by Sean Michael
"I'll give you until the count of three, and then I'm going to beat the fuck out of you." He'd never hit another man in his life, but he thought he could.
"You lay one finger on me and I'll sue the hell out of you! I'm calling my lawyer as it is. I want my half of this house. I want my half of everything, and I'm going to get it, you fucking bastard."
"You're not getting a dime. Not a dime. I'm the one who worked. I'm the one that got the loan. I'm the one paying the bills. You rode on my coattails. Fuck off."
"We'll just see." Mitch sneered at him. "I'm going to take you to the cleaners. Let's see how much you like those kiddies when they've cost you a fortune. You should have gotten rid of them and taken me back, Jeff. You'll see -- I'm gonna make you pay."
Mitch turned and slammed the door hard enough Jeff was worried for a moment it was going to come off its hinges or the glass was gonna break.
He watched the bastard leave, then leaned against the house, sucking in hitching breaths. He'd loved that bastard, had thought he was loved in return. Jesus.
Now that they weren't yelling, he could hear Donny and Robin singing. Very determinedly. Okay. Okay, man. You have kids. You have to do this.
"Beth, you bitch."
He went back into the living room, and the singing faded, both Don and Robin looking at him, eyes wide.
"Hey. Did I miss all the hot dogs?"
"No, we've got a couple left. Let's make a hot dog for daddy."
"Bad words, Daddy!"
"Yeah. Yeah, I know. Sorry, Robbie."
"Everything okay?" Don looked a little shell-shocked, shaken.
"Yeah. Sorry." He cooked the hot dog, lips tight.
Don shifted closer to him once he'd finished cooking it.
"Hey." He kissed Don's temple, the top of Robin's head.
Don took his hand and squeezed it. "What can we do to help?"
"You're doing it."
Don smiled and leaned against him a little. "You wanna sing another song, Robin? Or should we tell campfire stories?"
"I want Dora on the TV."
"Is that okay, Jeff? We could put out the fire and get him ready for b. e. d."
"I think that's fine." He'd burned his hot dog to a crisp anyway.
"Good. You want to deal with the fire or teeth and stuff?"
"I'll clean up." He needed a shot of whiskey, something to just take the edge off.
"Okay." Don touched his arm. "We can talk once Robin is settled."
"Yeah." He nodded -- a little pissed off, a lot ashamed of losing his temper.
Don kissed his cheek and grabbed Robin's hand. "Come on, let's go get ready for bed and then we can put on Dora."
"Can I sleep in here?"
Jeff listened to the idle chatter, then grinned at Kimberley, who was sound asleep in her swing. "Let me clean this up and I'll put you to bed, baby."
He soon had the fire out and the DVD set up, and then Robin and Don were back, Don helping Robin climb into the sleeping bag under the chair and sheet tent. As they settled, he got Kimberley out of her swing, managed to change her and get her into bed without waking her. Score one for Daddy Jeff.
Don met him on the upstairs landing, moving in to give him a hug. "Are you okay?"
"No." He held on tight.
Don simply held him. "Let's go sit in your bedroom -- Robin's asleep in front of Dora, he'll be fine."
"You sure?" He led Don into the room.
"We'll hear him if he calls out, but I think he's down for the night." Don tugged him down onto the bed and took his hand. "You wanna tell me about it?"
"He came to see if I was ready to stop playing daddy." Jeff leaned hard against Don. Asshole.
Don's arms went around him, holding him close. "He sounded like a real asshole. I tried to make sure Robin didn't hear everything."
"I'm sorry."
"It's not your fault he's being suck a dickwad about this." Don kissed the top of his head. "Does he actually want you back, or is he just being an asshole?"
"I have no idea. I'm not sure I care."
Don squeezed him gently.
"He's an idiot, you know. Giving a hot, studly guy like you up."
"He's... He's not who I thought he was."
"No, I hope not. I'd hate to think you'd go for an asshole like that."
All Jeff could do was nod. He didn't have an answer.
"Would it be tacky if I wanted to kiss you to try and make you forgot about him?" Don looked like he might do it anyway.
"Probably. Would it be tacky if I let you?"
"Most likely." Don leaned into him.
"Good to know." He let one arm wrap around Don's shoulders.
Don pressed their lips together, the touch soft, but with a hint of electricity in it.
"Mmm..." He moaned, leaned into the touch.
Don's tongue slid along his lips. He opened up, willing as hell to let Don make him feel better. Don shifted, moving to straddle him as the man's warm hands cupped his face. Don deepened the kiss.
He moaned and reached out, fingers wrapping around Don's waist.
"You taste good," murmured Don, hips rolling a bit.
"Thank you." He imagined he tasted like marshmallow.
Don grinned and pressed against him, pushing him off balance and onto his back on the bed.
He wrapped one arm around Don's shoulders, holding on tight as the kiss deepened, their tongues sliding together.
"I want to feel you inside me." He barely heard Don's whispered words.
"Oh, damn, baby..." Jeff moaned, hips rolling up, his body all over that thought. He nodded, hand sliding down Don's spine to find that sweet ass and...
The crash was huge, Robin's scream from downstairs bigger.
"Robin!"
He shoved Don off him, falling to his knees as he scrambled for his son. Don was right there with him, the two of them flying down the stairs.
Robin was sitting up in his makeshift tent, crying softly.
"You get him upstairs." There was a brick, sitting in the floor, the huge bay window shattered. "Now."
He grabbed the phone, dialed 911, and pulled the door open, looking for Mitch. Fucker.
Don gathered Robin up, talking softly as he took Robin upstairs.
"911 operator, can I help you?"
"Someone just threw a brick through my window. My children are here with me. I don't know if whoever did this is still out there."
His babies were here. That brick could have hurt his son. Jeff's fingers clenched around the phone.
Chapter Twelve
Don woke up with the sun, curled around Jeff, his head on one shoulder.
Thinking about what had happened last night, he shivered and pressed in against Jeff. He'd been calm and with it last night, taking care of Robin, getting him back to sleep. He'd even dealt with the two bouts of nightmares Robin had had, poor little thing.
Now, though, with the morning light shining through and feeling warm and safe in Jeff's arms, all the possibilities went flooding through him. What if something had happened to Robin? What if that brick had hit him? What if it had been something even more dangerous than a brick?
He tried to shake it off, focusing on the warmth here in Jeff's bed. Still, this wasn't the kind of thing he was used to, and it would be so easy to freak out.
He looked over Jeff's shoulder, smiling at the sight of Robin and Kimberley with them -- the little boy curled on Jeff's other side, the baby on her daddy's chest. Jeff had them all.
Donny had the whole world, right here. Jeff, the kids. What more could he ask for?
Jeff's hand stroked his back. He closed his eyes and breathed, the touch calming him back down. God. He loved this man and his kids. It didn't matter that it hadn't been a long time; it was just how it was.
Kimberley's little lips were moving like she was sucking, a frown drawing her eyebrows down. He bit back his chuckle. It wasn't going to be long before she woke up crying for food. They were going to need to start her on
rice cereal soon, but in the meantime, he could go get her bottle going. He began to slip from the bed.
"Mmm. Stay, love. You're warm." God, it made him feel good to hear Jeff call him love.
"Kimberley's about to explode."
"No exploding. That's messy." Jeff kissed Kimmie's head.
He chuckled softly. "Have you had an exploding diaper yet? Because you're right -- it is messy."
The baby's eyes opened, staring at him. He smiled at her. God, she was cute. She smiled back, blinked for him. He slid his finger into her palm, her little fingers closing around it.
"Hi, beautiful."
She drew his finger toward her mouth, and Robin's head popped up from the other side of Jeff. "She's hungry."
He grinned and nodded. "She is. You know how to take good care of her, don't you?"
"I'm her brother."
"You are. You're her big brother. That's a very important job."
Robin nodded, so seriously.
"I'm a big brother too." And also a little brother, but still.
"No. I'm the big brother."
Donny chuckled and nodded. "Here you are. I meant that with my mom, dad and sister, I'm a big brother, too."
"No." Robin frowned. "Me!"
Jeff chuckled. "He hasn't figured that out yet."
"Yeah, I see that. Okay, Robin. You're the big brother and I'm the nanny."
"You be Donny." Robin crawled over Kimberley, into his arms. "My Donny."
"What if I want him to be my Donny?" Jeff teased.
"No. Mine. You have the baby."
Donny burst out laughing, his arms going around Robin and squeezing the boy tight. Robin snuggled in, hugged him back.
"Fix the window, Daddy?"
Jeff shook his head. "There's a board on it. Someone will come to fix it today."
He reached over and squeezed Jeff's thigh. "It'll be good as new in no time."
Robin nodded. "Can I go see?"
Jeff shook his head. "Ava's coming today with her good vacuum to get all the glass."
"We'll stick to upstairs and the kitchen for today. In fact... why don't we have breakfast in bed?" That way the kids wouldn't have to go downstairs at all.
"Oooh." Robin bounced and squealed, which got Kimberley to kicking. They were so damn resilient. Thank God.
Jeff sat up. "Okay, guys. I'll go make breakfast and bring it up and make some calls before I head to work."
"You sure? If I did it you could spend more time with them." Jeff didn't get enough time with them, given his hours. He only got to put them to bed two days a week, and he missed so much.
"I need to call the insurance agent." Jeff kissed all three of them, then stood, slipping on a pair of shoes.
Donny took Kimberley from him and jiggled her. "You wanna get me her bottle, first? She's about to blow." Still. It was a miracle she'd given them as long as she had. "Then maybe her big brother can give her her bottle."
Robin nodded. "I can. I'm big."
"I know." He put Kimberley over his shoulder, rubbing her back to keep her sweet. "Come sit next to me so we're all ready when Daddy brings up her bottle."
Robin nodded and grinned. "I don't want to change her butt."
That had him laughing again, Kimberley jiggling from it. "Can you get me a diaper and wipes from her room?"
"Yes!" Robin bounced off.
God, Robin made him happy. Both kids did. So did their father. He just prayed the asshole Jeff used to be with didn't screw any of it up.
Kimberley cooed and wriggled, reached for him. Jeff came up with a bottle and some cereal for Robin. "There are muffins going in the oven."
"God, you're amazing. Robin's going to feed her as soon as he gets back with her diaper and wipes." He looked at Jeff. "You all right?"
"No, but I will be. The window guy is coming at four p.m. Do you think you can handle it or do you want me to see if I can get Jillian to come over?"
"Do I need to do more than show him the window and make sure the kids stay out of his way?"
"Not a thing."
"Then I think I can handle it." It wasn't rocket science, after all.
Robin came bouncing back in, carrying a diaper and a handful of wipes.
"Here's some cereal, buddy. I've gotta go check the muffins."
"'kay, Daddy. I'm going to feed the baby."
"Robin's a big help." He got Robin cuddled up next to him and laid Kimberley across the boy's lap, her head on his thigh. They could change her once she'd fed -- the bottle was clearly what she was after this morning.
Robin jabbered idly through the feeding, and the house began to smell like bananas. Donny answered the odd question Robin had, but mostly just reclined there, dozing happily. He could learn to love this. Okay, so he already did.
When Kimberley had finished her bottle, Donny picked her up and burped her. "Get me the diaper from the bottom of the bed there, Robin."
"Poopy butt! Poopy butt! Baby has a poopy butt!"
He chuckled. "Yes, she has a poopy butt. One day she'll go in the big boy toilet like you do."
"Uh-uh." Robin shook his head.
"No? Why not? You don't think she's going to get big like you?"
"No." Robin looked at him like he was an idiot. "It's a big BOY potty for you and me and Daddy."
Oh, God. He bit the inside of his cheek. Hard. "So it is. What do you think we're going to do for her then? When she's no longer wearing diapers?"
"She'll have to move to a girl house. With pink."
"Wouldn't you miss her if she moved to a girl house?"
Robin frowned. "She could go live with Mommy."
"Mommy lives in Heaven now, Robin."
Robin frowned. "When is she coming back?"
He shook his head, and hugged the boy. "I'm sorry, sweetie, but she's not ever coming back."
"Why not?"
Jeff sighed from the doorway. "Because she died, son. She's in Heaven. When you're old, you'll go see her. Muffins."
He gave Jeff a sympathetic look. This wasn't the last time Robin was going to ask, either and as he got older, he wasn't going to be so easily appeased.
"You promise, Daddy."
"I do. Now, Kimberley, diaper change. Robin, finish your cereal and have a muffin."
Donny handed Kimberley over and grabbed a muffin, himself, cuddling Robin close as the boy ate. Robin leaned into him, and Jeff changed the baby, forehead creased in a worried line.
"You okay, Jeff?" he asked softly.
"Yeah." Jeff sounded lost.
He put down his muffin and slid out of the bed, moving to stand behind Jeff. He put his head on the man's shoulder. "You sure?"
Jeff leaned toward him, let him touch. "No, Don. I'm not."
"Okay. How can I help?"
"I don't know."
He pressed kisses to the back of Jeff's neck, just looking to soothe the man.
"Donny, you're kissing my daddy."
He smiled, blushed, nodded. "I am." It would be wrong to try to pretend to Robin that they didn't care for each other.
"Okay. Can I go play?" And it was as easy as that.
"Sure thing, sweetie." He leaned his head against Jeff's shoulder, watching Robin bounce off. "We should all be so resilient."
"God, yes." Jeff nodded. "What if he comes back when I'm at the restaurant? What if he hurts you guys?"
Donny tried not to stiffen, but he couldn't help it. "He wouldn't dare."
"I wouldn't have thought he'd dare to throw a brick."
"He wasn't always a bully then?" Part of him wanted to know, part of him just didn't want to hear it.
"I didn't think so. We were busy. I worked long hours. We just... it was very busy."
He wrapped his arms around Jeff's waist. "Always out doing stuff, huh?"
"Working, drinking, movies, openings -- we were young and single with money."
"Your money?" Had Mitch just been around for the money?
"Sure. Mitch is an artist -- lots of talent, not a l
ot of cash." Jeff sighed, picked Kimberley up and patted her back. "He wasn't a bad man, just... not one for problems. Or poop. Burping. Responsibilities."
"He doesn't miss this house; he misses your money."
Jeff sighed. "It's amazing how fast all those years can turn ugly."
"I'm sorry, Jeff." He couldn't be too upset, though. If Mitch had been a good and decent man who'd really loved Jeff, he would have stuck around and then where would Donny be?
"I just want him to leave us alone."
"That would be nice, wouldn't it?" He rested his head on Jeff's shoulder, breathing the man in.
"Yeah." Jeff didn't sound like he believed it was going to happen, though.
"Is she ready for her swing or her seat?" He could give Jeff a blow job -- start his day off better.
"I don't know." Jeff nuzzled her neck and she gurgled. "Sweet baby."
"Yeah. She's got a great disposition. They both do." Happy more than not, easy to make smile, to cheer up when they were upset.
"They're like their mom."
"I don't know, there's a lot of good in them from their daddy, too."
"I wish I could believe that today."
Don squeezed Jeff tightly around the waist. "They do," he answered fiercely. "You're a great guy. Look how generous you were, giving Beth your sperm in the first place."
"She was my best friend."
"That doesn't mean it wasn't generous, and it just goes to show what a good guy you are that you feel like it wasn't something special because she was your best friend. Not a lot of guys would feel like that." Jeff was one of a kind. A keeper.
Jeff leaned over, kissed his fingers.
"You are a good man, Jeff. And you and your babies deserve good things." There had to be a lot of good coming their way to balance out the crap.
"They deserve a lot."
"You all do." And Donny really, really hoped he was one of those good things.
"We do." Jeff sighed as the phone rang again. "Hopefully things will settle down."
"Yeah." He kissed the back of Jeff's neck again and grabbed Kimberley. "Unless you want me to get the phone?" It was likely to be for Jeff, though -- Donny's family and friends called him on his cell.
"No. It'll either be the police or the insurance."
He gave Jeff a proper kiss and took Kimmie with him downstairs to give Jeff some privacy with the call.
