Trask stares after them, then turns to me. “He’sdead.”
I laugh deep and genuinely. “Told you. Mischievous as hell.”
Trask shakes his head, but there’s a grin tugging at his mouth. “Lucky he’s cute. That cough was straight-up sabotage. The boy is begging for a paddling.”
“Probably,” I say, still chuckling. “But good luck catching him.”
Trask downs the last of his beer in one go, sets the glass down hard. “Challenge accepted.”
I watch as Trask marches off after them with his long strides and a determined pace. I watch him disappear into the crowd, Robbie’s bright laugh echoing somewhere ahead but nowhere to be seen.Yet.
I stay put. Lean back against the wall near the dartboard. Sip my beer slow.
The tavern noise washes over me… music, voices, clinking glasses, the occasional cheer from the pool table. I’ve been here a thousand times. It’s not like this is new. Far from it, in fact. But…
Tonight it feels different.
Because my boy is here, laughing with his best friend. Teasing. Playing. Fitting into this place—myplace—like he’s always belonged.
I picture it: nights like this every week. Him beside me in the booth. Robbie and Trask bickering over darts or pool or whatever trouble they can find. Racer sprawled under the table. Maybe a kid someday—ours—running around with toy darts, begging for quarters.
A future.
Real. Solid. Forever.
My chest tightens. But it’s a good tight. The right kinda tight.
No more waiting.
No more maybe.
The next good opportunity, I’m telling him.
Everything.
That I’m in love with him.
That I want him here, permanently.
That he’s my Forever Little, my partner, my everything.
And whatever he decides—city or woods, fast life or quiet—I’m all in.
I drain the last of my beer, set the glass down.
Across the room, I catch a flash of my boy—red-cheeked, laughing, Robbie dragging him toward the jukebox. He glances back, finds me in the crowd, and smiles.
That smile.
Yeah.
That’s the one.
I push off the wall.
It’s time to go claim my boy.
Chapter 15