Risking Fate(25)

I sat up in bed and started wiping my eyes. After checking my phone, and realizing it was only eight in the morning, I wanted to go back to sleep. My daughter came running in the room and jumped on the bed. “Daddy, Mommy told me to wake you up. Come on,”

She started pulling me out of bed. “Honey, Daddy is in his underwear. Let me get dressed and I will be down.”

She let go of my hand but stood there with her hands on her hips. She looked so much like her mother. I loved her big blue eyes and that beautiful blonde hair. When she refused to take her eyes off of me, I pointed to my jeans. “Hand me those, Iz.”

She reached down and grabbed my jeans. I slid my legs around the bed, making sure nothing was hanging out of my boxers, then pulled the jeans up. “Do you need me to get your shirt?”

“No. Daddy can get it himself. Did your mother tell you to stalk me until I came down?”

She giggled. “Yes.”

I laughed. “Did you brush your teeth yet?”

She ran into the bathroom in front of me. I opened our zip lock bag and pulled out each of our toothbrushes. She held hers out and let me apply the toothpaste. We started brushing right away and I couldn’t help but laugh at her copying me. “Do you remember Daddy teaching you to brush your teeth?”

She wasn’t even two when I showed her, but it still was something that was special to me. She shrugged her shoulders and shook her head. She waited for me to spit first and then spit out her toothpaste. As I rinsed off my toothbrush, she stuck hers under the water. I pushed hers out of the way and started smiling. “Daddy, no fair. Share the water.”

I leaned down and kissed the top of her head. “I couldn’t help it. You’re too pretty not to tease. You ready to go downstairs?”

She grabbed my hand and led the way.

I headed right to the coffee pot, trying to avoid contact with the gabbing group of women at the table. Van’s mother and my mother were sandwiching Christian between them, talking to her in baby talk. I sat my cup down in front of Miranda and kissed her on the head. “Morning, Baby.”

She looked up at me as I reached over and took the baby out of her seat. The two women threw me a dirty look. “What? She’s my God child. Get in line.”

Christian loved getting attention, in fact I was pretty sure she got held way too much, but who was I to talk? If I could have held Izzy constantly when she was a baby I would have. I loved holding her and spending time with her.

Van’s mother caught my attention. “Ty, I think you’re in the wrong line of work. It looks like you should have your own Daddy daycare center.”

All of the women in the room turned to look at me rocking Christian in my arms. “Little girls love me, I can’t help that.”

Colt came up behind me. “You sound like a pedophile. Give me my child before you get all creepy.”

I pulled away from him, not letting him take her from me. “Christian, tell your daddy he is wrong. Tell him uncle Ty would never hurt you.” She smiled at me talking to her.

I looked up at the room full of people. “Just because I love kids, doesn’t make me a pedophile.” I stuck out my bottom lip like they all hurt my feelings. After sitting Christian back down in her seat, I took my coffee and pouted my way out of the room.

Colt came in and sat next to me. He had Christian in his arms. She was cooing and drooling everywhere. “I was just kiddin’, Cuz.”

I threw the remote in the air and caught it, trying not to look him in the eye. “I’d never hurt a child.”

Maybe I was being defensive, but that wasn’t right.

“Man, you can dish out the jokes, but you can’t take em. Ty, you are the best father I have ever seen. The way you love your daughter is beautiful. After seeing you, it’s how I wanted to feel too. I envy you being a parent. Don’t get mad about my joke. Nobody in this house thinks that.”

He handed me Christian as a peace offering. Of course my mood changed immediately. Izzy came in the room with us and sat down so she could hold the baby. She was fascinated by her and I couldn’t wait for her to meet her two little brothers.

“You’re going to have two of those soon.”

She got a big smile on her face. “Can I help change their diapers?”

“You can change as many diapers as you want.” That wasn’t going to last long. I needed to get that in writing.

“Are you excited about being a big sister?” Colt asked.

She shook her head. “Uncle Colt, Noah says that when he gets big we are going to get married too.”

Colt let out a gasp, while I just sat there, not having any idea whether to laugh or cry. “Is that right?”