Fire and Rain (17 page)

Jos seemed to have other ideas. In addition to the fucking driving him crazy, Jos’s hands were busy finding more and more ways to touch him to blow his mind.

“Are you trying to tickle me?” Kip growled and stilled Jos’s hands.

“No. That’s one of your spots, right above your belly button.” Jos stroked him there, making little circles, and Kip wasn’t sure if he should laugh, groan, or come. He’d have to ask Jos how he knew all this, but for right now he was too far gone to think about it.

“Jos,” Kip moaned. He tried to remain in control of his own body, but it wasn’t working. Jos was taking care of him and sending him over the moon. Kip bit the inside of his lip as he tried not to scream. He was so close, right there. If Jos gave him just a little bit more, he’d tumble into the abyss, but Jos held him on the knife-edge until his thrusts became ragged, then he picked up the pace, and Kip lost it. He closed his eyes and did everything to keep from flying apart. Kip swore he was flying when his climax slammed into him, and he held on for dear, delicious life. He felt Jos coming as well, but he was so far gone it was on the edge of his awareness.

When Jos lay on top of him, Kip squeezed him close. “You’re amazing,” Kip breathed once he was able to speak.

“So are you, honey,” Jos told him, breathing deeply and settling against him. It was wonderful, the two of them in the darkness, no sound other than their breathing, and nothing at all between them. “I think we need to clean up or we’ll be stuck together.”

“No one I’d rather be stuck to,” Kip breathed, not wanting to move at all. Once their bodies separated, Jos slowly got off the bed and tugged Kip to his feet. They ended up in the shower in the near dark, groping and holding each other up as the warm water coursed over them. Kip didn’t want to open his eyes and simply held Jos until the water went cold. The nightlight he kept in the bathroom was enough light for them to dry each other and hang up the towels. Then, to be safe, they both pulled on shorts and got back into bed.

Jos snuggled close, his butt and back pressed to Kip. “Thank you,” Jos whispered.

“For what?”

“Giving me what I needed.” Jos rolled over. “I know you’re strong and big and sexy. You’re used to being in control, but tonight I needed that more than you can possibly know, and you gave me that.”

Kip swallowed hard and pulled Jos close, holding him without saying anything. He didn’t want to burst his bubble, but all he had wanted was to make Jos happy. Sometimes things just worked out. “Go to sleep,” Kip whispered, and Jos rolled back over. Kip spooned against him and closed his eyes. Within minutes he was asleep.

A clap of thunder woke him in the middle of the night. Kip snuggled deeper under the covers and closed his eyes once again. He loved storms and listening to the rain. After a few minutes, however, the door opened. “Jos, Spistachio is scared.”

He didn’t even answer before Isaac ran around to the other side of the bed and climbed in next to Jos, who shifted away from Kip slightly.

“It’s okay. Just a little thunder and lightning. It won’t last too long,” Jos said, and Kip heard Isaac whisper something about God being mad. Jos soothed him, and eventually Isaac settled back to sleep.

For a while, as Kip dozed off once again, he was able to imagine that he was part of a family once again. Of course, just like the one he’d had and lost piece by piece, he knew he needed to make the most of what he had before something happened and he lost Jos and Isaac as well. That seemed to be the way of things for him: people left, and he tended to end up alone, like it or not.

THE FOLLOWING
day Jos’s Aunt Kathy contacted him, and Jos brought Isaac over to the bed-and-breakfast before his shift at work. She was his only living relative, and Jos thought Isaac should get to know her a little. Jos was very wary around her, and when she asked questions about how he’d been living and if he needed any help, he gave vague answers. When she asked if she could help, Jos told her that he had a lot of support and that he was currently looking for a place of his own. What he felt he really needed was some money to help him until he got paid and so he could contribute at Kip’s, but he’d be damned if he would ask her for anything. So he kept quiet and let Isaac be Isaac.

“What’s your bear’s name?” Aunt Kathy asked.

“This is Weeble,” Isaac said, holding up the worn animal. “And this is Spistachio. Uncle Kip got him for me. I said I wanted a real horse, and he got me one.” Isaac hugged him tight. “I know this isn’t a
real
real horse. But it’s better than a Lego horse.” That seemed to settle things for Isaac, and he ran Pistachio around the room, making galloping and neighing noises.

“Do you like where you live?” his aunt asked Isaac, and Jos stiffened slightly.

“Yes. It’s really nice, and I have a big room with a big-boy bed all my own.” Isaac returned to playing, and Jos breathed with relief that Isaac didn’t add information about where Jos had been sleeping. He wasn’t ashamed that he was gay or that he was sleeping with Kip. That was the best thing to come out of this whole mess that he’d made of their lives. But he didn’t want to give his aunt any additional ammunition if she truly decided to try to make trouble.

“Do you have other toys?” she asked.

“They got splatted,” Isaac said and went back to playing.

“I found a place I could afford, but the landlord was a crook,” Jos said. “I lost my job and he kicked us out. It’s a long story, but I wasn’t able to take anything, and he tore the building down with most of our stuff still in it. Kip and his friend Red made it so we could get some of our important things. The landlord said we were just being given notice, but he really kicked us out. The guy’s slime. But a lot of our things were lost. Kip dug through the rubble when Isaac told him where Weeble was.” Jos smiled. “You should have seen him. He pushed aside bricks and pieces of drywall. He and Red even lifted a piece of wall and shoved it aside until they found what was left of Isaac’s bed. He’d put Weeble under it when the men had come, to try to keep him safe.”

For a second Jos thought he might have seen a flash of emotion in his aunt’s eyes, but then she looked as detached as usual. His aunt sat in her chair and watched Isaac play. After a few minutes, Jos called him over. It was clearly evident that his aunt wasn’t going to join him or spend much time interacting directly with him. It was almost like she wasn’t sure quite what to do.

“Where does Isaac go during the day?”

“When I’m working, he goes to a day care school. They aren’t just babysitters. They’re very highly rated and work with Isaac on his numbers and letters. Everything is very constructive and fun. Isaac loves it. Donald, the partner of another of the officers Kip works with, helped me find it and get Isaac in. He’s with child services and has been very helpful.” Jos lifted Isaac onto his lap.

“Can we go now?” Isaac asked.

“Yes. I have to take you home to get ready for school. Pistachio and Weeble can keep each other company while you’re gone. Uncle Kip will pick you up like he did yesterday.”

“Can we eat with you like yesterday?”

“I don’t think so. But Uncle Kip said he’d make you macaroni for dinner.” That was always a hit.

“And chicken nuggets?” Isaac asked.

“I swear you’re going to turn into a chicken nugget,” Jos said, tickling Isaac, who giggled and squirmed.

“Hi, Uncle Kip,” Isaac said and slid off Jos’s lap, running over to Kip when he came into the bed-and-breakfast’s morning room. Jos hadn’t been expecting him, but he did a double take when he saw him in his uniform. Kip looked extra strong and imposing in it.

“Are you ready to go?” Kip asked Isaac, sharing a nod with Jos’s aunt but nothing more. Jos figured his unexpected appearance was meant to intimidate. Jos wasn’t sure how much of an effect it would have on his aunt, but dang, he was enjoying the view. “Your shift starts in an hour, and I figured I could help get Isaac to school to give you time to get ready. I need to be at the station in half an hour.”

Jos looked at his aunt. “It was good to see you.”

“We’ll talk soon, I’m sure,” she said formally and a little ominously before shaking Jos’s hand.

“Say good-bye to your aunt,” Jos told Isaac, who pulled away from Kip and ran over to her, barreling into her legs. Isaac hugged her and said good-bye. Aunt Kathy lightly touched the top of Isaac’s head.

“Bye,” she said with the first hint of a smile reaching her lips. Isaac pulled away and then raced back to Kip, who scooped him up into his arms.

“Let’s go, little man. We have places to be, and you have friends to meet.” Kip shared another nod with their aunt and left the room. It was surprising. He could be so stern with others and on the job, but with Isaac and him, Kip was nothing but warmth and care.

Once they stepped out of the room, Kip leaned closer and lightly kissed him.

“Ooooh, kissing,” Isaac crooned and made a yucky face. “Carly tried to kiss me.” He shook his head violently, still making a face. “I told Carly to keep her girly lips to herself.”

“You don’t want girls to kiss you?” Jos asked.

“I don’t want nobody to kiss me. That’s yucky.” He nodded as though he’d said the final word on the subject. Jos helped Isaac into his jacket and then put on his own. Kip’s car was parked right out front, and as soon as Isaac was buckled in, Kip drove them home to get ready for the rest of their day.

THE NEXT
week was quiet. He and Kip worked, and Jos took care of Isaac. On his break one day, he talked with Donald on the phone. Donald had been having a difficult time finding an apartment Jos could afford at the moment.

“I might have something coming up. A friend who owns the building next to Café Belgie told me a tenant just gave them notice. It’s a small place, but it has an extra room that could be a bedroom for Isaac,” Donald told him. “Do you think you can wait?”

“I hope so,” Jos said, hesitating. “We’re all getting along at Kip’s, but I don’t want to overstay my welcome. He’s been so good to us, but I’m sure he wants to get his life back to normal.” A jab of cold shot through him, and he shivered.

Donald didn’t answer right away. “Okay. I’ll get your name in for the apartment. I got word that you should be hearing from Social Security soon. It may take a little while to get payments flowing, but I’m hopeful the approval will come through.”

“What about my aunt and what she said?” Jos asked.

“Have you heard from her in the past week?” Donald asked.

“No. She left and hasn’t called or anything,” Jos said. “I’m hoping that means she’s changed her mind. I don’t know my aunt very well, but she doesn’t look like the type to not get what she wants.”

“It won’t be easy for her, especially the more you put your life together and build a stable home for Isaac. Every day her chances get slimmer and slimmer.”

Jos breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good to hear.” He looked at the clock and realized his break was almost over. “I have to go, but I’ll talk to you later. Please tell your friend that I can stop over to see the apartment whenever they have time.”

“I will. And let me know if you hear anything from your aunt.” They disconnected, and Jos put his phone back in his locker before returning to work. When he entered the dining room, he was surprised to see Kip at one of his tables, looking amazing in his uniform.

“This isn’t the donut shop,” Jos teased. “You must be in the wrong place.” His nerves kicked up just like they had when Kip brought Red and Isaac in for dinner. His belly fluttered and he took a deep breath. “What would you like?”

“Just a cup of coffee,” Kip said. He motioned for Jos to sit down when he returned. “There was a message on the answering machine at home from a friend. It seems your aunt has filed for custody of Isaac. There weren’t any details in the message, and I don’t want you to get upset. She can do whatever she wants, but she isn’t going to be able to take your brother away.”

“How do you know?”

“I think your aunt is so used to getting her own way that she doesn’t see that she has no standing here. Not really. I debated about telling you later, but I didn’t want it to be a surprise if a process server were to find you or something.”

“But what do I do?” Jos could feel the world he’d just started to build for him and Isaac starting to crumble around him.

“At the moment, nothing. You still need to work and do your job. That’s the biggest thing in your favor. You have a job and a place to live. You can demonstrate that you can take care of both you and Isaac, and you’ve fulfilled your mother’s wishes. All of that is going to be hard to fight.”

“But I can’t afford a lawyer,” Jos whispered. “I don’t have any money, and I won’t allow you to pay for that like you did the extra day care charges.” Kip’s expression turned sheepish. “Yes, I know what you did, and I’m grateful, but this is something I have to figure out for myself.”

“There are plenty of ways you can get help. We’ll call Legal Aid.”

Jos nodded. He figured that was true. But he’d been helped enough by Kip, Donald, Red—everyone he’d met recently. Jos was starting to feel like he and Isaac were everyone’s charity case, and that had to end. This whole thing had to end. “Let me think about what I have to do,” Jos said and stood up. “I need to go back to work.”

“I’ll let you know if I hear anything else, and you do the same,” Kip said. Jos nodded as his mind began throwing out options, none of them very attractive. “Try not to dwell on it. There isn’t anything she can do right away.”

Kip could say that, but Jos was scared and angry. He wasn’t going to let his ice-queen aunt take his brother away from him. “I’ll try,” he said, but he knew it was a lie. How could he think about anything else?

“We can talk over dinner and decide what to do,” Kip said, finishing his coffee. “I promise we’ll figure this out.”

Jos nodded. Kip handed him some money for the coffee and then left. Jos crumpled the bill in his hand without thinking about it. He cleared the table, automatically going about the tasks he had to do. He knew what had to happen. Without a doubt, he had to make sure Isaac remained safe.