Page 23 of Archer

“Daddy, come sit down. You’re going to make your blood pressure go up if you keep pacing like that.”

I froze mid-step. Did he seriously just call me Daddy, or did I conjure that thought because that was exactly what I was thinking? He needed a Daddy to take care of him, and not just any Daddy.Me.

I took a deep breath and gave him a weak smile. I went back over, sat down beside him, and reached for his hands. “Sorry, I hate that you’re working so hard to make your dream come true, and they don’t support you the way they should.”

“They aren’t horrible people.” He squeezed my hand and didn’t that figure. This sweet boy had poured out his heart to me, which couldn’t have been easy, and now here he was trying to comfort me. “They just…” He paused, looking for his word.

“They have no imagination, and they don’t get what I’m doing. It all feels weird to them. You have to open your mind to the possibilities if you’re going to understand yoga and meditation and sound healing, and they don’t have the ability to do that.”

“But still, they should support you,” I insisted.

“They should, and that’s why I’ve been avoiding them. I don’t need their negative energy, but once the business takes off, they’ll come around.”

How on earth was he so sweet? They probably would, and when they did, I had no doubt he’d welcome them back in his life like it never happened because he had such an understanding, caring soul. I, on the other hand, wanted to go over and shake some sense into them, but I doubted Crispin would appreciate that.

“You’re too precious for this world, sweet boy. Has anyone ever told you that?”

He shook his head. “No, but Aziza has said something close on occasion.”

I picked up his hand and brought it to my lips, placing a soft kiss on his knuckles. “Well, you are, and I’m glad you’re here. We need more people like you in this world.”

He let out a small giggle. “What? More people running themselves ragged chasing an insane goal?”

“No, sweet boy. More people like you to bring all of us cynics hope.”

He sniffled, and his beautiful blue eyes glistened. “That’s all I want, you know? To help people find hope.”

“I know, sweet boy.”

I’d been determined to take things slow. Crispin had enough on his plate without adding a new relationship on top of it, but the more I got to know him, the surer I was that I could help lessen his load simply by supporting him.

“Crispin,” I said softly.

“Yeah?”

“I’m going to kiss you now, so if you don’t want me to, I need you to say so.”

He smiled at me and then reached up and pretended to zip his lips and throw away the key.

I chuckled. This boy. He was exactly what I’d been needing in my life. He was fun, he was sweet, and yeah, he gave me hope. I cupped his face in my hands and leaned toward him. He met me halfway, and our lips touched. I’d heard people say they knew from the first kiss that their partner was the one, and I’d always thought that was silly. How could you possibly know someone was the right person for you that quickly? But I did. Maybe even before the kiss. Years from now when people asked, when did you know? I would tell them it was this moment, right here.

He moved closer, and I slid one hand back behind his head, wrapping my fingers in his soft curls and deepened the kiss. He opened his mouth for me as his body melted against mine. He tasted like lemon and honey and something uniquely Crispin.

He pulled away from me panting, and I ran my thumb across his swollen lips. “You said you have an early class tomorrow, so you need to get home and get some sleep. Do you think your parents are gone by now?”

“What?” He looked a little dazed, and I grinned at him. At least the kiss affected him as much as it did me.

“Home, sweet boy. You need to go get some sleep. Do you think you’re okay to go now?”

“Oh, yeah, I’m sure they gave up and left.”

“Good. I have photo shoots all day tomorrow, but I want to take you out to dinner. What time is your last class?”

“You want to take me to dinner? Like a date?” He looked at me wide-eyed, like he was surprised.

“Yes, on a date.” I tried not to laugh at him, but he was so just so damn cute.

“Umm, my last class will be over at seven, but we could go after that if it isn’t too late.”