Page 53 of Vail

Sheldon had his hand on Forest’s lower back as we walked from the room and Forest didn’t shake him off. Maybe he needed the calm Sheldon provided, or maybe Sheldon was on to something with Forest.

23

VAIL

Many days and nights I spent in a nightmare, even once I was no longer living in it. I was still trapped in my head where Gil continued to hurt me. Over time, I learned to push him out and focus on my present and future, where he wasn’t allowed. After Hartley told Jordan and me about Gil breaking into Hartley’s old rental, I was done. Fucking over it. No more. I had the men I loved and a wide-open future ahead of me. Fuck. Gil.

What better way to put me in a great mood than to visit my family. Forest joined me today while I went to see Cat and my niece and nephew. Cat couldn’t wait to see Forest. Dana was out running errands for a while. I told her she wasn’t allowed to yell at him for the shit with Hartley and how Forest left him to handle everything. Forest had been punished enough. If Hartley was good, so were the rest of us.

“I haven’t seen your sister in forever,” Forest said from beside me in the back seat of the SUV. Oleander drove and Sheldon sat in the passenger seat. Sheldon had a fascination with Forest, or so Hartley said. I couldn’t tell if it was Sheldon being protective or if he saw something in Forest. Either way, that was between them.

“She’s going to love seeing you again.” I was relaxed and happy. I had my best friend by my side, men up front I considered friends, and we were pulling into the driveway of my sister’s house.

We were barely out of the vehicle when the front door opened and my nephew ran out without a coat on, arms wide. At least he had boots on. I scooped him up off the ground and strode toward the house where Cat held the door open.

“He needs a coat,” I told her.

“Oh, please. He was outside for thirty seconds. He’s fine.” She held my niece and handed her to Oleander as soon as he was close enough. “Here you go. I’m taking a break.”

I turned once I was inside to see the absolute glow Oleander had at holding Ivy. Whether or not he wanted to have another child someday was for him to know, but if he did, he would be an amazing father. He loved children.

“Keep that baby away from me,” Sheldon muttered, skating around Oleander.

“Forest Weathers!” Cat yelled. “It’s about time you visited me.” She closed the door behind her, not waiting for him to take his coat off before hugging him and planting a kiss on his cheek. “It’s been a long time. And you need to eat. Jesus, you’re thin. Dana made a peanut butter pie. I know it sounds like it’s just peanut butter and crust, but it’s not. You’ll want to eat the whole thing. Anyone else want a slice? I’ll bring it out to the living room.”

“For breakfast?” I asked. It was still early in the morning.

“It’s good any time of day.”

Everyone said they would like a slice. We took seats. Me with Carson on my lap, and Oleander with Ivy in his arms on the couch. Sheldon stood by the door so he could easily look outside. Forest followed Cat into the kitchen to help bring plates and drinks out, then took a seat in one of the chairs.

Carson climbed down to sit on the floor where he waited for his slice and shook off his boots. Cat gave him one first. He had it mostly devoured before the rest of us had taken a bite, then he was off to his room to play.

“So, what’s it like living here instead of California?” Cat asked Forest.

“It’s a welcome change. I missed Hart and Vail. It’s great to be with them again.”

“You’ve stopped drinking?” I shouldn’t have been surprised. She knew not to bring up what happened. Instead, she found a way around it to ask him about his alcohol consumption.

“I haven’t had a drop since I talked to them on the phone. As soon as we hung up, I put everything into motion. Speaking to them breathed new life into me. California was too far away. After losing Pop, everything hurt. But hearing their voices, I wanted my family.”

“That we are,” Cat said. “I hope you’re including me in that.”

He grinned. “Of course.”

“You drank a lot?” Sheldon asked. He was still near the door, half watching outside, half with his gaze on Forest. It wasn’t the first time Sheldon had heard this. Although, it was the first time he asked Forest about it.

“Yes and no. When my grandfather died, I didn’t handle it well. Hart and I lost our parents when we were younger and moved in with him. He was the kind of man who loved you with his whole heart. It hurt when he passed. I was there for the funeral and burial, but I was so upset, I flew home and left the hard work to Hart.” He shook his head. “It was awful of me. When I got home, I couldn’t cope and started drinking heavily. Our mom was an alcoholic and an addict. I knew better, but I wanted to be numb. Anyway, I haven’t touched it since I called Vail to yell at him.”

“For what?” Sheldon asked, his voice calm as usual, but there was more to it. Like he held back from stepping forward to make sure Forest was all right.

“They didn’t tell me they were together. I found out through my asshole cousin, who saw it on a website or something.”

“We should have told you,” I said. “That was on us.”

“And I shouldn’t have yelled.”

“We’re good now.”

---