snap.
“You wouldn’t mind?” Was Jude serious? Would he really be willing to do more than his fair share of the housework while he wrote?
“Listen, you were home with Wolf for six months. You took care of him, did all the laundry, and made dinner nearly every night. Let me take that load off your shoulders.” Jude wore a serious look.
Cope couldn’t believe his ears. When they’d met, Jude was the most hedonistic son of a bitch he’d ever encountered. Now here Jude was, offering to take on all kinds of extra chores, so that Cope could chase a long-held dream. The change in Jude over the last several years was truly remarkable. “You are the best husband ever.” Cope was out of his seat and hugging him before Jude had time to react.
“I’ll remember you said that later on tonight.” Jude waggled his eyebrows suggestively.
“I knew it! I knew there had to be something in it for you. Bartering chores for sexual favors.” Cope crossed his arms over his chest and plastered an annoyed look on his face. “Blow jobs for loads of laundry.”
“Is someone giving out blow jobs?” Ronan asked as he strolled through the office.
“My husband, apparently.” Jude rolled his eyes. “Now that’s how you become Employee of the Month.”
Cope burst out laughing. He couldn’t help himself. This morning had started with tears and Cope being worried he wouldn’t be able to make it through the day without Wolf. Thanks to his friends, and his ridiculously sexy husband, Cope was off to a good start.
4
Jude
Click. Click. Click. Ping!
Jude was standing outside Cope’s office door. He’d been bringing up a load of laundry to put away in Wolf’s room, when the sound of Cope’s fingers on the keys caught his attention. He couldn’t help wondering what childhood memory his husband was recalling.
In all the time they’d been together, Cope hadn’t really spoken a lot about his childhood. Jude had the opportunity to meet Cope’s deceased mother, Elizabeth, in a dream, which had actually been more like a vision. Thanks to that unique experience, he’d gotten to know more about Elizabeth Devereaux Forbes. There had been so much warmth and light in her, all traits he had seen in Cope as a father in his own right.
Buford Forbes had been the polar opposite of his wife. Rumor had it the Devereaux’s had been in financial straits, and Elizabeth marrying a vaunted member of the Forbes family would save their own from financial ruin. It hadn’t been a love match, but it had produced the love of Jude’s life. So, he couldn’t find it in himself to hate the man, even though he’d been a dick to his son growing up, especially after Cope came out.
Jude hadn’t figured out the truth about his own sexuality while his father was alive. He’d been murdered when Jude was only thirteen years old. His grandfather, Running Eagle, never batted an eyelash when Jude came out to him. He’d never really been in a situation where members of his own family turned from him because of who he was.
When he walked into Wolf’s bedroom, the baby was lying on his back in the exact position he’d fallen asleep in. The only difference was that the baby smiled in his sleep. Jude couldn’t help wondering what made him smile like that. Was Wolf dreaming of them, or of the day he’d had with Kaye and the girls? An endless supply of Cheerios, maybe?
According to Kaye and John, Wolf hadn’t batted an eyelash over being left in their care. He’d been a happy baby all day long, only fussing when he needed a diaper change. Kaye was looking forward to seeing him again tomorrow and so were Aurora and Everly. Both girls kissed their little man several times to say goodbye. His little Princess still wasn’t kissing him, but Everly had plenty of love for Wolf.
He finished putting the tiny baby clothes away and could still hear Cope banging away at the typewriter. Smiling at the closed door, Jude headed downstairs to his computer, which he kept on the bar in the kitchen. He and Cope had decided to take on a haunting case at The Beecher House. The homeowners were dealing with a mischievous spirit who liked to slam cabinet doors in the middle of the night.
Jude couldn’t imagine what it would be like to live in a house like that. The constant chaos of it all would drive him crazy. Pulling up a fresh browser,