Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 95886 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 479(@200wpm)___ 384(@250wpm)___ 320(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95886 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 479(@200wpm)___ 384(@250wpm)___ 320(@300wpm)
* * *
Rain had seldom looked as forward to pancakes as much as he did as they finished up at the park and headed back to Garrick’s house.
“You sure you want to make me food?” he asked as they turned for their street, Cookie leading the way.
“Well, technically you are going to make you food. I’m not sure I can manage the griddle balancing on the crutches, and the wheelchair puts me at an awkward angle for the counter. So we’ll work together. Besides, I’m interested to see if this oat-and-coconut recipe turns out without eggs.”
“I can help. And it’ll turn out. You’d be amazed at what coconut can do. My mom swears it’s one of the wonders of the world. She uses it for everything from moisturizer to home remedies to all sorts of cooking.”
“I’ll take your word for it.” Garrick laughed as he navigated the ramp to his house. And damn, did Rain ever like that laugh. Maybe that was why he’d been extra flirty doing the obstacles. Getting Garrick to smile and laugh was simply the best feeling, and bantering with him felt natural, like shrugging into his favorite clothes. It didn’t hurt that he had a major kink for bossy people who could dole out praise along with orders.
And sure, he could try and ignore that spark of attraction and arousal, but unless it was making Garrick uncomfortable, he didn’t see any reason to deny them both a little fun. He was probably only temporarily in the area and Garrick didn’t do relationships, but the more time Rain spent around Garrick, the more a little flirting felt harmless. Fun, even.
After he made sure that Cookie had fresh water and chow, he helped Garrick start the recipe for the pancakes. Working together was fun and made the time go fast.
“Should we make extra for you to bring to Shirley?” Garrick asked as they measured the ingredients.
“Nah. I’ll text to make sure, but Grandma was already having her cereal when I left, and she’s probably elbow deep in vats of dye by now. I’m supposed to be helping, but she keeps shooing me away.”
“Control freak. I sympathize. Letting people help is hard.” Garrick’s tone was faraway, like he had had too much experience with that.
“I bet.” Rain couldn’t really imagine being in Garrick’s situation, couldn’t predict how he’d react, but he was sure there would be a wide range of emotions involved. His parents’ friend Paula had talked a little about that, as had his grandma as her arthritis had necessitated more assistance than she preferred. “I think people generally want to be helpful, but sometimes they don’t know how or don’t know how to not make things worse.”
“Yeah, but it can be hard to know when people actually mean it and when they’re simply being nice.” Garrick stirred the batter rather forcefully.
“Well, I can’t speak for others, but I like helping, like with Cookie and stuff. I’m not doing it to be nice or to get the free training out of it—I actually like helping.”
“That’s the hippie commune spirit talking.”
“Yup. That’s part of it for sure—how we were raised that kindness costs nothing—but doing stuff for other people feels good.” Rain warmed up to the topic as he reached for the batter bowl to start putting pancakes on the griddle. The joining together to do things for others was one of the better parts of the communal living arrangement, resulting in a lasting appreciation for the joys of being useful. “You know how you were talking about skydiving and that rush? Well, when Grandma actually lets me carry one of the dye vats or something, it’s a rush too, knowing she needed something and I was able to do it for her. Being the middle kid, a lot of times I got lost in the shuffle, so it’s nice to be needed.”
“I totally get that.” Garrick nodded emphatically.
“Thanks.” Others, including Rain’s parents, had never quite understood exactly how invisible he could feel when surrounded by people, but he had, and that need to stand out had only gotten stronger as he’d become older. Garrick might be simply being nice, but him trying to empathize made Rain’s chest expand.
“Building the raised beds for your grandma was very satisfying, exactly like you said. It’s just hard to be the one needing people all of a sudden.”
“I’m sure.” Rain gave his shoulder a squeeze before flipping more pancakes. And that touch alone was a pleasure, the meaty feel of Garrick’s shoulder, the warmth of his body. Yeah, he had it bad, but he wasn’t inclined to pull back. Further, he enjoyed how Garrick relaxed into the touch, as if soaking up the contact, not flinching away.
Reluctantly, he moved away, doing a little shimmy as he got into stacking up the pancakes. Garrick made a strangled sound.