Chapter Ten

Digging into his bag the next morning for a ration pack Drew's hand encountered something furry and soft. What the fuck? Had something managed to curl into his bag and die?

Nope. He smiled when he retrieved the item.

A teddy bear holding a small heart-shaped frame with a family portrait in it. Rick must have stuffed it in there when he wasn't looking. It just what he needed to start the day. Too bad he was missing his sister's birthday for this. Rick was going of course. It would give him some time with adults. Drew told him to have fun before he left. Mollie from the hospital offered to babysit. Since he was taking a cab she told Rick to have a drink or two.

Every parent has to now and then, she said.

Rick told her he hadn't drank in a while so unless she was going to stay in the morning that wouldn't be a good idea. She asked if he heard anything from Drew. Rick hadn't heard from him directly but he had heard from the base and there had no injuries to report. Drew actually didn't sound annoyed the commander said. It was common knowledge Drew had high expectations of soldiers under his command.

But it's only night one, Rick wanted to say.

Claudia's party was okay. It would have been more fun with Drew but Rick won money playing pool. He saw friends of the siblings he hadn't seen in a while. He also noticed that some of Claudia's friends weren't there. The buzz around the kitchen of the house was that they were helping Claudia's parents pack so they could move. He wasn't going to ask the birthday girl tonight but he also overheard the elderly couple's home was bought by a real estate agent; who had then sold it to a non-profit organization that helped homeless teens struggling with their sex identity find housing. The word was the house was going to remodeled into a dorm-like setting with two therapists living on-site as "house parents."

If this was true the Alisters were probably going nuts. Rick took Mollie's advice and had a couple of drinks, enough to laugh more freely. He left around one when two girls started dancing on he pool table. As he stepped out the door for the waiting taxi he heard someone shriek "oh no! Girl , put that back on!"

Damn, I missed the fun part! Rick smiled.

Shaye was not happy to wake up and find out neither daddy was there. Fortunately the mere sight of daddy Rick was enough to dry her tears.

"What's this?" He said.

Shaye reached for him. Rick took her into his arms and she snuggled into his shoulder, content now as daddy rubbed her back in circles.

"That was the first problem we had tonight," Mollie said. "How was the party?"

Rick told her about the striptease that was about taking place while he was leaving. Too bad he had to pay for the cab while it was parked he said. He would have gone back in the house just for a laugh. He didn't tell Mollie that one of the woman offered to give him a blowjob earlier in the evening. He betted that she was one of women taking her clothes off when he was stepping out the door. Drew would have a chuckle at that when he returned from the desert.

A few hours and he would be back at the base. He would be able to shower, debrief his superior on the exercise and get home. Drew was looking to a shower with hot water. And getting away from the recruits for two days. The past five days didn't unfold the way he had predicted; the recruit he thought was the weakest was stellar in the desert and some of the ones Drew believed would do fine in the environment did far from it. Drew realized that he made a judgement too quickly and made a mental note to be more careful.

"Daddy will be here soon," Rick told Davey and Shaye as they finished lunch. A few minutes ago he had received a text from his husband.

Back on base. I should be about an hour or so. I missed you guys so much. I can't wait to see you. I love you. Xox.

The kids could have a later nap so they could greet daddy. When they did go to bed, their parents would do the same for while. Only sleeping wouldn't be involved. Shaye and Davey got so excited seeing Rick thought the neighbors heard. Drew hugged both babies tightly, loving their drooling kisses. He sat down on the couch and leaned to the side and kissed Rick. Their kiss in the porch had been too quick.

"I missed you, too," Rick said. "I'm glad you're back."

Shaye and Davey fell asleep in daddy Drew's arms not long after. Once they were in their cribs Rick massaged his husband's shoulders.

Drew groaned. "That feels so good."

"I bet it does, after sleeping on rocks for five nights. C'mon," he said. "Let's go lay down."

Both stripped down to their boxers even it was the middle of the day. They wrapped themselves around each other, kissing for several minutes. Drew then laid his head on Rick's chest.

"You know I'm gonna fall asleep if you keep doing that, right?" Drew murmured as his husband rubbed his thumb over his temple.

"That's the plan," Rick smiled, kissing Drew's forehead. "You need it."