Page 46 of Daddy Defender
Chapter 16
Henry
“All okay?” I ask, noting that Bodie’s teeth appear to be chattering faster than a speeding sports car.
“Yeah, just cold,” Bodie replies, my jacket evidently not doing enough to keep his body warm after the impromptu surf session. “I’ll be fine.”
I can tell that the boy is trying to put a brave face on things.
Bodie’s got guts, I’ll give him that.
Surfing in nothing but his briefs is quite the choice given the weather. But the last thing either one of us need right now is for Bodie to get so cold that he goes into shock or comes down with a nasty cold…
“Here, let’s move quicker,” I say, stopping and squatting down. “Climb on my back. You can piggyback on me the rest of the way, I’ll carry the board.”
Bodie pauses for a moment and I can sense that he’s weighing up his options.
“Come on, the sooner we get you all warm and dry the better,” I say, keeping things light.
“I guess,” Bodie says, a hint of a smile on his face as his teeth continue to chatter.
Before I know it, I’m walking with one cold Little on my back and a surfboard under my arm. Bodie’s light, and the board is more cumbersome than heavy, and before I know it we’re back in the safehouse…
“Thanks, D…” Bodie says, cutting himself off before he utters the D-word again.
“No probs,” I reply, not making a big thing of it. “Now, let’s get you some towels…”
I quickly raid the airing cupboard in the bathroom for towels but am dismayed to see that there’s only a couple of very small and thin towels in there.
This isn’t good. This isn’t goodat all.
The boy needs to be warm. And we haven’t got time to waste…
“Okay, change of plan…” I say, returning to the living area to find Bodie out of my jacket and trembling in his underwear. “We’re going to have to do this the old school way.”
“P-p-p-p-please, whatever works,” Bodie says, his shivering now looking like it might get out of control. “I’m c-c-c-c-c-cold.”
“I’m going to strip down to my briefs,” I say, trying my best to sound as relaxed as I can. “You’re going to strip out of your underwear. We’re going to go body to body.”
“Seriously?” Bodie exclaims. “I mean, yeah, sure, if that’ll work.”
“I’ve done it before,” I reply. And I’m not lying either. I know from my own experiences as a Guard that body to body contact is the best course of action in a situation like this—even if thereis some obvious awkwardness about the whole thing. “Let’s just agree to close our eyes and be professional about it.”
“Got it,” Bodie says, doing his best to seem as casual as he can in the circumstances.
“Yup, okay, let’s do this,” I say, trying to act as professional as I can despite the fact that I’m now moments away from what I know is going to feel pretty damn intense.
Averting my eyes from Bodie as much as I can as he removes his wet briefs, I strip down to my briefs and wrap my arms around his small but athletic body.
Think calm thoughts.
Do not think about the boy.
Do not think about…
“You’ll heat up sooner than you think,” I say, reassuring Bodie as I feel his body tremble next to mine.
“I know,” Bodie replies, the feel of cold, smooth chest pressed up against my big, sturdy bare chest already driving me crazy. “I’ve actually done this before. A surf comp a couple of years ago. Me and my friend. Except, my buddy wasn’t built like you, so…”
