Then Sky turned himself and leaned forward to grab the walker, sort of launching himself out of the Jeep.
“Whoa!” He caught Sky under the arms, trying to soften the landing. “Are you nuts? Wait for me next time!” Maybe he shouldn’t have shouted, but Jesus Christ. They’d just gotten home. That wasn’t a good start.
Sky opened his mouth, and Beck steeled himself for a fight, but Sky shut it before anything popped out. When he did talk, what came out was, “Sorry, man. Thought I could grab it. Can you please get my bag?”
“Yeah.” He reached for it, tugging it out of the back and hoisting it over one shoulder. “I’m sorry. You scared me.”
“No worries. Thanks for putting up the ramp. It’ll be down soon, I promise.” Sky started moving, each step looking like it was agony. Beck thought it was likeThe Little Mermaidwith each step feeling like knives. God, what a thought, the cowboy mermaid.
He followed close behind the way Kevin showed him, trying to act like he wasn’t nervous about it. “I’m not in a hurry. I want you to be as independent as possible. That’s important, I get it.” Beckett snorted, shaking his head at himself. “Despite having just panicked and shouted at you.”
“No worries.” Did Sky even know he was saying that? Beck doubted it. “You ain’t the first or the last to do that, I bet.”
“Doesn’t make me right.” He resolved never to do it again.
He put a hand on Sky’s shoulder as they reached the top of the ramp. “You want to sit a second? It’s a nice porch. Great view.” Sky might rather go right inside, but it was a nice afternoon.
“I do, but Walter’s in there, and I haven’t got to see him.” Sky grinned, the look sheepish, embarrassed. “I know he’s just a cat, but he’s my cat and I love him.”
“I get it. I’d give a lot to have Bailey back. Let’s get you inside.”
He stepped around Sky and went to the front door, propping it open. “Don’t you come running out, Walter.”
Walter looked at Sky and started making this terrible, mournful noise, almost a howl, and Sky rolled his eyes.
“I know. I know. I suck. I was hurt.” Sky sat on the walker and opened his arms, waiting for Walter to maul him.
Walter launched into his lap and rubbed all over Sky, chatting and purring.
“Mhm. Totally ignoring you.” He closed the door. “I’m going to put your bag in your room.”
“Hey, you. I know. I know. I missed you so bad. My best traveling partner. I got stomped like nothing going, man, and I been sore as a boil.” Sky talked and talked, like that cat could understand him, talk back.
Of course, Walter yowled and screeched, answering his cowboy with a vengeance.
Beckett put Sky’s bag down next to the rented hospital bed and wished, again, that they could share a room. But Sky needed a bed he could get in and out of, and this room wasn’t big enough for anything larger anyway. At least Sky would have Walter.
He headed through the kitchen, listening to Walter and Sky chat at one another. “Coffee?”
“Please. Do you need help?” Sky started to put Walter down.
“I’ve got it. Unless you want to see where I keep all the stuff.” He wouldn’t say so, but he’d moved everything important to eye level or counter height so Sky would be able to reach things without reaching or bending. He’d really thought about it. Making your own coffee could be a win.
“You got a nice place. Cozy, but classy at the same time. Is your room upstairs?”
“Yeah. I mean, I’d stay down here with you but there isn’t room, and you can’t do stairs.… Kevin was pretty clear on that. So…”
So they were forced apart for a while. He wasn’t sure that was a bad thing; they had some getting to know each other again to do.
“Look. Don’t stress. You didn’t even have to let me stay here, much less worry about getting me into your room. I probably owe you six figures in trouble.”
He put the cup in his hand down on the counter carefully, then turned and looked at Sky. “Babe. You can’t keep doing that. Please.”
“Do what? I know Parker’s call messed things up for you. I want you to know I appreciate all this.”
“Stop. Stop that.” Beckett moved closer and sat on the couch so he could look at Sky. He was wound up, so he made himself breathe before he started talking. “You’re my husband, Sky. This isn’t the way I wanted you to come home, but I’m grateful to have you here and I don’t want any more apologies from you about it. This is what life threw at us, and you and I are going to have to figure it out together. You don’t owe me anything. You shouldn’t feel guilty.”
He took Sky’s hands in his. “We can’t move forward if you keep yanking us back with apologies. So if you have anything weighing on you that you haven’t said, say it, and then let’s start looking at tomorrow.”