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  Something that had been missing for Boyd with pretty much every other partner he’d had—the deep, personal connection, not just emotional, but like their souls were plugged into each other.

  “Such a good boy for me,” Boyd softly said. “So fucking sexy. I didn’t come since Tuesday, either. After we talked I took a shower and jerked off. Since then, I held it for you.”

  More of those whimpers, making Boyd’s cock twitch. Caleb’s ass tightly gripped Boyd’s cock as he rode him, grinding at the bottom of every stroke and tipping his hips a little at the top so Boyd’s cock would glide along his gland with every thrust.

  It didn’t take him long before his pace quickened, slamming down hard on Boyd’s cock. Boyd quit holding back and grabbed Caleb’s hips, helping him, fucking with him.

  “Yes!” Caleb’s cock exploded as he bit back his moan, complete, helpless joy and pleasure transforming his gorgeous face.

  As his cum splashed between them, Boyd took over, fucking into Caleb, exploding and filling the condom inside his boy, pulling him close for another kiss as he recovered, happy and, for now, content.

  Caleb cuddled against him, sweetly sated and nuzzling his lips against Boyd’s.

  “Better, boy?”

  He nodded. “Love you, Daddy.”

  Boyd smiled. “Love you, too, boy. But you know no matter how damn adorable you are, Daddy’s still a sadist who’s going to put you through the wringer, right?”

  Caleb grinned. “I fucking hope so.”

  They cleaned up in the bathroom, including a shower, before curling up together on the couch.

  “Thank god you’re here,” Boyd mumbled into his hair where Caleb was curled against him. “I missed you so damn much.”

  Caleb’s fingers laced through his. “Not as much as I missed you, Sir.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Saturday and Sunday passed in a blur, between bringing Ella home from the hospital and packing all her things. Caleb felt a kinship with Ella in a way, and not just because they had Boyd in common. She was leaving the life she knew behind, hoping to build something better, maybe even with someone.

  Caleb had done just that, leading him to Boyd.

  Helen had also done it, hoping to eventually find Boyd and reunite with him. To honor Helen’s spirit if nothing else, Caleb would help Ella.

  But it was more than that for him, of course. She was his step-daughter—and he was already thinking of her like that regardless of the fact he was less than ten years older than her and he wasn’t actually married to Boyd yet.

  Boyd was his in everything but official status.

  They finished packing the truck before noon Sunday, and had vacuumed the apartment and cleaned the kitchen and bathroom and turned her keys in. Considering the circumstances, the apartment’s management were willing to let her out of her lease without a penalty, and would mail the check with her security deposit to Boyd’s in Florida.

  After loading Ella’s car on the dolly behind the moving truck, Boyd moved the rig so it was out of the way, and the three of them took one last trip to Helen’s grave. Caleb carried the flowers while Boyd carried Ella, because he refused to let her walk across the uneven ground on her crutches despite her protests that she could manage.

  He gently set her on the ground in front of the gravestone, then stood with his arms around Caleb.

  “Mom, this is Caleb. He seems like a great guy, and Dad’s crazy about him.” She reached out and stroked Helen’s name. “I’m sorry I’m leaving, but Dad’s right, I can’t do this alone. He said you’d want me to be with them and let them help, and I think he’s right. I hope he is. If he’s not, I’m sorry. But at least my baby will have two grandfathers to love her. Or him.”

  Caleb brushed away his own tears as she kissed her fingers and touched the stone one last time.

  The sad thing was, while Caleb loved his parents and sisters, he didn’t feel as emotional about them as he did right now watching Ella at her mother’s grave.

  He pulled Boyd’s arms a little more tightly around him.

  * * * *

  On the way back to Ella’s apartment complex, they stopped for lunch. Having stalled as long as they could, Caleb knew he’d once again have to say good-bye to Boyd.

  Except now he was being entrusted with taking care of Ella. And he knew if Boyd didn’t trust him, he wouldn’t be doing this.

  Next to the truck, Boyd hugged Caleb while Ella looked on from the rental car.

  “Love you, Cay,” Boyd whispered in his ear. “Love you so fucking much.”

  “Love you, too.” Caleb didn’t want to let go of him. “You drive careful. Don’t you get into an accident or something. Stay safe.”

  “I promise. Hopefully I’ll be home by Friday. Thank you so much for doing this.”

  Caleb cupped Boyd’s face in his hands. “She’s family. She’s our family. Of course I’m going to do this.”

  “Text me as soon as you get to the car in Tampa, then when you get home.”

  “I will.”

  While Boyd leaned in to give Ella one last hug and say good-bye, Caleb climbed into the rental and gave Ella a smile.

  Then, it was time. “Ready?” he asked her.

  She nervously nodded. “Yeah.”

  It was easier to drop her at the airport terminal first and then return the rental car. He quickly rejoined her, pushing the borrowed wheelchair through the terminal after checking in and getting her bags checked.

  “You’d think I wouldn’t be this nervous,” she said. “I’ve been to Florida so many times already when I was looking for Dad.”

  Caleb was glad he stood behind her so she couldn’t see his smile. “You’re going to love living there. I know I do.”

  “Have you been back to visit your parents since you left?”

  “No.” They hadn’t talked much about his family. He didn’t want to burden her with that.

  “You’re not close to them, are you?”

  “I wish I was. I doubt I’m ever going to be close to them with their current mindset.”

  She reached back to pat his hand. “At least you gained a daughter.”

  “Yeah, I did.”

  “You want to have some fun?”

  “How?”

  She looked back at him with an evil grin identical to her father’s. “I’ll make sure to call you ‘Dad’ in front of people and watch their reactions.”

  He burst out laughing. “Sure. That sounds like fun.”

  * * * *

  As their plane descended into Tampa, Caleb didn’t mind when Ella grabbed his hand and held on tight as they passed through a little turbulence.

  “Sorry,” she muttered, her eyes tightly closed. “I don’t like flying, even though I did a lot of it the past several months when I was looking for Dad.”

  “It’s okay.”

  They’d been seated at the front of the plane due to her injured leg, and the airline had a wheelchair waiting for her in the jetway. After helping her into it, he grabbed their carryons and her crutches and followed the airline employee who pushed the wheelchair for her.

  It was nearly forty-five minutes later by the time they had her luggage claimed and he’d brought Boyd’s car around to the curbside at arrivals to help her in. For tonight and tomorrow, she could get by without a wheelchair at home as long as she was using the crutches and mostly staying off her feet. Still, he wanted to look into either renting or buying an inexpensive one for her so she wouldn’t be completely housebound for the next several weeks.

  His text to Boyd that they were in the car was almost immediately met with a phone call.

  “You’d better not be driving,” Caleb said by way of greeting.

  “That’s five, boy. And I’m not. I’m stopped for gas and snacks.”

  Caleb grinned, biting back his comment that he’d gladly take five strokes for his snark. Ella might be in the lifestyle and know about them, but it didn’t mean he wanted to rub her face in it. “I’ll text you whe
n we’re home.”

  “Excellent. Drive safe.”

  “Says the man in the truck.”

  * * * *

  Boyd stared out at the landscape. He’d made it into Idaho and while he wished Caleb—or Ella—was with him, he was enjoying the drive.

  “Want to go for ten, or would that be rewarding bratty behavior?”

  Caleb chuckled. “Five’s fine, Sir. Love you.”

  “Love you, too.”

  Boyd hoped if he pushed hard he could make it back to Florida by Thursday morning. He didn’t mind taking naps in the truck instead of getting a room, and was hoping he could make it as far as Kansas City before he had to pull over and get some real sleep.

  It still felt surreal that Ella was moving in with them.

  The good kind of surreal.

  As he drove, he tried not to plan things in his mind, not wanting to get ahead of himself. They didn’t even know the gender of her baby yet, but he was glomming onto her hunch it was a girl and daydreaming about buying her frilly dresses and princess outfits, while at the same time thinking about teaching her how to take care of her car and fix things so she could be independent.

  Wanting to protect her and teach her and love her.

  To be there for her in a way he couldn’t be there for Ella.

  Her first Christmas.

  Helping her do things for Ella on Mother’s Day.

  Daycare and first days of school, all the things he heard friends and coworkers talk about but never thought would be part of his life.

  Now, it had taken over his life.

  Other than when he could finally marry Caleb, and when the baby was born, he knew there would be few, if any, days in his life that could top his current level of joy.

  * * * *

  Caleb got them safely home after stopping for take-out once they were in Sarasota. It was great sleeping in his own bed again—Boyd’s bed—but despite sleeping alone, knowing Boyd was making his way to Florida comforted him.

  There was also the fact that Ella was there.

  Their family.

  When he left for work the next morning, he made sure she had his personal cell and work numbers in case she had any problems before he headed in—and he stopped on the way to get coffee. Having already been briefed on the fact that the aroma made her sick, he’d opted not to put her through that.

  Small price to pay for having her there, with them.

  He also made a note to himself to get some tea so he could still have a morning caffeine infusion when he woke up.

  Even better?

  Still no contact from his parents, although that morning he received two calls from his aunt’s phone number, but she didn’t leave a message either time.

  Fortunately, he was able to buy an inexpensive folding wheelchair from a medical supply store at lunchtime.

  Upon seeing it, Ella started crying. “Thank you.” She reached for a hug.

  “Um, is this good crying?”

  She started laughing as she sat back, even as she still cried. “Yeah. Probably part pregnancy hormones, and part that it’s finally hitting me over the head I have people in my life again who want to help take care of me like Mom did.”

  By Thursday afternoon, Boyd was still at least twelve hours away, and Caleb wanted to run to his apartment to get more things to bring to Boyd’s, as well as check his mail. He’d had four more calls from his aunt, but no messages.

  He wasn’t sure what was up with that, but he wasn’t going to get sucked into games. If she had something to say to him, she could leave him a message.

  If she was going to try to play matchmaker for him, she could forget it.

  Ella was going stir-crazy sitting around, so he helped her into Boyd’s car and took the wheelchair with them. It would mean less room for his stuff in the car, but it would give her a chance to see the apartment in case she wanted to live there and take it over.

  Except after having her around the house for several days, he knew he’d miss her presence when she eventually moved out. Unlike his three sisters, she was considerate of him, and he was constantly trying to keep her from doing too much.

  And she seemed legitimately interested in talking to him, getting to know him, spending their dinners together on the sofa asking him about himself and…in general being a genuinely nice person.

  He also felt far more comfortable around her than he did around his sisters.

  Once there and after he helped her inside, he watched as she looked around the apartment. “This is really nice.”

  “It’s not a bad complex. Even has a pool and exercise room.”

  “If I can find a job to afford it before the lease is up, I’d definitely like to take it.”

  “But if you can’t, seriously, we’re good with you staying with us.”

  “That’s too tempting.” She brushed at her eyes. “I need to be on my own at some point.”

  “Doesn’t have to be right now. You’ve been through a lot. Decompress for a while first.”

  “I still can’t process Rick tried to kill me.” She slowly shook her head. “Papa Tom’s attorney talked to the hospital this morning. He thinks they’ll be willing to cut me a check fairly fast in exchange for an NDA.”

  “Take it.”

  “I still need a doctor here.” She stroked her tummy. “For her and for me. I also need to follow up with a doctor about my ankle.”

  He was going to reply when someone knocked on his door. “Okay, that’s weird.”

  But when he walked over and looked through the viewfinder, he spotted his aunt standing there.

  “Shit,” he whispered.

  “What—”

  “Shh!” He waved at Ella to stay quiet. At least they’d taken Boyd’s car, so unless she’d seen him walk in, she wouldn’t know he was there.

  He walked over to Ella, where she sat in her wheelchair, and whispered in her ear. “It’s my aunt.”

  “The one who keeps calling?”

  “Yeah.” Shit. Well, there went his chance to grab more stuff from the apartment today. “We need to get out of here when she leaves.”

  “Hey!” She grinned. “I’ll talk to her. She won’t know who I am.”

  “How do you explain being here?”

  “I’ll tell her I sublet it from you.”

  He thought about it. Did he really care if his family knew he was living somewhere else? He didn’t want them knowing where, exactly, and had already planned to get a PO Box at Boyd’s suggestion to give them as a mailing address.

  “You know what? Yeah. Go ahead.” He walked into the bedroom and closed the door nearly all the way, still able to hear but unseen from the entry.

  He heard the creak of the wheelchair as she wheeled herself to the front door. Then he heard Ella open it. “Can I help you?”

  The woman didn’t reply at first. “I’m looking for Caleb. I’m his aunt, Kelly. I’ve been trying to call him.”

  “I’m sorry, but he’s not here.”

  “Who are you?”

  Caleb had to bite back the laugh threatening to break free as Ella effortlessly channeled Boyd. “I’m none of your business, lady. That’s who I am.”

  “Look, missy. I want to speak to Caleb!”

  “Then I suggest you call him.”

  “He won’t answer my calls.”

  “Did you leave him a message?”

  “That’s beside the point. Who the hell are you?”

  “I’m a friend, and I’m subletting the apartment. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I was getting ready to take a bath.”

  “Wait! Why won’t you tell me where he is?”

  “Because it’s not any of your business. Frankly, after what I’ve heard about how you people treat him, and how happy he is now, it’s no wonder he won’t answer your calls. Why don’t you leave him alone and let him live his life?” He heard the door slam and the deadbolt lock.

  When he stepped out of the bedroom, Kelly pounded on the door again, demanding she open it, b
ut Ella yelled back. “Lady, you have two seconds to leave before I call the fricking cops on you.”

  Apparently, that did the trick, because the pounding stopped. Ella wore a triumphant grin and gave him a silent high-five when he walked over and leaned in to hug her.

  But now he didn’t want to risk being seen by Aunt Kelly. He peeked out the front blinds, which looked onto the parking area. She was still sitting in her car and seemed to be on the phone with someone. Then, about five minutes later, she left.

  “Let’s get moving right now,” he said.

  They scrambled as fast as they safely could, and less than five minutes later, they were on their way.

  “That was crazy,” Ella said.

  “Welcome to my family,” he muttered.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Caleb didn’t want to tell Boyd about the encounter with his aunt until the man made it home. There wasn’t anything Boyd could do about it, and Caleb didn’t want to upset or distract him when he was so close to Florida.

  He’d only stopped and gotten a hotel room for one night, choosing instead to take naps in rest areas.

  By Friday morning, Boyd still hadn’t made it home before Caleb had to leave for work because of construction traffic slowing him down in northern Florida. Ella promised to text Caleb as soon as he rolled in, but they both expected him to probably collapse, exhausted, immediately after he arrived.

  Caleb was sitting in a meeting when his personal cell vibrated in his pocket. He fully expected to see a text from Ella and had to carefully school his expression when instead he found a text from his aunt.

  You’d better call me and talk to me. Your mother has had enough of this nonsense.

  If it wasn’t for the fact that Caleb had to pay attention to what was going on and was sitting in a room full of twenty or so other people, he would have called her and told her where to go and what to do on the way there.

  Instead, he replied with a text.