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“Why don’t you take a nap, babe?” Ed had asked, after Stede’s third yawn.
“It’s the middle of the afternoon!” Stede replied.
Ed stared at him blankly. “So? That’s actually, like, prime napping time.”
Stede scoffed and grabbed the remote, upping the volume a bit in an attempt to keep himself alert. He felt so incredibly rude. Ed had come over to watch a movie after their plans to go to a local craft market had been rained out. They had only been dating a couple of months and Stede was worried all of the time whether he was interesting enough for an intensely cool guy like Ed. And here he was, barely able to keep his eyes open!
Ed grabbed the remote from his hands, turned off the TV, and then turned his body to fully face Stede on the sofa. “Stede,” he said, his voice deep and serious. “Are you telling me you don’t nap?”
Stede couldn’t help but chuckle at Ed’s furrowed brow. He looked so concerned!
“Well, no, not really. When Alma was a baby, Mary and I did the whole ‘sleep when she sleeps’ thing. But when Louis came along, one of us had to be up to keep an eye on Alma and that fell to me since Mary really needed the rest. And then there were bedtime routines to keep up as they got older.” Stede shrugged. “A nap during the day would have made it impossible to sleep at night.”
Ed closed his eyes and shook his head, making a tsk-tsk sound. “Ah, mate. Good thing I came along.”
Yes it is, Stede thought dreamily, as Ed stood up and helped him off the couch. Stede soon realized he was being led to his own bedroom.
“Edward. Are you sure this isn’t just a ploy to get me into bed?” he asked cheekily as they crossed the threshold into his room.
Ed paused. He looked thoughtfully at Stede for a moment. “Mmm. No. Not this time, anyway.” He waggled his brows and then stepped over to Stede’s dresser. He rummaged through a couple of drawers and then handed Stede a pair of soft shorts and a t-shirt.
“Napping 101. Gotta get comfy. You go change while I get everything ready.” He nodded toward the bathroom door. Stede rolled his eyes a bit, but secretly adored the way Ed seemed so determined to take care of him. When he emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later, he saw that Ed had carefully removed his (oh so very many) decorative pillows and shams from his bed and turned down the corner of his duvet. The room was dim due to the gloomy weather and the rain pattered softly against the windows. Ed had turned on Stede’s fragrance diffuser and the room was filling with the calming scent of lavender.
“This is so silly,” Stede said, even as he climbed under the duvet. He really was so exhausted. He’d had such an intense week at work, and the thought of getting some rest was indeed very appealing. But if he was asleep, surely Ed would leave. Some date Stede was.. “I…I feel bad. I don’t want you to go,” he whispered.
“Not going anywhere, babe,” Ed replied, as he crawled on the bed to lie next to Stede. He stayed on top of the duvet though.
“Don’t you need comfy clothes?”
“Nah, I’m an old hand at this. Can sleep anywhere, anytime, in anything.” He turned on his side so they were facing each other.
“Braggart,” Stede said.
Ed shrugged. “Only when it’s worth bragging about.”
“And napping–” Stede interrupted himself with another tremendous yawn. “Napping is something to brag about, is it?”
“Hush, you,” Ed said quietly, bringing his face closer to Stede’s. Their noses were practically touching. Ed reached out a hand and gently stroked Stede’s hair. “Now, just lay here and turn your brain off. Listen to the rain. Take a few deep breaths with me.”
Within minutes, Stede was out like a light.
***
Stede woke up nearly two hours later. He stretched out in his sheets, feeling indulgent and refreshed, not groggy as he feared he would. Perhaps Ed was on to something with this napping business.
“Well, that was–” he cut himself off when he realized he was alone. His heart sank a bit. Ed must have gone home after all. He sighed and threw the duvet off. He’d better find his phone and text Ed. Apologize for ruining their afternoon. He’d have to find a way to make it up to Ed; he’d plan something truly romantic and thrilling for their next date.
As he opened the door to shuffle out of his bedroom, Stede suddenly became aware of a voice coming from the living room.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, love. Come on, forgive me. I wasn’t thinking.”
That was Ed’s voice, soft and pleading. He was still here! But who on earth was he talking to? Why did he need forgiving? Stede’s blood went cold as he came to the only logical conclusion: Ed was talking to some other paramour, someone he’d neglected while spending time with Stede. Well! If Ed had someone more interesting to spend his days with, he could go right ahead! Stede Bonnet might not be the most interesting man in the world, but he also wasn’t about to be anyone’s second fiddle! Edward Teach could stuff his sorries in a sack and make his apologies somewhere that Stede wouldn’t have to hear them. Stede strode purposefully into the living room to tell Ed exactly that, but stopped short at the sight that greeted him.
Ed was on the floor on his hands and knees, peering into Captain’s pirate ship cat house in the corner of the living room. Stede couldn’t help but admire the way Ed’s jeans pulled taut across his glorious backside. He admonished himself for leering when moments ago he’d been ready to show the man the door. Ed clearly hadn’t heard Stede enter the room, as he continued babbling at the grumpy orange tabby face that glared at him from a cabin window.
“I’m so sorry I scared you. Come on, lemme make it up to you.”
“Edward? What’s going on?”
Ed froze and slowly turned his head. Had he been crying?!
“Oh. You’re up. How was your nap?”
“It was fine. Transcendent, actually. Just what the doctor ordered. But why are you on the floor?”
Ed scrambled to pull himself up with no small amount of grunting and rushed over to Stede.
“I scared him, Stede!” he cried as he threw his arms around Stede’s neck. “He won’t come out. I’m so, so sorry!”
Stede rubbed his hands soothingly along Ed’s back and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Oh for heaven’s sake, I thought—mmm, well, never mind what I thought. Let’s sit down, shall we?” He led Ed over to the sofa. “Now, what happened, exactly?”
Ed sucked in a breath. “Well, I dozed for a while with you, but then I got up. You were still out. And I mean out. When you cut loose, you really cut loose. With the whole napping thing, I mean. Anyway, I thought I’d help myself to some of your fancy tea, and then Captain came in the kitchen and was rubbing up against my ankles, and I stumbled a bit and spilled sugar on the counter. So I wiped it up and then when I went to throw away the paper towel, I saw the bin was full. I tied it up and set it outside–I was gonna take it to the dumpster for you when the rain stops–and then when I shook the new bin liner out, I guess the rustling startled him. He took off running and he was moving so fast, and then he skidded on the floor and crashed into the door frame. Then he went into his little pirate ship and now he…he hates me!”
Stede burst out laughing. Whatever reaction Ed had been expecting, one look into his big, sad, beautiful brown eyes told Stede that laughter wasn’t it.
“It’s not funny, Stede! I traumatized him!”
“Oh you did not. He jumps at his own shadow.”
“He won’t come out of his house.”
“Ed, he spends most of the day in his house. I love him, but his brain is the size of a walnut, and I promise you, he is not in there holding a grudge or plotting revenge.”
They both turned to look at Captain’s house. He was still glaring out of the window.
“Erm, well,” Stede cleared his throat. “He might still be a tad upset. But I promise, this will all blow over.”
Ed stared into Stede’s eyes. “You really think so?” he asked, sounding uncertain. Stede nodded. “Okay. Okay good.” Ed scrubbed his hands over his face and let out a giant breath. “That’s a relief.”
They both relaxed back into the sofa cushions, fingers intertwined. Stede gazed at Ed fondly.
“What?” Ed asked.
“Nothing. Just. You were being very sweet with him.”
Ed blushed. “How much did you hear?”
“Enough. Enough to know you’re a good man with a kind and gentle heart.”
Ed gave him a small smile. “I’m glad you think so. Think you’re about the only person I know who would describe me with words like kind and gentle.”
“Well, then, you must know a great many idiots.”
Ed snorted. “You’re not wrong about that.” He propped his elbow on the back cushion and rested his head on his hand. “Nah, really though, my mates are alright. What I mean is that I think you bring out a side of me I haven’t let many others see. I’ve always had to be the boss, make the plan, execute the plan, never show any sign of weakness. Always kept those walls up in relationships, too. But with you, I feel like I can just…be Ed. Be happy.”
“Oh. Well, that’s…” Stede couldn’t find the words, so instead, he leaned in and kissed him. And as the kiss deepened, Stede felt his own insecurities and self-doubts melting away. Hearing that Stede made Ed happy was all the reassurance Stede needed to know that he was enough, just as he was. But surely it wouldn’t hurt to kiss Ed breathless about it, so he continued to do just that. They only stopped when Captain launched all of his fifteen pounds into Ed’s lap and butted his head against Ed’s chin.
Stede huffed as they broke apart. “Oh, now you want to make up, do you?” he said, scratching behind Captain’s ears.
Ed laughed as he scooped the cat into his arms and stood up from the sofa. “Come on, little mate. Let’s go see where your dad is hiding the good stuff.”
Stede watched Ed carry Captain over to the kitchen pantry, cooing nonsense at him the whole way. And Stede knew at that moment, with every fiber of his being, that one day he was going to marry that man.