Page 4 of The Lonely Hearts Guide

“But we can keep going the way we are now,” Goose insisted. “We’re happy for the most part. We get to see each other every day. Baby, you can’t just throw us away. We’re bonded.” He placed his hand over Duck’s heart and closed his eyes. “Can you still feel it? Our tether.”

“I do,” Duck admitted. “And that’s why you gotta let me go. If we can make the tether snap, I can bond with Martin. I’ve been reading Mother’s Manual, and she says the bond between a master and his beau is strong enough to dull the worst kinds of pain. Maybe if I bond with him, it won’t hurt as much when he . . .” He closed his eyes and shook his head, forcing the memories away, Alexander thought. “I ain’t strong like you, Goosey-goose. I ain’t cut out for the pain he puts me through. It hurts.” Tears slip from the corners of his closed eyes. “You said you’d protect me, but you can’t protect me no more. I gotta protect myself.” Duck leaned forward and pressed his face into Goose’s chest. “I gotta let you go.”

“Then why did you wake me up? If you needed to get rid of me that much, why didn’t you just keep me powered down?” The words were bitter, but the bitterness was meant to mask the hurt. Alexander could tell, so he had no doubt Duck could see through it too.

“Because I love you, and I ain’t gonna let you stay powered down forever. You’re too good, Goose. You’re the best man I’ve ever known, and I’m not gonna let that go to waste. I can’t be free. I ain’t got a master who will let me live my life by my rules. You do.”

“I’m sorry. Baby, I’m so sorry. I’d trade places with you in a second if you could. I’d take everything he has to give if it kept you safe.”

“I know,” he whispered, kissing Goose gently. “But you can’t. You can’t live my life for me, but you can live yours. You can live a big, beautiful life, and you can do it for me. I want you to be happy. So, you go out there, and you forget me, Goose. You forget me, and then you find a life worth living.”

Cradling him against his chest, Goose combed his fingers through Duck’s hair. “How could I ever forget you, my love?”

“Or,” Alexander interrupted, as a surge of something he hadn’t felt in a long time passed through him. The urge to make things right, no matter the cost. Justice for the hurt and battered automatons he’d met along the way. He had to save them, the way he couldn’t save Anthony. “You can let me help.”

The men looked up at him with wide, confused eyes.

“What do you mean?” Goose asked.

Alexander walked across the room and took a seat on the edge of the bed. “There’s a place I know of. A place where people start over.” He smiled at Goose. From what Alexander could tell, Goose was putting it all together in his head like a jigsaw puzzle. When it finally registered, a smile as wide as Dallas herself split his face and Alexander nodded. “Mom loves you. She already thinks of you as a second son. Let me take you there.” Alexander looked down at Duck, placing an arm on both of their shoulders. “Let me take you both to live with her. He won’t find you there, I promise.”

The bonded beaus shared a look, a silent conversation taking place right in front of Alexander’s eyes. Duck nodded, then Goose.

“All right,” Duck said, and Goose let out an overwhelmed cry, throwing his arms around Duck.

“Pack your things while he’s at work tomorrow,” Alexander told Duck. “We’ll pick you up at eight.”

That was the plan, at least. But the plan was shot straight to hell only three hours later when Alexander startled awake at the sound of breaking glass. He jolted out of his bed and rushed downstairs, heart still slamming as he rushed toward the sound of men talking in the kitchen. Alexander rounded the corner, his eyes going wide. Duck was sitting on the kitchen island’s counter, and Goose was standing in front of him, dabbing a damp wet cloth across Duck’s cheek.

“Guys?” Alexander called out.

Goose startled, looking over his shoulder with a look of guilt stretched across his face. “I’m sorry, Alexander. I messed up.”

“What do you mean?”

Goose flushed. “He found us. Martin. He was supposed to take his sleeping pill, but he didn’t, and he found us together.” As Goose removed the cloth from Duck’s face, Alexander had to swallow down bile. There was a long gash across Duck’s cheek and the slashed edges of his skin were covered in dark, congealed blood. Where skin once grew, a strip of Duck’s mechanical skull was fully visible. Alexander knew he needed stitches, but Goose was already on it, putting his sewing lessons to use as he stitched Duck whole again.

As the pair proclaimed their love for one another, Alexander slipped out of the room and headed for Martin Moore’s home, three doors down.

Then came the fire. Then came the fallout. Accident or not, Alexander never told Goose what happened that night. It was a secret he planned to take to his grave.

When he returned, both Goose and Duck had gauze wrapped around their wrists, and there was blood seeping through the bandages. The pair weren’t the only ones with blood on their hands, but Alexander kept his hands shoved into his pockets, hiding the ugly truth from his precious friends.

“The tracking chips are out?” he asked.

Goose nodded, darting his eyes toward two small computer chips resting on the kitchen island. “They came out easy.”

“Good,” Alexander said, shoving his hands deeper into his pockets. “I’ve arranged for transportation, but we have to be at the pickup location in an hour and a half, so we need to get going.” Goose and Duck shared a fearful look, but Alexander gave them a reassuring smile. “I promise you’re both safe now. No one is going to find you. I’ll see to it.”

Then Alexander, Goose, and Duck traveled, first by car, then by ferryboat. And the rest, as they say, was history.

This is a monumental day in your life. Not only have you found your happily ever after with Master Jared Price; now, you're carrying the most precious gift a househusband can provide. New life. A legacy in motion. While I know this is all new and frightening, I want you to remember one thing: you aren’t in this alone. As you are my shining beacon in the newest era of automaton innovation, I’ve compiled a list of helpful tidbits to guide you along the way. Consider this the early draft of Mother's Manual for Family & Fatherhood, and know that it was written just for you.

There will be times when you feel this is a thankless job, but remember, your husband’s hand in marriage is all the thanks you need. He provides for you. He cares for you. Master Jared Price worships the ground you walk upon. Over the next few months, I want you to hold tight to his love. When your heart burns and your ankles swell, just remember, this is all for the greater good. For the future. Yours and ours.

You won’t remember much of the training you’ve gone through over the last few months, but the knowledge is embedded in your DNA. It flows freely through your bloodstream. You could call it instinct, but I prefer to think of it as a little seed planted in your fragile heart, ready to grow when the need arises. Trust your instincts, son. They’ll never let you down.

And, if ever you doubt your ability to father your future child, I want you to return to this manual. I’ve compiled methods—tried and true—that got me through raising all my precious boys. Some methods may sound outdated, others farfetched, but Mother would never lead you astray.

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