Page 87 of His Boys to Protect

He rubbed his eyes.What the heck?He'd been fast asleep, curled up around Skylar after spending a perfect, quiet evening together.

The only thing missing had been Charlie.

Ward had been more than ready to jump into his truck and drive out to the suburbs to pick up the boy, but Skylar was right. The suddenness of it would have been too much. Still, it hadn't stopped Ward from wanting it all evening.

And not even for the possibility of sex, which had been beyond anything he'd ever imagined. Being inside Skylar along with Charlie and watching them both come apart beneath him? Hearing them both moan? Touching their skin? If sex with Skylar had rocked his world, adding Charlie into the mix simply obliterated everything.

Ward wanted more of that.

But he would have gladly taken having Charlie there with them just to lie together in silence and watch a movie. It would have been so peaceful. One boy on either side of him, wrappedup tight in his arms. Ward had fallen asleep, imagining that. Picturing both boys there with him, safe and happy and warm.

But then he'd woken up, and Skylar had been halfway out of bed, staring at his phone as though he'd seen a ghost.

Shit. Was something wrong with Charlie?

Ward shook his head.No way. Skylar would have said something if that were the case.

He considered going after the boy, but Skylar had a head-start. Besides, Ward had only had a few hours of sleep. He didn't relish the idea of driving around an unfamiliar city, especially as tired as he was. And where would he even go? He had no idea where Skylar lived, assuming that was even where the boy went.

Ward let out a sigh and lay back down. He'd call Skylar tomorrow. After making his usual trip to Charlie's house, he'd call and ask what was going on.

Because it wasn't just whatever Skylar had found on his phone. The boy had been acting strangely all evening. It was subtle, but Ward noticed. Skylar had somehow been clingy and distant all at once. Ward had tried asking if anything was wrong, but Skylar insisted everything was fine.

Ward had felt some nagging memories of Kelly, of the subtle signs that he'd completely missed back then, leading up to the wedding. The tension. The distance. But he'd put those out of his mind. Ward hadn't wanted to think about all that while he had this beautiful boy in his arms.

But now he wondered if it was happening all over again.

Ward fell back asleep with that thought on his mind, then woke with a start when his phone began vibrating across the nightstand. He started to sit up with a groan. The phone kept vibrating, the sound loud and grating in the dark and silent room.

He picked it up, blinking sleepily at the screen.

Sky.

Ward sat bolt upright and answered. “Sky?”

A broken sob came over the line.

“Sky?” Ward repeated insistently, trying to hold back a sense of panic. Something was definitely wrong.

“W-Ward?”

“Yeah, baby,” Ward sighed, unable to fully keep the relief out of his voice. “I'm here.”

Skylar choked out a cry.

“Sky? Talk to me.” Ward threw back the covers and got up. When Skylar didn't immediately respond, he asked, “Sky? Are you hurt?”

“N-No.”

“Are you in danger?”

“No.”

Ward heaved a sigh of relief. “Okay. Talk to me, sweetheart. What's wrong?”

The line was silent for a moment other than the broken, heartbreaking sounds of crying. Then Ward heard Skylar suck in a rasping breath before the boy started babbling nonsense.

“Whoa, hey, Sky. Easy, kitten. Slow down. Take a deep breath for Daddy, okay?”

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