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Since Tiare’s birth, he’d stared at her that way, as though waiting for someone to wake him up and tell him none of it was real. That he was, in fact, still alone and living in the penthouse condo in D.C., reeling over his divorce.
“Yeah, we just finished getting everything set up,” he said. “We’ve got game booths and bounce houses, a limbo station, the pinata he vehemently requested, and a gigantic-ass ball pit. The works.”
“Baby, did you get any sleep last night?”
He made a non-committal noise.
She pointed to the wrench. “You know you could have left that downstairs, right?”
“If I did, how would you know how hard I worked?”
She laughed. “You could have hired a crew.”
“Next time.” He yawned, tousling his hair. “It’s Theo’s first birthday party with me as his father—legally. I wanted to do it this time. Plus, he’s been waiting for it to warm up. He learned how to read a calendar and everything. Told me he’ll turn six by the time this birthday party rolls around.”
“For a five-year-old, waiting months after your birthday to celebrate it with your friends is cruel and unusual punishment.” She leaned over and kissed Tiare’s belly. “Tiare, how about if Daddy picks out your outfit for today?”
Joel set aside the wrench, pumped sanitizer into his hands, and went to their daughter’s overstuffed chest of drawers. “Daddy’s always down to pick out his baby girl’s outfits. Let’s see…Ti, what are you feeling like? The weather’s nice, and since it’s spring, are you feeling like some flowers?”
Tiare cooed.
“Yeah, you wore flowers yesterday.” He continued to rummage. “Okay, how about this? Before the party, you’ll kill it in this pink dress. Once the party starts, you’ll do a wardrobe change into this three-piece set Mama and Daddy bought you a few days ago because,” he glanced at the full closet, “you clearly needed more clothes.”
Ayesha snickered, and the smile Joel gave her melted her heart. The man was so lovely, so beautiful and supportive. Parenting would never be easy, in any form; however, when she compared it to the days when it was just her with an infant and a small child as opposed to now with Joel and the whole family nearby?
It was pure joy.
Raising children, she realized, should never be done in isolation. Often, it took more than a couple of parents. The adage “it takes a village” made the most sense it ever had now that everyone was no longer oceans away.
“Sound good, princess?” Joel asked.
Tiare sneezed.
“Oh, thanks for reminding me. For you, it might be a little nippy. We’ll add a cardigan. The one with the ears because Josiah thinks it’s the most adorable thing ever, and Theo loves that you have a sweater with ears like he does.”
She stepped aside.
While Joel changed their daughter, he told Tiare about all the things they’d set up for Theo’s party. Even after two months, he still choked up whenever Tiare was near. As he picked her up, he kissed her forehead and cradled her in one arm.
“I’ve had literal dreams about this,” Ayesha said. “Told you it would happen.”
“So, what? You seduced me for the sole purpose of proving me wrong?”
“Yes.”
He gave Tiare another kiss. “If I’m being honest, I’ll never truly understand how you could have dreamed about having a baby withme.Raising a child withme.”
“Joel, I’ve always wanted to be a mother.” She wrapped her arms around him from behind. “Although it wasn’t as long as I would have loved for it to be, I had a greatrelationship with my mother. I wanted to be with my children the way she was with me. Then, I met Curtis. I met you. You both care about your families, your friends. You care about me. Joel, we parent together. We worktogetherto raise decent human beings. You accept the humanness inside me, so as someone who knew she wanted kids, I feel very fortunate to have found not only one but two husbands I knew I wanted as role models for my children.”
The entire time she spoke, he barely blinked. Tiare had fallen back to sleep, which she always did whenever Joel held her, tucked in like a football and close to his heartbeat.
He grimaced.
“What was that?” she asked.
“Me thinking about how close I came to missing out on you.”
“We’re both to blame, avoiding each other.”
