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"I finally learned what good cooking was and that what Dad and Xander cooked weren't the only options I had." Faith walked in. "After eating Xander and Dad's cooking for years, I thought everything just tasted bad."
Ben laughed.
Trenton grinned. "Why do you think we always grill burgers or steak when we get together? Becca and you are the only two good cooks in the kitchen."
"It's a miracle you survived before we came along." Faith stood, looking at him. "You want to eat here or in the kitchen? I'm good with either, I just need to know how to serve it."
He glanced into the kitchen and then back to where he was, already comfortable. "If you two don't mind, can we stay in here?"
"I don't mind." Ben shrugged. "From the smell of the food, I could eat it just about anywhere."
"Thanks." Faith grinned. "No worries. Ben can come serve his own plate, and just this once, I'll cater to you." She bent down and kissed his cheek. "Ranch dressing on your salad?"
"Please." His stomach growled. This beat hospital food or burgers any day. "You'll spoil me."
"Maybe, but you deserve it this once." She turned and headed into the kitchen.
"I'll go help." Ben got up and followed her.
It was only a few minutes before plates were scattered across the coffee table, and everyone was digging in. He didn't miss the fact that Faith and given him twice as many meatballs than normal. He would bet she would keep feeding him like this until he put the weight he'd lost back on.
"So, Kasey has a baseball game tomorrow afternoon. You up to going?" Faith asked.
Trenton focused on stabbing the lettuce under his fork as he shook his head. "Not yet. I need a few more days before I go venturing out in public. Thanks for the offer though."
She frowned.
Trenton sighed. "Listen, I know you guys are trying your best to get me back to normal, but I hurt still. It's going to take a few more days before I can move around without tears coming to my eyes. I love you guys for wanting to help me out, but I've got to take it slow."
"If you'd let Beau give you something for the pain…" Faith narrowed her eyes at him.
"I did. And if the Ibuprofen doesn't help, I'll take something stronger. Right now, I need a clear head. I've got a meeting tomorrow morning with the D.A. and the last thing I need is to feel sluggish through it."
"Do you need a ride?" Faith looked hopeful.
"Actually, Ben's going to take me." He prayed Ben wouldn't say different. Truth was, he just planned on grabbing an Uber. It would be his first attempt at facing the world on his own again. He was nervous as hell, but he had to push past his fears.
"Yep, I've got an appointment about the same time. Figured we'd get the meetings over and grab lunch together after." Ben grinned at him as he reached for a breadstick.
"Oh, okay." Faith sighed. "You'll be coming back to the team house soon, right?" she asked.
Out of all the members of the team, he thought that Faith would understand more than anyone that he might need his space for a bit, but it seemed she'd either been nominated or nominated herself to be his nanny. He loved her to death, but he couldn't deal with the overprotective, worrisome thing she had going on. "Not right away. I need some time before I dive back into work."
"You don't have to work. We can hang out and just play video games like we used to." She looked so hopeful as she stared at him.
"Aren't you going back to school?" he asked.
"I don't have to rush. I have a few weeks." She shrugged. "Besides, I need to make sure—"
He held up a hand stopping her. "Faith, please. I know you're worried, but you know better than anyone that this is going to take some time. There is no magic, make it all better wand you can wave. Aside from my physical injuries, there's some stuff I need to work out in my head. And yes, before you say anything, I will talk to Katie, but some of it just has to happen on its own. I love you, and I really appreciate you and the others worrying about me, but please don't push."
Faith set her fork down. "Sorry, I was, wasn't I? I swore I wouldn't do to you what they did to me. Dad kept wanting to take me out to my favorite places, plan vacations, and just keep me busy, but you're right, when I got home, I just wanted to be left alone. I didn't want to be around people. You guys were okay, but I didn't want to go to the zoo or the movies."
Trenton gave her a small smile, hating he was breaking her heart. "Yeah, it's like that. I know how you feel. I want me better too, but I'm not sure when that will happen. It's only been a few days, and those days I was stuck in the hospital dealing with investigators and hospital and state-appointed counselors. I just want to sit back for a few days and think about everything, and as odd as it might sound, figure out how I feel about it all."
Her eyes filled with worry. "I'm sure I'm not alone when I say we don't want to leave you alone to overthink things."
Again, he glanced at Ben and hoped he'd have his back. "I won't be alone. Ben's going to come over every day and make sure I'm okay. He was there. He knows what happened to me. I know what he saw. We've got a kind of understanding."
