Chapter 30 - Craig

Craig swept Jack into his arms, mindful of Isaac. The cold nipped at his nose and bit at his cheeks, but he ignored it. If unsavory temperature was the price he paid for being somewhere he was loved, Craig would gladly pay it.

“You didn’t call,” Jack said, breathless. He spoke against the crook of Craig’s neck. “You didn’t even text to let me know you were coming out.”

“I wanted it to be a surprise.”

After three months apart, Craig wasn’t sure how Jack would react. Attraction faded with time. Craig had braced himself for the worst. But now, held tight in Jack’s arms, he was blessed with the best.

And to pull up in front of Jack’s place to find Jack chewing Hunter’s ear off? To hear him declare his love when he thought Craig wasn’t there?

Craig felt even better about making the trip.

“So what?” Hunter snapped. “You’ll get back with him, but you won’t get back with me? We were together for years, Jack. No one knows how to make you feel as good as I do.”

Jack lifted his head from Craig’s shoulder. Craig let him go. Deliberately, Jack turned to face Hunter.

“You think that you make me feel good?” Jack asked. “You think that years of gaslighting me made me feel good? That breaking up with me and then seducing me back into bed with you was kind?”

“You took me back,” Hunter said.

“And that’s my problem, I’ll admit it, but to think that you make me feel good is laughable.” Jack shook his head. Craig beamed. To see Jack stand up for himself like this made the trip worthwhile. “In all the years we were together, you never made me feel half as good as Craig was able to make me feel in a few short weeks. I don’t want you back. I know what love is now, and I’m not going to settle for anything else.”

Hunter looked between them. Craig watched from over Jack’s shoulder as his narrowed gaze bore through both of them in turn.

“You know what?” Hunter said at last. “I’m really not interested in this anymore. There is better cock out there. I thought maybe, since we had history, you might be interested in keeping me company, but I’m not so interested in you anymore.”

Hunter’s eyes locked on Craig’s. “And just so you know, because I doubt you have much experience, his cock is small and he’s boring as shit in bed. Enjoy your sloppy seconds.”

“Says the man who’s been showing up on my porch begging for me to come back to him for the last four months,” Jack shot back.

Hunter said nothing. He held his head high and pushed past Craig on the way down the stairs.

Craig snickered. “Do you think that’s the last of him?”

“I don’t know,” Craig admitted. “Probably not. I don’t care, though. The only thing I care about is that you’re here. We need to get inside for Isaac. Come on.”

Craig watched Jack as he opened the door and flicked on the inside light. Jack’s living room looked just the same as Craig remembered. He stepped through the door after Jack and breathed in deep. Craig didn’t know how to describe the smell of Jack’s house, but it was distinct. He loved it.

It smelled like home.

Jack shrugged off his coat and hung it by the door. He double-checked that the door was locked, then took Isaac from Craig’s arm while Craig took his coat off. He’d bought one before coming out east, and he was glad he’d had the foresight to do it.

“You need to tell me about everything,” Jack said. “Every little detail. Something big must have happened if you’re out here with Isaac. I know that Synthia wasn’t making it easy on you.”

“In a second,” Craig said. He hung his coat on the peg beside Jack’s. “Before I do anything else, there’s something I need to do.”

“Mm?” Jack blinked.

Craig stepped forward and kissed him. Jack whimpered into his mouth, then relaxed into the kiss and returned it. Isaac’s was still cradled in Jack’s arms, so Craig didn’t let the kiss grow too heated. Instead, he ended the kiss sweetly and drew back so they were nose to nose.

“I missed you,” Craig whispered. He meant it from the bottom of his heart. The time they’d spent apart was a reminder of how much he cared for Jack and how loved he felt when they were together. “God, did I miss you.”

“I missed you, too.” Jack’s lips brushed against his, promising a kiss he didn’t yet deliver. “I missed Isaac, and the time we spent together, and just… you. I missed you. I love you, Craig.”

“And you have no idea how much I love you.”

A pleasant, airy sensation swirled in Craig’s chest. Love. It was something he’d never felt for Synthia or Cecilia. It wasn’t like anything he’d felt before. It filled him up and made him whole. It made his anxiety over the situation with Isaac and the unstable nature of the future fade away. When Jack was there with him, there wasn’t anything to fear. They could get through anything as long as they were together.

“Are you hungry?” Jack asked. “Thirsty? Does Isaac need a change, or a bath, or something to eat? I don’t have any baby food, but I’ll run out if you need me to.”

Craig chuckled. He kissed Jack sweetly. “It’s okay. I’ve got it all handled. How about we relax and catch up? I’ve been getting fragments of your life through text, but it’s not the same.”

“And you have a lot to tell me, too,” Jack said. “You’re out of state with Isaac. That’s… well, I didn’t think you’d ever be able to do that.”

“For a while there, I was worried, too.” Craig was too happy to think about the struggles he’d been through. He’d fought as best he could and now he was reaping the rewards for his efforts. “Let’s sit. We’ve got loads to talk about, and after eight hours in the air, I need a couch badly.”

Jack laughed. “Sounds good to me.”

Craig stretched out his legs and stretched. Beside him, Jack played with Isaac. He held Isaac up in the air as Isaac smiled at him. His front two teeth were starting to come in.

“He has teeth now,” Jack declared. “Oh my god, look at that.”

“He’s starting to eat solids now, too,” Craig said. “Teething crackers have been a lifesaver.”

“Mm. Looks like you’ve been doing a little research since you left here, daddy.” Jack grinned impishly, shooting Craig a look. Craig tried to keep the words from going straight to his cock but was unsuccessful.

“Let’s keep it PG,” Craig said. “At least until we’ve talked about what happened and put Isaac to bed.”

Jack laughed. Isaac cooed.

It’s funny how the simplest things can make me so damn happy.

“So, custody. What’s happening with that?” Jack asked.

“Synthia sued me for custody,” Craig said. The last three months were hellish, but he’d done his very best. “She was nasty about the whole thing, but I was always polite and civil. She wanted full custody. I requested fifty-fifty. She turned me down and we took it to court.”

“And you got fifty-fifty?” Jack asked. He lifted Isaac up, grinning at him.

“No. I got full custody.” Craig couldn’t hold back his grin.

Stunned, Jack set Isaac onto his lap. Their eyes met.

“What?” Jack asked in disbelief. “Full custody?”

“It turns out when Synthia checked herself out of rehab, it was on her own accord. None of her psychologists or doctors thought she was good to go. She’s relapsed since being out. In the last three months she was already stopped by the police for drinking while intoxicated. It turns out that when it comes to custody, substance abuse issues have a huge sway on the decision.”

“I could have told you that,” Jack said. He was grinning ear to ear.

“Synthia wasn’t happy,” Craig said. “I wasn’t happy, either. I don’t wish that on her. I don’t wish that on anybody. I told her that when she’s willing to work on her addiction that I’d be there for her to foot the bill. I want her to be in Isaac’s life. Eventually, I’d like for her to have custody, too. But only when she’s better.”

“I understand.” Jack’s expression softened. “That’s really a sweet thing of you to do. You’re a good man.”

“I’m starting to believe that a little more every day.” Craig ran a hand through Isaac’s hair. “So I wanted to make it clear, since all of this happened, that Isaac is my number one priority. He always is. And I love you, but he and I are a packaged deal. I need you to know that before we make anything between us official.”

It was strange to discuss making things official with a man, but Craig’s heart was invested. Jack was the one for him. He couldn’t deny it any longer.

“That’s what I want more than anything,” Jack replied. “You, me, and Isaac.”

Craig leaned forward. He kissed Jack again. “Then what do you say we put Isaac to bed and talk in bed about all that’s happened to you since I’ve been away?”

“My bed?” Jack asked.

“Our bed,” Craig clarified.

The blush on Jack’s cheeks was more satisfying than it should have been.

Craig’s life wasn’t stable. He was at peace with that. He had a good head on his shoulders and a fine man to call his own. He had a son he could be proud of, and he had the means to take care of his family for the rest of his life.

His happiness wasn’t conventional, but it was true. Craig didn’t care what others thought of him. Not anymore.

“The crib is in the garage,” Jack said. “Are you okay getting it?”

“Of course.” Craig kissed him on the nose, then rose. “I’ll meet you upstairs.”

“See you soon,” Jack said.

A son, a boyfriend, and a new start. As Craig got the crib from the garage, his heart brimmed over with joy. He and Jack had shed their pasts to embrace something new. Something worthwhile.

Love.

It was better than anything Craig could have imagined. He’d fight for it—for Jack and Isaac, his family—until the end.