checking up on him since they were both out of town helping Brad and Levi pick up supplies for the Levi’s new restaurant, Shalom. Wilder also had his own contribution to the grand opening of Cherry Creek’s new shopping center that weekend, but if he couldn’t get this cupcake batch done now, it was going to set him back hours.
“Fuck,” he whispered softly to himself, feeling the harsh rush of air against the back of his throat. He’d hit a hearing decline over the last three months, and his audiogram had showed that it was going faster than expected.
He lost most of the running water, along with the birds. And speaking voices, even with his hearing aids at full volume, mostly just sounded like a dull murmur. But he could still hear the timber of Lorenzo’s voice as he rumbled up against the back of his ear when they were in bed together, and he could feel his voice through rough vibrations against his skin, and he didn’t need anything else besides his long fingers signing and the soft lips drawing deep moans from his core.
But also, he needed some fucking electricity so he could keep to his schedule.
The bakery door flung open, and Wilder almost jumped out of his skin when Fitz came tumbling in from the downpour. His t-shirt was plastered to his skin, and his hair had half-fallen from his bun, and water beaded at the ends of his eyelashes as he approached the counter.
‘Bad outside,’ he signed, one hand stiff, the other flowing easily.
Wilder sighed and nodded, his gaze flickering to the window. ‘I have an entire order fucked.’
Fitz shook his head. ‘You need to close. Sorry. Repair take too long.’
Wilder wanted to hit something or scream or maybe even cry a little, because he was doing well, but not well enough he could afford to let down clients like this. ‘How long?’
Fitz’s face dropped. ‘Tonight, maybe. Tomorrow.’
Wilder groaned and dropped his head, taking a few breaths until Fitz’s tentative hand gripped his shoulder. He didn’t look up right away, instead letting his frustration simmer until he felt like the world was steady again, then he righted himself. ‘Sorry.’
Fitz shook his head, opened his mouth, then frowned and closed it. Wilder knew that signing was harder for him than most people thanks to his less than responsive fingers—and he knew in an ideal world people would just happily learn for him. But the world wasn’t ideal. Cherry Creek was home—but home was never perfect.
But a lot of people were trying, and Fitz was one of them.
‘Go upstairs, I’ll put sandbags at the door.’ He spelled more than he signed, but it got his point across, and Wilder knew there wasn’t anything left to do but abandon the ruined half-baked batter and then hunker down and wait it out.
Lightning flashed outside, and he felt the rumble of thunder under his hands, shooting all the way up to his sternum. He looked back at Fitz with wide eyes. ‘Dangerous for you?’
Fitz waved him off with a laugh. ‘I’m fine. Go.’
Wilder backed up, then moved to the kitchen to turn out all the switches and unplug the ovens. He dumped the trays in the bin, then stomped up the stairs, relishing the feeling of the hard wood under his feet in a cathartic expression of his emotions.
The apartment was dark, but the were skies rich with blackened clouds marring the skyline. The rain was still coming down in sheets like a damn hurricane, and the air was still and humid. He cracked open the window that was farthest from his furniture, and he breathed in the rush of breeze before he went in search of candles.
When he had a few lit, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and saw Lorenzo’s name on the screen, and he felt suddenly choked up and tired and desperate to feel his arms around him. He was meant to be home soon, but he wasn’t so sure now.
Lorenzo: The road is washed out pretty bad. How are you doing?
Wilder: All the power is out, ruined my baking, shop flooded. Fuck my entire life.
Lorenzo: Babe.
Wilder: It’s fine. Fitz is putting up sandbags, and I’m upstairs. I miss you.
Lorenzo: Take a bath, get some rest. It’ll be okay. I love you I love you I love you
He felt each I love you like a kiss to his battered emotions, and he closed his eyes and pressed the phone to the center of his forehead