Chapter Nineteen: Committed To You
Smoke
I woke up to the sound of music. It wasn’t the kind of music that anyone listened to on the radio. It sounded cartoonish, something that would play in the background of Tom and Jerry or Bugs Bunny. I opened my eyes and all I could see was blonde hair.
I had my face buried in Naomi’s hair as I held her in my arms. Lifting my head, I knew she was still asleep because of her deep, even breathing. She was a bit of a heavy sleeper, I’d noticed over the last week. We’d stayed together at my place three times now, and I was starting to wish she could be here every night. There was nothing like ending the day naked with her in my bed, then falling asleep wrapped around each other.
Last night, I’d had a boy’s night with Gavin while she was at work. I’d bought a Lego set for the two of us to put together, a Batmobile. I’d been trying to get something he’d like, since he was into all the superhero movies, and we’d had fun putting it together, even though Gavin had informed me that Batman was part of a different superhero universe or something like that. They were really all the same to me.
Now, as I walked into my living room, I saw him sitting on the couch with his legs propped up on the coffee table, his eyes glued to the TV screen.
He was indeed watching a cartoon, but not one I recognized. “Morning, G,” I said, my voice still hoarse from sleep. “You sleep okay?”
“Yeah,” he said, without looking away from the TV. Now, I understood why Naomi wouldn’t let him have one in his room.
Naomi and I had talked about keeping our relationship from Gavin at first, but we decided it would be too difficult. We’d have to sneak around all the time, and spending night together wouldn’t be possible. We weren’t going to leave him with a sitter several times a week so we could fool around. So, Naomi had told him we were dating, trying to emphasize that he shouldn’t have any expectations about the future. She didn’t want him to be let down if things didn’t work out between us, but I knew that wouldn’t be a problem. Things were great in our relationship, but Naomi had some abandonment issues. I understood why, but I was also determined to prove to her that I was here to stay.
Going into the kitchen, I pulled out a carton of eggs and a skillet. I didn’t usually do anything big for breakfast—in fact, I skipped it altogether most of the time—but I knew that Naomi and Gavin liked to start their day with a meal. So, I was whipping up scrambled eggs and toast. I’d started making sure my refrigerator and pantry were well-stocked over the last few weeks as Gavin stayed with me. It turned out that kids liked to eat. Who knew?
For myself, I made some strong coffee, putting my mug directly under the stream and switching it out with the pot once it was full. Adding a splash of milk, mostly to cool it down enough to drink, I leaned against the counter and drank half of it while I waited for the skillet to warm up on the stovetop.
During a commercial break, Gavin came into the kitchen. “Can I have some juice?” he asked.
“Of course. You don’t have to ask. If you want anything to eat or drink here, just help yourself. I want you to consider this your home too.”
“Do you think we can live here with you?” Gavin asked.
I got out a glass and filled it up with orange juice as I thought about this for a moment. Naomi felt reluctant to depend on me, I knew that, but maybe if she lived here, she’d feel more secure and quit her job. I’d been trying not to be a controlling asshole about the whole thing, but every night when I knew she was stripping, it drove me a little crazy. Sure, I was the one worshipping her body in bed almost every night, but I hated the idea of other men looking at her in nothing but a tiny pair of panties. She should only star in my fantasies.
Besides, I was crazy about her and having the two of them around all the time sounded great. We would be like a real family. That thought gave me a warm feeling. Maybe,” I said. “I’ll have to talk to your mom about that.”
“She’ll say yes,” he said confidently.
I wasn’t so sure, with her independent nature, but I thought about another step we could take first. I could ask her to be my Old Lady. Hopefully, she’d recognize it as the commitment it was and feel comfortable moving in with me. She wouldn’t have to worry about getting hurt because I’d never do that.
Gavin’s commercial break was over and he went back into the living room while I made breakfast. When it was ready, I split the eggs up among three plates, adding two pieces of toast to each one. I called Gavin to the table before going back into the bedroom, where I found Naomi just waking up.
Her eyelids were heavy and the thin material of her nightgown stretched tight over her breasts as she stretched with a sleepy grin on her face. “Morning,” she said through a yawn.
I wanted to wake up to this sight every morning. Her hair looked a complete mess, but I found it cute. “Good morning, sweetheart. I made breakfast.”
“You’re a saint. Is Gavin up? He has to be at school in less than an hour.”
“He’s waiting for us at the table.”
It turned out that Gavin hadn’t waited at all, by the time we got there, he had cleaned his plate. After Naomi reminded him to rinse his plate and put it in the dishwasher, he tried to return to the living room to keep watching TV, but Naomi sent him to the guest room I had converted into a bedroom for him to get ready for school. She had class too, so she would drop him off and I would ride to work later.
Naomi lingered over her food, something I’d noticed she always did, taking her time to eat. She was also very neat about it, careful to lean over her plate to avoid spillage and wiping her mouth with a folded napkin right after she swallowed every bite. It almost reminded me of my father, with his meticulous and strict rules about everything from how to make a bed to how to eat a meal.
The thought gave me an idea. “I was thinking I might take Gavin to meet my dad tomorrow,” I said as I finished my plate of food. I would stay at the table until she was done though, for the company.
“Really?” she asked, tilting her head to the side as she considered me with a searching gaze. “I thought you guys didn’t get along very well.”
“We don’t, usually, but I called him last week to tell him about Gavin. He seemed happy about the idea of having a grandson, and actually sounded eager to meet him.”
“Is that strange?” she asked, picking up on the surprise in my voice.
“I don’t really know. My dad acted like a drill sergeant when I was growing up, even though he never was one. He was a colonel in the army until he retired a couple of years ago. I think he loves me, but warm and fuzzy was never his thing. When I told him he was a grandpa…I don’t know. He sounded different.”