Senses 03 - Love Comes Home (DA) (MM) (17 page)

“Do you think Mom would hate me if I’m gay?” Davey asked.

“I think your mother will love you no matter what.”

“Why doesn’t she love me now?” Davey retorted. “She’s being all friendly because she wants something. I just haven’t figured out what it is.”

Greg cringed, because that was almost exactly what he’d said about Joyce. He had to remember to be more careful about what Davey heard. “What if all she wants is to be a part of your life?” Greg asked gently. “She seemed to genuinely care.”

“But only because I’m blind,” Davey said with the now familiar arms-over-his-chest move.

Greg made the turn onto their street and pulled into the drive. “Sometimes it takes something bad happening before people realize what they have or could have lost.” Davey shrugged, and Greg continued. “You can’t see anymore, and neither of us is happy about that. But as a parent, we keep running through the worse things that could have happened.” Greg took a deep breath, his emotions close to the surface. “See, what if something had happened and you weren’t here anymore? That’s what really scares me.”

“Being blind scares me,” Davey said.

“I know, it scares me too, but the idea of not having you with me scares me even more.” Greg turned off the engine and undid his seat belt. Davey did the same and opened his door. He picked up the cane he’d placed at his feet.

“I hate this thing,” Davey said, getting out of the car. Greg got out as well and hurried around to where Davey was. He wanted to hug him, hold him tight, and never let him go. That way he couldn’t get hurt. Of course, he couldn’t do that, and Davey would inevitably get hurt, probably more than once.

“How did they tell you to use it?” Greg asked.

Davey moved the cane out in front and lightly swept back and forth, tapping the ground. “It still feels weird,” Davey said. Just then the cane slipped off the pavement and onto the grass. Davey adjusted where he was walking and made it around the car, moving toward the front walk. “I get how to use it. I just don’t like it.” Davey threw the cane to the ground. “I want to see again, Dad.”

Greg picked up the cane and remained quiet.

Davey stood still and shook. “Do you hear me? I want to see again!”

“Yes, I hear you. But I don’t know if anyone can make that happen.” Greg ached to give Davey what he wanted. Every parent wanted to give their child the best they could. But Greg was helpless, because what Davey wanted was outside his power to give.

“Dr. Sanjay said….”

“He said there was a possible treatment that might work to restore some of your sight,” Greg said. “That’s a lot of maybes, mights, and hopefullys. What if it doesn’t happen, Davey? You’ve already seen specialists.” Greg stepped to Davey, hugging him close. “I don’t want you disappointed for nothing.” Greg closed his eyes and felt Davey take hold of him. “What if they are able to get your sight back and then it goes away again? I don’t know what’s possible any longer.”

“But, Dad….”

“Davey, I know how you feel, and I want the same thing. If I think there’s any real hope, then you and I will sit down and talk about it, I promise, from the bottom of my heart. You and I will make the decision together. But you can’t stop taking classes and using the tools you have.” Greg pressed the cane back into Davey’s hand. “Now, you’re almost at the walk. You can make it to the front door.” He was pushing, he knew that, and he wondered if he was doing the right thing as Davey slowly navigated the walk and up the step. Greg unlocked the door and waited for Davey to go inside.

Greg was about to follow when he heard a powerful car approaching. Tom’s Ferrari appeared and then turned into the drive. Greg waited while Tom put up the top. Tom then got out and approached. Without a word, he pulled Greg into a hug. “What is it?”

“Nothing. Davey’s just frustrated. He wants what he wants, but I can’t give it to him.”

“I’m sorry for bringing it up at dinner. I should have kept my mouth shut,” Tom apologized.

“It wasn’t your fault. I’m aware that Davey most likely heard us talking earlier, even while he was in his room. You warned me there would be times like this, and it’s happening now.” Greg let himself be held; it was what he needed.

T
OM
LOVED
holding Greg and would do it all day if he could. “Where’s Davey now?” he whispered.

“Inside,” Greg answered, but he didn’t move away. “He hates his cane and threw it on the ground.”

Tom nodded. “He’s going to direct his anger either at you or what he sees as the trappings of his blindness.” Tom slowly moved them toward the house. “You take care of Davey, but who takes care of you?”

“I’m fine,” Greg said. “I think I’m actually holding up really well, considering….”

“So do I,” Tom whispered. They went inside, and Tom closed the door, then looked around and pressed Greg against it. “But I would like a much closer inspection just to be sure.”

Greg stilled. “Davey asked if we were together that way.”

“Well, after he goes to bed, why don’t you and I go into your bedroom and see what happens?”

“I’m not really a ‘see what happens’ kind of guy. Not with Davey, and….”

Tom kissed him to cut off his words. They were replaced by a small, needy moan.

“What I meant was, we’ll spend some time together and let things take their course. No plans, no expectations, no worries—just you and me. For a few hours, we can leave the rest of the world outside the door.”

Greg stilled and locked their gazes. “A few hours?”

Tom sighed. “Oh, yeah. I intend to take all the time in the world with you. You’re worth every second, and if no one has ever treated you that way, then you haven’t been with the right guys. And I intend to do everything I can to change that.” Tom kissed him with intent, and Greg shook slightly. Then Tom backed away with a smile, looking down at himself to make sure he wasn’t too obscene. Greg did the same thing, and Tom grinned when he turned away slightly.

“Dad, can we have ice cream?”

“Of course we can,” Greg answered rather loudly. “I have chocolate and mint chip here, is that okay?” He really wasn’t particularly interested in going out for ice cream, but he’d do what Davey wanted.

“I want chocolate,” floated to their ears as an answer.

“Do you want ice cream?” Greg asked. “I can get some for all of us.”

“Sure,” Tom said with a grin. This seemed so normal. His family never did simple things like this.

“You have to come out to the deck,” Greg called to Davey and then headed to the kitchen. “In case you haven’t guessed, the world’s most efficient form of birth control is children.”

Tom laughed. “Hey, it doesn’t matter. What does is that once he’s in bed, you’re all mine.”

Greg pulled the ice cream out of the freezer.

“I’m thinking of some interesting things we could do with that ice cream.”

Greg stopped and wagged the spoon at him. “Don’t even think about it. I tried fun with food once—it was messy and it took three washings to get the chocolate syrup stains out of the sheets. They must have a huge cleanup budget in porn, because in real life, that’s just a mess.” Greg smiled and got dishes out of the cupboard. “What do you want? I have strawberry too, but Davey doesn’t like it.”

“Mint chip is fine. It will give me fresher breath for later,” Tom teased.

Davey came down the hall and made his way around the furniture toward the deck.

“Some of the chairs were moved. Be careful out there,” Greg said.

“I will,” Davey answered and went out. Tom watched and saw him sit in the first chair he encountered. Greg finished dishing out the ice cream. Tom carried the bowls while Greg got drinks and followed behind. Out on the deck, Tom set the bowls on the table and handed Davey his along with a napkin.

“I won’t make a mess,” Davey said.

“Didn’t say you would,” Tom said, wondering where that came from.

“I heard Mom whisper to Sanjay at dinner that I was making a mess.” Davey scowled into his bowl and then carefully began to eat.

“She isn’t used to being around you and doesn’t know how hard it is to learn something new like that.” Tom smiled as an idea struck him. He’d have to talk with Greg about it later. Joyce’s comment struck him as wrong, and they needed to do something about it. Greg joined them and sat next to Tom on the settee. “It’s really nice out here.”

“Sometimes it can get chilly once the sun goes down, but the air is still, so the lake doesn’t have a chance to cool things off too much.”

“Did you get along with your mother otherwise?” Tom asked Davey.

He shrugged. “I guess. She’s so uptight and worried about how things look. She actually asked me if I picked out my own clothes. I think she thought I didn’t match or something.” Davey continued eating, and Tom turned to Greg. He mouthed that he’d tell him later.

“Don’t be too hard on your mother. I don’t think she means to be bitchy. She just doesn’t know how to act or what to say,” Tom said, and Davey nearly snorted ice cream through his nose. Tom handed him another napkin and took Davey’s bowl as he doubled over with laughter.

“Davey, that’s enough.”

“But Tom said….”

“I know what Tom said, and if you want to be treated as anything other than a kid, then you need to act like it. He wasn’t calling your mother a bitch, he said she was
being
bitchy, and she probably was. So if you can’t behave, we’ll start censoring what we say around you.”

Davey straightened up, and Tom handed him his bowl. “Now, as I was saying. I don’t think she means to act that way. She doesn’t know any different.”

“If you say so,” Davey said, returning to his ice cream. “I still think she was mean.”

“Ignorant and a little scared isn’t the same as mean.”

Davey stopped. “She was scared… of what?”

“You, probably,” Tom said. He looked at Greg, who nodded, so he turned back to Davey. “Being around you is going to make some people uncomfortable. Sometimes they’ll pass by and hope you don’t notice. Others will try to start a conversation, but not know what to say. They might want to talk and they’ll be curious, but they won’t want to ask about being blind because it makes them uncomfortable or they think it’s rude. That could be what’s happening with your mother. Just give her a little time.”

Davey didn’t seem convinced.

“She must have done something right—you invited her to come tomorrow,” Greg said.

“Yeah, well.” Davey began eating in earnest, and they left him alone.

“Are you designing anything interesting?” Tom asked Greg.

“I’ve got a builder who bought a number of properties at auction and he wants to remodel them into higher-end places. So I’m redesigning the interiors, opening them up, like I did here. One of the homes has a great dining area, so after opening it up, we’re adding crystal chandeliers throughout the entire space. The buyer has a collection of Venetian mirrors, so we’re going to use them to reflect the sparkle. It should be quite an effect.”

“That sounds so cool,” Tom said.

“Think Versailles in miniature. A little light should go a long way and create an incredibly warm space because of the old glass. I’m also doing an ultramodern interior. I’m not sure how that will go over, but it was what he asked for. I’m holding something a little more traditional in reserve just in case, though. How about you?”

“Nothing new with me. I have to go down to Grand Rapids in a few weeks for a foundation board meeting.” Tom rolled his eyes. “They talk themselves to death and say nothing at all. But it’s a necessary evil. The worst part is that many of the people on the board are family members with their own agendas, old hurts, and alliances.”

“A political minefield,” Greg offered.

“Yes and no. They may squabble, but when I came on board, I made sure I had real authority.” Tom grinned. “Besides, I’m good at what I do. The foundation does very well because of me, and they know it. People have said I should open my own investment firm, but that isn’t what I’m interested in. I like the investing thing, don’t get me wrong, but turning it into a full-time job would suck the fun out of it, and then I wouldn’t have the time for the other things I want to do.”

“Like what?” Greg asked, setting his bowl aside.

“I have some ideas floating around right now, but they haven’t settled just yet,” Tom answered. “I always get what I think are great ideas, but over time most of them don’t pan out for one reason or another. Right now I’m working with the parks department again on a project for trail refurbishment. But those kinds of things are pretty small.”

“They’re important,” Greg said. “People always want to think big, but it’s the small things that can make a difference. In that house with all the mirrors, they have to be hung and it isn’t like they can just put nails in the walls. I designed a method to hang the mirrors so they can be placed and easily moved later. The mirrors will be attached by a small hook which will fix to the pin and holder. If that little piece of metal isn’t strong enough, it won’t hold the mirrors. The entire effect we’re going for rests on that one single piece. So, yeah, I understand about thinking big, but don’t discount the little things.”