Milk For His Little (The Lactin Brotherhood #12)

16. Shawn

Chapter 16

Shawn

“Remind me never to move homes again.” Kasper slumped onto the floor, sweat rings under his arms and surrounded by boxes.

His plan never to move again worked for me. I was thrilled that we were finally officially going to be living together. Being away from my boy wasn’t fun.

“Don’t move homes again.”

“You’re hilarious,” he deadpanned.

We decided to do the packing and relocating ourselves to save money. In retrospect, maybe not the smartest idea because Kasper had so much stuff. Most of everything was packed, and as we’d rented a van and I was the driver, there were no burly men checking their watches while Kasper told his toys they’d be okay in a box and he'd see them soon.

But then he opened the box and retrieved his favorite teddy and bunny.

“You have to be good.”

He wasn’t being Little, not really. I couldn’t cope with the packaging, moving, unpacking, and a Little. But he was genuinely concerned about his toys getting dirty, scared, and/or claustrophobic.

I was tempted to point out they’d be in more danger out of the box, but he was already stressing about his stuff, wringing his hands and freaking out when he mislaid a picture book.

Instead, I inserted the two toys in large ziplock bags and congratulated past-me on bringing those from home.

Kasper sniffed under his arms. “Ewww. I’m going to say goodbye to these clothes tonight.”

“Ready to load?”

“I… I guess.” His voice wavered, and I hugged him.

Moving from a place that contained happy memories was bittersweet. But we were beginning our life together, and I hoped once we’d unpacked, we’d make more happy memories.

Lugging boxes and heaving them into the back of the truck was a thankless task but each box in the vehicle got us one step closer to a new phase of our lives.

A quick check of the rooms making sure we hadn’t forgotten anything and Kasper thanked his former home for keeping him safe.

We’d be back tomorrow to clean before handing over the keys to the landlord in the evening.

“I don’t want to unpack. Can we do it another day?” He yawned and placed a hand on my thigh.

“Let’s do as much as we can this afternoon.” We were already filthy and tired, so we may as well plow through. “If we wake up every morning to piles of boxes and you can’t find anything to wear, we’ll regret not unpacking today.”

“I suppose so.” Kasper tilted his head to the side, and I noted the streaks of dirt on his cheeks. Moving was a filthy business.

I made piles of sandwiches, and we placed clothes in the closet I’d cleared out. Toiletries went into the bathroom, books on the shelves, dry goods in the pantry, and utensils in the kitchen. He’s done a good job of whittling down his stuff before we packed, but there was still so much.

“Are we done yet?” Kasper lay on the bedroom carpet, curled in a ball and with his eyes closed.

“Yeah.” We’d made huge inroads, and what we hadn’t unpacked went into the spare room.

“You’re not going to cook, are you?” Kasper soaped himself.

This was our first shower in our home, but we were too exhausted for sex or fondling. We hadn’t even kissed, just washed the grime from the nooks and crannies on our bodies and put on robes.

“Nah.”

We ordered and lay on the couch watching TV while we ate.

The doorbell rang, and Kasper lifted his head. “Did you order dessert?”

I hadn’t and hoped the surprise would make him forget we only had ice cream in the fridge.

“Why don’t you answer it?” I stayed where I was and checked the phone.

“I don’t want to.” Kasper didn’t move. “Are we expecting someone?” He didn’t bound toward the door as he had when the food arrived, and his eyes were wary.

“It’s all right. I know who it is and they have someone they want you to meet.”

His brow furrowed. “A neighbor?”

I got up and took his hand, leading him to the door. “It’s a surprise. A good one.”

He jumped up and down and clapped his hands. “A new toy? Wait!” He tore into the bedroom and returned with his bunny. “Now I’m ready. I want my new friend to feel welcome.”

He gingerly opened the door. My friend Matt stood there holding a pet carrier. He’d done me a huge favor by collecting the kitty I’d chosen from the shelter and looking after the little one for a few days. I didn’t want the kitten to be introduced to us in the chaos and dust.

Kasper flung his arms around my neck and peppered my face with kisses. He fell to his knees and peered into the carrier. “Is this who I think it is?”

“Meet Marvin.”

Matt handed over the food and the cat paraphernalia I’d bought but didn’t come in as he had a date.

With the door closed, Kasper opened the carrier, and Marvin didn’t cower or meow. He pranced out as if he owned the place. I predicted he soon would. He allowed my boy to scratch him behind the ears and proceeded to inspect the apartment.

Kasper had a burst of energy after not wanting to finish unpacking. He set up a bed for Marvin in our room and the living room. The kitty litter box was in the bathroom, and even though it was a self-cleaning one—I couldn’t cope with the smell and bits of poop mixed in with litter—the residue had to be emptied regularly. That was Kasper’s job.

“Now we’re a family.” He introduced Marvin to his bunny, but the kitten gave the stuffie a disdainful look and settled into his bed.

“I want them to be friends.” My sweet boy crawled toward the kitten, telling bunny about Marvin.

“Friendships don’t always happen immediately. This is all new to Marvin.” I reminded Kasper how long it took us to speak to one another. Marvin must have tired of us talking, and he crawled onto my boy’s lap and purred.

“He likes me!”

“And he’ll grow to love you as I do.”

“Awww, I love you too, Daddy.”