Eli nibbles his bottom lip for a second. “Why not?” he finally whispers.
I shrug. “Because I want to pay.”
“But…” His voice trails off. “I don’t understand. Why?”
One day, I’ll tell him about how much I owe Roman for the life I have. The money in my bank account. Hell, even Julian and the kids. But not today. “Because you’re part of my family and I want to take care of you.” That answer seems to stun him into silence. “Come on, kid. Let’s hit the mall.”
Eli stares at me in shock for a few more seconds before nodding and following me. His tux should be ready in about a week. Thankfully. It should be right in time for the wedding.
By the time we’re pulling into the mall parking lot, Eli has relaxed some. It probably helps that I handed him my phone and told him to pick whatever music he wanted. No Disney songs for this car ride. A novel experience for me these days.
“Clothes first?” I ask, turning the car off and opening my door.
Eli shrugs. “That’s fine.”
We’re almost to the entrance to the mall when a thought hits me. “Hey, so, there are no rules today.”
“What do you mean?” Eli asks, slowing his stride just a bit.
I stop, turning to look at him. “There are no rules. If you see something you like, get it, or at least try it on. It doesn’t matter what store it’s in or which gender it’s ‘made for,’” I say, putting air quotes around themade forpart. “If it speaks to you, and you like it, we’ll try it. If it makes you feel good? Perfect. If not, we move on. No pressure either way.”
He nods. “Okay. And you’re sure Beck and Roman won’t care?”
“I swear on my life they won’t care. They’ll be happy if you’re happy. Also, Beck likes to fight, so I’d like to see someone say anything out of the way to you.”
He laughs, clearly a little startled. “Are you talking about when he beat that guy up?”
I laugh too. “I didn’t realize they told you about that already, but yeah. You don’t have to worry. He’ll definitely defend you against anyone.”
Eli’s eyes go a little wide before he drops them and looks away. “That’s kind of hard to believe… that he would fight for me.”
I nod, knowing exactly how he feels, before looping my arm through his and pulling him along with me into the mall. “You’ll learn in time. Come on.”
I watch Eli carefully as we walk through the first store. He’s clearly a tactile person. Each row of clothes we walk past, he touches, letting his fingers skim over the fabrics.
When we come to a row of skirts, he skips them, which I find curious. More curious, even, is the way his eyes linger on them for a second before he quickly moves past them. “Hey, Eli.” He stops, turning to look back at me. “Do you want to try one on?”
He nibbles his bottom lip. “I couldn’t.”
I tilt my head to the side. “And why not?”
He opens his mouth, then promptly shuts it. “Well, I was going to say it was for girls, but I have a feeling you’re not going to let that slide.”
I can’t help but laugh. “And you’d be correct. Grab one. If you don’t like it, fine. But try it on at least.”
There’s a slight moment of hesitation before he gives a single nod and turns toward the rack. He runs his fingers over a black skirt. He hesitates again, glancing at me with pink cheeks and shy eyes. “I’m not sure I could pull something like this off.”
I scoff. “Says who? It’s clothing. Clothing is meant to be worn on bodies. You have a body, yes? Therefore, you can pull it off.”
He darts his eyes back to the skirt, nodding his head slightly. “Okay, yeah.” He grabs the skirt, clutching it tightly to his chest with a sharp exhalation.
He keeps it held to his chest as he quickly walks away from the rack, and I have to stifle a smile. I fully believe that this kid was given to Ro and Beck for a reason, and right now? I feel like I’m part of that reason. I’m not overly fem by any stretch, but more so than any of the other men in my life. It can be hard to be surrounded by super masc men when you’re not, especially when you’re young and still trying to figure yourself out.
Eli stops at a section with cropped sweaters, lingering on a knitted light blue one. His fingers trail down the fabric. “I like this,” he murmurs.
“Perfect. Grab it.”
He does, still a little hesitant, but quicker than last time. “This is a little weird.”
