Page 180 of As The Shifter World Turns

By the time Ryder arrived home in the evening, I was still in my PJs, though Dyani was bathed and ready to go in her crib. But my mate wasn’t alone. Archer and Neil were at his heels.

“Hi.” I smothered a yawn with my hand.

Neil held up a bag of food. “We’ve brought dinner.” He put down the bag and held out his arms for Dyani. I handed her over and he gave her to my mate. “You go and shower while I get the food out.”

Ryder headed to the door.

“Where are you taking our daughter?” My anxiety levels were rising.

“Onto the roof. Daire, Martin and Micah have food and Micah has Elune so he and Ryder can share stories of living with a newborn.”

“Where’s Nate?” Ryder asked.

“On a work trip,” Neil told him as he unpacked the food.

The last glimpse of my mate walking upstairs with our daughter had me wanting to race after them, but Neil ordered me into the bathroom. The fierce look on his face told me he wouldn’t listen to any excuses, so I did as he commanded.

Standing under the warm water, washing away the baby spit up and Gods only knew what else, my muscles relaxed. The aroma of Thai food and nachos had me hurry up and when I wandered into the living room, my friends were on the sofa and the food was laid out on the coffee table.

“Did you eat today, Ivor?” Archer asked as he scooped up guacamole with a corn chip. He had been suffering morning sickness but maybe that had passed. I’d been so occupied with Dyani, I’d hadn’t checked in with him.

“Mmmm.” I was piling Pad Thai on my plate, my mouth watering as I took a mouthful. The competing flavors of sweetness and fish sauce while the tamarind paste added a unique sourness to the dish.

But once my belly was full, I told my friends, “Maybe I should go and check on Dyani.”

Neil put a hand on my arm. “ Ryder can look after her.”

“But she might be hungry,” I protested.

“And if she is, your mate will bring her back,” Archer insisted. He wiped his mouth with a napkin. “We can’t imagine what you went through when Dyani was in intensive care.”

My friends shared a glance and I thought they were going to tell me I was being a crap dad.

“You’re doing great on so little sleep. And you’re an amazing father,” Neil told me.

“But?” I could hear it in Neil’s voice.

He nudged Archer and the wolf shifter took over. “You have to let Ryder take some of the load or you’ll collapse under the weight.”

Suddenly, I was on the defensive. “Has he said something?”

Neil shook his head. “No. But I get the impression you don’t trust him with the baby.” Neil glanced at Archer and Archer nodded, as if urging him to continue. “And that must hurt.”

“I’m the omega. I should be able to shoulder everything.”

Archer patted the sofa and I crawled between my two friends. “You don’t have to. Lean on Ryder.”

“One more thing,” Neil said. “When was the last time you had a session with Joy?”

“I don’t have time.’

“You can do an online session,” Neil told me. “For your sake and the baby’s as well as your relationship with Ryder, it would be good for your emotional health to check in with her.”

While I didn’t want to admit it, he was right. They both were. Maybe I could squeeze in a session with my therapist.

Later when Ryder came in, Dyani was sound asleep in his arms, and I was tapping out a message on the phone. He raised a brow. “I’ve got an online session with Joy tomorrow,” I explained. “And you got her to sleep. You just might be a Superdad!

“Not might,” he joked. “I am. All I need is a costume.”

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