Page 135 of Challenged by the Single Dad

“Forever and always, Chloe. Forever and always.”

EPILOGUE

Eightmonthslater…

“Are you ready?” Dom asked Silas as he took his hand in the hospital waiting room and walked him down the hallway toward room 345.

“I’ve been ready for months,” Silas said impatiently. “Then you made me wait at the hotel with Uncle Jagger. Why couldn’t I be there with you and Chloe in the delivery room?”

“Delivering a baby can take a long time. It can also be kind of messy.”

Silas shrugged and shook his head like he couldn’t believe the paltry excuse Dom was making for not including him in the whole ordeal. “I’m good at waiting. And I’m good at messy.”

“I agree with the latter, disagree with the former.”

Silas gave Dom some side-eye as they reached the door.

“Shh,” Dom said. “Quiet voices, okay?”

Silas nodded, and they stepped into the hospital room where Chloe was sitting up in the bed, holding the baby, all swaddled up.

Chloe’s face lit up when she saw Silas. “Hi, sweetheart.” She opened up her free hand to welcome him. He immediately climbed onto the bed and she kissed his head.

Dom’s son’s eyes went wide as he stared down at his little sister. “She’s so tiny,” he whispered. Then he glanced at Chloe. “Is she supposed to be that small?”

Chloe chuckled, the dark circles under her eyes were the only real tell of her exhaustion. Otherwise, the woman was absolutely glowing. “She’s the perfect size. Babies are generally pretty small. But she was a nice weight. Eight pounds, seven ounces.” The size and weight were lost on Silas.

Jagger had already made him wash his hands, so when he held out his finger, and the baby grabbed it, Dom wasn’t concerned.

“What is her name?” Silas asked, smiling down at the blinking and curious little girl in the blanket and purple knit cap.

Chloe and Dom exchanged smiles. Then she ran her hand over the back of Silas’s head. “May Elizabeth McEvoy.”

Silas’s eyes lit up like twin birthday candles. “Like Aunt May from Spiderman?” He glanced at Dom with his mouth hanging open in gleeful shock.

“The very same,” Dom said with a chuckle. “And Elizabeth is Chloe’s middle name. We thought it worked well with May. What do you think?”

May still had him by the finger, she was holding on tight. “It’s perfect.” Then he fixed his focus back on his sister. “Hi, May. I’m your big brother.”

May blinked at him and it was probably just gas, or reflex, but one corner of her mouth tipped up slightly as if she was smiling.

“Oh my god, I love her so much,” Silas whispered, almost as though he was surprised. “How can I love her this much when I just met her?”

Tears formed in the corner of Chloe’s eyes. “That’s the magic of children. They’re such wonderful little creatures, it’s impossible not to fall in love with them almost instantly.”

Dom knew she wasn’t just talking about May. She was talking about Silas. Because even though their start had been a little awkward, after that storm back in December, Silas was really shaken when they told him a bit about what happened—because he wouldn’t take no for an answer. Almost immediately, he latched onto Chloe like a barnacle on a hull.

Her hesitation with him disappeared too and she latched right back. They formed their own little bond, had inside jokes, and she was eager to learn all she could from him about the weather. He also liked to read to the baby in her belly at night, which was how they got him to practice his reading. Win-win.

“I’m going to make sure nobody hurts you, May. I’m going to be the best big brother.” He gently pried his finger out of her grasp, held out his pinky and gently looped it through hers. She wasn’t really getting it, but she was so mesmerized by him that she allowed it. “Pinky promise. I’ll always protect you, May. Forever.”

Even Dom had tears in his eyes now. This couldn’t have gone any better. He already knew Silas was going to be an incredible big brother, but his reaction to May surpassed anything Dom or Chloe could have ever imagined.

Chloe met his gaze and tilted her head to the side, her eyes sliding the same way.

“Oh, right!” He grabbed a gift bag off the floor and set it on the bed in front of Silas.

“May bought you a gift,” Chloe said. “It’s a big brother gift. She heard you like the weather, so …”

---