Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 89350 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 447(@200wpm)___ 357(@250wpm)___ 298(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89350 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 447(@200wpm)___ 357(@250wpm)___ 298(@300wpm)
And when he was done, when he’d pulled himself together, he found a new clarity. He had to save this family. Isaiah was wrong. It was Mark’s job to protect them all. And that was exactly what he was going to do. He had to be there for the kids, show them that he wouldn’t be the one to leave. And if that cost him Isaiah, cost him everything they’d been building, then maybe he hadn’t ever really deserved it.
Chapter Twenty-One
Mark wasn’t there to greet them when Isaiah finally arrived back at the house with the sleepy kids. The only light on was the one at the back of the house, Mark’s room. But he didn’t come out. And if Isaiah felt sad about that, if his heart sank as he put the kids in bed alone, if he missed Mark with a ferocity that surprised him, well that was to be expected. New routine. New reality and all that. This was how it had to be. He got the kids down, then decided to lose himself in a long shower where he could try to find the strength for the days to come. Grabbing a towel, he headed for the master bath, chest no longer constricting as he passed through—
Holy hell. A tornado had been through the room. A rather tidy one, but an upheaval nonetheless. Row upon row of bags and boxes, each neatly labeled in Mark’s blocky writing—donate, kids, trash, Isaiah. What the fuck? Isaiah had always assumed that they’d do this task together. When they were ready. Guess he’d been wrong about that too.
Unable to keep his rising anger down, he thundered down the stairs, beat on Mark’s closed door.
“What?” Mark came to the door.
“What do you mean what? We’re back. Kids in bed. Thanks for asking. What the fuck happened to Cal and Danielle’s stuff? What the fuck were you thinking?”
“It needed to be done, so I did it.” Mark’s face was stony, no trace of emotion other than eyes that were far redder and more swollen than when Isaiah had left him. He stayed in the doorway, big body that much more imposing filling up the small space. “You didn’t want to do it.”
“You didn’t ask. You were always just as reluctant as me to go through their stuff. Figured neither of us was ready yet. How dare you just presume I wouldn’t give a fuck about you doing it without me—”
“I made piles of stuff for you to look through. Didn’t toss anything I thought you might want.” Mark sounded weary, but Isaiah couldn’t be bothered to care. “I put labels—”
“I saw. You didn’t think I might want to make those sorting decisions with you?”
“I figured I was saving you some effort and a lot of heartache—”
“Saving me. More protector crap. You tell me earlier that you respect me, then you go and pull this crap? How am I supposed to believe that you can ever see us as equals?” Isaiah paced back and forth in the hallway.
“This has nothing to do with equals. It’s soul-killing work, going through two lives. I’ve done it before and—”
“And it didn’t occur to you that I might want to share that burden with you? Might want to help? Might want to save you?” His fists clenched, more anger than he could control gathering.
“I don’t need saving,” Mark scoffed.
“No, of course not. You’re Wizard, the almighty, the impenetrable. You’re a SEAL, Mark, not Superman. And even Superman had to learn to rely on the Justice League, let people help. Trust people.”
“I do trust you.”
“Yeah? Really? You’ve got a piss poor way of showing it. How much do you trust me? Enough to drop your suit? Enough to help you with the hard stuff?”
“I can’t drop the suit.” Mark made a frustrated noise. “As I tried to tell you earlier, before you were so hell bent on leaving, my uncle’s involved too. He’s saying some homophobic stuff. I know you don’t think you need protecting, but I’m not letting you take the brunt of his shit. I’m just not.”
“So you’ll protect me, but you won’t consider an option where we work together?” Maybe this was salvageable. Maybe they could have a partnership after all...
“This is the better option. I’ve talked to my attorney. You may not understand all the moving pieces here—”
Nope. Not savable in the slightest. Isaiah let every ounce of frustration enter his voice. “You are a condescending prick. Just say what you mean. This isn’t worth coming out for. You’ll protect me because you think I do an okay job watching the kids, but you don’t want to really partner up. And God forbid anyone in your life learn about us. That’s what’s really at stake here. You’d rather make all the decisions for me than risk...what, Mark? What are you so afraid of?”