Page 21 of Just a Little in Love

Gabriel tuned them out the second he saw Rowan, and Rowan took a couple of steps away from his father. He looked completely shell-shocked. “You stayed,” he whispered, then walked right up to Gabriel.

“Of course I did.” Gabriel’s fingers itched to touch Rowan, but he had no idea if Philip even knew Rowan had been staying at his house.

A question that was answered as soon as Philip and Patrick joined them. Gabriel held out his hand to Rowan’s father, and they shook. He knew the older man was sizing him up. “Thank you for bringing Rowan here.” He turned to Rowan. “Come on, let’s get you home.”

Rowan blinked. “No. The carpets.”

Philip nodded. “Yes, I meant Hilary’s.”

Rowan shook his head. “No, I have school tomorrow. It’s too far.”

Gabriel saw his own shock reflected on Philip’s face and gathered that Rowan disagreeing with anything was very unusual. Rowan sent Gabriel a pleading glance.

“Sir, Rowan’s very welcome to stay with me. I—”

Philip put his hand up and headed for the door. He obviously wanted the conversation to happen somewhere with less of an audience. He turned to Gabriel as soon as they were outside. “Look, I’d be happier if my son came home with me, but as I didn’t know my son was even gay, or had a boyfriend up to an hour ago, you’re going to have to forgive me for being a little over-protective.”

Yeah, thought Gabriel, and where were you when his mom was trying to poison him? Of course he didn’t say that or dispute the boyfriend claim. He focused on Rowan and knew he was reaching the end of a very short rope and trying to keep it together for his dad. He stepped up even closer and tried to keep his voice low. “Do you want to come back with me?”

Rowan nodded, blinking furiously. “Yes, D—, yes.” Gabriel nodded and rubbed Rowan’s back, knowing what Rowan had stopped himself from saying. Philip sighed as he watched the exchange and stepped closer to his son. “I’m fully aware this is too little and much too late, but I’m also very happy to book us both into a hotel tonight. To be honest, it might be better to take a few days off school, anyway.”

Rowan sent Philip a wobbly smile, but stayed silent while Gabriel got a card from his wallet and quickly wrote his address on it. “These are both my numbers plus where I live.”

Philip took the card and scanned it quickly, then put it in his own wallet and turned back to Rowan. “A lot of this is my fault,” Philip said. “I’ve never been there for you and have always taken the easiest way out, but that stops here. You change your mind, you just want to chat, call me. I want to hear from you first thing in the morning and then we’ll take everything from there.” He stepped up to Rowan and hugged him. “And call me Dad, huh? She doesn’t dictate to either of us anymore.”

He glanced back at Gabriel. “Rowan tells me you’ve been helping him look at apartments.”

Gabriel nodded. “Yes, sir.” What else could he say?

“Then tomorrow we’ll arrange for us all to go out for dinner during the week so we can get to know each other better. I’ll bring Hilary.” And with that, he headed for the BMW in the corner.

Gabriel drew a now visibly trembling Rowan close and tucked him under his arm. Patrick glanced at Gabriel, then Rowan. He got his phone out and Rowan’s dinged. “You have my number as well. I got yours from Charlie. You can call either me or Charlie at any time.”

Gabriel swallowed. “Come on, let’s get you warmed up.” He steered Rowan to the car, opened it, and settled him in, even pulling the seat belt over him, then he grabbed a travel blanket from the back and covered Rowan’s knees with it, before closing the door and hurrying around to his side.

Rowan didn’t speak on the way home except for a nod or a shake of his head. Not that Gabriel was going to ask him anything except if he was warm enough. He knew everything had to go at Rowan’s pace and tried not to think about what he was doing with Rowan or what it meant.

He steered Rowan to the bathroom as soon as they got home, then went to get him some water after he’d refused anything else. He turned down the bed, getting Rowan’s pajamas out. Rowan appeared a moment later, face pale, and pretty much out of it.

Gabriel didn’t hesitate after watching Rowan just stand there and look at his pajamas as if he didn’t know what they were, and quickly helped Rowan get undressed and get them on. “Come on, in you get.” He lifted the comforter and Rowan slid in.

“Would you like me to stay while you go to sleep?”

Gabriel didn’t know whether it was the question that did it, but Rowan took a short, sharp breath and let out a sob. He put his fist to his mouth and tried to bury his face in the comforter, but Gabriel was having none of it. He couldn’t leave Rowan like this, and he slid in, still fully dressed, and pulled Rowan to his side.

And Rowan cried. They weren’t the big, heaving sobs that Gabriel knew he needed to let out; they were small, hushed, as if he was ashamed of them.

He was killing him.

“Let it out, Rowan,” Gabriel murmured and rubbed his back. Rowan didn’t speak, just cried quietly until suddenly between one breath and the next he was asleep.

Gabriel swallowed down his tight throat and tried really hard not to think about how good Rowan felt in his arms. He’d never had this. He was never one for cuddling and he’d never had a boyfriend. He was a Dom, not a Daddy. Maybe tomorrow when they’d both slept, he could get some perspective on everything. He would move in a moment and go back to his own bed when he was sure Rowan was asleep.

He just needed a moment.

Chapter eleven

Rowan was awake, but he really, really, didn’t want to be. Daddy was still asleep. Rowan knew this because Daddy was snuggled up to his back. He knew something bad had happened, but it was just out of his grasp, kind of there, but not, and he didn’t want to think about it. He wanted to just stay here for the rest of his life because lying in bed with Daddy’s arm around him made him feel safe.

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