Page 39 of Unbound

When Mom’s out the door, I look to Nova with confusion. “Who’s watching you?”

Completely unfazed, she shrugs and takes another bite of her pancake. “Apparently she forgot I was here. Looks like you’re it, dude.”

It’s not like I haven’t watched her before, but I figured they wouldn’t trust me with her. Red certainly wouldn’t.

“Now that she’s gone… where have you been?”

Taking the syrup from her, I pour some on my pancakes. “Seattle.”

“Why?”

“Music.”

“Oh, right.” She nods and takes another bite, chewing with her mouth open. “I heard you on the radio.”

“Yeah? What did you think?”

“You say a lot of bad words.”

I laugh. “Yeah, so do you.”

“True.”

We’re just about finished with our pancakes when I hear the quick breaths and thumps of what can only be described as a baby crawling. Nova and I both turn around to see Lyric scurrying across the floor to the edge of the table like he’d just been let loose from prison.

He stops at my chair and stares at me, grinning a big toothless grin, drool dripping down his chin.

I look to Nova, and then at him again. It’s the first look I’ve gotten of him this close besides in passing the other night. It’s certainly easy to see he’s mine. Same eyes, same nose… even has my glare as he attempts to stand holding onto the edge of the chair, determination set in his brown eyes.

Nova shakes her head, chuckling under her breath. “It’s a baby, Uncle. Not an alien. Pick him up.”

Rolling my eyes, I lean down to where he’s now standing, using the edge of my chair to keep upright. With my hands under his arms, I slowly lift him up off the ground and onto my lap. He looks down at his feet on my thighs, his tiny body leaning against the table. He’s out of his pajamas and dressed in jeans and a baby flannel. I have to admit he looks pretty cute like this.

I hold onto his hands, his chubby little fingers around mine, but I don’t say anything. We hear footsteps beside me. “Sorry, I can take him,” Sophie says, rushing inside the kitchen as she ties her hair back in a ponytail and reaches for him.

He doesn’t reach for her and I don’t let him go. We just stare at one another and I wonder if he knows I’m his dad. Like, does he sense by looking at me or can babies not sense that sort of thing?

“It’s okay. You can make yourself some food if you want,” I tell Sophie.

She stares at me like she doesn’t even know who I am. Hell, I don’t even know at this point. Here I am staring at my son and holding him on my lap for the first time. I don’t know what to make of any of this.

Mom rushes through the door drawing our attention to her. “Jesus, I’m so sorry, Nova!”

All three of us stare at her and then Nova waves her hand around and shoves the last of her pancakes in her mouth. “Don’t worry about it.” Setting down her fork, she slides out of the chair. “Daddy forgot me at the store the other day.”

“Like at the grocery store?” Sophie asks, laughing.

“Yep.”

Mom rushes Nova out the door. “Come on. I’m really sorry, but we’re running late now.”

“What’s new?” Nova mumbles, reaching for her iPad as they leave.

When I turn back around to Lyric still on my lap, he smiles even wider when we make eye contact and then lets out a squeal.

I panic. I don’t know baby sounds. “Is he mad?”

“No.” Sophie reaches for him and he raises his hands this time for her. “He’s probably hungry.”

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