He shrugged and followed the bird, plunging directly into the forest.
“Thanks, by the way. I appreciate it. I mean, even if you’re trying to make sure I’m not a bad guy, the escort is nice. You know, I was having a kind of rough day.”
The bird twittered and hopped to another branch.
“Money problems. Ex-boyfriend problems. Ex-boyfriend problems that became money problems. You ever have those?”
The bird cocked its head to the side.
“Maybe I just don’t pick the good ones. I hope Geir’s different. He seems different.”
The bird hopped to another branch.
“What do you think?”
The bird fluttered to the next tree and Declan hastened to catch up.
When he got there, the bird up and left. Just flew into the air. They’d barely gone forty yards. If there weren’t so many trees in the way, Declan was pretty sure he’d still be able to see the road.
He looked around, making sure he had his bearings before heading back.
Only another flash of red caught his eye. He looked closer. It wasn’t a bird this time, but a scrap of plaid.
He moved closer. There was Geir, his back against a tree, sitting as still as a statue. His face was calm, and he appeared to be watching whatever was in front of him, but it was just some more trees so it couldn’t have been that interesting.
“Geir?” Declan whispered, not wanting to interrupt him if he was meditating or something. If his eyes weren’t open, Declan would think he was sleeping. Did krakens sleep with their eyes open? No, he’d had his eyes closed last night. “Hey, Geir?”
He didn’t respond.
“Geir?” he called louder.
No response. OK, that was a little freaky. Was he alright?
“Geir!” he called, getting a little panicked.
Geir slowly blinked, then turned to him. He blinked again, and then his face spread into a wide smile. “Declan!”
“Hey,” Declan ambled over, feeling a bit silly now. His heart was still pounding. That was twice in less than a week that Geir had scared the hell out of him because he thought he was dying.
Geir raised an arm in invitation and he clambered into his lap. Much better. He could feel Geir’s strong arms around him and taste the salty skin along his neck. “You scared me.”
Geir grunted back in question.
“You weren’t moving. And you didn’t answer me. I thought something was wrong and I got scared.”
Geir pulled him in tighter. Always tighter. Declan couldn’t get enough of it.
“I’m sorry,” Geir rumbled. “I’ll stay more alert in the future.”
“What were you doing?” Declan nestled into Geir’s neck and rested one hand over the steady beat of his heart.
Geir thought for a moment. “Waiting, I guess.”
“Waiting for what?”
Geir shrugged.
“Is it, like, a kraken thing?”
Geir thought for even longer. “No.”
Well, that was certainly confusing. He couldn’t have been waiting for Declan, because he wasn’t expecting to come here. Waiting for the sun, like the brothers in the story?
“It’s a you thing, then? Like, you might do this again?”
Geir shrugged.
He did that a lot when he didn’t want to talk. Or, as Declan was learning, when he didn’t know what to say. Sometimes it could be impossible to pull words out of him. Declan was becoming increasingly aware that their brains didn’t work in the same ways.
Maybe it was a kraken thing, just a different one than Geir was thinking of.
“I’ll try not to,” he finally answered.
“Thank you.” Declan gave him a kiss. “Will you take me home?” It had been a long, overwhelming day. He just wanted to forget everything and let Daddy take care of him.
With only a bit of a wobble, Geir stood, Declan still clasped in his arms. Declan had meant it metaphorically, but this was much, much better. He nuzzled into Geir’s neck.
“I’m sleepy. Can we take a nap together?”
Geir shook his head. “No naps. It messes up your sleep cycle.”
Declan smiled into his neck. Geir was taking care of him, just like he’d asked.
He didn’t want to think about Mike or money or anything right now. He just wanted to be with Geir. “Then will you hold me on the couch?”
“Of course.”
Chapter 14
Geir
Geir stepped onto the bleached, warped boards of the porch. He was still dripping from the lake. He’d pulled his jeans back on but hadn’t dried off or bothered with his shirt.
He could feel his heart speeding, just a little bit, at the thought of seeing Declan. A smile tugged at his lips. Would his hummingbird jump into his arms and kiss him at the door? Or would he find him curled up and snuggly soft with a book? What adventures had he gone on today?
Declan met him before he even reached the door. His eyes lit up, and then fell. “You went swimming without me.”
It sounded less like a complaint, and more like disappointment. That wasn’t right.
“Would you like to go swimming with me? We could go back together.”
“No,” Declan sighed. “I made dinner already.” He sounded sad, though.
Declan was supposed to be smiling. He was always smiling.
Geir looked up at the sky. It was later than he’d realized, practically night. “I’m sorry,” he tried. “I lost track of time.”
Without Declan nearby, time had no meaning. But he could do better.
Declan shrugged and went inside. He put two plates on the table and began spooning something onto them. Potatoes, it looked like. A fresh salad, bright with colors from the farm. Beans that Declan had left to soak last night before they went to bed and which were now cooked with a medley of herbs.
Geir sat. “Thank you. That looks good.”
Declan nodded, uncharacteristically silent. Where was his hummingbird?
They both started to eat.
After a few bites, Declan set down his fork. He watched Geir. Then he looked at something behind him.
Geir followed his gaze. There wasn’t much over there. Just the faded walls of his home and a small window that looked out into the night.
Then he noticed the windowsill. Lined up on a little scrap of shimmery blue fabric was a bit of driftwood. A pinkish rock with a ribbon of sparkly quartz running through it. A daisy in a little cup of water. A pair of acorns, stuck together at their caps.
He smiled. Declan had been keeping all of the little things he brought him.
Declan wasn’t smiling, though. He needed to make that better. He put down his own fork.
“I answered your cell phone,” Declan finally blurted out. “I mean, I wouldn’t have normally. But the number said it was the garage. So I answered it.”
“Alright.” Geir had forgotten about the phone. He wasn’t sure why this was important.
“My car is ready. They said it was going to be almost three thousand dollars.”
Geir nodded. He still wasn’t sure why this was important. He’d thought that Declan would be pleased to have his car back, especially since he’d heard several times about how all of his books were inside.
“That’s a lot of money.”