Page 31 of Doctor Daddies

“Not a problem,” I reply, and to my surprise, I find that I mean it.

I pour myself some coffee and finish up breakfast, pulling a few plates from the cupboard and serving up some toast and spiced tofu for her, throwing on a few dabs of barbecue sauce just to make sure there’s a little more flavor. I push it across the counter toward her, and she stares down at it for a moment, as though not entirely sure what to do.

“Too much?” I ask, and she shakes her head.

“No, no, not at all,” she replies. “It looks great. I just…I just can’t remember the last time someone made me breakfast, that’s all.”

“Really?” I reply, surprised.

But then, as I give it some thought, I guess I shouldn’t be. I mean, as far as we know, there hasn’t been anyone else since the four of us were together for the first time, and she seems to have poured almost everything in her life into making sure that she takes care of her son. It can’t be easy, looking after a kid with all the problems he has, especially if the money really has been as tight as she says it has been.

“Yeah,” she admits. “I—I appreciate it a lot, Cole. I really do.”

I serve myself up something, and leave the rest on the stove, keeping it warm for when Lewis comes back to join us. Honestly, though, I’m glad to have a little time to myself with her. I knowI shouldn’t let my mind stray in the direction of anything more serious happening between us, but her presence this morning is a welcome change from the way I normally go about my days in my apartment alone.

“No problem,” I reply. “How are you feeling? Any better?”

“Uh, a little.” She sighs. “I had pretty bad morning sickness with Lewis the first trimester so I kind of expected it this time around. Hey, if the confirmation last week wasn’t enough, that should put your mind at ease, right?”

Even now, she’s joking around, trying to make me smile, though she still can’t be feeling good. There’s a warmth to her, a brightness that underpins everything, that seems to fill the entire kitchen around us right now.

“Yeah, I guess you could be dealing with three times the symptoms,” I point out. “Given that you could be having triplets this time around.”

“Oh, don’t remind me about that part.” She laughs, rubbing a hand over her face. “I’m trying not to think about what it’s going to be like to do it all multiplied by three…”

I grin. “Well, you’ve got the three of us to help you out this time,” I remind her. “Whatever you need, alright?”

“Don’t tempt me,” she teases. “I’ll have you down here making breakfast for me every morning if you’re not careful…”

“I’m sure I could live with that,” I remark as Lewis appears in the doorway again “Hey, you ready for your breakfast, Lewis?”

Lewis nods as he takes his seat next to his mom again, still clearly trying to get used to what it means to have someone elsearound. It’s been just the two of them for so long, I can’t imagine it’s easy to adapt to the feeling of having someone here.

Of course, he has no idea that I might be his father, and I don’t have a single intention of letting something like that slip. It’s on Millie if she wants to discuss all that with him, and I will not be the asshole who jumps headfirst into something like that with no warning.

I serve up his breakfast and push it across the counter toward him, taking the opportunity, for a moment, to study his face. Is there any of me in him? Of James, or Ross? I can’t tell at a glance, and I swiftly avert my eyes, not wanting him to notice me staring too hard.

“So, you going to school today?” I ask Lewis, turning the conversation back to him.

He nods.

“You like school?”

He glances to Millie, like he’s not sure what he should answer.

She runs a hand through his hair, and pulls a face. “He doesn’t get to spend as much time there as he’d like,” she says. “What with his illness and everything, he has to take a lot of time away from school.”

“I don’t get do everything everyone else does,” Lewis admits. And there’s an obvious sadness in his voice that he can’t disguise, try as he might, that makes my chest ache for him.

Shit, this little guy has missed out on so much, and I know I should have been doing more to make that right. Could I have helped if I had known about him? Maybe got him some referrals to specialists, something like that?

As he tucks in to his food, Millie turns the conversation back to breakfast.

“How good is that, Lewis?” she remarks, flashing me a smile.

He pauses for a moment, like he’s considering his answer, and then nods. “It’s good,” he agrees, and Millie kicks me lightly beneath the counter, as though underlining her point.

I smile at her, appreciating how keen she is to give me credit, and take another bite of my own breakfast.