Page 96 of All The Things: The Last Thing He Needs Omnibus

With one last squeeze to Cal’s shoulder, Tommy pulled back. “Better late than never, right?” Did he believe that? Tommy wasn’t sure, but he thought maybe he did. When Cal smiled in response, Tommy said, “We’re gonna head out pretty soon, but I’ll see ya around.”

“Yeah, see ya around, son.”

Before Tommy could step away, before he could get the fuck out of there, he heard himself say, “Be sure and say hi to the kids, if you haven’t already.”

“They’re all having fun with their friends, and… Max and Zoe have spent some time with me, though.”

“Yeah, well, they won’t mind if you interrupt.” And why the hell did he push that? Tommy had no idea. Colleen and Mike, Davey, they’d all been a little wary about having him at the wedding. They’d gotten used to visits and gotten used to him being sober for backyard barbecues or a family dinner here and there, but those three were old enough to remember Cal falling down drunk on a daily basis. The wedding had an open bar. They could put two and two together, and none of them had thought it was a good idea. Even if Colleen had been the one to bring it up in the first place. Maybe Tommy just thought they should get to see for themselves that their father had managed it okay. And yeah, maybe he’d grab a bottle on his way home, drink himself to sleep, or shoot up with whatever the fuck. But—for the first time in a long time—Tommy didn’t think he would. Hoped he wouldn’t. But he shoved that aside and saved up all of his hope for himself and the kids and Bobby instead.

Chapter Six

Bobby

Tom found him under a dogwood tree that had just started to bloom, literally hiding from his new father-in-law. Did he feel bad for abandoning Tom in his hour of need? Maybe a little. But maybe it was good for Tom—good for Cal too—to have a moment together. That’s what Bobby told himself, anyway, right until Tom stepped up to him, took his hand, leaned close like he was about to kiss Bobby, and then whispered in his ear, “I’ll repay you for that one day, copper.”

Tom’s breath, so warm and hard against Bobby’s skin, sent a small shudder through him, in perfect counter to the cold dread from the threat. “Because it went so well and you want to thank me?”

“Sure, yeah, that,” Tom said as he pulled back with a glare, but it wasn’t too vicious, so Bobby thought he might survive the night.

“You about ready to get going?”

“Past ready,” he said, tugging at Bobby’s hand. “We did the cake and the dance and all the other bullshit, and now I wanna go soak in that big tub and sleep in that big bed.”

“Just sleep?”

With a sideways glance, Tom said, “I just spent the last half hour talking to my old man. Just sleep.”

“Already punishing me by withholding sex. Is this how married life is gonna go?”

He got a laugh out of Tom for that. “You’re the one who wanted to get married.”

“You’re the one who asked.”

“Never gonna let me forget that, are ya?”

“Nope.”

They made their way to Judy, who had Max and Zoe on either side, Carrie with one of her little friends, Collin and his friends, all eating cake and cookies and seven other kinds of dessert, like they’d never had sugar in their lives. “Glad I’m not gonna be here to see them come down from all that,” Tom said, but he didn’t tell them they’d had enough or even remind them to brush their teeth, so he was either too happy or too distracted to care. Either way, Bobby liked it. Then Tom leaned down and kissed Zoe on the top of her head, ruffled Max’s hair. “I’d pick you two up, but you’re covered in frosting.”

Zoe stuck her arms up anyway, and Tom gave in with a laugh. “Good thing we’re about to head out, or I’d attract ants,” he said, laughing when she kissed his cheek, when she put her frosting-covered fingers all over his face. “I didn’t let Bobby smash cake on me, but you get a pass, I guess.” She simply nodded in response as Tom wiped his face off before he set her down. Max barely looked up at them from his dessert plate, but they made their way around the table, giving hugs and kisses and reminding the kids to be good. Bobby had already told them not to call unless someone was in the hospital or arrested, so he had faith they wouldn’t hear from the kids for at least forty-eight hours. God willing.

Once they tracked down all the kids and said their goodbyes, they headed for Bobby’s car under a shower of flower petals and bubbles—as per Carrie and Zoe’s insistence. And when they got in, once the doors were closed and they pulled away from the house, Tom reached over and set his hand on Bobby’s thigh, his simple wedding band glittering every time a street light caught it. Bobby glanced at his own left hand on the steering wheel and whispered, “I kinda like this.”

“Me too,” Tom said with a gentle squeeze to Bobby’s thigh. “Did you see what the boys did to your car?”

“Yeah, I noticed.” Because of course Davey and Mike couldn’t go with Just Married or their names. No, they had to draw dicks all over it, had to string beer cans and—Bobby wasn’t sure, but he thought he saw a dildo at one point. “I think some of the guys from the force might’ve had a hand in it too.”

“Between your coworkers and my idiot brothers, I’m not sure who came up with what, but I’ve got a Sharpie just waiting to draw a dick on Davey’s face when I get home.”

“I’m pretty sure that’d be considered child abuse.”

“Probably,” Tom agreed with a laugh. “Doesn’t mean he don’t deserve it.”

Bobby disagreed, but he didn’t argue. That was his gift to Tom. “What should we do first?” he asked instead.

Tom shifted in his seat, looked over at him. “First, I’m gonna strip outta my frosting-covered suit, then I’m gonna strip you outta yours.”

Bobby liked where Tom was headed. “Yeah?”

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