Chapter Text
“Tell me, my boy, what do you think of aliens?”
Mac watched Shaun’s bright green eyes go wide and tried not to laugh. He’d made a bet, days ago, with Edward on how long the scientist would be able to hold himself back before mentioning them. As much as he didn’t relish the idea of living through yet another lecture about extraterrestrial lifeforms, at least he’d earned twenty caps.
“Aliens, Uncle Jack?”
Nora huffed, “Oh, honestly.”
The eldest Cabot sibling was sitting on the couch, facing the boy and gesturing animatedly. “Just think of it! The universe, Shaun! The universe is infinite! Is your mind open enough to accept the possibility that aliens may indeed exist?”
Shaun frowned thoughtfully, “Well...Mom said our planet has life because we’re in the Goldilocks zone, right? I guess other solar systems having a similar zone makes sense. So...yeah. Yeah! Aliens could totally be real! The possibilities are endless!”
“Exactly!” A new mind successfully infected with the bug, he smiled wide and turned to Nora, “A fine boy you have here, Nora. Absolutely wonderful.”
“Thank you, Jack.” She sipped her coffee and pointedly ignored Emogene’s ‘I told you so’ look.
“Now, then! Next question!”
“Jack, that’s enough.” Mrs. Cabot gave him a stern glare before turning to Shaun. “I’m so glad you were able to come see us, dear.”
He beamed at the old bat, “I am, too, Aunt Mina! Your house is so nice!”
“Oh, that’s very sweet of you to say. My, my, my. Such a well-mannered young man.” She glanced over at MacCready and her pointed little nose went up just a bit. “It’s been ages since your mother brought us anyone of quality to entertain.”
Yeah, that right there was his cue. Mac stood up and wandered to the kitchen, collecting Nora’s cup and Shaun’s empty bottle of Nuka along the way. Jack and Emogene might consider him an ‘honorary Cabot’, but it had been made quite clear, repeatedly, that Mrs. Cabot would rather adopt a rabid baby molerat than add a wastelander like him to the family’s ranks.
Which was just fine with him, all things considered. He didn’t give two shits about being a Cabot, so long as Nora still wanted to be a MacCready.
It was already March. Shaun had lived at the Castle for two full months while his mother recovered from her ordeal. The troops had celebrated her thirty-first birthday with an enthusiastic fireworks display that had about blown Mac's eardrums out.
A rare sunny break in the weather provided them with the window to begin the journey home, back to Sanctuary. Their visit at the Cabots to introduce Shaun to his cousins was supposed to have been a quick stop along the way; but unfortunately a late winter storm had blown in out of nowhere and glazed the outside world with a thick layer of ice, changing their plans a bit. They’d been stuck here a full eight days waiting for things to thaw and it was starting to wear on Mac.
For one, he’d never been happy stuck indoors like the Cabots apparently were. Everyday had been filled with boring, useless activities like charades and card games that didn’t even involve gambling. He understood their desire to get to know the clever, curious little boy and all, and even their aversion to the icy conditions outside, but he was chomping at the bit to leave already. He’d been ready since the first night, when Nora had awkwardly turned away from his attempted goodnight kiss and gently shut the door in his face.
He grumbled to himself and stomped down the stairs to the kitchen. That bullshit had been going on since Shaun had managed to pull her out of her depressive spiral. The first night, first week of nights even, had made perfect sense. Of course she’d want the boy to stay with her, cuddled up tight together, trying to make up for all those years stolen from them.
But it hadn’t just been those nights. It had been every night. Eventually he’d given up pretending he still shared a room with her and switched his things for Shaun’s, staying in the small, single bed the Minutemen had set up for the kid when he’d first arrived.
It wasn’t ideal, of course, but he was trying hard to be understanding. Trying real hard. Nora was a caring, indulgent, exemplary mother. The kind he’d always wished he’d had; the kind his wife had been before she died. He kept reminding himself that Lucy would have insisted upon the same sort of arrangement if she were in Nora’s situation.
When they’d left the Castle, and Nora had talked up their home in Sanctuary, how they’d radioed Codsworth so he’d have Shaun’s room all ready for him, he’d felt hopeful he’d get his spot back in her bed.
Then that first night at the Cabots came, and Mrs. Cabot had snootily informed him at dinner that they’d ‘prepared him a room’ down the hall. Mac had hoped Nora would speak up and correct her, but she hadn’t. She’d just given him that pleading, ‘please don’t make trouble’ look and he’d rolled over.
But his patience wasn’t infinite. He could feel his temper simmering closer and closer to the surface the longer she kept him at arm’s length. He didn’t want to be that guy. Didn’t want to be the asshole who tried to come between Nora and Shaun. Mac just wanted his girl back. At least at night.
She kept shying away from him during the day, too. He’d barely even managed to get a kiss here and there since the fall of the Institute and he didn’t know why. She didn’t act like she was mad at him or anything, and there was still so much going on that he didn’t want to ask. Deacon’s recovery was slower going than originally predicted, and Curie had chosen to stay behind to supervise it. The former Institute scientists who’d picked the winning side were being shuffled all around the Commonwealth. The Railroad was still busy moving dozens of freshly liberated synths to new homes...there was a lot of balls for her to juggle right now. He got that. He really did.
Honestly, Mac felt downright selfish, like a child sulking themselves into a tantrum. What was he supposed to do? Pitch a fit and demand his spot back in her bed? Deliberately oust a traumatized child from his grieving mother’s embrace? No. That would be unthinkable. He was a grown man. He wasn’t going to compete with a little boy for attention and affection.
He could figure this out on his own. If not here, then definitely in Sanctuary.
And if he couldn’t...there was always Cait, right? She seemed to understand Nora and was gifted with loads of common sense. Surely she’d be able to help.
“You know, if you scrub that cup any harder, you’re gonna rub a hole right through the bottom of it.”
Edward’s soft voice made him jump a little and he looked down at his hands, surprised to find that he was washing anything. “Oh...right. Right. My bad, man.”
“Don’t sweat it.” The ghoul leaned against a counter and lit a cigarette. “Shaun seems like a good kid.”
Mac dried the coffee mugs and carefully set them in the dryer rack. “Yeah, he is. Great kid. Super smart.”
He nodded thoughtfully, “Reminds me a lot of Nora when she was younger.”
That was interesting. “I hadn’t realized you knew her when she was a kid.”
Edward shook his head, “Nah. I wasn’t with the family back that far. First met her when she was eighteen, when she moved to the city. Still went by ‘Ellie Jo’ then.” He smiled a little at the memory, “Bright little thing. So excited to be out from her mother’s shadow for the first time in her life...curious about the whole world. I remember I was working on the water heater when she first arrived, and Jack must have mentioned it or something, because the next thing I knew, she was hovering behind me, asking a million questions.”
He chuckled, “Sounds about right.”
“She learned how to put in a new pressure relief valve that day, and then thanked me for the lesson.”
“That probably came in handy when she got out of the vault and wanted hot water in Sanctuary.”
He laughed, “Probably.” His pale, permanently bloodshot eyes narrowed a little, “So what’s the problem?”
Mac blinked, “What?”
“Between you and Miss Nora...used to be the two of you could hardly look at each other without blushing. Now there’s some kinda distance and you’re sleeping in separate rooms.”
He folded his arms and grumbled, “Yeah, none of that was my idea.”
“Ah.”
“She’s been...different since New Year’s, of course. I was ready for that, but...it’s like she doesn’t know how to be a mother and my...uh…”, he frowned. He never knew exactly what to call her in these kinds of conversations.
“Your girl.”
“Yeah. That.”
Edward considered this and then nodded, “Makes sense.”
He scowled, “How?”
“Well...think about it, kid. She’s a widow with a young son. What’s she supposed to say? ‘Mommy can’t cuddle tonight because my boyfriend wants to--’”
He grimaced at how selfish it sounded and raised a hand, “You don’t have to say it out loud.”
“Nora’s mind is always going to work on Old World rules, you know. The rest of us had hundreds of years to get used to how things have changed. She was just thrown into it. You gotta remember that.”
Mac rubbed his forehead. Trying to figure out how her mind worked nearly always made his hurt. “So what would it have been like for her? Before the war, I mean? If she’d been in this situation.”
“Hmm.” Edward tapped the ash off his cigarette and then rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Well...she’s young for a widow. She probably would have taken the usual year of mourning --”
“A whole year!?”
“-- and then...Mrs. Cabot or Miss Emogene would have found her some nice, respectable high society boy to go on dates with. A few months into that he’d be allowed to meet Shaun. All heavily supervised, of course. Eventually they’d be married, and then he’d be the boy’s step-father and move in...or they’d move to a new house, I guess. Whatever.”
He felt a trifle lightheaded, “A whole year?”
“Hey, buck up, kid.” Edward patted his shoulder, “We don’t live in the old days anymore. You just need to remind her of that.”
Mac really, truly wanted to believe it was that simple. “You really think that’ll work?”
He grinned, “It’s already worked, hasn’t it? She’s not wearing your ring yet, but you two have been...canoodling already, haven’t you? That’s a huge step for a lady like her.”
Color flooded his face and he glowered at him, “That’s nobody’s business but ours.”
Edward snorted, “Then the two of you should work on being quieter. These old walls aren’t nearly as thick as you’d think.”
That night, after Shaun’s bath and bedtime story, Mac poked his head into their room and smiled at the picture they made. Nora had him nestled in her arms, softly humming while he slept peacefully. He liked every single thing about this situation, except his spot outside it.
He wondered if she realized that.
Mac waved his hand a little to get her attention and put a finger to his lips when she started to speak before pointing out in the hallway. She nodded and started to slide away from Shaun and he backed out, waiting respectfully outside their room, hands in his pockets and going over his speech in his head.
He’d learned the hard way that sometimes the only way to override Nora’s notions was to start talking and just keep talking until she had no choice but to agree. So it was best to come mentally prepared for a debate.
Nora stepped out into the hall and closed the door softly behind her, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” Except he hadn’t touched her in ages and it was killing him like the slow poison of a radscorpion.
Her head tilted and she squinted at him a little to bring his face into focus. She’d left behind her glasses on the nightstand. “Then why’d you want to speak with me?”
Mac took a deep breath and began, “I miss you. I’ve missed you. It’s been two months since we’ve been together and at least half of that time I haven’t even gotten to sleep next to you. I know you’ve got a lot going on, and I know you’re focused on bonding with Shaun right now and I love you for that. You’re a wonderful mother, baby. You really are. No one can claim otherwise. I just...I miss my girl, you know? I miss holding you every night and all the talking we used to do before we fell asleep and just...everything.” Her eyes had gone wide with shock at his speech and he dropped his, feeling like an insensitive jackass for bringing all this up. “I don’t want...I mean, I don’t expect things to go back to how they were right away, or anything, I just...it’s not going to be a whole year, is it?”
She finally blinked, “A year?”
He nodded, “Edward said that’s how long mourning used to take.”
“Oh.” Nora winced, “I’m sorry...I’ve been neglecting you, haven’t I?”
Mac shook his head, “No! No, I don’t…” He turned a little and listened. A door had creaked open ever so slightly down the hallway. Mrs. Cabot’s door, if he were a betting man. He scowled and took her hand. “Come on. We should take this some place private.”
“Okay.”
He lead her to his own, smaller room and shut the door behind them. “Sorry, your bat-eared cousin was trying to be slick.”
“Mina?”
“Yeah.”
She sighed, “That sounds about right.”
“Anyway...uh...yeah, no, you're not neglecting me, baby. I’m a grown man. I can take care of myself.” And he had been. At least once a night for a good three weeks. Sometimes more if Nora had been strutting about, ordering Minutemen around all day in that bossy tone of hers. It never failed to make him crave her bossing him around. He was even starting to get into her stupid General's hat just through the power of association. Pavlov’s boner, or something. “I just...wondering every day if this is the night you’re going to finally let me back in...it’s kind of killing me, you know? If I just had a time frame…”
She shook her head, eyes sad. “I don’t think it works that way, honey.”
He nodded, “Yeah...yeah, you’re right. Of course you’re right. I shouldn’t have even said --”
“Shaun’s treatment is probably going to go on for a while.”
Mac stopped short at that. “His treatment?”
“For his separation anxiety.”
“His what?”
“Separation anxiety. It’s a normal thing for a child to feel when they’re very small...like, babies and toddlers. They all go through it. You know, that phase where they don’t want to let you out of their sight?”
Duncan screaming his head off for Lucy even though she’d just stepped onto the porch to shuck corn. The memory immediately popped into his head. He’d tried everything he could think of to get his then-eighteen month old son to stop freaking out, but the only thing that had stopped his fit was letting him go to his mom and cling to her leg while she worked. Mac had ended up making dinner that night while they cuddled together in a rocking chair.
“Yeah. Yeah, I know what that is.”
“Well, Shaun still has it. He has memories of when we spent time together, and memories of the times we didn’t. I’m not sure why those were left in there, but they were, and I don’t think he’s comfortable being on his own yet.”
Mac rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, when uh...well, in January, he never seemed to want to let me leave when I visited.”
“He didn’t?”
He shrugged, “It was fine. We played checkers and stuff. Read some comics.”
She studied his face and tilted her head again, “He’s already bonded to you.”
“I guess?”
Nora nodded, “Yeah...yeah, that makes sense...I don’t know why I didn’t…” She blinked and focused for a moment, “Would you mind if we both talked to Shaun tomorrow before we head out? Our escort won’t be here until around ten, so...after breakfast?”
“Sure...what are we talking about?”
She met his gaze for just a moment and then slid away, “Well...I guess that depends. I mean, I know we’d talked before, about being a family together with Duncan and all. Would you...do you think you’d still --”
“Yes. Absolutely yes.” If this was seriously the only problem to conquer between them, then there was no problem. He already loved Shaun. “You and Shaun are a package deal and I want the whole package, Nora.”
“You do?”
“Fu-heck yeah.”
She smiled at him and nodded. “Okay. Okay, then. Great.”
“Yeah. Great.”
“I um...I should probably get back to him. If he wakes up and I’m not there…”
“Yeah, totally. I get it.” When she didn’t actually move to leave, just stared down at her slippers, he stepped a bit closer. “What’s wrong?”
She shook her head, “I miss you, too.”
It came out like she was trying not to cry, and Mac raised her chin so she’d have to look at him. Big, shining tears were running down her cheeks and her face was all scrunched up. It was just further proof he was really a bastard deep down, but his heart leapt at her expression. She’d been as lonely as he had. “Baby...it’s alright.”
“No, it’s not! I’m selfish!”
Mac pulled her into his arms, rubbing her back, “How the heck are you selfish?”
“I was given a miracle and I’m not even appreciating it properly.”
He’d have laughed if she didn’t sound so wretched. “How are you not appreciating it?”
“Because all I can think about is how much I miss you when I should just be happy to have Shaun back.” She was openly sobbing against his neck now, drenching the collar of his shirt.
“That doesn’t make you selfish, silly. That makes you human, and that’s okay.”
“No, it’s not.”
“Well, I say it is...you can be grateful for one thing and still want another, Nora. For fu...goodness sake.”
She shook her head, “It makes me feel terrible.”
“It shouldn’t.” He pulled her back enough to smile at her splotchy face. “It really shouldn’t, baby. You’re allowed to want things.”
Nora wiped at her face with the sleeve of her robe, “It doesn’t feel like it’s allowed.”
“Well, I’m the boss right now and I say it is.”
She laughed just a little, “You still have pants on.”
“You don’t, and I can always take mine off.”
Her cheeks turned a little pink at that. “Mac…”
Oh, he’d missed scandalizing her. He chuckled at her expression and brushed his lips against hers, lightly, just testing to see if he was really still welcome there. When her eyes immediately went dark and soft, he pulled her closer and settled his mouth on hers properly, a hand sinking into the soft hair at the nape of her neck. Even through the bulky robe, he could easily feel her curves and warmth and was unable to resist grinding against her, just a little. He’d spent too many nights dreaming of her and the way she melted around him to do anything else. Nora moaned softly, her tongue slipping into his mouth, and Mac had to fight his baser instincts not to take her right there against the door.
By the time he broke off from their kiss, they were both panting slightly. She pouted at him and immediately nuzzled against his neck, nipping at the spot where she’d started this whole crazy thing only five months ago. Mac growled a little when he felt her teeth graze his skin and the arm around her waist tightened, pulling her closer even as he struggled to keep his head.
“You’re pushing it, baby.”
Nora smiled against him and left a sharp love bite there, the sensation zinging through him in a straight line to his cock. She shifted and her legs parted enough for him to slip between them and Mac abruptly decided trying to be the responsible one here was stupid. Stupid and completely pointless and he was suddenly very, very tired of always being the grownup.
The hand in her hair tightened and he pulled her back off his neck so he could look at her, “Think you can be quiet for once?” It came out as a low, hoarse kind of whisper and she quickly nodded. He couldn’t help but smirk, “We’ll see.”
Then his lips were on hers again as he pulled her robe open, slipping his hands under it, one going to her hip, squeezing hard, holding her in place while he ground against her. His other pushed the silky nightgown aside and kneaded her breast. She whimpered softly and her arms went around his waist, keeping him close.
Her skin was still as soft and warm and perfect as he’d remembered. Better, even. No memory could possibly compare to what it actually felt like to have her in his arms again. He just didn’t have that good of an imagination.
His hand traveled down, lifting the nightgown and running along her inner thigh. He paused, just inches from her center, wondering at the heat that poured off her until a needful little sound from her throat pushed him on. His fingers gently worked her folds apart and he wasn’t surprised at all to find her already soaking. Gratified, yes, but not surprised.
Mac pushed two fingers into her slowly and chuckled when her hands came up to cling to his shoulders. His thumb barely grazed her clit and she seemed to slip down the door a bit, like her knees were already trying to give out on her. He let her lips go, and watched her face while his fingers pumped in and out of her.
“Feel good, kitten?”
Her eyes just barely opened and she nodded, whimpering.
“Hmm...good enough, or you want more?” His thumb pushed down and she gasped.
“More.”
He grinned, “That’s what I thought you’d say.”
His fingers left her suddenly and he licked them off before picking her up and carrying her to the bed, almost falling into it with her under him. She tugged at his shirt and he hurriedly ripped it off over his head, too focused on getting his pants undone to really care about any other clothes. Hell, he still had his boots on, even. Nora’s hands ran over him as she wriggled impatiently and some distant, smartass part of himself wanted to point out that he could do this a lot fucking faster if she weren’t being so damn distracting, but then his belt finally gave way and they were off, or mostly off. Out of the way, anyway.
Mac moved her nightgown up enough that he could finally see what he’d missed for months and he leaned over her, his mouth settling over her nipple and sucking at it hard while his hand tweaked the other one. He felt her arch up against him, his cock rubbing against her in a frustratingly wonderful kind of way. Her fingers slid into his hair and held him to her breast while she rocked against him.
It had been so long. He wanted to go over every inch of her with his tongue and get to know every hidden part of her body all over again, but it was hard to focus on that when her hips were already starting to move faster and that wonderful rosy flush was spreading across her chest. He abruptly abandoned her nipple and shifted up a little, hovering over her mouth again.
“I love you.”
Those emerald eyes opened and stared right into his. She stopped moving, still panting, and her arms twined around his neck as she smiled up at him. “Oh, RJ, I love you, too. I love you so much.”
He held her gaze as long as he could, savoring this rare moment of stillness, before his mouth was back on hers and his hand guided the head of his cock into her pussy. Mac relaxed against her, letting his weight do the bulk of the work as he slowly sank into her body and groaning as his length was enveloped in her scorching heat. Nora clawed at his back and wrapped her legs around his hips, pulling him down faster and herself up until he bottomed out.
Mac still wanted to at least try to go slow, and kept himself as still as he could while she adjusted to him, but she was already rolling her hips against his, hard, and it broke whatever semblance of control he’d been fighting to hold onto. He braced himself on one elbow and used his other hand to grip her flank, effectively stopping her movements as he swiveled his pelvis against her.
Her head fell back and she had to bite her lip to keep from crying out. Mac grinned wickedly at her and pulled out almost all the way, excruciatingly slow, waiting until her little whimpers turned desperate and irresistable. Then plunged back inside, hard enough to scoot her body up the bed just a little. It caused her to buck under him and a surprised shriek that would have had them busted had she not been so breathless escaped her mouth.
His hand immediately clamped over it as he continued to ruthlessly pump into her while she steadily lost more control of herself. He nuzzled against her neck, wanting nothing more than to sink his teeth into the tender flesh and mark her as his all over again, but it wasn’t time for that yet. Too noticeable. She’d be upset later, even if she was begging for it now. So instead he tugged on her earlobe with his teeth and whispered.
“God, you feel so good, baby. So fucking good. Hot and wet, just for me. You missed this bad, didn’t you?” All she could do was whimper behind his hand and nod a little. He could already feel her tightening around him and chuckled, “You’re gonna come so hard, aren’t you? Cause you’re a good girl and you never touch yourself, isn’t that right? Poor baby.”
He pressed the gentlest of kisses just below her ear, “Not like me. I couldn’t help myself. Every night we were apart, I’d lay in bed and think about this. Think about how prettily you beg for my cock and how greedy you get for it. Think about all the dirty things we’ve done and everything we’re gonna do.” He paused for a moment and leaned back enough to see her rosy face, smirking. “And we’re gonna do a lot, baby. Shit you’ve never even dreamed of.”
Her eyes got wide and he couldn’t help but laugh, even as his own orgasm built at the base of his spine. He slowed his thrusting, just a little. Just to see the satisfying way her face shifted from wanton to desperate. Mac dropped a kiss on the tip of her nose and smiled at her shiver. She was impossibly tight and absolutely dripping wet. He could feel her fluids slowly running down his balls, and he moved his hips in a wide circle, his smile growing at the obscenely delicious sound it made.
“Damn, baby. You hear that?” Her cheeks went a shade more pink and he chuckled, nibbling at her ear again. “That’s the sound of a happy little pussy, isn’t it?” Mac could actually feel her face grow hotter under his hand and he moved it away so he could see just how blushy she could get.
Nora pouted up at him, face almost as red as a tato. “RJ, please…”
He pouted back for a second before grinning, “Sorry. Was that too far, sweetheart?”
To his great surprise, a little naughty smile appeared. “No.”
His eyebrow rose, “No?”
“No, just... focus.” She raised up to catch his mouth and rolled her hips against his and a low chuckle rumbled through his chest.
Mac slid his arms under her and wrapped them around her waist and shoulder, anchoring her with his own weight so she couldn't slide away from him and finally gave in. Finally let go and fell into the spiraling feeling building in his stomach, the way she undulated under him, the sharp sting of her teeth in his lower lip just before she came. He happily swallowed her cries, grunting with the effort of keeping himself quiet as her pussy rippled around him and triggered his own release. The intense pressure and gentle pull of her body when he kept moving, like it was trying to keep him as deep inside as possible, was indescribably satisfying. Nothing could possibly compare.
He finally stopped thrusting, pushing with his feet against the foot of the bed while his arms pulled her down hard, trying to impale her even more than he already had and feeling an odd frustration when their bodies wouldn’t give way and allow it to happen. He felt like he wanted to bury himself in her until they were one and the same, so this ecstasy would be all they ever experienced.
Nora seemed to want the same thing, wiggling down on his length while her legs crushed his body against hers. They were wrapped so tightly around each other that Mac could barely even breathe, and it still wasn’t enough. It would probably never be enough, but hey, a lifetime chasing that feeling sounded pretty fucking fantastic to him at this point.
Their kiss finally ended and he wasn’t the least bit surprised to see the small smear of blood on her lips. She probably hadn’t even realized what she was doing in the moment, and given all the times he’d left bruises on her, she was certainly entitled to at least a little of his own blood by now.
Her eyes finally opened and she smiled at him until it turned into a confused sort of frown, “Your lip is swollen.”
“Hmm.” He snuggled against her and worked on convincing his arms to release their death grip.
“When did that happen?”
Mac snorted a little, “Probably around the time when your pussy was trying to suck the soul right out of my body.”
She slapped his shoulder with her hand, “Mac!”
He laughed at the indignation. “What? It was!”
“But you don’t have to say it!”
God, he’d really missed this. He nibbled at her neck, “I want more.” He really, really did. His cock was just as hard now as it had been before he came. This was supposed to have been a quick way to let the pressure off, but if anything, it had made it worse. He wanted to do this until the sun came up, at least.
She breathed in his ear, “I know.”
“But we can’t.”
“Yeah.”
He sighed heavily but slid out of her body, making a face as the room’s cool air hit him and his entire being immediately missed her warmth. Mac sat back and stared down at her, smiling a little at how thoroughly ravaged she looked. Her nipples were still hard, still clearly begging for attention. Her hair was messy and her cheeks flushed. He ghosted a hand along her body and gently traced his fingers along her curves before ruffling the soft curls at the apex of her thighs. Her pussy was still a bright, glowing pink beneath and he felt an irrational, powerful sense of ownership and pride at the sight of his come slowly trickling out.
Nora watched him watching her and her breathing began to change; started to pick up again instead of cooling off. “Mac?”
His eyes flicked up to hers and he knew with absolute certainty that if he wanted, he could take her again. Over and over and over, as much as he wanted. That staggering focus, what she called a hyperfixation, that she had about him and the pleasure they found together had never really gone away. He hoped it never would.
But he also knew there was a little boy down the hall who would be very sad if his mother didn’t return to him. That sliced right through the lust still fogging his mind and he smiled gently at her, moving his hand to a more neutral location and squeezing her knee. “You should get cleaned up before you head to bed, baby.”
Her eyes cleared just a little and she nodded, “Okay.”
Mac moved off the bed altogether, stepping back away from her as he hitched his pants back up. He wanted to be a gentleman and help her get put back together and all, but he couldn’t trust that his self-control would be enough while they both so clearly wanted to do the exact opposite of what they needed to do. Sometimes, the best thing to do in the face of ultimate temptation was to just stay the hell away from it.
Nora sat up and got off the bed, smoothing her nightgown back down and closing her rope, cinching the tie tight before she tried to finger comb her hair. She made a face at him as she worked through the tangles, “Why is it my hair always ends up a rat’s nest whenever we’re together?”
He smirked at her, “That’s just how you know it was good. It’s supposed to happen.”
She huffed a little, “I’m pretty sure it’s not.”
“Can you find your room by yourself without your glasses on?”
Her eyes rolled a little, “I can manage. I’m not completely blind, you know.”
“M’hmm.” He stepped just close enough to press a soft kiss to her lips. “Goodnight, Nora.”
The sass melted right back out of her and she smiled dreamily at him, “Goodnight, Mac.”
“I’ll see you at breakfast.”
“Okay. See you.” She slipped out of his room, heading for the bathroom. Mac stared at the closed door and allowed hope to take root in his chest once again.
The next morning, he was the first to arrive at the table. He’d waited almost an hour after Nora had left to go take his own shower, just to be safe. Trying to sleep with her scent on him would result in nothing but ruined sheets. He’d made the fatal error of thinking about that time they’d showered together, the way the steam had swirled around them and how delicious and pink her skin had turned under the hot water. That alone had him wasting a good two handfuls of the Cabots’ precious cream rinse, and not on his hair.
By the time he actually got to bed, he felt absurdly awake for midnight. He could still smell sex in his room and it drove him crazy enough that he didn’t actually drift off for almost two hours, sleeping fitfully until his eyes popped open for good at around five. He still felt wired for sound and had straightened his room quickly after getting dressed, stripping the bed and dropping everything into the laundry chute in the hall before finally heading downstairs.
Edward had shown up shortly after, took one look at him and grinned from ear to ear for a second before resuming his regular unflappable mien, casually asking if he’d like coffee, and pretending like he didn’t know exactly what had happened.
Mac tried to glower at him but he was still too happy from the night before to manage anything but a slightly grumpy look.
Slowly but surely, the Cabots trickled in. First Jack, excited as ever to have a captive audience. Emogene followed, a cigarette already in her mouth. She took one of Edward’s danishes off the buffet, grabbed a cup of coffee and retreated back upstairs, muttering about the obnoxiousness of early birds.
Shaun bounced in shortly after, chirping ‘good morning’ at everyone before sitting next to Jack and immediately asking him a thousand questions about what mysteries the universe could hold. Mac smirked behind his mug at Jack’s expression. About damn time he knew what it felt like to be bombarded by conversation.
Nora followed at a more sedate pace, yawning behind her hand as she made her way to the coffee. Mac watched her sit across from him and take a few sips, cradling her mug like it held the secrets of the universe and slowly waking enough to finally notice his staring.
She blinked owlishly a few times, eyes a little bleary before they suddenly snapped into focus, and promptly blushed bright pink. “Good morning, Mac.” It was softly muttered and her eyes darted away from his right after she said it.
Mac grinned at her, “Yeah, great morning, actually.” When the tips of her ears turned pink, too, he chuckled and turned his focus back to his own coffee. Guess he hadn’t been the only one wound up after their little encounter.
They ate a hearty breakfast, Nora having to remind Shaun almost constantly to actually take a bite between his questions. Their walk to Sanctuary, escorted by Minutemen, Railroad heavies and some of Goodneighbor’s finest, would take a good eight hours from here. Ten, probably, given the fact that Shaun had never been on a hike like that in his life. The kid needed all the protein he could get before they left.
Finally, Edward cleared the dishes and Mrs. Cabot and Jack wandered away to do their usual early morning activities. Nora looked at Mac, who nodded back, and she just managed to catch Shaun before he slipped away, too.
“Wait, honey. Mac and I need to speak with you.”
He’d been just leaving his chair and froze, staring at them both with big eyes. “Did I do something wrong? I’m sorry.”
Mac caught the flash of anger that immediately bloomed in Nora’s eyes and winced internally. He remembered her smoldering rage when she’d explained how Shaun had been scared to get in trouble in the Institute over a stupid radio all too well. He shook his head, “No, of course not, kiddo.”
“Oh.” He plopped back down in his chair, “What’s up?”
Nora took a deep breath and smiled at him, “Well, sweetheart, we just wanted to talk with you a little about how life is going to be in Sanctuary.”
Shaun nodded, “I know! We live in a blue house and have a dog named Dogmeat and a robot named Codsworth and the school’s right across the street! I remembered.”
“That’s right. Sanctuary is a wonderful place to live and we really think you’re going to love it there, right, Mac?”
“Yup. Sanctuary’s a great town.”
“And you remember what I told you, right? About Duncan?”
He lit up, “Yeah! Uncle Mac’s little boy! He’s gonna live there, too! He’s turning five on the seventh, right? I wanted to make him something but I dunno what yet...I mean, I know he won’t actually be there when we get there or anything, but still. I thought maybe I could build him something neat...you said I was pretty good at tinkering.”
Nora ran a hand over his head and smoothed his hair down, or tried to, anyway. “Yes, you are, and that’s very sweet of you, honey. I’m sure he’ll appreciate it once he gets here.” She took his hand in hers and held it, “The thing is...well, how would you feel if Duncan lived with us?”
His mouth dropped open, “With us? Like, in our house?”
“Yes.”
“For real?”
“Yes.”
“For really real?”
Nora laughed, “For really real.”
“That’d be great! He can share my room! Oh! It’ll be like having a brother almost, won’t it? I’ve never had one of those!”
Mac chuckled, “Neither has he.”
Shaun grinned at him, “I can teach him stuff, too! Like...numbers and things. I’m pretty good at math.”
“That’d be great, because I am not.”
He laughed and then blinked, suddenly very concerned. “Wait...Uncle Mac, where will you live?” His thumb was rubbing against his mother’s hand and Mac smiled a little. It was uncanny how alike they were.
His eyes met Nora’s again and then returned to the boy, “Well, that was the other part of what we wanted to talk to you about.”
Nora was clearly nervous, looking more worried here at the dinner table than she ever had on any battlefield. She squeezed his hand and opened her mouth to speak when he beat her to it.
“Oh! You should just live with us! I mean, I’ll have my own bed and everything, so it’ll be cool.”
She stared at him in shock, “Y-you’d be okay with that?”
His head tilted, “Why wouldn’t I be okay with it? You guys are in love or whatever, right?”
Mac’s brow furrowed. There was no way in hell this kid had that level of perception given the friendly but distant way Nora had treated him. “How...uh, how’d you find out about that, kiddo?”
He smiled brightly, “Uncle Deacon told me.” He turned to Nora and completely missed the way Mac’s face had suddenly darkened, “I think it’s so neat how Uncle Mac saved your life from that super huge mutated radroach and then you fell in love right there on the spot! That was so brave! It’s like something out of a movie, isn’t it? Like he was your knight in shining armor or something!” When she just stared at him with her mouth open, he continued. “And maybe someday you guys will get married! Uncle Deacon said that’s what sometimes happens when you fall in love, and then we’ll be a family for real and Duncan will be my brother forever and oh! Oh! Maybe you guys can have even more kids and then I’ll have a bunch of brothers and sisters!”
The gears spinning in her brain finally slowed down enough to respond, “You’d want all that?”
“Yeah! Oh…”, he leaned toward her a little. “Also, can we get a cat? I made friends with Captain Whiskers back at the Castle and I just think cats are so neat! Don’t you think they’re neat? Uncle Deacon says they domesticated themselves. Isn’t that so smart? We could have one and name it something really cool, like Kepler or Copernicus!”
She still looked shell-shocked, but nodded, “O-okay.”
“Okay?
Really!
That’s great!” He bounced up and buzzed her cheek, “I’m gonna go see what Aunt Emmy is up to. She’s so great with computers, did you know?”
“Yes. Yes, I did...um, that’s fine, just...knock first.”
“Okay, Mom!” Shaun skipped out of the room.
Mac and Nora sat in silence for a moment, befuddlement on her side and nothing but a maelstrom of aggravation on his.
That bastard. That slippery, forked tongue, slimy, rat bastard.
Nora tapped her thumb on the table for a bit and finally spoke, “Well...I guess that’s one problem solved.”
“Solved?! There was never a problem to begin with!” He hissed it at her before exploding out of his chair, pacing irritably.
“Honey…”
“Don’t you ‘honey’ me! Why didn’t he tell us he’d already told Shaun sh-stuff! Huh? Because he’s an as-jerk! That’s why!”
“Maybe he thought he was helping?”
“Helping my a-butt, Nora! If he’d been helping, he would have at least said something to you!” He stopped pacing and stood with his hands on his hips, “He was just fu-messing with us!”
She sighed and couldn’t meet his gaze, “Maybe.”
“Maybe nothing!”
“He’s been...upset lately. His recovery has been painful and...Dez asked him to step down as spymaster until he’s healed.” She shook her head, “He’s been involved with the Railroad longer than any of them. It’s his whole life...and he wasn’t very happy when I insisted X6 stay with him until he comes home, either. I just worry about him being so vulnerable right now. This was probably just his way of...lashing out, or something. We should try to be understanding.”
“I’ll understand my foot up his ass!”
“Mac! Language!” She huffed, “And that doesn’t even make sense, honey.”
He folded his arms and glowered at the world, “So?”
Her eyes traveled over him and she smiled, that same adorably naughty smile from the night before, even as her cheeks flushed. “So...we’ll be home tonight.”
That smile wasn’t fair. It just wasn’t. It had the power to knock the anger right out of him and he suddenly didn’t even care how Shaun had found out, all he cared about was finally getting to be next to her again. Especially with that promising, heated look in her eyes. Oh, man. Powerful stuff right there.
Mac found himself grinning back at her, “Heck yeah, we will.”