By the Numbers Page 17

  "Dude, I sit at a desk. The world won't fall apart if I'm half an hour late, ever." Deuce leaned into Trey and nuzzled his neck. "You're home today so I can work through lunch. I'll be home at my usual time. Don't worry about it, okay?"

  "Okay. Can you stay home instead?"

  "Nope. But I'd like to book you for adult time at your earliest convenience."

  Trey managed to look disappointed and full of anticipation all at once. "Adult time starts tonight at approximately nine-thirty, after child bedtime. Don't be late."

  "I'll find you." Deuce kissed Trey and then looked back into the house. "Hey, Little Beans!" he called out.

  "Hey, Big Beans!" came the faint answer from inside. Deuce saw Trey smile.

  Laughing, Deuce yelled in, "I gotta go to work. You have fun at school, okay? And take care of your dad for me."

  "Okay," Lacey called back. "When you get home I'll show you my poster of Healthy Foods and Unhealthy Foods. You'll think it's really great."

  Trey snorted. "I like how she tells you what to think."

  "Sadly, she's usually right. I think all her stuff is really great." He was, he had to admit, a little smitten with the seven-year-old. Not nearly as much as with her dad, though. "Going now. Kiss me again."

  Trey stood and leaned in. With a hand on Deuce's face, he kissed him gently, even snaking his tongue out to lick at Deuce's mouth. "Nine-thirty. Adult time." One more kiss, then he pulled back. "I love you."

  "I love you back." He hadn't ever thought that losing his home to a fire would be the best thing that could happen to him, but here he was. Maybe losing a little to gain a lot really did happen -- all it took was being lucky enough to have the right hero there to save the day.

  Deuce looked at Trey, then the house they were sharing, the life they were making together. He could hear the puppies yipping inside and thought about how a bunch of random numbers -- two, three, six, 3.14 -- had strung themselves together to be part of a family. "I love it all."

  After that, it was easy to go to work. He knew it would all be there waiting for him when he came home.

  End