Page 17 of Finn's Future

“If he’s Caleb’s,” I said, “you want it done right.”

“He is,” she replied.

Reaper and Lucy met us outside the hospital. I got a nod from Reaper and not even a hello from Lucy as she fussed over Noah and Kate.

Inside, the waiting room was sterile and too bright. The receptionist’s smile tightened, her eyes widening just a little when she took me in standing behind Kate. I ignored it and led Kate towards the smaller waiting area. A couple of people glanced at the patches on my kutte before quickly looking away.

I was used to that.

Kate sat stiff beside me, fingers twisting in Noah’s blanket.

“You don’t have to look like you’re walking to an execution,” I muttered to Kate.

She shot me a tight glance. “It kind of feels like that.”

“It’s a cheek swab,” I said. “That’s it. No one’s taking him. I wouldn’t have brought you here if I wasn’t sure,” I added.

She gave me a small smile that tugged at something in my chest I thought I’d buried years ago.

The tech kept it quick. Swabs from Noah. Swabs from Lucy. Paperwork signed under her name, not Kate’s.

“All samples will be expedited,” the doctor said. “Even with priority, expect a few days, maybe a week.”

“Thank you,” I said, shaking his hand firm enough to remind him what discretion meant.

Outside in the parking lot, Lucy turned to Kate. “You okay?”

Kate looked drained. Lucy’s gaze shifted to me, and I held it.

“I’ll keep them safe.”

Lucy nodded, kissed Noah’s forehead, and Reaper handed her a helmet. She took it without hesitation and climbed on behind him.

The drive back was quiet. When we pulled up, I killed the engine and went around to grab the carrier. Kate hovered too close while I lifted the kid out, eyes tracking every movement like I might drop him.

Inside, I carried the seat straight to the bed and set it down. She stopped in the doorway.

“There’s a cot,” she said.

“Yeah.”

It sat beside the bed. It was clean and sturdy but nothing fancy.

“You did this?”

I shrugged, already moving to the window, checking the lot out of habit. “Got the prospects to put it together. Kid shouldn’t be in a bed. Too easy to roll on him. Or for him to fall.”

Her mouth parted slightly, like she wanted to say something more.

I didn’t give her space to. “Safer that way,” I added.

Behind me, I heard her move closer to the cot. Heard the soft shift of fabric as she took him out of the seat and placed him in the cot.

Her arms around my waist startled me.

My body locked and for a second, I didn’t move at all. I didn’t return it, but I didn’t push her off either. I stood frozen, hands hovering like I wasn’t sure where the hell they were supposed to go.

She was warm and felt soft. I stepped away first.