Page 115 of Far From Sherwood Forest
I always knew John deserved his happily ever after, and I’m glad he’s getting it. We both are. And I think we’re both happy that we found that here, even if we did choose to leave our old lives behind for good.
“I’ve never been a groomsman before,” Spencer says. “I’m kind of looking forward to it. Brian is too.”
I’m John’s best man, and Spencer, Brian, Will, and Henry are all groomsmen. The look on Henry’s face when John askedhim was priceless. I think he thought he was joking.
About twenty minutes later, Henry sets the table with plates filled with pork chops, roasted potatoes, and green beans. Going from Sherwood Forest to this world was a massive shock, but going from canned soup for dinner to eating these kinds of meals every night was nearly as much of one.
While the three of us start eating together, I try not to be too weirded out, not wanting to make Spencer more uncomfortable than he already is. I don’t blame him. This is…different. We talk a bit about the wedding and how Brian’s been doing. Henry stays pretty quiet, but Spencer and I are more than capable of carrying a conversation.
After we finish eating, Henry stands to take away the empty dishes.
“Do you want me to help clean up?” Spencer asks.
“Why the fuck would you do that?” Henry gives him a look that’s a cross between a glare and one of bemusement. “You’re a guest. I was just going to stick these in the sink and then get us all a beer.”
“Oh.” Spencer clears his throat and squirms in his seat. “I mean, I can always head out if you two want some time together.”
“You’re just going to eat and run?” I ask in an attempt to lighten the mood.
However, it appears to have the opposite effect, his cheeks turning pink and his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.
“Spencer.”
His mouth snaps closed, and his head jerks up to meet Henry’s hard gaze as he swallows.
“You don’t have to rush out. You’re welcome to stay as long as you’d like.” Henry presses his mouth in a thin line, and his eyes flick down like he’s not sure if he should say what he wantsto next. Then he looks back at Spencer and says, “I know what it feels like to be alone.”
Without waiting for a response, he turns and walks into the kitchen with the empty plates, leaving me and Spencer staring at each other with our jaws slack.
I suspected that him inviting Spencer over had something to do with that, but I never would’ve expected him to come right out and say it.
Henry has never exactly been friendly with Spencer. Or Brian. Or Will. Or John. He often comes home complaining about something annoying that Brian did in the office that day. Whenever John or Will are around, he spends most of the time brooding. However, he tends to do that even when Ivy visits to bring me those potions.
I’ve realized he’s like that around people he’s starting to care about.
It’s an odd love language, but…it’s very Henry.
Part of him stays guarded, but then he does little things like this that aren’t at all little forhim. The fact that he’s found something to relate to Spencer about is proof enough that he cares, even if he’d never admit it.
“Well, I wasn’t expecting that,” Spencer mutters as he glances over at Henry in the kitchen with a crease between his brows. “Is he okay?”
I follow his gaze and nod as a slow smile stretches my lips. “He is now.”
Spencer leans back in his chair, seeming a little more relaxed. “You two are surprisingly good together.”
“I know.” I look back at him with a grin. “We’ve come a long way since the day I stole his truck.”
He laughs. “I never would’ve expected to see you both so domesticated.”
Me neither. It’s a life I never thought I could have backwhere we came from, but it’s the kind of life I always wanted. Simple. Easy. Spending the rest of my days with someone I love. Henry certainly wasn’t what I expected, but I wouldn’t trade the life we have for anything.
Henry comes back with three beers, setting two of them down in front of me and Spencer. He walks over to a shelf in the living room and grabs an old board game before bringing that back to the table too, setting it down in the middle.
It’s an old Nine Men’s Morris board that I saw in a thrift store a couple months ago. After I got all excited from seeing it and told Henry how my Merry Men and I would play it in taverns—often carving the board pattern directly into the tables—he bought it for me. He’s not a big board game player, but he plays this with me anytime I ask him to.
Since it’s only a two-player game, the three of us take turns playing against each other while sipping on our beers and talking for nearly two more hours. Henry doesn’t let Spencer leave until enough time has passed since he finished his drink.
Fucking hell, I love this man.
