Another man walked up. “Are you both okay?” he asked.
Maddox didn’t recognize him, but Hank looked up and sadly laughed. “Yeah. I guess we know why the driveway was cracking.”
The man chuckled. “Yeah, I guess so. I’m so sorry.” He turned to Maddox and extended his hand. “Dave Marion. I’m their landlord.”
“Ah.” They shook. “Maddox Orosco, the best friend. They’ll stay with me.”
“I’ll get your deposit back to you, and the pro-rated rent,” he assured Hank. “I’ll have to get it wired in from my escrow account, so it might not be by end-of-day tomorrow. Might be the morning after. As soon as I have it, I’ll cut you a check and bring it to you personally.”
Maddox watched as Hank numbly nodded. “Thanks.”
At least JJ had calmed somewhat, with Eliza and June also helping comfort her.
“Let’s get them over to my place,” Maddox said. He made sure everyone had his address and cell number, and after they got the gifted car seat buckled into Maddox’s car, they headed out.
Hank silently slumped against the passenger door and Maddox didn’t try to make him talk or cheer him up. The man looked like he was in shock and wore a dazed expression.
JJ fell asleep on the way there. When they arrived, Maddox parked in the front yard to leave the driveway free for everyone else. He popped the overhead garage door open for them, too. While Hank got JJ out, Maddox directed the crew, which had picked up about ten more people along the way, it looked like, on where to put everything. He had them shift stuff out of his spare bedroom, which was more an office and catch-all room, so they could put JJ’s things in there.
With everyone working quickly, Hank was able to tuck JJ back into her own bed twenty minutes later. The boxes and suitcases holding Hank’s clothes were stashed in tidy piles along the wall in Maddox’s bedroom, and everything else was either put in the dining room or in the garage.
That’s when it hit Maddox that his biggest dream was, ironically, coming true, in a way.
Just not in any way he’d ever wanted it to come true.
After everyone else left, Hank stood there in the living room, looking lost as he stared at the boxes holding the urns and pictures. It was now three a.m. and Maddox knew Hank had to be near collapse.
“I don’t even have fucking renter’s insurance,” Hank said. “I don’t have comp on the truck, either. I can’t replace my truck.”
He rested a hand on Hank’s shoulder. “You’re both safe. Seriously, that’s the most important thing to remember.”
Hank nodded.
“And you have a place to stay with me for as long as you need it. You’re family, and I love you both.”
Although Hank had no clue how much.
“I owe you,” Hank said, his voice cracking. “Dox…I owe you everything, man. I can never repay you for tonight.”
Maddox pulled him in for a hug. “You don’t owe me anything,” he said.
“Yeah, I do. Whatever you want, you’ve got it. Anything you need, you ask. Anytime.” Hank broke down crying as Maddox held him while his heart broke for Hank.
If only I knew you wouldn’t push me away, buddy.
Otherwise, Maddox knew exactly what he’d ask of his friend, and it would mean Hank would never again have to worry about keeping a roof over his or JJ’s head.
Draping an arm around Hank, Maddox led him into the bedroom. “Just like old times, right?” He tried to keep it light in tone, but he felt emotionally crushed for Hank, and over the fact that he couldn’t simply admit to him what he felt.
Hank tearfully laughed. “Yeah, just like old times. But I don’t mind sleeping on the couch.”
“It’s a king-sized bed, dude. Seriously, it’s not like we haven’t slept together before.”
He briefly considered clarifying that, then decided no, fuck it.
“True.” Hank met Maddox’s gaze. “Thank you. Again. For everything.”
“Look, Marcia already told me tonight while they were helping us for me to work from home tomorrow. She also said I can have a flexible schedule for the next couple of weeks if I need it, until you get another vehicle. I’ll drive you to work and handle getting the pumpkin to school. Then I’ll pick her up from Eliza in the afternoon, and come get you from work. Once your landlord refunds your deposit, and you get the power deposits and everything back, I’ll take you car shopping.”
Despair filled Hank’s face again. “Now I’m back to no place to live and we have even less than we had before.”
“Dude. You have a place to live—you’re living here, with me.”
“I mean…we can’t stay here forever.”
Sure you can.
But Maddox didn’t say that. Instead, he took a risk and reached up, cupping Hank’s face in his hands, and he went full Dom on him.
“You’re living here, with me,” Maddox quietly said. “That’s an order. You are setting yourself up for a heart attack at the rate you’re going and the stress you’re under. Look, I wasn’t there for you when I should’ve been. Let me be here for you now. Lean on me. Do it for me, if nothing else. Fuck it, I’m lonely. I’ll admit it. Having you two around is going to be fun.”
“But…what about dating and…stuff?”
“I’m not dating.”
“You started going to that dungeon. Didn’t you go out with someone? I thought Eliza fixed you up.”
“I have gone to Venture, but I’m not seeing anyone right now. It’s only you and JJ in my life, okay? So if you need to tell yourself you’re doing it to keep me company, then do that. All right?”
He thought Hank might argue further but he finally nodded, looking weary and exhausted to his core.
“Excellent.” Maddox pulled him in for another hug, relief twining through him.
Did it make him a shitty friend for manipulating Hank like that?
Maybe.
He didn’t fucking care. He really was worried about Hank killing himself with stress. If he had to resort to a little manipulation to get Hank to see things his way, so be it.
He set Hank up in the shower with fresh towels and stepped out, closing the door behind him.
What he really wanted to do was climb into the shower with Hank and make love to him, promise him he’d take care of him and JJ, and end up having a movie-perfect future together.
Life didn’t work that way, though.
For tonight, he’d have to graciously accept that the universe had put Hank in the same bed as him.
And hopefully maintain his patience and not rush things and scare the man off in the process.
Chapter Eleven
By the time Maddox took his own shower and returned to the bedroom, Hank was thankfully sound asleep.
Good. He needs the sleep.
Maddox stood there for a moment, staring at him, unable to believe he was really there, in his bed.
The volunteers had retrieved the majority of their belongings from the house, minus anything in the kitchen, and, of course, Hank’s truck and anything inside it. Unfortunately, the truck itself would be a total loss.
Hank didn’t have comprehensive coverage on it, and he didn’t have renter’s insurance, either. At least the truck was paid off, so no adding insult to injury and having to pay off a loan balance on a truck he couldn’t even drive now.
Maddox turned out the lights and carefully settled on his side of the bed. Plenty of times when they were kids they’d awakened to find themselves pressed back-to-back, so it wasn’t weird.
Hopefully Hank would still think it wasn’t weird.
Because he knew he’d be snuggling against Hank any chance he got.
The next morning, when his alarm went off what felt like far too early, Maddox heard a groan from Hank.
“Jeez, I was hoping that was a nightmare.”
Maddox rolled over to face him. “Sorry, buddy.”
From what he could see of Hank’s face…he looked like hell, and Maddox hoped Hank wouldn’t hav
e to do anything too complicated today.
“I just want to catch a fucking break.” Hank’s voice sounded hoarse, raw—broken. “I just want something to go right, for a change. I want to raise JJ, be reasonably happy, and get paid fairly for doing an honest day’s work. That’s it. It’s not asking too much, is it?”
Maddox risked holding him. Hank still lay facing away from him, but when his body started shaking as he cried, Maddox wrapped himself around him, his heart breaking for him once again.
“I’m here for you. I’m not going anywhere. We’ll get you through this. You two are going to live with me, and it’ll give you a chance to finally breathe and relax. I need you to focus on you and on her, and not stress over the rest. This will be okay. I’ll make sure you’re okay.”
He couldn’t help inhaling and breathing in Hank’s scent, not when his nose lay against the back of Hank’s head, buried in his hair.
When his cock decided this was a great position and began to stiffen in his boxers, Maddox opted to sit up and rest a hand on Hank’s arm.
“I’ll go get coffee made for us,” he said.
“Okay. Thanks.” Hank slowly sat up and looked at Maddox over his shoulder. “I love you, dude.”
Maddox patted him on the back. “I love you, too, dude.”
At least he didn’t have to lie about that.
He climbed out of bed and headed for the kitchen.
* * * *
Once he was alone, Hank drew in a shuddering breath and struggled to rein in his tears. He needed to get JJ up and ready for school. In fact, getting her to school today would probably be best for her, keep her mind occupied. Keeping her on her normal schedule would mean less time for her to be upset about their circumstances.
Although JJ likely would adapt quickly. She loved Dox, and now they had a pool. Despite his stunned state last night, it looked like the volunteers had managed to empty her room, getting everything out through the window.
Thank god I never unpacked those boxes.
It would’ve broken his heart if he’d lost those irreplaceable memories, or the urns of his parents and Lois.
He dragged himself to his feet and started looking for clothes. By the time he smelled coffee brewing, he was fully dressed in work clothes and headed to what was now JJ’s room to wake her up.
He turned on the hall light so he could see and not trip and scare her, but after opening her door he realized they’d managed to arrange her room very close to how it’d been at the other house. The door was in a different place, though, and so was her lamp, because there hadn’t been an outlet handy.
He walked across the room to turn her lamp on. This room had a ceiling fan, but no overhead light. He could probably add a light kit to it for Dox as one small way to help earn their keep.
She rolled over and mumbled something, finally bringing a genuine smile to his face. Like him, JJ wasn’t a morning person. “Hey, sweetheart. Rise and shine.”
She squinted at him. “Daddy, why’s my room weird?”
He sat on the edge of her bed. “We’re staying at Uncle Dox’s now. The sinkhole last night.”
Her eyes widened and she gasped. “The ground ate your truck!”
The snort escaped, and it felt good to have that moment of levity. “Yeah, it kinda did, didn’t it?”
“Can we live here for good?”
He knew Dox wouldn’t let him talk about moving right now, but realistically, he knew they couldn’t impose on him indefinitely. “We’re going to live here for a while,” he opted for. “I’m not sure how long. I’m going to have to get another truck, and our budget took a huge hit with this.”
“I want to live here with Uncle Dox. Why do we have to move anywhere else?”
He reached out and combed his fingers through her blonde tresses as he looked into her blue eyes. His little girlie-girl. She loved pink and dresses and princesses and unicorns, but she also liked getting her hands dirty.
“You don’t,” Dox said from the doorway. When Hank looked, he saw Dox had pulled on a bathrobe. He stood there, an unreadable expression in his eyes, his arms crossed as he leaned against the doorframe. “You’re living here with me, permanently, and that’s it,” he quietly said.
Ancient feelings washed through Hank, partly memories, of other times Dox basically laid down the law to him, although he was never an asshole about it, and Hank just…happily went along with it.
JJ jumped out of bed and ran over to him, throwing her arms around his legs in a hug. “I love you, Uncle Dox!”
He picked her up and hugged her, but his gaze was still focused over her shoulder and on Hank as he hugged her. “Love you, too, sweetie. Not going to let anything happen to either of you. You need to get ready for school. I’m going to take Daddy to work, and then I’ll take you to school.”
She gasped. “Are you going to pick me up from Miss Eliza today?” She smiled. “You can see me in class!”
He firmly nodded. “Yep. Until Daddy can get another vehicle, I am officially your chauffeur, princess.”
“What does that mean?”
He laughed and set her down. “I’m driving you.”
He turned and walked into his own bedroom, closing the door behind him while Hank located and set out clothes for her. He heard the master bathroom shower start and wondered if Dox had even poured his own coffee yet.
“Get dressed, sweetie, and then I’ll make you breakfast.” He headed to the kitchen and found not one, but two coffee mugs sitting there, ready and waiting, along with a spoon and the coffee fixings.
He knew Dox liked his coffee light and sweet, so he poured his first, prepared it, and carried it down the hall and through the bedroom, where he knocked on the master bathroom door. “Coffee.”
“Just bring it in, thanks.”
Hank opened the door, steam already swirling through the room. Couldn’t see anything through the opaque shower curtain anyway, though, so he set the coffee mug on the counter next to the sink. “Here you go.”
Dox’s head appeared around the end of the shower curtain. He smiled. “Thank you. See? I’ve never had a morning coffee server before. You want to pay me back? You can do that for me every morning.”
Hank laughed. Leave it to Dox to try to lighten the mood. “Sure. Suppose you want breakfast, too?” But Hank smiled, even though he felt exhausted.
“Oooh, now you’re talking, buddy.” He waggled his eyebrows at him. “See? I’m easy to keep happy. This is perfect. I won’t even make you be a cabana boy around the pool. Just morning coffee and breakfast.”
Hank laughed again, a little louder this time. This felt easy and…right. If Dox was joking around with him, things had to be copacetic, didn’t they?
“Sure, I can do that for you.” He turned to go check on JJ’s progress.
* * * *
Maddox watched through the small gap between the shower curtain and the wall as Hank turned and left the bathroom.
Fuuuuuck.
Thank god the man couldn’t see the morning wood he sported.
Sure, it was sneaky and underhanded, even though Hank had no clue…but to have a gorgeous subby guy bringing him morning coffee?
Uh, yes, please!
Even better, he got to sleep next to him every night, even if all they did was sleep.
It did hit him that he could easily be sneaky and underhanded and enlist JJ to help him shut down Hank’s talk about moving—
Wait, that’s the perfect idea.
That’s exactly what he’d do.
That’s why he wore a smile fifteen minutes later when he emerged from the bedroom, showered, shaved, and dressed for work. He smelled bacon and realized…
Yes, Hank had cooked them breakfast. Eggs and bacon and toast. JJ was already eating, and she smiled when Maddox walked out with his empty coffee mug in hand.
“Daddy cooked breakfast.”
“I see that.”
Hank had even set the table, and he laid a plate laden with bacon and
scrambled eggs in the usual spot where Maddox sat.
“That’s yours,” Hank said. “Your toast is almost ready.”
It was only because JJ was there that Maddox was able to will his stubborn cock into submission. “This is fantastic, thank you.”
“Least I can do.” Their gazes met when Hank reached out to take his empty mug from him. “Refill?”
“Yeah, thanks.” He handed it over and forced himself to sit at the table and not watch Hank.
Because…yeah, that would totally mean he’d have a tent in his slacks, and he couldn’t do that around JJ.
He turned his focus to her instead. “Guess you have a story to tell in school today, huh?”
“Yeah.” She scowled as she chewed a mouthful of eggs. “Did the ground eat Daddy’s truck, or did the house eat it?”
Maddox chuckled. “The ground ate his truck and the house.” He heard the toast pop, and before he could even turn, Hank had buttered the slices and set them on the edge of Maddox’s plate.
“There you go.” Then Hank sat at the table with his own plate to start eating.
“Thank you.”
Hank offered a tired smile, but then he focused on JJ. “You scared me last night, sweetheart. When you heard the noises, you should’ve come and got me first. You could’ve been hurt.”
“I didn’t know it was real. I thought I was asleep.”
“Now that we’re all awake,” Maddox said, “and not in any danger, can I get the story from the start?”
He watched Hank as he retold the events. Maddox’s guts clenched in an ugly way at how close he came to losing both of them.
Once Hank finished, he looked down at his plate for a moment. “Thanks again,” he softly said before those blue eyes landed on him. “I can’t thank you enough. I meant it—anything I can do, you name it.”
Maddox reached over and squeezed his shoulder. “Hey, I love you, dude. This is what best friends do for each other.” He looked at JJ. “And I love you, too.”
She grinned. “I love you, Uncle Dox!”
Hank chuckled. “Yeah, I love you, Uncle Dox.”
Maddox’s focus returned to him, but now Hank was staring at his plate as he finished his breakfast.
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