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For some reason, he seemed to attract either confirmed closet cases, or guys like Cory, who wanted to keep things casual and just this side of anonymous.
    He had couched his requests to stay most of the night very carefully in the beginning, making it seem more like he knew he’d just crash after orgasm. In actuality, he played a little fantasy game inside his head, pretending he was coming home after a late, long day instead of it being a cold-blooded hook-up. Then afterwards, they would fall asleep together in the bed he and his partner shared. Instead of the walk of shame, his reason for rising alone before sunrise was to face an early day at the office, slipping from the covers and silently dressing to avoid disturbing his loved one, kissing him tenderly as he slept on, leaving him safe in their home.
    Cory’s apology for the night Bailey was sick had come as a welcome surprise. Maybe there was a chance he’d eventually look at Ken as more than a fuck buddy, though a small, cynical part of him maintained Cory had pigeonholed him into second-class citizen category. And for good reason. Really, how many grand romances started off with a one-night stand?
    That’s the price you pay for being easy.
    “Okay, all done. Now we have to put Uncle Cory’s letter in with mine.”
    Crap . “Okay. Let’s find it.” He started shuffling through the papers.
    “It’s the one with the signature on it.” Man, she had a good memory. Ken was loath to give up his copy of The Guide to Corbin Collins’ Ideal Man, or whatever he called his wish list, but evidently pulling the wool over Bailey’s eyes wasn’t going to be easy.
    “Oh, that’s right. Here it is.” He pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to her. “I put it in my pocket to keep it safe.”
    She carefully inspected it, nodding in satisfaction as she confirmed it was the right one, and then folded it back up and stuffed it into the envelope with her own. It was a tight fit since they weren’t exactly folded to letter size, but eventually they got the envelope to stay shut. With lots of tape.
    “Can you mail them for me?”
    Ken brightened, giving Bailey a genuine smile as he realized he’d have another opportunity to snag the list. “Of course I will.”
    “Promise you won’t forget. Promise you’ll do it today.”
    “Today or tomorrow, depending on when I leave.”
    “Oh.” She thought about that for a minute. “I wish you didn’t have to leave. Can’t you live here with us? I like you.”
    Swallowing against the sudden prickle in his throat, he looked into that earnest face, with the same hazel brown eyes as her uncle. “I like you, too, sweets.”
    “Is that your special name for me?”
    “Sweets? Sure, if you like it,” he double-checked.
    She nodded repeatedly. “I like sweets, so I like ‘sweets’.” She laughed uproariously at her joke, and Ken laughed along with her, enjoying the camaraderie and ease of being in a house with love and laughter again.
    “Okay, sweets. Let’s clean this mess up and play a game. Then we’ll start thinking about dinner.”
    Because he wasn’t in any hurry to leave. Not at all.
     
     
    W HEN nighttime came and Ken had seen neither hide nor hair of either of the Collinses, he went ahead and did Bailey’s bedtime routine, which was becoming more familiar by the day. This night ended up being bath night, so he loaded her up with bath toys and bubble bath—the pink princess kind—and let her play in the water while he checked on Cory.
    Both Cory and the sheets were damp, so apparently the fever had broken. And the basin was empty. All good signs. And he was a jerk for feeling torn, since he knew the minute Cory was well again, he’d be out the door. But it looked like he could eke out another night in his bed before that happened.
    A bit lighter in his step at that realization, he finished putting Bailey down for the night, and did about an hour’s worth of work on his laptop before the lure of the man