little softer.
Luca glanced up at him and sighed. “No. I just want to go home.”
The nurse came in a second later with his discharge papers and a look of disapproval, but he wasn’t going to bother repeating his little song and dance about how this was part of the job, and he knew how to keep himself from getting an infection, and he knew when to call or come in if things got worse. Instead, he scribbled his signature with his non-dominant hand, then hopped off the edge of the bed.
He still felt unsteady, but he was determined to walk out on his own two feet. Todd was at his heels as they followed the exit signs, and the second they were outside, he started patting his pockets.
“Where the fuck is my phone?”
“Your phone got wasted, man. I think Mason said he was taking care of it.” Todd clicked the button to unlock his car, then opened the door for Luca. “Those are also my jeans you’re wearing.”
Luca hadn’t even bothered to look down, but he realized none of the clothes were his. His head dropped back against the seat, and he dragged a hand down his face, sucking in his breath between his teeth. “Fuck. I can’t fucking believe this. Bas is gonna murder me in my sleep.”
Todd rolled his eyes as he slipped behind the wheel and started the car. “Bas is gonna piss and moan and take extra days off and cook you really bad soup that you’re gonna re-do as soon as you can move your arm again.”
Luca couldn’t help his smile at how well his friends knew them. “He told me this was going to happen, and I didn’t fucking listen.”
Todd gave him a side-eye as he pulled out onto the main road. “He has worried about you in the lab every single day of your relationship, Luca. And you’ve been hurt twice. That doesn’t make him right. That makes it a coincidence.”
Luca closed his eyes and knew Todd was right, but only partially. The truth was he’d been distracted. He’d been thinking about Xan and the bruises and the hug and everything he wanted to come after that embrace. And he’d been thinking about how that was all he was allowed to have for now and how badly he wanted more. So yes, the circumstances were out of his control, but he should have been more focused.
“I hope Ivy isn’t freaking out,” Luca said quietly as they turned down the street toward their house.
Todd shook his head. “Sebastion told you some kid was watching her. You don’t remember?”
“Uh, no. I didn’t exactly retain all the morphine calls. I have a spare phone in my office though, so I’ll call him and see if I need to pay someone.” Luca felt naked without access to his husband, and he felt even more twitchy now because he’d lost Xan’s contact.
“You want me to come help you get settled?”
Luca shook his head. “No, but if you want to swing by the pharmacy for all that shit the doctor called in, I’d be forever grateful.”
“Only if you bake me pumpkin bread when you can use your arm again,” Todd said like a sad little puppy.
In spite of the pain, Luca chuckled. “Yeah, asshole. Pumpkin bread.” He watched his house get closer, feeling an ache knowing Sebastion wasn’t waiting for him, but he wasn’t going to call his husband home over a burn. The pain was awful, but it wouldn’t last forever.
When Todd rolled to a stop, he leaned over and bussed a kiss against Luca’s cheek. “How about food too? I’ll pick up burritos, okay?”
“Get me an extra one for tomorrow,” Luca said. “And guac. And queso. And…”
Todd’s look shut him up. “I’ll get you a fucking feast so you can get high on meds and sleep off all that pain.”
Luca managed a smile before he heaved himself out of the car then shuffled up to the front door. He had his keys, luckily, which he hadn’t even bothered to check for at the hospital, then let himself in. The house was quiet, and he was surprised not to hear Ivy’s cries from her crate, but when he came around the corner and peered into the living room, it made sense why.
Even when the rest of the world stopped making sense at all.
Something like a fantasy had come to life, because Alexander—his little conqueror—was lying on his sofa napping with Ivy draped over him like a blanket. She