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“Guys!” Axel flicks the casing next to the mic and all three of them return their focus to him, wearing smiles that match the ones Axel has always thrown around. Not now, though.
His mom catches on first, her brows pulling together, focus sharpening. “Honey?”
He takes a deep breath. “I met a girl last season.”
Everyone is silent, and I find myself holding my own breath.
“She wasn’t from Chicago, and we didn’t stay in touch. But a few days ago, she came back. Pregnant.”
“Fuck that shit, bro!” Anders belts out, all signs of the playful guy from seconds ago gone in a blink. “Lawyer up, man. No communication until two— not one —twoindependent paternity tests come back saying you’re the sperm donor.”
“Axel—” his mom tries to cut in as Astrid shakes her head, muttering something her brother’s tirade keeps cutting off.
So, I guess they do talk over each other.
“Opportunisticbullshit. Don’t talk to her.” Anders’s breath is coming hard, a ceiling behind him now instead of sky. “Not a damn word that doesn’t go through the lawyers.”
Axel clears his throat. “Yeah, not really a problem with the talking. Shelly is back in Pennsylvania already, but she wasn’t like that. She didn’t want money. I offered it. I told her I’d marry her. Said I’d support her if she’d stay but—” He breaks off, and my heart aches for all of them.
After a breath, he waves me over, the silence from the video call stretching as I pass Axel his son.
There’s a round of choked responses and gasps. And then a fist banging on the front door. Which is when I notice the carpet now filling the screen around Anders’s lower legs looks familiar.
Axel huffs. “Just let him in.”
Crossing to the door, I pull it open wide as Anders Erikson blows past, arm outstretched in accusation.
“What.The Fuck.Is that?” he demands, cheeks sucking in, red face dotted with sweat.
Axel turns back to the camera. “This is Otto.”
* * *
Axel
My momand Astrid have a million questions. Nora heads back to her room as I give them the basics, including the rushed paternity test, Shelly’s choice to give Otto up, and her last-minute decision to offer me the chance to be his father, even though she couldn’t be his mother.
My mom’s concerned about me not being prepared for my life to change so drastically without any notice, but already having a live-in nanny goes a long way toward easing her concerns.
Thank you, Nora.
My sister wants to see Otto’s “baby chicken legs” and “sugar snap toes” and is furious that I went and had a baby right after she moved to Portland.
When our time’s up, Mom’s planning a visit when the term ends, and Astrid thinks she can fly back for Christmas next month.
I disconnect the call and turn to Anders, who’s staring at Otto with a mulish frown.
“Stop giving my baby the stink eye.”
“Fuck off. I’m not.”
Mmhmm.
I pull out my phone and take a picture of him, then send it with the message “Stink Eye.”
Anders checks and lets out a humorless laugh, wiping a hand over his face. “How are you going to do this, man?”
I take a breath and carefully adjust my son as I stand. “Honestly, I don’t know. I think the last baby I held was Cousin Beth’s when I was ten for about two minutes. But then I had hockey practice and had to leave. I didn’t babysit. I’ve never dated anyone with a kid. But it doesn’t matter. Because I’m all this guy has, so I’m going to learn how to be the dad he needs.”
