Page 75 of His Boys to Protect

“It's…” Skylar began. He looked at Ward, and a soft smile took over his face. “Daddy is someone who takes care of you. Someone who makes you feel safe. He sets rules and boundaries but also gives encouragement and praise. He's someone you can always rely on. Someone with whom you can completely let go or fall apart, and know that he'll catch you and put you back together.”

Ward's heart clenched.

Charlie's eyes widened slightly, and he rolled his head, looking like he was processing that.Loud go away?he signed.

“Yeah,” Skylar replied. “Daddy makes all the big, loud, scary things go away.”

Charlie's gaze darted about as his brow drew down in thought.I call you Daddy?

“You don't have to,” Ward assured him in a murmur even as he felt his heartbeat pick up speed. “It's whatever you're comfortable with.”

Charlie lay still for a long moment. Finally, he signed,I think.

“That's fine, sweet boy,” Ward told him. “Take your time.”

Charlie settled his head back down on Ward's shoulder. After a moment of silence, he lifted his hand like he was going to sign something, but got interrupted by the sound of footsteps approaching the door, followed by a knock.

“Hope I'm not interrupting anything,” Dakota called through the door, “but dinner's been ready for a while now!”

Ward felt his entire face go hot.Oh fuck.Would everyone know what they'd just done? How the hell was he going to face Charlie's parents?

“Be right there!” Skylar called out.

Ward thought he heard a soft chuckle as the footsteps retreated, leaving silence in their wake.

“Ugh, I don't wanna get up, though,” Skylar groaned. “Can we just stay here all night? Maybe even forever?” the boy added in a mumble.

Ward's heartbeat kicked up a notch. Had Skylar really just said that? Or had Ward only heard what he wanted to hear?

Even Charlie hesitated, clinging to Ward as he looked around. Then the boy sat up with a huff and signed,Hungry.

“Oh boy,” Skylar whispered. “We'd better go get him fed.”

Ward chuckled. “Okay,” he agreed, though he hated letting them go. A chill ran through him when they all separated and got up to start gathering their clothes. He itched to hold them again. To have them fall asleep in his arms. It was amazing to experience that with Skylar. And to hold Charlie in his lap. But to have both of them together?

Would he ever get to know how that felt?

He couldn't help watching the boys as they got dressed. Skylar had a carelessness about him, probably a result of so many years of taking his clothes off in front of complete strangers. The boy snuck glances at both him and Charlie, a tinysmile on his face the whole time, but there was a bittersweet quality to it, like he didn't want this moment to end.

Ward couldn't blame him. He felt the same way.

And then there was Charlie. The boy had a rigid precision to the way he dressed, like it had to be done a certain way. Knowing Charlie, that was probably the case. The boy fussed with his briefs, making sure they sat just right, then pulled on his shorts next. Like Skylar, Charlie seemed to have no self-consciousness about his body. Yet, it wasn't the same. While Skylar's seemed born of use, Charlie's seemed more natural. Like the boy saw no reason to be self-conscious. Like there was no shame in his nudity. It simplywas.

The whole thing was beautiful to witness.

Then Ward noticed something else. All through the process of getting dressed, Charlie let out quietsqueaksin time with every movement he made: step into the shorts with his right leg, step in with his left leg, pull the shorts up.Squeak, squeak, squeak.

Skylar chuckled and caught Ward's eye. “He's narrating,” he whispered.

“Narrating?”

Skylar nodded. “He'll do that a lot. Mostly when he thinks he's alone, but sometimes when he's around people he trusts. Just little sounds to go along with everything he does.” Skylar fell silent, watching Charlie for a moment.

Ward followed his gaze. Charlie stood there with his shorts unfastened while he straightened out his shirt, getting ready to pull it on. He let out a couple littlesqueaksas he stuck his hands through the shirt's armholes, then a longer, more drawn-out one as he pulled the shirt over his head. Several rapid noises followed as Charlie dragged the shirt down his body, tugging it this way and that until it sat straight. Then came more sounds asCharlie made a fuss of tucking in the shirt before fastening his shorts and buckling his belt.

There was such an unconscious innocence about it that Ward couldn't help smiling. And if Skylar was right about Charlie doing things like that around people he trusted? Ward's smile became a full-on grin.

“Mmmm,” Skylar said. “Oh, that's good.”

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