Page 54 of Fate

She makes a sound like she’s letting all the air out of a tire. “You haven’t told her, haveyou?”

“No. But I’m going to. I swear it. Just, please, help me withCora.”

“Well, first you need to take her temperature. Did Misty dothat?”

“I don’t know. She’s in the shower, but I saw the thermometer on the counter. Just walk me throughit.”

Gillian tells me how to set the thermometer and run it across my daughter’s forehead in one swoop. I feel like a hero when I’m able to do it without waking herup.

“It’s says one oh three point one. That’s bad, right?” Isn’t the normal human temperature ninety-eight point six? That means my daughter is over four degrees hotter than that. “Gigi, tell me my baby is going to be okay?” Now I sound desperate.

Fuck. I should have beenhere.

“No, no, no. It’s okay. Is she teething?”

I remember Misty telling me yesterday she could feel some new teeth coming in. “Yeah. Yeah, sheis.”

“Okay, it’s probably that. What you need to do is give her some ibuprofen, and then you need to cool her bodydown.”

“How do I dothat?”

“She needs to be submerged in lukewarm water for a while.”

“What if she starts screaming again?” I sound like such a useless asshole.

Thank God Gillian takes pity on me. “Then get in with her. Chase normally gets in the shower with the twins if one of them is feverish. They want to be in their daddy’s arms. Makes them feel safe and loved.”

Shower. Okay. Gotit.

“Thank you, Gillian. I oweyou.”

“Just take care of my niece. I’ll call later to check on youguys.”

I hang up the phone without even saying goodbye. With one hand, I fill the dropper with ibuprofen and then rouse Cora just enough to get her to swallow the medicine. She takes it like a champ. The poor thing is exhausted, lolling her little head against my chest. Misty still hasn’t gotten out of the guest shower, so I’m on myown.

Once I get to my room, I ease Cora onto my bed and strip off my clothes, leaving my boxers on. Then I rush to the bathroom and set the shower. I remove her diaper and pull her against my bare chest. Once I’ve got her situated, I bring her into the shower. She wakes instantly and starts crying.

“Shh, shh, shh. It’s okay, baby. I’ve got you. Daddy’s here. We need to get you cool, honey.”

Her tears subside and she flattens her cheek against my chest. There is no feeling like this. Being someone’s entire universe. Having them trust you to care for them completely. It’s humbling and makes me fall even more in love with my daughter.

“What are you doing?” Misty opens the shower door, and Cora startles momentarily but nestles her head back down, allowing the barely warm water to cool her hotskin.

“I’m cooling her off. Gigi says we need to get her temp down. I gave her some ibuprofentoo.”

Misty’s eyes widen. “You did? By yourself?”

“Yeah, by myself. She’s my daughter. I can handle this. Now can you please shut the door? It’s making her shiver. Good news is, I can feel it working. She’s coolingdown.”

Misty blinks a few times, tilts her head, and looks at me from head to toe…slowly. For a moment, her eyes darken. I know that look. I made sure to see it as many times as I could last night when I had Kathleen under me. Lust. Pure, unbridled desire.

“Misty. The door. She’scold.”

She shakes her head and closes the door without aword.

I cup my daughter’s head, making sure water runs over her crown but not her face. After about ten minutes, I can feel the heat seeping out of her limbs. She doesn’t seem as warm. ThankGod.

Trying not to jostle her too much, I turn off the water and open the shower door. Misty is standing there with a towel, ready to grabCora.

---