Page 2 of Jamie
Jerusalem shook his head. “Oh, man. You two are angels to have helped him, but… You need something of your own.”
“And one day we’ll find him. Until then, it does our hearts good to help where we can.” They loved each other dearly, but they both needed to be a Daddy. It made them better.
Bran walked in, his silver fox stalking through the door like the stud he was, gaze dragging over everyone in the room until they found him.
He gave his lover the smile he shared with only Bran, and was given one in return, Bran heading right for him.
He saw the accident in time to gasp, but not in time to stop it. The little barista stepped out with the coffees as Bran moved toward him, and they crashed together, the coffees going flying.
Damn. He’d wanted Bran to notice the boy, but not like this! He surged up and headed for them, his heart warring over who to go to first.
“Oh god. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
“What the hell? You could have hurt someone!” Bran’s roar shook the coffee shop.
Silas winced. This was definitely not the way he’d wanted Bran to first see Jamie.
He stepped in between Bran and Jamie, putting one hand on Bran’s chest. “Easy, Bran. No one was hurt.” His lover wouldn’t have been roaring so loudly if that wasn’t the case. Then heturned to the poor boy and wrapped a hand around his arm and spoke in the calmest of tones. “You didn’t do it on purpose. And the coffee is replaceable.”
“I’ll remake it right now and clean up. Is your shirt okay?” The soft voice was full of trembles.
Silas turned to Bran and raised an eyebrow.Please, lover, I need you to see what I see.
“It’s a T-shirt. It’s fine.”
“I’ll get more drinks.” Jamie turned and ran, cheeks bright red.
Silas rolled his eyes but took a breath. “And now you smell like an enticing mix of coffee, chocolate, and caramel. It could have been much worse,” he teased.
“He could have burned the shit out of us both. He needs to watch where he’s going. You didn’t get splashed, did you?”
“I was at the table over there when it happened,” he said drily, and waved toward where the guys were all gathered, watching them with wide eyes—Daddies and boys both. “And I know he should have been more careful, but you roared, love.Roared.” There was no other word for it.
“Sorry, guys. He startled me.” Bran sat with a growl. “How are you all?”
Silas sat next to his lover with a sigh. Clearly there had been no magical moment for Bran. Not even a hint it seemed. He didn’t pout, instead focusing on the conversation at their table.
Another barista came and brought their coffees as Jamie mopped the floor. “Sorry for the accident. Your coffees are free. We’ve refunded them to your card.”
Silas frowned. “Is that on the company, or does it come out of his salary?” He nodded toward Jamie.
“I—I’m sure it’s fine?” The barista was obviously unsure what to say.
But he wasn’t. The coffees were not cheap, and he imagined if Jamie was being charged for the ones they had, then he was also being charged for the ones that had been dropped. “I’d appreciate it if you charged them to the card again, please.”
“Are you sure? It was totally our fault.”
He was not used to being questioned about his decisions by strangers, and he growled a little as he answered. “I’m absolutely sure.”
The guy nodded and scrambled, and then both baristas disappeared in the back.
Jerusalem chuckled softly. “They’re not going to let us back in, guys.”
“And lose out on the income of over a dozen customers? I imagine they won’t ban us.” He wasn’t concerned about that. Besides, even if they did get banned, coffee shops were a dime a dozen. Needy boys on the other hand…
Jamie was back out behind the counter and not looking toward them, the lean cheeks stained bright red.
His heart went out to Jamie, and he was more sure than ever that the boy could use him and Bran, that he could flourish in their care.
