Page 130 of Paternal Instincts
Costa gave the impression of a hard-ass, a tough guy with no soft edges, but it was an illusion. In reality, he was sensitive and loving. He was an amazing father who loved his girls to the ends of the earth. My conversation with Aslan from a few days ago came back to me, and sadness filled my chest. Costa wanted more kids. If anyone deserved it, it was him.
“Maybe someday you two will have another.”
“Maybe someday soon.” She nudged me again.
I glanced at Tia, noting her smirk, and my eyes widened. “Oh my god. Are you…”
“He doesn’t know yet. I only found out last week.”
Two years, Aslan had told me. Costa and Tia had been trying for two years.
I pressed my lips together to smother a smile and took Tia in my arms, hugging her fiercely and whispering in her ear. “Congratulations. He’s going to be over the moon.”
“I know. He’s wanted another forever.”
“Hey.” Costa’s voice rose above the chattering in the room. “Stop getting fresh with my wife.”
I laughed and released Tia, offering a wink and zipping my lips before joining my best friend, who immediately, with practiced ease, shifted Juniper to one arm and engulfed me in a hug with the other. “She’s gorgeous, Quaid.”
“Just like her daddy, right?”
“Stop fishing for compliments.”
I chuckled. “Thank you.”
We chatted for a minute but were quickly joined by others who all wanted a turn to see or hold Juniper. It took willpower to ignore my protective instinct and shoo them away from my daughter. All the attention would exhaust her, but instead of interfering, I hovered close and allowed it.
Aslan came up beside me when she ended up in Torin’s arms. “Want me to rescue her?”
“Nah, Ainsley is ten months old. I should hope he knows what he’s doing by now.”
Torin rocked Juniper in his arms like an old pro. At one point, he lifted a quizzical brow and flashed his attention to Aslan. “Oh, dear god. She’s got your ugly mug.”
“Thanks,” Aslan said, standing taller.
It had been almost two weeks, and Juniper’s resemblance to Aslan became more profound as the days passed. She had his coloring, his eyes, the wild dark hair, and the Doyle cheekbones. Amelia had said eye color and hair color could change, but there was no doubt in my mind she was Doyle through and through.
Aslan worried it might upset me, but seeing my husband in my daughter only made me smile bigger and brighter. Like I’d told Nixon amid the chaos. DNA did not make a family. Families were formed by loving bonds. Juniper was mine as much as Crow was his, and I loved her with every fiber of my being.
She was part of my husband. Therefore, she was part of me too.
People mingled and ate and visited. At one point, Cellina insisted we open presents. Juniper ended up with more clothes, toys, and baby accessories than I knew what to do with. One of the gifts was a strap-on baby carrier, a device worn much like a reverse backpack that offered a place for the baby to ride while cozied up against their dad’s chest.
Aslan helped me put it on and slid Juniper in. She was getting tired and fussy from all the visiting. “I’m going to see if I can get a container of boiling water to warm her bottle,” I said to Aslan. “She’s probably hungry.”
He kissed my forehead first, then the top of Juniper’s head.
It was almost a relief to take a breather from the overwhelming attention of the past hour. The restaurant wasn’t terribly busy in the middle of the afternoon, but it was a weekend, and many tables were filled. Since it was a bar and grill, I headed to the bar and waited as the man serving drinks finished with a customer a few feet away from me.
I paid the customer little mind until the auburn-haired man craned his neck and peered toward the party room, asking, “What’s the bustle today, Andy?”
His voice. I studied the slope of his shoulders and the fingers spread over the bar top. It couldn’t be, but it was.
“It’s a baby shower. Are you starting a tab?”
“Might as well.”
The server banged away at his point of sale as the man offered him a credit card, turning and giving me a view of his profile. It might have been years, but I knew the man. Intimately.
