They’d just fitted him for his prosthesis, which had involved taking a cast of his leg, and once the wound was healed enough, he’d be able to start using it. I wasn’t sure how they’d get him used to it, but I’d imagine he’d have to build up to walking on it full time, but I could be wrong. All I knew was he didn’t want to talk about it and just wanted to get home from the rehabilitation place he’d been moved into last week.
I’d also finally told my family about my books, deciding that doing on our family chat was the easiest way. To say they’d been shocked was an understatement, but now I had more people to bounce ideas off of. I’d made them promise not to read them, but I had no doubt Mom and Mawmaw would already have bought them. I was trying not to cringe at the thought of them reading the sex scenes and knowing I’d written them. Gah!
Sitting on the grass with Bub, I watched as he motored around, plucking daisies and chasing Wrecker, who’d grown a crazy amount when we’d been away. While Carrie’s parents had been in Arlington, he’d gone to stay with one of her brothers who had a golden retriever. My boy had learned some tricks from his new buddy, and Toby loved the heck out of them shaking paws.
“Tana!” he yelled, looking at me like I should be doing something.
This was something new that he’d started doing just two days ago, saying my name properly. I doubted I’d ever get sick of hearing it from him.
“What, Bub? Did I forget to do something?”
Changing directions, he crawled toward me, and when long legs appeared on either side of my body, I realized why he was moving so quickly.
Remy had just fit his front to my back and wrapped his arms around my waist when Toby reached us.
“Dada!”
“Hey, Bub. You behaving?”
Toby lunged up and grabbed his daddy’s forearms, using them to get to his feet.
Then, looking like a drunk person, he let go and took a step toward where Wrecker was now lying on his back with the sun hitting him directly on his belly.
“Ker! Aw, aw!”
One teetering, unbalanced step after the other, he made his way over to the large puppy before losing his balance and landing on his diapered butt. I felt Remy stiffen behind me, but then Toby threw his head back and began giggling, and his daddy relaxed instantly.
“That dog will be sick of giving his paw soon.”
I shook my head, smiling as Wrecker rolled onto his stomach before sitting upright and dutifully holding out his paw for Toby to shake.
“I doubt it. He loves the attention your boy gives him.”
“Our boy,” he amended, fiddling with my fingers and then linking them together with his own.
Releasing a shaky breath, I tilted my head back to look at him, taking in his strong jawline, smooth lips, and the straight nose with his Ray-Bans perched on the bridge. The description could fit anyone, but the reality of the person they belonged to was enough to steal my breath every time I saw him.
Books, movies, and cartoons were excellent at portraying love, but none of them could do it in a way that made it hard to breathe. Not like the real life version of Remy did to me.
“Our boy,” I whispered, smiling when he leaned down and skimmed his lips over mine before lifting his head and watching his son again.
The protective side of him would never go away, and now it was extended toward me, too. I hadn’t understood it when I’d been on the outside watching him be like that with Bub, but now that I was on the receiving end of it and felt the same way, I got it. If you could stop someone you loved from ever feeling even an ounce of pain, you’d go to the ends of the earth to make it happen.
“Odette called,” he told me as I turned back to watch Toby and Wrecker. “She’s helping Croix with the shit he’s doing at the rehab center. Your parents were allowed to take him out on Saturday for a meal, and she went with them.”
I blinked, shocked by the news. “I spoke to him this morning, and he never mentioned it.”
“Probably because she also had to convince him he needed to stick it out at the center. He wanted to go back to his apartment and figure it all out on his own, but as always, my sister showed him the error of his ways. He might have mixed feelings about being there still and not want to talk about it.”
Chewing on my lip, I pondered the situation with Croix. “Do you think he’ll move into the house here when he’s able to?”