Page 74 of Home Run

I could definitely get something wrong today.

It was also busier than I expected it to be, and standing at the point where the escalator reached the baby floor wasn’t the best place to stop. Something not one, but two people had already informed me of. The third said nothing,but his frown followed by a double take made me wish I’d worn a baseball cap.

I glanced around. It seemed that the floor was split into sections—baby outdoor, baby bedroom, baby dining—which had to be one saving grace, I supposed, even if I didn’t entirely understand what baby dining would consist of.

Taking a deep breath, I glanced at Millie, whose expression perfectly matched what I was feeling, even though she’d already been here once.

But, I was in my brand new, super softdaddysweater, and I needed to live up to my role. Plus, I’d brought Millie here, therefore it was up to me to decide the plan.

“Okay, why don’t we start with baby bedroom. It’s going to have to sleep, right?” I laughed, desperate to bring a smile to Millie’s face.

“Let’s hope,” she mumbled.

Taking her hand in mine, I led us through display units of what we’d no doubt be buying later until we reached the threshold of baby bedroom, and I realized I needed to call in the professionals.

“We need help,” I told her, pulling her over to a squashy couch, at the end of which was a guy who looked like he’d rather be anywhere else.

“I think the store clerk is over there?—”

“I’m not talking about a store clerk,” I replied, hitting one of the speed dials I had set for family calls.

“Baby bro. What’ve you done now?” asked Lucas, picking up before the first ring.

“Why do you think I’ve done something?”

“Because you nevercall me.”

“I call you all the time.”

“You call the family group. The last time you calledmewas to ask if a sex position you’d found inCosmocould pull a hamstring.”

My gaze sliced to Millie, it didn’t seem Lucas was talking loud enough for her to hear though, the slight frown she was wearing could be from anything.

“Oh yeah,” I replied, as my memory jogged. It wasn’t something I’d ever discovered, either, because not long after, Millie had come along, but after this morning, maybe it was something I could try. I still had that copy ofCosmosomewhere. “Well, I’m calling about something else today.”

“What’s up?”

“Millie and I are baby shopping?—”

My sentence was cut short by the loud laugh my brother barked out. “Oh man.”

“Yeah, anyway, we just arrived and I need your help.”

“Have you bought anything yet?”

I shook my head. “No. But we’re sitting in the middle of the department floor.”

“Okay, okay. Don’t panic. I’m going to email you a spreadsheet I created when Henry was born, and I updated it after Scarlett came along. It’s everything you need to get started, and listed according to efficiency, quality, and cost, and it’s all rated.”

My brother could be an annoying pain in my ass, as well as a patronizing bastard, but right now I’d forgive him anything because he was also the nerdiest, most organized person I knew. And about to save my ass for the umpteenth time, it seemed.

“Luke, not that I’m not grateful or anything, but why am I not surprised you have this?”

His laugh boomed down the line. “I’m friends with a bunch of dads from before Henry was born and it started as a bit of fun because we wanted different kinds of things that our wives had. We figured it was the best way to ensure we didn’t fuck up too much, and we all contributed. It’s specific to dads.”

I didn’t want to think about whether I’d become one of those dads with a spreadsheet, because I was not in the position to turn away any kind of help.

“Thanks, man, I really appreciate it.”

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