Thawed Out (Merry Everything #4)

Chapter 12

12

“ I ’ve got that faculty meeting after school today, don’t forget.” Kiren was making lunches while Flynn wrestled socks onto Cassie’s feet. She hated socks and shoes. It was a struggle every damn day. “Mom’s picking up Cass and will meet Jas at the bus, but if your shift runs long give her a call, okay?”

“Will do. It shouldn’t. I’ve got a Zoom call with my advisor here at the house at four thirty, so I’ll be a few minutes early. I texted her. Cass, give me your foot.” Flynn rolled his eyes, but his husband hadn’t looked so healthy in years. Handsome too, in his slacks and button down. “Jasper, don’t forget it’s library day at school, son!”

“On it, Dad! Do you know where my comb is?”

Flynn shot Kiren a grin. “He knows how to use a comb?”

“I’ve been working on it.” Kiren winked. “Try on top of your dresser, buddy. Oh, shit. Strawberry jelly on my shirt. Be right back!” That figured. He took off up the stairs to find a new shirt.

“I don’t want socks!” It was one of their more chaotic mornings, but Flynn was here to help, and he couldn’t stop his smile.

He was less thrilled with the jelly on his shirt, but he ran the stain under some water and left it for later, then pulled a new shirt on as he headed back downstairs.

“Dad-Mom! Can we have pizza for supper tonight?” Jas ran out, backpack filled with library books.

“No. Pizza on Fridays. Tonight is chicken.” Jasper could eat pizza every night. To be fair, he could too, but he was sadly old enough to know better. “How are the socks going?”

“The toes are trapped!” Flynn called back. “She’s going to turn into a mermaid, any day.”

“I’m not a mermaid, Daddy.”

“Let’s see those feet Sassy Cassie,” he said, passing by to go finish lunches.

“Socks!” She said, waggling her feet at him.

“Awesome. Sparkly pink sneakies?”

“Sneakies! Sneakie sneakie sneakies!” She grinned at him. “Did you say pizza for supper?”

“No. I said chicken, girlie. Pizza on Friday.” He gave Flynn an amused eyeroll and finished up the sandwiches, then closed up the lunch boxes, setting all four of them on the counter. PB and J for the kids, turkey and cheese for Flynn and for him. He’d added a couple of Oreos to Flynn’s just to be cute.

“Ew. Chicken. Chicken chicken bird.” She sighed dramatically.

“You like chicken, silly girl,” Flynn teased.

“We like pizza better!” Jas chimed in.

“You ready, Jas? You have your eye out for the bus?” He tucked Jasper’s lunch into the Iron Man backpack and zipped it up.

“I’m ready!”

“Awesome.” He opened the front and peered out through the storm door. The bus had been on time every day since the holiday.

Flynn bundled Cassie into her coat, grabbed his travel cup of coffee, and stole a kiss from Kiren. “I’m going to drop off the girl, and head in to get that paperwork done for Dr. Mills.” Flynn was working at the same clinic where he was doing his practicals and would stay there as Dr. Mills’s nurse until he began working as a physician’s assistant there. It suited his husband to the bone, being settled and sure about where he belonged. “Love you, huh?”

“Love you. Have a good day.”

“Love you, Daddy!” Jas hugged Flynn fast and hard.

“Bus! Bye bye, girlie love you!” He opened the door so Jas could run out. “Have fun to today, buddy!”

“Bye Dad-Mom!” He wasn’t sure which kid said it first. Everything was happening at once. But a minute later, the house was quiet, and Flynn’s truck was backing down the driveway.

And he needed to get his ass to the high school, which thankfully started forty-five minutes later than the elementary school did.

He blinked, looked around, and saw a folded note sitting on the counter with his name on it.

Hey babe,

Just wanted to say thank you, I love you, and have a great day.

I’m so happy.

F.

Well, fuck. He couldn’t leave for work yet; his eyes were all misty now. He smiled, so incredibly happy just because Flynn was happy. He was starting to get the hang of this be a better husband thing.

He was extra glad he’d slipped Flynn a few Oreos.

Chicken? In the oven.

Homework for Jasper? Done.

Listened about every single thing Cassie had done from the moment she left his sight? Done.

Meeting with his advisor? Successful.

Laundry? Started.

Prep work for tomorrow’s patients? Finished.

Flynn was on fire.

“Green beans or broccoli for our green food, y’all?”

Cass said broccoli, and Jas said green beans, and he was just about to negotiate when Kiren came in the door. His husband walked right to him and kissed his cheek, then kept on walking.

“Hi. Suck ass day. I need to—I just need to put all this sh—tuff down and take a breath. I’ll be back in a minute, okay?”

“No worries.” So, mashed potatoes and green beans it was. “We’ll have broccoli next time, okay Jas. Looks like Dad-Mom had a rough day at school, so we’ll spoil him.”

Cassie nodded, so serious. “We should make dessert. Dad-Mom loves pie.”

“There’s a cherry pie in the freezer, Daddy,” Jasper added. “That would be so nice.”

“Uh-huh.” Rotten children. Still, it wasn’t a half-bad idea. “I’m on it.”

That and a beer would help.

Tons.

Kiren took a little more than a minute. When he did come back he had that stress crease in his brow but found a smile for the kids. “How was school, you guys?”

“Good. Got a perfect score on my math test.” Jasper held up his test with the gold star on it.

“Daddy’s making supper and pie and beer!” Cassie added. “And I shared today and said my ABCs twice.”

Kiren gave him a tired but amused look and wandered in his direction. “You’re making beer?”

“Not in my skill sets, but I do have a couple of cold ones in the fridge.” He winked and kissed the corner of his mouth. “Long day in the trenches?”

“Hold that thought.” Kiren held up a finger and looked at Jas. “Nice work on your math test, buddy! High five!”

Jasper grinned broadly and slapped his hand.

“And you said your ABCs twice, Cass? High five.”

“ Two times!” Cass said as she touched her hand to his.

“Okay. My day. I had a stupid faculty meeting. New rules, more work, same money…sound familiar?” Kiren grabbed a beer and handed it to him to open.

“Lord yes. You work your ass off, but you’re making a huge difference to those kids.” And they both knew it. Flynn was so damn proud.

“The kids matter more than anything. This bureaucracy bullpoop—paperwork, reports, district goals—pisses me off.” Kiren took his beer back and took a long drink.

“I hear you.” Supper was in progress, and there wasn’t anything to do for ten minutes, so he shuffled the kids off for cartoons. “You need me to beat someone? I can. I know how.”

Kiren snorted. “I think this time the assholes have you outnumbered.”

“Never say so! I have germs from all the patients!” He laughed and dragged Kiren into a hard, happy kiss. “Welcome home, gorgeous.”

Kiren leaned into him. “Thank you. Dinner smells good. I’m sorry I’m a grump.”

“You’re allowed.” He traced lazy circles on Kiren’s lower back. “It’s just chicken, green beans, and potatoes, but it should be yummy.”

“It sounds great to me. Simple is good, makes everyone happy, right?” Kiren leaned against the counter, sipping his beer. “This is a decent attitude adjustment too. How was your call?”

“Good. Good. I’m hitting all my marks. Everyone’s happy with my performance. I’m on track.” And he was loving it. His life felt like it belonged to him.

“Of course they are. You’re brilliant. That sounds like a much better day.” Kiren rubbed his forehead. “Ugh. I have a headache.”

“You want a Tylenol? A hot shower? A massage? All three?” He leaned close and whispered, “Bonus orgasm?”

“Ooh. If it wasn’t a school night, I’d take all three. As it stands, I think Tylenol and a bonus orgasm will do.”

“What’s a bonus orgasm?” Jasper asked, wandering into the kitchen. “Is dinner ready yet?”

They both stopped, blinking, and Flynn went blank for a second, then the urge to crack up was huge. “I’ll check dinner.”

“Coward,” Kiren whispered as he hid in the oven. “Jasper! How was art class? Aren’t you working on a clay thing?”

Ah. Distraction for the win. Go Kiren.

“Art? I didn’t have art today.”

“No? Well, what did you have today?” Kiren steered Jasper over to the couch to chat, orgasms—bonus or otherwise—potentially forgotten.

“I had gym. That was cool. We played basketball. I’m really good.” Jasper was so confident.

“Are you? I will have to watch you play sometime. Would you rather do that than karate?”

Jasper sounded genuinely interested, and he was pretty sure they were on to something “I can really play basketball instead?”

He listened with half an ear while he pulled out the chicken and potatoes and started the green beans. It was a random, normal, easy patter that felt like heaven.

He checked the pie, threw in the Brown ’n Serves, and grabbed plates.

“Daddy?”

He grinned at Cass. “Yes, ma’am?”

“Can I help?”

“Sure. Want to get the silverware?”

“Sibleware!” Cass opened the drawer. She was just tall enough to grab four forks.

Kiren appeared with an empty beer bottle and gave him a kiss. “Nectar from the gods,” Kiren said before tossing the bottle into the recycling. “What can I carry?”

Jasper just took the plates from him. “I got this.”

“Pull the rolls out of the oven? I got the green beans.”

“Ooh! Rolls!” Cassie did a sweet little butt wiggle.

“Rolls. We all love rolls.” Kiren pulled them from the oven and marched out after everyone else, setting the hot foil on a trivet. “Smells good, baby.”

“Smells good, baby!” Cass echoed.

“Thank you, thank you.” Flynn bowed deep. “I aim to please.”

Jasper chuckled. “Daddy, you are kind of a dork.”

“All the way, little man.”

“Mm. Kind of. Sit, Jasper.” Kiren scooped Cassie up and sat her in a chair. “Have we got everything?”

“Rolls, chicken, potatoes, beans. Milk. Pie has another twenty-five minutes. We’re golden.”

“Pie too?” Kiren laughed. “Oh, some little people got to you, huh?”

“We decided today needed pie.” He winked at his husband.

“Ah. That was very kind. Maybe today does need pie.” Kiren sat and dished out food to the kids. “Mm. Mashed potatoes. My favorite. Thank you, Daddy.”

“You’re welcome, Dad-Mom. I’m glad I got off in time to make supper.” It made him feel ten feet tall. Like he was contributing here and at work.

Kiren reached over, squeezed his fingers and gave him a smile, then went back to his dinner.

“When is it not Christmas anymore?” Jasper asked, forking up some potatoes.

Kiren didn’t hesitate. “Well, I don’t know about other houses, but this year, it’s still Christmas here.”

“Is Santa going to come again ?” Cassie asked, eyes wide.

“No, he’s resting now, but we can have the spirit of Christmas as long as we want it.”

“Can he do that?” Jasper asked Flynn.

Flynn wasn’t sure Kiren was ever going to take down the tree. “It’s our house, buddy. We can do whatever we want, if it doesn’t hurt anybody.”

Kiren just smiled as he loaded up on mashed potatoes. “Christmas was good to us this year. I’m not ready to let it go yet. Okay?”

“The tree is pretty!” Cass seemed to be on board. “I think we should have it for always.”

“Not Halloween,” Jasper argued, taking a piece of chicken.

“Halloween tree?” Kiren suggested, not even ironically.

“I want a Halloween-y tree! A purple one with princesses!”

Jasper rolled his eyes. “And blood?”

“No blood!”

“Blood!”

“No blood!”

“Enough.” Flynn made sure they heard him without hollering.

“Eat, guys. We can talk about the tree later.” Kiren gave him a sly nod.

“More green beans please?” Cassie held her plate out to him.

“Of course.” He served them up, buttering half of a roll for her too.

“Ooh. Hand me a roll too, baby.” Kiren held his hand out. “Is everyone’s homework all done?”

“I don’t have homework, silly Dad-Mom!” Cassie cracked up, even as Jasper nodded.

“I read, so I’m done. That means I can play my game for an hour, right?”

“Half an hour, nice try. It’s a school night.” Kiren gave Jasper the you-know-better look. “And you, Miss Cassie, can always practice your letters.”

“I don’t want to do that. I do that at my school! A C B D F!”

Flynn was not going to laugh. Not not not.

Kiren literally bit his lips together so he didn’t either.

“A B C D E Cassie. Geez.” Jasper rolled his eyes. “A B C…”

“A C B!”

Jasper shook his head, but grinned. “Silly girl.”

“I am ! I am the classy clown!”

The classy clown. He met Kiren’s eyes, and then they started cackling, all four of them just cracking up.

“You so are, Classy Cassie.” Kiren pulled her into his lap and blew a raspberry on her neck, making her squeal.

“Oh, Dad-Mom. I am so happy! I love you and Daddy and Jasper and all of us together, and I need a puppy!”

Oh, lord. He wasn’t in a place to potty train a puppy. Cassie wasn’t all the way trained at night yet.

Kiren glanced at him but was talking to Cassie. “No puppy until summer, okay? Then I can be home to take care of him.”

“A kitty? I like kitties.”

Jasper was watching this like a hawk.

“Dad-Mom and I have to discuss things. Maybe we should plan a family meeting over the weekend.”

“I love that idea. Then Jasper can tell us what he’d like too, and we can figure out what works best. A pet is part of the family, right? Not just something to play with. So we have to be sure we’re doing the right thing.” Kiren reached out and squeezed his leg, and he sat a little taller.

He did love feeling like a good husband.

And watching Kiren be able to relax after a tough day instead of “take even more on those busy shoulders” was gratifying.

All he had to do now was keep the pie from burning, and he was golden.