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“Really? That would be so cool.” Mercedes hands Tyler over to my brother, who has a terrified look on his face. “Can we go now?”
Cassandra looks torn between laughing and ripping her son out of my brother’s big hands. I don’t have the same problem. Dana and I both burst out laughing before a flash goes off.
“What the hell, Dana?” Alistair grumbles.
“Your mom’s gonna get a kick out of your face,” she chuckles. “Have you never held a baby?”
Alistair frowns, thinking. “The last time was when Damien was this small.”
“Damien?” Cassandra asks.
“Our youngest brother,” I explain with a snicker. “He just turned nineteen, so it’s been a long time.”
“Wow. It’s been a while,” she teases my brother and I swear the tips of his ears turn red.
“Can we go already?” Mercedes cuts in, hopping from one foot to the other.
“She’ll never let you have a moment of peace,” I chuckle. “Go on, I’ve got Tyler.”
Cassandra raises a brow questioningly. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, how hard can it be?”
This is something I have to learn to do on my own if I want them both to be part of my life. Why not start now?
***
Famous last words.
Me and my big fucking mouth. Cassandra isn’t gone all of five minutes before all hell breaks loose. Tyler goes from a smiling laughing little boy to a little screaming demon dressed in baby blue. It doesn’t help that between the three of us, not a single one knows anything about babies.
Dana searches the bag Cassandra left for a bottle but Tyler just spits it out. His diaper isn’t wet or dirty and no amount of swaying and cooing seems to do anything. Suddenly, I comprehended why Cassandra was so overwhelmed. I don’t know what’s wrong and he’s too small to tell me. I feel impotent and incapable.
“This worked the last time,” I mumble as I hold him against my chest.
Dana looks disbelieving and Alistair keeps looking at his phone.
“Should I call them?” he asks.
“No!” Dana and I shout in unison.
“We can’t admit defeat so easily,” Dana says with a frown. Tyler is still crying, his fists are clenched and his little face is red. “Is that exactly what you did the last time?”
“I wasn’t wearing a shirt.”
“I’ll table that for later.” She takes Tyler from me, lightly patting his back. “Time to strip, bitch.”
I don’t think this will work but I’m running low on options. So I whip my t-shirt off and hand it to my brother. Taking Tyler back, I cradle him against my chest and sway a bit. It’s almost instant, the change in him. He stops screaming, staring up at me. Every couple of seconds he hiccups but I hope that will calm down soon.
“What the hell?” Alistair whispers, leaning over to look at the baby I’m cradling.
“I saw it on TV once,” Dana says. “Skin-on-skin contact lets them feel connected.”
“Wow.” Alistair and I say in unison.
The word is a reverent whisper that falls from my lips. This kid already has me wrapped around his little finger. I thought I was falling for his mother but it seems I have been falling for them both.
Chapter Nine
