Page 63 of Night By Night
Chapter Fifteen
Maddox followed Hank to their bedroom, where he softly closed the door behind him and locked it. If JJ awoke and needed them, she’d knock.
Right now, he was worried about Hank.
Desperately worried.
Hank had ended up sitting on the edge of the bed, head bowed, shoulders shaking as he softly sobbed.
It broke Maddox’s heart.
Ihaveto do this.
Hank had hit his breaking point, his rock bottom.
He wasbroken.
“What am I going todo?” Hank hoarsely whispered. “How am I supposed to take care of her?”
Maddox walked over and sat next to him on the bed. Hank offered no resistance when Maddox draped his left arm around his shoulders and pulled him over, so his head lay in Maddox’s lap. Hank ended up with his legs on the bed, literally curled into a fetal position with Maddox’s arm around him.
“Remember the night of the sinkhole, how we talked after I got you both back here and settled in?” Maddox softly asked. “How you said you owed me?” He hated approaching it like this but knew it was the only way. He had to think about what was best for JJ.
That it dovetailed perfectly with his own hopes and dreams was the only bright point in this whole mess.
“Yeah?”
Maddox reached down with his right hand and brushed Hank’s hair away from his face. He kept his voice soft, but firm. “I’m calling that in.Rightnow. You and I will go to the county clerk’s office first thing in the morning and get a marriage license. Tomorrow’s Wednesday, and I think there’s a three-day wait to actually get married, so we’ll probably have to go back Monday to do that. You’re going to marry me, I’ll put both of you on my health insurance immediately, and I’ll adopt JJ as my daughter. We’ll raise her together.”
Hank froze, looking up at him, but didn’t pull away, didn’t immediately argue.
Maddox waited him out.
“What?” Hank finally asked.
Maddox threaded his fingers through Hank’s hair. “You heard me, buddy.I’mtaking over.Thisis how it’s going to be.” He gently fisted Hank’s hair. “All you have to do is say yes, and I’ll take things from there. No more fighting through this alone.” With his left arm still draped around Hank’s body he tightened his grip on his friend, his love.
His.
Hank finally rolled over in Maddox’s lap to stare up at him with those gorgeous blue eyes. “Really?”
“Really. You want to pay me back? You dothisfor me. Marry me.” Maddox laced fingers with him. “At the risk of borking what we have, I need to confess something to you.”
Maddox swallowed back his fear but knew he couldn’t start their marriage with a lie and ever hope to really have what he wanted with Hank.
“I’vealwaysloved you. I’ve always beeninlove with you. I’m bi. I’ve had relationships with men and women. But I was afraid I might scare you away if I told you how much I was crushing on you back then. So I kept it to myself. I love you, I’minlove with you, and Ireallywant to marry you. I get that you don’t feel like that for me, and that’s okay. I don’t even care. All I care about is taking care of you, and taking care of JJ. If this is the only way I can have you, I’ll be happy to have it. I love her like a daughter, so let herbemy daughter. No one can take either of you away from me then.”
* * * *
Hank’s brain had pretty much hit blue-screen status and he knew it. He was beyond functioning. Thank god for Dox, for him being there today, for him taking over.
The hits had kept coming, and it felt like Dox had stepped between Hank and life and was taking the blows for him so he could fucking take a goddamnedbreath.
He stared up into those brown eyes and tried to…process.
JJ loved Dox already. Even better, shetrustedhim.
Hell,hefucking trusted him.
