Page 64 of Need You To Choose Me

Levi pouts unhappily. “But those are muffins!”

“You know what else I have?” I interject before Blake can protest again. “Some chocolate chip cookies.”

Those silver eyes that are so much like his father’s shine in excitement. “Can I have that instead? I like chocolate more. Just like my friend Kyle.”

I chuckle softly. “You can have them”—he opens his mouth, so I lift my finger—“after you see the baby. We can’t touch him with dirty hands.”

“Fine, I guess.”

By the sigh he lets out, you’d think he has all the weight of the world resting on his small shoulders.

“You guys are here!”

We all turn toward the door to find Miguel standing in the doorway, looking at us.

“And we brought you your things,” Blake says as he goes toward Miguel. Shifting the basket to one hand, he pulls him into a hug. “Congrats, man.”

“Thanks.” Miguel waves us into the room. “C’mon, go inside, he just woke up a little while ago.”

“Can I see him?” Levi asks, clearly excited. “We brought him the balloon.”

“Why, thank you. Go on in.”

Levi slips past him, and I join him, giving Miguel a quick hug. “Congrats, Dad.”

“Don’t congratulate him. It’s not like he did any hard work, he only got to participate in the fun part,” Becky mutters as I hand her the coffee. She takes a long pull from the cup and sighs happily. “This is exactly what I needed.”

“Maybe she’ll start feeling less cranky now,” Miguel mock-whispers.

“Oh, stop it.” I shove him playfully, my attention going to Levi, who’s standing by the bassinet, still holding the balloon.

“He’s so tiny,” he breathes, his eyes wide as he takes in the baby.

“He is, isn’t he.”

“Eighteen inches, five pounds and ten ounces,” Miguel beams proudly.

Levi leans closer, his mouth falling open. “Look, he’s watching me.” He looks up at Becky. “Can we play together?”

Becky chuckles softly. “Not just yet, buddy. But soon. Once he’s a bit bigger.”

His smile falls a little, but he doesn’t pull away. “You have to grow fast so we can play together.”

My heart swells a little bit inside my chest as I watch this sweet boy interact with the baby.

Munchkin’s half-brother.

I move closer, standing just behind Levi. He gazes at the baby, gently playing with his foot. Not that I’m surprised. Levi is an extremely emotional and kind kid, and I could already see that he’ll be one of the most popular students in his class.

Will he be equally excited when Munchkin is born? Will he come to visit my baby and gush over his new brother or sister? My stomach clenches just at the thought. I wanted it. I wanted it so badly.

Grazing my teeth over my lower lip, I look up, only to find Blake watching me. My cheeks heat at being caught staring. It’s as if he can see right through me, into my very soul, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it.

“Miss Parker, are you also going to have a baby boy?”

The sudden question has me turning my attention to Levi, and I can feel my palms turn clammy with nerves.

Does he know? Did Blake tell him? Did Daniel?

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