the savage beast, he scooped Davy up and returned to bed, Ashley snuggling closer as Ben settled down to feed his son.
The warm weight of Davy in his arms, and his quiet suckles, made this one of his favourite things. He’d never minded babies, but before meeting Ashley, he’d come to the conclusion that children wouldn’t be on the cards for him and instead he’d be a doting, but not that involved, uncle. How life had changed.
“Glad you’re home,” Ashley mumbled. “We missed you.”
“Sorry, it’s turned into such a shitstorm. But up until the press broke the story it was good, and you were right that having me there in the middle stopped some issues.”
“You in middle being a metaphysical term. At least these days.”
Ben chuckled, Davy scowled for a moment, fussed then went back to his bottle. “Yes, of course. There’s no interest between Robin and Dorian anymore, well at least from Robin’s side and, I think, Dorian’s but I haven’t had the chance to probe that.”
“At least Simon won’t need to worry. Although it’s not Dorian he’s hung up on. God, I’m glad I’ve got you and not one of your useless mates as a husband.”
“I’m taking that with a level of praise that I don’t think you intended.”
Ashley sent him a withering look. “I love you enough to put up with the pratishness and poshness, don’t push it.”
“I am eternally grateful for your devotion.”
“So Dorian and Robin are all right?”
“Robin will be once he’s reconnected to Simon. He had a panic attack thinking Simon might leave him.”
Ashley snorted. “Simon won’t leave him over this, but Robin does need to start making the right noises about their future. But what about Dorian, did he stay in New York?”
