AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“He doesn’t mind, though. I think he’d be here even more if he had the availability.”
“That doesn’t surprise me at all. Wyatt’s a good man. One of the best.”
I wasn’t surprised by the warmth I heard in my friend’s voice. The first time I’d introduced the two men, they’d immediately bonded over their deep devotion to me and my happiness. If anything, now I had to worry about them ganging up on me. I couldn’t even count how many times Greg had threatened to call and tell my Daddy on me since we’d moved in together. It was ridiculous but wonderful having my two favorite men—the most important people in my life—get along so well.
Just as I was about to answer, Greg said, “Oh, sorry, Cass. They’re finally waving me in, so I gotta go. See you soon.”
I looked at my phone when I realized he’d hung up on me without giving me a chance to reply. That was weird. Since Wyatt hadn’t returned yet, and I’d really only come to collect my stuff while I waited on Greg’s call, I decided to go to the kitchen and see if my Daddy was ready to go. It had been a pretty great session, where several of us had actually recalled and talked about some of our happier memories with our loved ones, and I wanted to go home and pull out a couple of the photo albums that I’d kept hidden in the bottom of the closet at home and share them with Wyatt. He said things like that made him feel closer to me, and I wanted him to know all of me.
As I pushed to my feet, Chance came running into my office, waving me toward him. “Oh my gosh. You’ve got to see this. Come on, come on, come on.” He bounced on the balls of his feet.
“What?” I asked, rounding the corner of my desk. I’d always found Chance’s antics endlessly amusing, but he had also become one of my closest friends. It had been weird asking him to come into my office, not for me to be his therapist, but to pepper him with questions about having a Daddy and being a boy. Originally, I hadn’t taken Boss’ suggestion to go to Chance seriously, but Boss had been right. Chance and I actually had more in common than I thought, and we’d really forged a deep friendship.
He grabbed my hand, tugged me out of my office, and pulled me down the hall. He was doing some sort of skip-run thing, so all I could do was stumble along being him. “Where are we going? What’s happening?”
Chance bypassed the side entrance to the kitchen we usually used and headed right for the doors of the main dining hall. It was the end of the meal serving time, so I was surprised by the lack of noise coming from the room. Chance stopped suddenly, yanked me up next to his side, and shoved me through the door. On the other side, I skidded to a halt, blinking, as people began applauding and calling out. What the…
My confused gaze immediately found Wyatt, who smiled happily, the skin around his eyes crinkling as he made his way toward me. Chance appeared next to me and pointed up to a big banner hanging on the far wall. Happy Anniversary, Cass!
My eyes widened, and Wyatt scooped me up in his strong arms, hugging me into a tight embrace. “I’m so proud of you, baby boy.”
“What?” Pulling back from Wyatt, I glanced around, seeing many of the faces that I passed in the halls of the Outreach or who came to me for counseling or helped with one of the programs I’d instituted, then met his sparkling eyes. “I don’t understand, Daddy.” Greg appeared on my other side, grinning widely. “What are you doing here?”
He patted my back. “Did you think I’d miss a party celebrating you?”
“Me? Why?” I practically shrieked.
“Because,” Boss said, coming around from behind Wyatt. “You have been a tremendous asset to our community here. We pay you a quarter of what you could be making, but you’re here every day, giving your all.” He smiled gently. “I wanted to do something special for your anniversary with us, and your Daddy thought gathering the family that you’ve become a part of together would be the best way to do that.”
I blinked back the tears that threatened to spill from my eyes. “I can’t believe you all did this. I’m not doing anything more or less than anyone else.”
Daddy moved back into my space, cupping my cheeks with his big palms. “Maybe not, but I wanted you to see how important you are to the people in this room. There may not be a whole lot of fine dining nights or theater, but there’s a lot of healing and love in this room, and you’ve become a big part of that, baby boy.”
This man understood me so well. All of my insecurities and doubts, and what really mattered to me. My position here was more than just a job—it had become a way of life. Working at the Outreach meant everything to me. I’d come to help people heal, and in the process, I’d healed and grown, and if that wasn’t enough, I’d found love again. “I love you, Daddy.”
“And I, you, baby boy. More than words can say.” So he sealed it with a kiss.
Epilogue
Wyatt
* * *
The lock clicked into place as I closed the door behind me as I shoved my fingers through my hair. Work never got easier, but being able to come home to Cass was worth busting my ass to get out of the squad room. I removed my suit jacket and tossed it over the back of the couch, and started to work my tie loose. I heard the muffled sound of dishes clanging in the sink coming from the kitchen, and I followed it.
When I reached the entryway, I simply stopped and leaned my shoulder against the doorframe. My boy had his back to me. He wore a pair of my pajama bottoms that hung on his trim hips. We’d celebrated two anniversaries already. Each year was better than the last. I pulled my tie off and shoved it in the pocket of my suit pants. After my divorce, I’d made work my life. But now, I had Cass and the time I spent at the Outreach.
I could dedicate more time, but as stressful as my job was, I wasn’t quite ready to retire yet. On days when I had a particularly hard day, it was made better by just coming home. Cass never complained about the late nights or the wrangling I had to do with my officers and detectives. He had every right to, though.
Lightening my steps, I eased across the kitchen until I could wrap my arms around my boy’s waist and tugged him tight against my chest.
“Hey, Daddy. I thought you’d miss bedtime.” He spun in my arms and twined his around my neck, making drops of water hit the back of my shirt.
“I snuck out before anyone saw me.” I rubbed up and down his back, savoring the softness of his skin under my rougher hands. “Did you have a good day? Sorry I wasn’t there for your meeting.”
“Don’t even try it.” He gave me the sweetest smile, and I leaned in to brush my lips across it. “I’m around a lot of cops. I know the routine, and you never lied about your hours. We’re good. You do look tired, though. Did you have dinner?”
“Yeah, just something quick while I had a chance. I don’t want to talk about my shitty day. Tell me about yours.”
