for himself, but I was glad he’d called me in his moment of weakness. Everything could’ve been so much worse if he’d followed his instinct and not gone to the meeting.
As long as we continued communicating, things looked hopeful.
The front door of the building opened, and the first person walked out. I sat up in my seat and had a moment of uncertainty. What if he didn’t want me here after his first meeting?
Earlier he’d accused me of expecting too much of him too soon. At the time, I’d thought he was just saying what he did to earn himself a spanking, but now I wasn’t so sure. Maybe I should’ve let Rue collect him. Ash could come to me if he needed me.
The last thing I wanted to be accused of was stifling him.
Shit.
Ashton walked out of the building, alone. A tall younger guy barreled through the door and squeezed his shoulder, then headed in the direction of a Ford Explorer.
Too late. Ashton spotted the car.
I climbed out and leaned against the car as he walked toward me. The expression on his face filled me with unease. I didn’t know how to interpret it. Other than when he was hiding his alcohol addiction, Ashton was usually pretty easy to read. I could tell when he was feeling down and when he was horny. This stoic expression wasn’t anything I was used to.
I had an apology for being a pushy Daddy ready on my lips. There was a thin line between giving off a supportive air and being suffocating. If he misconstrued what I was doing here, I could ruin whatever impact his first meeting had.
“Ashton?”
He walked right into my chest and wrapped his arms around my waist.
“Baby, are you okay?”
“Just hold me for a minute, please.”
My curiosity burned, but I didn’t ask. I didn’t push. I just enveloped him into my embrace and held on tight. I placed my chin on top of his head and waited for him to get what he needed.
A minute passed. The other cars all rolled out one by one, leaving us alone, and I still held him.
“You’re so patient with me,” he said into my chest, then leaned his head back and looked up at me.
I kissed his forehead. “You’re making an effort, and you deserve the time you need to get better.”
He gave me a small smile, but I still didn’t press. “Can we go now?”
“All right, hop in.”
I held his door for him just like Rue would have done. Then because he still looked so worried, I pressed a hard kiss to his lips.
“One step at a time, yeah? Let’s focus on the hurdle you overcame tonight.”
“Okay, maybe that’s best.”
I got settled in the driver’s seat, but before I could drive off, Ashton pressed his palm on my thigh.
“Callum?”
“Yes?”
“Can we buy some groceries?”
I was completely taken aback by his question. Why did he want to get groceries? It didn’t matter. If he wanted groceries, I’d make sure he got them.
“Uh, sure. Anything specific you have in mind?”
“I couldn’t eat before I came. And now I’m starving. I was thinking we could cook something together. Something simple.”
“Okay, let’s go.” It was almost ten thirty, but whatever he wanted.
Not many grocery stores were open that late, and we ended up at one of the large chains that was open until midnight. Ashton was deep in thought, but I allowed him to get comfortable, to process whatever it was that he’d experienced at his first AA meeting.
Whenever he was ready to talk, I would listen.
He put products in the shopping cart without rhyme or reason, and at one point, I had to stop him and take a jar of pickles from him. He didn’t even like pickles. He found them disgusting.
“Hey, slow down for a minute, will you?” I placed the pickles back on the shelf. “I think we’ve got way more things than we need.”
He blinked and, for the first time tonight, seemed to notice the overflowing shopping cart. “Maybe ice cream?”
When he looked up at me with his bottom lip caught in his teeth and his eyes wide and hopeful, I was a goner. I was seriously beginning to question how strict I could be with this boy.
“You can have ice cream. But that’s it.”
“Okay.”
I cupped his chin and held his gaze. “That’s it, Ashton. No more buying. We go home, and I’ll cook you something while you put your feet up and relax.”