Page 15 of Sir Avery's Wish
Zane held Ryan on his lap on the love seat in the living room, with Ty and Eli on the long sofa. He idly rubbed circles on Ryan’s back, his boy’s anxiety clearly evident. The moment he’d sat down, Ryan had climbed onto his legs, rested his head against Zane’s chest, and shoved his thumb into his mouth. Ty was rambling on about all that had gone on in the restaurant that day while Eli hugged the farthest end of the couch, his eyes bugged out and hands folded tightly in his lap.
Zane frowned. I can see what Avery means. He looks terrified.
While Zane had waited for Ty to finish his shift, he’d taken the opportunity to catch up on some messages. It was too chilly to wait in the car, so he’d chosen to relax in the lobby instead.Avery’s phone call was the first and only one he’d returned. They’d had plenty to talk about.
When Avery asked whether Ryan’s guest from the shelter was Eli, Zane couldn’t answer him. Ryan hadn’t told him the young man’s name or much else about him. All he’d said was that he’d met someone who clearly didn’t know his way around the streets and would probably end up hurt if he didn’t bring him home. Ryan then told Zane how Eli had known what to do when he had a panic attack, and that cinched it for Zane.
Ty finally came up for air, yawning. “Sorry.” He chuckled. “I didn’t mean to rant like that. It’s just been so chaotic.” He regarded Eli. “I’m glad you were there for Ryan. Master Zane told me what you did. I’m hopeless at helping him that way. You must be really good with people.”
“Oh, I…” Eli cleared his throat. “Actually, my mom has panic attacks. My dad taught me when I was little how to help her if he wasn’t around.”
“That’s a wonderful skill to have.” Zane adjusted Ryan on his lap so he could tuck his head under Zane’s chin. “Do your parents live in Massachusetts, too?”
Eli’s jaw snapped shut. “No…” He shifted on the sofa and swallowed hard. “They live…” His eyes darted around the room. “Somewhere else.”
“That’s all right, Eli.” Zane smiled. “You don’t have to answer that if you’re not ready to talk about where you came from. But I hope you’ll eventually feel comfortable enough to open up to us. In the meantime, my only concern is that you’re not in any kind of trouble.”
“Eventually?” He scraped his teeth across his bottom lip. “I thought I was only spending the night.”
Ryan’s head popped up, and he yanked his thumb out of his mouth. “You can’t leave. It’s too cold and scary out there.” Ryan peered up at Zane. “Don’t let him go, Daddy.”
“I can’t force him to stay if he doesn’t want to, sweetheart.” Zane turned back to Eli. “You’re welcome to stay for as long as you need until you get back on your feet.”
“I don’t know what to say. You guys are so nice, and I really appreciate everything.” He squirmed then clutched a small throw pillow in front of him, hugging it like a stuffed animal. “I’m not a criminal or anything like that, I swear.”
“I believe you, Eli.” Ryan peered up at Zane again. “Don’t you, Daddy?”
Zane gave Ryan a light jostle. “Yes, baby boy. I do.”
Ryan flopped against Zane’s chest and jammed his thumb back into his mouth.
“I believe you, too, Eli.” Ty angled his body toward Eli. “Look, I’m not prying or trying to get you to say anything. But I’ll put this out there: I was running from an abusive relationship and was at one of the shelters for a while. I didn’t want to talk about anything that happened to me for a long time. So I get it, man.” Ty pressed his lips together, shaking his head. “It’s not easy when you’re not sure where to go or who to turn to.”
Zane noted how Eli had leaned his body toward Ty while he spoke. The action was subtle, but some of the tension Eli was holding had eased. Eli looked down, then turned his gaze to Zane.
“I don’t expect to stay here for free. I still have some money left from when I was working. It just wasn’t enough for more than a couple of nights at a hotel.” He straightened, as if his confidence was growing. “I can start looking for a job right away, too. In the meantime, if you need help here, I’m good at cleaning, and I know how to take care of plants. My mom had them all over the house- it was like a jungle. One of my chores growing up was to help take care of them.”
Zane chuckled. “You’ll have a lot in common with Ryan. He has a garden out back. However, all that I require of you for nowis to take care of your own needs. We have a housekeeper, and this time of the year, there isn’t much to do in the yard.”
“Oh.” Eli furrowed his brow. “Well, I’ll go out tomorrow and look for a job. I was going to do that anyway.”
Zane was on the verge of blurting that Eli might find his job search difficult with his fake resume, but caught himself in time.
“Perhaps I can help.” Zane smiled again, noting how Eli’s tension returned with a vengeance. The name of the hotel restaurant where Ty worked hadn’t been mentioned, but Ryan might’ve told Eli before he got home. “I understand from Ryan that you’re not unfamiliar with the BDSM lifestyle,” Zane continued. “I have a few job openings right now that might work for you.”
Eli let out a sigh, his shoulders relaxing again. “That would be awesome, but I don’t have experience with…” He cleared his throat. “What I mean is that I’m still pretty new to kink clubs, and I’ve never waited tables or anything like that. But I have a lot of experience doing laundry, and cleaning like I said.”
Zane nodded. “Well, there’s a busboy and food runner position in the restaurant. Also, dishwasher, since you mentioned cleaning. I’m afraid we don’t need any help with laundry. We send everything out.”.
“I see.” Eli appeared thoughtful. “The dishwasher always stays in the back, right?”
“Yes.” Zane wasn’t surprised that the position allowing Eli to hide was the one he was gravitating toward.
“The dishwasher job would be great,” Eli said quickly. “I'd really appreciate the opportunity.”
Relief settled in Zane’s chest. If Eli ended up running away, there wasn’t much he could do. He was an adult. But the longer he hung around, the better the chance there was to help him.
“Excellent. I'll have you come by Club Sensation tomorrow to fill out paperwork. Our last dishwasher quit without notice, so we could use someone right away.”
