Page 10 of From Maybe to Baby

Right. Because what should follow a peaceful morning video call with my mother-in-law Gloria other than a house-wide scavenger hunt? Especially when I have forty-seven minutes to feed two little ones, find said phone, and get to pre-season training.

"Jace?" I call out, trying to keep my voice level. "Honey, where's Daddy's phone?"

A giggle emerges from under the dining room table. At least she's getting worse at hiding herself, even if she's getting better at hiding my stuff.

She peeks out between the chairs, her hair a mess despite the fact that I just tried to brush it. "It's a su-prise."

"Surprise," I echo, because apparently, I can't turn off dad-mode, even in crisis. "And honey, surprises are great, but?—"

The smoke alarm cuts me off. Shit. The pancakes.

"Code red," Lukas yells, because we've turned kitchen disasters into a game. Has to be better than letting them see Dad panic, right? "Deploy rescue team," he screams.

Never should have taught him that.

I grab a charred dinosaur pancake off the griddle, adding it to the stack that looks more like prehistoric roadkill. The kids will eat them anyway. They always do. God forbid anyone ever finds out I serve my children burnt food.

"Let’s call Gamma again." Jace emerges fully from her hiding spot, dragging her favorite blanket and wearing... is that my Aftershocks jersey? The one I'm supposed to wear to media day tomorrow?

"As soon as you tell me where my phone is," I sigh.

"It's magic," She twirls, my jersey dragging on the floor like the Cinderella gown she pretends it is. At least it's clean. At the moment.

"The freezer." Lukas proudly rats out his sister. "She put it there."

"Lukie." Jace's lower lip trembles. "It’s a su-prise."

"Surprise," I correct again, already heading for the kitchen. "It’s asurprise, honey." One I definitely don’t need.

Maybe I should stop correcting their grammar. Genny always said it was adorable, the way they mixed up words. But Genny isn't here to vote anymore, and sometimes correcting them feels like the only thing I can control.

I find my phone in the bottom-drawer freezer, just as Lukas said. Nestled between frozen peas and fish sticks.

"Look." Jace points proudly at the frosty cell phone screen, craning her neck to look up at me. "Your phone is all snowy. Like Elsa."

I should be mad. I should definitely be mad. But she's beaming up at me with Genny's eyes, so proud of herself, and... well, at least she didn't put it in the toilet this time.

"Okay." I check the time. Thirty-nine minutes. "But next time, maybe we could not give Daddy's phone frostbite?"

"What's frostbite?"

"Something that happens when—" My watch buzzes.

Text from Frenchie:

*So sorry, but I have stomach flu. Can't make it today.

Goddammit. Because what this morning needs is our nanny calling out sick right before I have to be at training camp.

The phone in my hand starts to thaw, and I dial another video call with Gloria because it will occupy the kids while I scramble to get us all ready.

"There are my angels." Gloria's face fills the screen, perfectly made-up despite the early hour. "And Jonas, honey, you look..."

"Like I've been making dinosaur pancakes and searching for frozen phones? Because that's exactly what's happening."

"I was going to say 'tired,' but that explains it." She squints. "Is Jace wearing your jersey?"

"Can we not mention that to the PR team?"

---