Page 58 of In the Name of the Father

Seth needed absolutes, not the grays. Needed to know he was the most important thing in Malcolm’s universe.

Which he is.

It was time to let Seth know where he stood.

“Hey!” Nate’s voice called out from the other side of the door. “I heard you coming down the hall. Are you letting us in or what? It’s freezing out here. Actual snowflakes are piling up at my feet.”

Malcolm furrowed his brow.Snow? He opened the door and was met with an eye-rolling Tina and a self-satisfied grin from Nate. Nate jabbed his finger at him.

“Ha! Gotcha.”

Nate pushed past Malcolm with Tina following behind and mouthing ‘sorry’. Once they were in the foyer, Tina handed Malcolm a bottle of brandy.

“I hope this is one you enjoy. I had a taste at a recent get-together and thought it was fantastic.”

Malcolm accepted the bottle. “Thanks, Tina. I’ve heard about this one.” He looked up to see Nate staring at him as if he were a bug. “What?”

“Jesus. You look like shit.”

Tina gasped. ”Sir!”

Malcolm smirked. “Nice to see you, too.”

Nate shrugged as he glanced between them. “I’m just being honest.” He narrowed his eyes as he continued to study Malcolm. “You and the kid get in a fight?” His mouth formed an ‘o’. “Oh snap, did he leave you?”

“Nate. Stop.” Malcolm jerked his head toward the bedroom. “He’s still getting ready.”

Malcolm led them to the living area to keep Seth from hearing Nate’s commentary. Once they’d entered the room, Malcolm offered to take Nate and Tina’s coats, then started making drinks. After taking a seat, he peered over his shoulder now and again, becoming more anxious as the minutes passed by.

“Hey.” Nate snapped his fingers at Malcolm’s face. “You in there somewhere?”

Nate was at one end of the sofa, next to the wing chair where Malcolm was seated. Tina was kneeling at Nate’s feet between them. Malcolm had planned on having Seth sit on his lap until they went to the dining room for dinner. He glanced over his shoulder again.

“Malcolm?” Nate let out a sigh. “For the love of all that his holy, will you go check on him already?”

Malcolm pressed his lips together. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s taking so long.”

“Sir?”

Both Nate and Malcolm turned their attention to Tina.

“Yes, baby girl?”

“I suddenly have a horrible headache.” She pressed her palm to her forehead for maximum effect. “I hate to be rude, but I’m not sure I can stay for dinner.”

Nate regarded him. “This is why I keep her around. She’s so much smarter than me.”

Malcolm chuckled. “No argument there.” He turned to Tina. “Thank you. I’ll make it up to you guys next time.”

Nate rose and helped Tina to her feet. “Sure as hell will. What’s the name of that five-star restaurant that opened a while back? The one downtown?”

“I think it was called Not in a Million Years.”

Nate helped Tina on with her coat. “Do you see what I’m dealing with here, baby girl? The man is a beast.”

“Rawr.” Malcolm leaned into them both in case Seth should choose that moment to appear. “Thanks guys, I mean it. I think I fucked up.”

Nate snorted. “Of course, you did.” He jostled Malcolm with his elbow. “Go fix things. That boy worships the ground you walk on and I haven’t seen you this happy in years. Well, maybe not at thisexactmoment, but when we went hiking, it was obvious.” Nate patted his arm, his voice taking on an uncharacteristically serious tone. “You deserve to find joy again, Malcolm. Seth is the one. Don’t let him get away.”

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