I can feel eyes on me, and when I look up, they connect with Chase’s. Even through the darkness of the room, I can still see his blue eyes and the gratitude in them. He’s clearly mere seconds away from freaking out, but when he looks at me that way, I feel like we can do anything, as long as we do it together.
That’s a huge revelation, considering a few days ago, I had us comfortably positioned in the friend zone.
“You’re a natural,” I whisper just as a soft belch spills from the baby’s mouth. I giggle, for some reason always responding that way when a baby burps. Probably because it’s so damn cute when they’re that little.
“I did it,” he says, excitement etched on his handsome face.
“Good job, Daddy,” I reply, my gut twisting into knots.
Chase sighs. “I’m not trying to be a dick, Gabby, but I just…I don’t know. I don’t know that I’m his father.”
I move to the side and get the blanket bed ready for Milo. Chase slowly lowers him into the bed, positioning him on his back. His mouth starts to suck, but then he instantly falls back to sleep, his little fists resting above his head.
Chase and I each lie down on our sides, facing the baby sleeping between us. I reach forward and lightly touch Milo’s hand, and I smile when I see Chase do the same. “We can get a paternity test, Chase. In fact, I definitely think you should. But there’s also no denying the shape of the nose and the angle of his chin. You have a lot of the same features. Plus, there’s the fact that she knew you were in St. Louis, right? I remember you went to spend the weekend with your brother, but even I don’t recall anything about a club.”
Or a woman for that matter, but I keep that part to myself.
Sighing, he nods. “You’re right. She knew I was there and when. The timeline is right. And, even though this’ll make me sound like an asshole, I don’t remember their names from that night. It could’ve been Laura or Patti or Stephanie or anything. I wasn’t there for them, you know? I was there to hang out with my brother. He was the one interested in a little fun on the side,” he says, glancing down at the sleeping baby.
“We’ll figure it out, Chase. Don’t worry.”
He snorts. “Right. Don’t worry. I have a newborn in my house, one who’s supposedly mine, and I have to figure out what to do next. I need to go shopping for supplies, I have to try to figure out how to reach his mom, and I have to work.”
“I’ll keep him with me in the office,” I offer, already arranging my schedule so that I can help with the baby. “Plus, Gwen’s not back to work yet. I’m sure she’d be willing to help too.”
A yawn slips from my mouth, causing a single corner of Chase’s mouth to turn upward. “We should get some sleep. We burned quite a few calories before this little one showed up.”
I grin. “We did,” I recall, wishing we could get to that second round already. Unfortunately, though, our night took a drastic turn, bypassing the worse and landing directly in the crazy.
“Good night, Gabs.”
“Night, Chase.”
He watches me as I watch him, neither of us making a move. “You know, I’d love to kiss you goodnight, but I’m terrified to move and wake him up,” he whispers, causing another giggle to spill from my lips.
“Me too,” I confess, laying my head down on my pillow.
I don’t close my eyes, not right away. Instead, I lie here and stare at the man across from me, watching my every move. This situation is definitely one giant mess of epic proportions. One minute, I’m coming all over Chase’s magical cock, and the next, a woman leaves his supposed baby on the doorstep. We basically jumped right past an episode of Oprah and landed firmly in the Jerry Springer Show, and I have no idea what to do besides take it day-by-day, minute-by-minute.
But there is one thing that’s certain. Baby Milo will be waking back up soon, and there’s no rolling over and going back to sleep. In a matter of minutes, Chase and I became parents, and as I close my eyes and drift off to sleep, I can’t help but think how surprisingly okay I am with that.Two times.
That’s how many more times little Milo woke up before 6:00 a.m. It was the last one that’s the most memorable though. Explosive shit out the top of the diaper and all over the bed definitely creates a lasting impression. Chase tried not to gag as he pulled all the blankets off his bed and took them down to the washer. I tasked myself with the job of cleaning the very unhappy baby. It wasn’t until the mushy poop was cleaned from his bottom and back that he finally settled down. Well, until he realized he was hungry, that is.