Page 36 of The Single Father Upstairs

With one hand securing Miles, I placed my hand on our baby as my mate pushed the little one out. A boy. We had a son, and Indigo and Marmalade had a brother.

It’s a little boy. My beast came as close to crying as a shifter beast could.

There were no words to describe the birth of my second child and how much I loved my mate for carrying and birthing our baby. With me hugging the baby close, I lay Miles down and placed our son on his chest.

My mate stroked the baby’s damp head and kissed him. “Look at you, little man. You’re just perfect.” But then he hugged our son and sobbed harder than he had during labor. The baby mirrored Miles, and they both howled.

“Babe, you did it. You brought our son into the world.”

“Y-Yes.” His chest heaved. “But I couldn’t have done it without you, and I love you so much. But why is he crying?”

“The world is loud and very bright compared to where he’s been cocooned inside you. I’d cry too if I were him.”

I lay beside Miles and covered the three of us with a blanket. I hummed a tune that I’d sung to Indigo after her omega father left. It wasn’t a lullaby but a song that had been popular at the time, and the baby quietened.

“I should tell the big sister she has a brother.” But I didn’t move to grab the phone. A few more minutes cuddling my mate and son wouldn’t hurt.

“Big sisters,” Miles corrected me. “Don’t forget the orange one.”

I thought back to the days and weeks after my daughter’s birth when I had no idea my mate was going to leave us. This time fate had intervened and there wasn’t going to be a repeat performance.

After dressing Miles in a robe and putting him and the baby in bed, I reached for the phone and typed,Come and meet your little brother.

Indigo charged through the door with the cat, and I made room for her in the bed. Marmalade sniffed the newcomer and licked his head.

“She likes her new brother,” Indigo said.

“Like she had a choice.” I put a hand on the baby’s back, enjoying the warmth of his body.

“What shall we name him?” Indigo wanted to know.

“How about we wait a few days until we get to know him and see what suits him?” Miles suggested.

Voices outside the apartment drifted into the bedroom.

“I forgot to tell you. There’s a line of people waiting to meet the baby, and Jon put up that sign, Welcome Summer.”

Miles flung the quilt over his face and stifled a giggle. “Don’t make me laugh. It hurts.”

EPILOGUE

MILES

I had no idea what we were doing today, but when I went to sleep last night, Stellan told me we needed to be ready to go at eight for a “surprise.” He refused to give any additional details, but Indie looked very guilty when I glanced her way. She was 100% in on it too. I liked surprises as much as the next person, but I needed as little notice as possible to keep my brain from trying to solve the mystery. This one was no exception. I woke up at two o’clock and thought about all the possibilities for what it might be before falling back asleep.

Our sweet boy Gray had finally been sleeping through the night and was just waking up when I looked down at the bassinet his dad had made. Stellan had done a great job of designing it, and it had been growing with him, but despite that, it was almost time to move him to a crib.

“Good morning, sweetie. Your dad has a surprise for us today, and we need to get ready. What do you want to wear today?” I said, tapping my chin. “I’m thinking something cute.” It was our daily joke because everything looked cute on Gray and he didn’thave a preference on his clothing yet. As long as it was easy to move in, he was happy.

Indie was being very loud in her room this morning, which was unusual. If I’d been in my old complex, I’d worry we would get a noise complaint and ask her to be quieter. There was no need here. The place was alive, which meant noises were par for the course. I loved that about it.

“Indie, where’s your dad?” I called into her room.

“He’ll be back. He went to get coffee.”

That was a lie. The coffee pot was full. He was up to something.

Gray and I ate our breakfasts, his mostly nursing with handfuls of Cheerios as I nibbled on my toast. The closer it got to eight, the more the anticipation built.