Page 21 of Lost Little Boy
Perry stood and paced across the company box. I could see he was worried about something, and I wasn’t giving up until I knew what was bothering him. “Sweet boy, what’s wrong?”
He exhaled. “Why did you bring me here? Why are you pushing us to go to the Pride Camp even after I said I didn’t want to go?”
I stood, taking his hand to lead him toward the couch on the tier behind the first row of seats in the box. I sat and pulled him onto my lap. “I need you to listen to me for a minute, okay? I’m not sure if you’re in tune to certain lifestyles, but I’m a Daddy. A Daddy who enjoys taking care of a sweet boy, though I’ve never had one for more than a scene at a club or on a hookup app. I want to take care of a boy and see that he has everything he needs in life. I want to be a Daddy to you, Perry.”
The surprise on Perry’s face had me chuckling. I continued, “Just give me a minute to explain myself, okay?”
The server returned to the box and Perry scrambled off my lap, his face turning bright red as I expected. She walked up the step to the couch and smiled. “Have you decided what you’d like?”
I turned to Perry, who had slid down the couch, so I grabbed his hand and gently tugged until he came closer. “What do you want, sweet boy?”
He studied the menu for a minute before he turned to the server. “Can we have a pizza? Pepperoni and extra cheese?”
I kissed his cheek before I turned to the server. “And an order of wings with lemon pepper seasoning?” The server nodded and left us.
Perry turned to me. “What are we doing?”
I’d been waiting for that question. “I’ve been lucky enough to meet a sweet boy who I believe is exactly who I need. I think you’re a little lost about what you want for your life, and I hope you’ll let me help you find your way.”
“My Daddy?”
“Yes, sweet boy. I think there’s a lot you haven’t allowed yourself to explore. I want to be the one to help you figure it out, if you’ll give me a chance.”
After we ate, Perry was content to sit on my lap again as we watched the game. I explained a few things to him about the plays on the pitch, and he clapped when the home team scored two goals. I knew he was exactly what I wanted and needed in my life.
All I had to do was convince him I could be the same for him.
“We have a two-bedroom unit that will be available the first of July. I was notified yesterday. Currently, a couple lives there—or I think they’re a couple—but they’re moving out because they’re graduating from college and relocating out of the area. Uh, it’s nine hundred square feet. Two bedrooms and one and a half baths. It has a sunroom, too.”
I was speaking with the leasing agent for Kinwood Run, the apartment complex where Perry lived with two roommates. During the soccer game I’d found out how much he paid for his part of the rent, and there was no way in hell a nine hundred square feet, two bedroom, one and a half bath with a solarium apartment could cost thirty-three hundred dollars a month—ifthey were each paying the same amount in rent. Something sounded fishy.
The four apartment buildings in the complex were in need of repairs, and the location wasn’t ideal when it came to ease of transportation around the area. It wasn’t near enough to the Pentagon for military families with more than one child to live there, and since the apartments were so small, I was guessing most of the units were beingrented by students, which explained why a unit was becoming vacant in July.
“What floor is it on? It’s for my mother, and I don’t want her to have to walk up too many steps.” My mother would rather pitch a tent in the woods than live in a walk-up apartment building. To say I’d been born into a family of privilege was an understatement.
“It’s on the second floor, but there’s a freight elevator in the back near the parking area that she would be welcome to use. We only allow tenants to use it for moving, but I’ll make an exception in your mother’s case.” He was very accommodating—or so he sounded. I wondered what happened when it came to honoring his word?
“How much is the rent?” That was the million-dollar question.
“It’s two grand a month. I have a one bedroom coming up in August for eleven hundred. When does she need to move?”
“Her house has sold, and she needs to move by the end of July. Is there any way I can see the two-bedroom place? She has a lot of stuff she’ll need space for.”
Seriously, Perry’s roommates were charging him half the rent and splitting the other half, both of those assholes acting as if he was getting a bargain? I’d like to bitch-slap them both.
“I’ll notify them that you need to come in. Is Friday okay?”
“Afternoon, please.”
“How’s one o’clock?” he asked.
“Perfect. Thank you. I’ll see you then.”
I hung up, seething. How dare those asshole roommates take advantage of Perry. I wasn’t going to say anything to him yet. It was too soon for me to suggest he move in with me, wasn’t it?
Hell, I was currently living in corporate housing and still had an apartment in New York. I needed to figure out what I wanted to do about my job and soon, especially after my meeting with my father earlier in the day. I couldn’t make any promises to Perry until I had my own shit decided.
I went to the sandwich shop across the street, surprised to see Perry sitting alone at a table. It was three in the afternoon, and I’d thought he’d have eaten at his usual one or one-thirty lunchtime.
