“You okay?” he asks, snapping me out of my daze, and I realize my gaze has been lingering on his dick this entire time. Oh my god, I’m a fucking pervert. But when I lift my head and meet his gaze, Charlie is smirking at me.
“I thought you might like to run some errands with me,” I say. “There’s a couple of places I’d like to take you.”
He side-eyes me, but then stands, and if I thought him sitting there was bad, him standing and sauntering across the room, that adorable little ass barely covered and his shoulder still on display, is ten times worse. I blow out a breath and turn to face the wall, but not before he bends over to pick up his clothes and I get an eye-full of his rear and thighs. Oh, god, I’m going to hell. I mean, I was already going to hell, but now I definitely am.
“You gonna get out of my way and let me shower, or what?” I hear, and turn to see him standing there, that smirk ever prevalent.
“Sorry,” I say, and step aside. I most definitely do not stare at his ass again as he walks down the hall.
Fifteen minutes later he’s dressed and running his fingers through his hair as he steps into the living room.
“Breakfast?” I say, and he nods. “Help yourself. There’s cereal and toast and some fruit. Bowls are—” I start to say, but he opens the correct cupboard before I can finish and grins at me. I smile back, a warmth spreading through my chest at knowing how familiar he is with my kitchen already, and how at home he feels rooting through the pantry and the refrigerator. He makes coffee for himself without asking, and I love it.
Twenty minutes later, he slides on his worn, tattered sneakers and I grab my keys and wallet before we head outside. We climb into the truck and pull out of the dirt driveway.
“Can I ask you something?” I say once we’re on the road, driving through town.
“Maybe,” he says.
“If you have been on your own for this long, who has been cutting your hair?”
“Oh, um, there’s a barber downtown who gives free haircuts to the homeless once a month. There were a couple times I couldn’t make it ‘cause of transportation issues or whatever, but he’s super cool.”
I nod. “That is cool.” I pause before saying, “All this time, were you ever in a shelter?”
He wrings his hands together. “I tried, but it didn’t work out. I got harassed by some of the other guys the very first night and I didn’t exactly feel safe, so I never went back.”
Shit. My stomach clenches. “And what about school? Did you finish?”
He bites his lip and shakes his head.
“Would you like to?”
He nods vigorously and I smile.
“Well, let’s talk about that later,” I say. “We’re almost there.”
He peers out the window and I hear a breathless, “Oh,” escape his lips as we pull into the parking lot of the local library.
“What are we doing here?” he asks.
“Checking out some books,” I tell him, “any that you want.” I swear I see him tearing up. Gosh, this boy. Under all that sarcasm and tough demeanor he’s really very soft and sweet, and I think he’s dying to be loved and cared for, to be accepted for who he is. I intend to give him that to the best of my ability.
“Come on.” I step out of the truck and he joins me on the sidewalk.
“Go nuts, sweetheart,” I whisper in his ear once we’re inside, my hand on the small of his back, and his eyes light up so beautifully. “And by nuts I mean, you have a max of twenty-five books and five magazines because that’s all they’ll let me check out at a time.”
He chuckles. “That should be doable.” He heads for the lgbtq section right away. I want to follow him but I feel like maybe I should let him have his privacy, so I wander instead.
Half an hour later, he’s standing next to me with a stack of a dozen or so books and a few magazines, and blushing beautifully.
“Good?” I ask, and he nods. We take them to the self check-out and scan my card and the books. I can’t help but think that if he stays longer than a month, maybe we can think about getting him his own card. “You can get books on your phone if you download the library app,” I tell him. “There’s a limit of ten but I don’t use it much ‘cause I prefer paperbacks, so you can use my information. Audiobooks, too.”
He nods, a wide smile across his beautiful face.
“Where to next?” he says as we head outside again and climb back into the truck.
I hesitate because I’m not sure he’ll approve of where I want to take him next. “I was hoping you would let me buy you some clothes,” I tell him. I know if I try to trick him into anything it won’t go well, so I’m laying it all out there before we make the trip to the mall. He’s got nothing but what he’s wearing right now, and he can’t keep wearing those pants. The holes have holes, and they are clearly way too big. I’m pretty sure if I put them through another wash cycle they’ll just fall apart. He has to need underwear too, and he most definitely needs new shoes.
