Total pages in book: 34
Estimated words: 30353 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 152(@200wpm)___ 121(@250wpm)___ 101(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 30353 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 152(@200wpm)___ 121(@250wpm)___ 101(@300wpm)
“Ooh,” Ant cooed as he lifted out a bag of wooden blocks. “I like these.” Yes! He tugged on the top of the bag a couple of times before handing it to me and asking, “Could you please open this for me, Daddy?” I couldn’t hide my goofy smile as I ripped open the package and poured the blocks onto the blanket.
Ant and I worked together to make a tower, which Enzo knocked over. I shot my brother an evil glare, but our boy just laughed and said it was a fun game, so I decided to forgive him.
After several more turns of stacking the blocks as high as we could just for Enzo to topple them over, my brother spoke up, “I think we need to buy you some more blocks. That way you can make bigger towers and even some buildings.” I wasn’t surprised that my brother wanted to spoil him more, or by how strongly I agreed with him.
“That sounds great!” Ant cheered. “Thank you, Poppa.” He threw his arms around Enzo and gave him a tight hug. I had no jealousy when I saw the two of them being affectionate; only happiness for my brother for finding his mate, and in knowing that my boy had another man to love him and care for him.
After a good squeeze, Ant released him and turned back to the plastic bag to pull out the last item it held; a red plastic sippy cup. He was quiet as he carefully examined it, turning it over in his hands and running his fingers down its curved handles. He pinched the rubbery spout and smiled up at me.
“I like it,” he said decisively. “I bet it will keep my apple juice from spilling.”
I tucked away the mental note that our sweet boy liked apple juice while I thought about his words. Enzo and I bought the cup because we thought Ant might like the feel of it in his hands, or it may help him get into a little mindset. We didn’t think about spills.
But while Ant enjoyed things like playing in leaves and building block towers, he was fueled by the need for security. Even something as simple as not having to worry about dribbling juice meant a lot to him. It was a worry off of his mind, and I vowed to use it as a guide when picking out anything else for my sweet boy.
“I’m so glad,” I smiled back at him. “We’ll get you some juice soon and put it in your special cup.” Ant beamed through a head nod. “For now, you’ve got another bag of prizes waiting for you.”
“Yay!” Ant cheered as Enzo passed him the final shopping bag. He quickly sank his hand inside and retrieved a bottle of baby lotion. He popped the cap and sniffed the cream inside. “Mm, that’s nice.”
“What if Daddy uses some to give you a foot massage later? How does that sound?”
His cheeks blushed again when he answered, “Very nice.”
I chuckled as he placed the lotion at his side, but I stopped when he pulled the next item from the bag; a small plush lion. Enzo and I picked it out for obvious reasons; it looked a good bit like us when we were in our animal forms, with its fuzzy mane and dark eyes.
We thought that it may help us ease into the shifter conversation, or at the very least, that our mate would like the toy. But now I doubted our reasoning because of the way Ant’s eyes welled up as he gazed at the animal. My heart squeezed when a tear rolled down his cheek and onto his thick scarf.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, already hating myself for whatever I’d done.
When Ant shook his head, Enzo added, “Do you not like it? Because it’s okay. We can get rid of it if-”
“No, please,” Ant said with a sniffle. “I love it.” He hugged the toy tightly as he buried his face into its fur and cried. Enzo and I shared a puzzled look over our boy’s head, and then rubbed our hands over his back, trying to provide him with comfort until he was ready to speak.
After a moment, Ant hiccuped and explained through his tears, “I used to have a toy lion just like this. It was so special to me because my parents got it for me when I was little. I took it everywhere with me. Somehow it got lost in one of the moves to a new foster home. I was devastated. I never thought I’d see it again, but now for my Daddies to get me one just like it…” His words broke apart as he wailed again.
Enzo moved quicker than I did, pulling Ant onto his lap and wrapping him in a tight embrace. I hated that poor Ant was upset, but relieved that they were happy tears. I didn’t expect the gift to touch him in such a way. We thought that he might like it, but Fate knew just how much he needed it.