He could keep them busy while Early talked with his parents. Board games, cards…
Okay, their Switches. Or Benadryl.
“You’re not alone, honey.”
“No.” Early kissed his jaw. “Not since I picked up this guy at a little dive bar.”
“I’ve never set foot in a dive bar. I’m way too classy.” It had definitely been a dive bar. But he’d never admitted it before, so why start now?
“Mmhmm. Dive bar. Neon lights. Scary bathroom. Shots of tequila.”
“Tequila and neon, sure. I don’t believe I used the bathroom. A sports bar maybe.” He flirted, playing Early’s game.
“There was a TV, I think…and a piece of shit pool table.”
“The hottest man on earth was playing pool.” And losing, but the table had been warped and the felt was bunched up near one of the side pockets. It’d looked like a neglected mini-golf course. He hadn’t cared if Early had won or lost, he’d just been watching.
“Eh, I saw you, and it was over. I never saw another man.” Early said the words like they were simply a fact, just something that was an unalienable truth.
“Doesn’t make it a dive bar.” He took a kiss and brought the last of the dishes into the kitchen.
“Dive. Deep dive. Like one of them submarines.”
Connor laughed. He couldn’t help it. “That’s a new one. I like it.”
Early bowed deeply. “Well, thank you, sir. I worked hard for it.”
They loaded the dishwasher, moving around each other easily. Early should have gone up to bed, but he didn’t go, he waited and helped until everything was done, and the house was locked up and quiet. Maybe his man just didn’t want to be alone. He could understand that.
“You sure you don’t want to shower while I tuck the boys in?”
“Join me after?” Early still looked a little shell-shocked, stressed out, with red-rimmed eyes and tight lips.
“Yeah. I’m all yours tonight. Promise.” He gave Early another kiss, wondering how Early had hidden this so well from him until dinner and marveling how quickly his husband was falling apart now that that burden was off his shoulders. “I won’t be long.” He followed Early up the stairs toward the kids and the bedroom.
“Sounds good to me.” Early tugged his shirt up and off as he walked. “Y’all sleep good, boys. I love you.”
“Night, Daddy!” Jayden called, while Jaxon’s greeting was totally muffled. Possibly because Jayden was trying to smother him with a pillow.
He could see Early’s shoulders slumping as he disappeared into the bedroom.
2
Early grabbed the phone as soon as it lit up. He’d turned off the sound so it wouldn’t wake anyone, and god knew he hadn’t been sleeping, so he saw it immediately and slipped from the bed and down the stairs to answer his dad. “Hey, old man. It over?”
There was a hefty sigh, and then his dad said, “Yes, thank god. He didn’t go easy, but when the good lord came for him, he had a look of peace on him. I’ll take it.”
“I’m sorry. This sucks.”
“Me too, but it was time. He was lost in his own mind, and he was scared. It was no way to go.”
“No, sir. When you need me to come?”
“Can you come out by this weekend? We’ll bury him Monday, I imagine. I’ve already spoken to Jacob, and he’s going to do the service for us at the church. All the details were dealt with before Rick got too sick to make them.”
He nodded, making notes on the notebook that lived in the little basket with cards and keys and change. “We’ll be there. I’ll grab a hotel room for the kids.”
“Just stay at Rick’s, son. It’s clean, and Momma says she’ll buy y’all a bill of groceries.” Pop sounded so goddamn tired. “It’ll be a hard week, yessir.”