Page 12

Three months later

Tyler

Ian’s sitting cross legged on the living room carpet, one baby propped up on each thigh. They’re leaning back against his torso as he reads them a story about baby bunnies. Will keeps trying to make a grab for the book, probably because he wants to chew on it. Lizzie is relaxing, lounging back against Ian, content to sit on her Daddy’s lap, her thumb tucked into her perfect little rosebud mouth.

Every single day, I am amazed at Ian’s parenting skills. He has an endless supply of patience. It’s like he can read their minds—he knows what they need, when they need it. I love watching him with our kids. I love how attentive he is, how gentle. I do my share, too, when I’m home, because I want to be a good father. But it comes naturally to Ian, whereas I constantly feel like I’m second-guessing myself, unsure, afraid of making mistakes.

“There’s the mommy bunny,” Ian says as he points to an illustration in the book. “And there are her baby bunnies. One, two, three. The mommy bunny loves her three babies.”

Will makes another failed attempt at the book, and Ian chuckles. “Slow your roll, pal.” He tickles Will to distract him. Once that is successful, he leans down to kiss the top of Lizzie’s dark head.

When we hear a knock at the front door, Ian’s head snaps up. “She’s here.” His spine stiffens.

She being Rhonda. We invited her to come for dinner. Ian wants to know more about his early childhood. He wants to know the why of it all. He also wants her to finally meet her grandchildren.

I rise from the sofa. “I’ll get the door, babe.” As I walk past Ian, I pause to run my fingers through his curls because I find I can’t walk past him without wanting to touch him. I smile when he leans into my touch.

Rhonda’s waiting on the other side of the front door, looking a bit apprehensive as she takes in the two-story brick facade of the townhouse. I’d bet money she’s never stepped foot in The Gold Coast neighborhood before today.

I open the door wide. “Hi, Rhonda. Come in.”

She steps inside and gazes around the foyer, peering into the formal parlor to her right, then to the living room on her left. She’s holding a baby gift bag.

Ian waves from his spot on the living room floor. “We’re in here.”

Rhonda looks at me first, as if waiting for permission to come into our home. I close the door behind her and gesture to the living room. “Please, make yourself at home.”

She gives me a grateful smile before she heads to the open doorway. Two steps into the room, she pauses in her tracks and stares at the sight of Ian holding our twins, her eyes widening. “Oh, my God.” She covers her mouth with her free hand. “They’re so beautiful.”

Ian beams up at her. “I think so.” And then he winks at me. “Just like their Papa.”

Rhonda surprises me when she takes a seat on the rug in front of Ian, facing him, facing the babies. “Hello, sweethearts,” she says to the babies in a soft, cooing voice. Smiling, she tears up. “It’s so nice to meet you. I’m your Grandma Rhonda.”

She sets the gift bag on the floor. “I brought them each a little something.” She reaches into the bag and pulls out two small, floppy stuffed animals—a baby giraffe and a baby elephant.

Will leans forward and reaches for the elephant.

“You want this one, sweetie?” Rhonda asks him as she attempts to hand it to him.

Will makes a valiant effort to grab hold of the toy, but he fumbles it, and it falls to the floor. He lets out a frustrated squawk.

Rhonda picks it up and presses it into his grasp. “Here you go, sweetie.”

Immediately, Will starts chewing on one of the elephant’s ear.

Lizzie sits quietly, just staring at Rhonda.

“And this one is for you,” Rhonda says as she offers Lizzie the floppy giraffe.

Lizzie pushes back closer to Ian.

“Don’t take it personally,” Ian says as he beams down at our daughter. “She’s not nearly as outgoing as her brother.”

“Can I hold her?” Rhonda asks Ian.

He glances briefly at me, and then he says, “Sure.”

Rhonda reaches for Lizzie, transferring her from Ian’s lap to her own. She hands Lizzie the stuffed giraffe. “Hi, sweet girl.”

Lizzie’s eyes widen as she glances over at Ian. She doesn’t cry, but she looks a bit concerned. I have to bite my lip to keep from smiling. Lizzie is definitely Daddy’s girl.

“Aren’t you a pretty little girl?” Rhonda asks.

Lizzie glances up at me this time, her dark eyes wide and beseeching. When her bottom lip starts to quiver, I automatically step in, reaching for her and propping her on my hip.

“She’s shy,” I say to Rhonda, as if I need to justify wanting to hold my own daughter.

Will throws the stuffed elephant on the floor and holds out his arms to Rhonda.

She beams. “Come here, honey.” She scoops Will into her arms and deposits him on her lap.

While she’s chatting with my son, I glance down at Ian, who’s watching Rhonda intently. There’s an odd expression on his face—something I’m not used to seeing. Maybe he’s wondering how she can be so loving with her grandchildren when she exposed Ian to such an awful environment when he was little.

“I need you to explain,” Ian blurts out. Right to the point.

Rhonda’s smile falters as she nods. “I know.”

Lizzie lays her head on my shoulder and rubs her eyes. “I think it’s naptime,” I say. I step forward and lean down to scoop Will up with my free arm. “I’ll take them upstairs to bed and give you two some time to talk.”

After I get the babies changed and in their bassinettes, I switch on the baby monitor. When I return to the living room, Rhonda and Ian are seated in the two armchairs in front of the fireplace, clearly deep in conversation.

“Do you want privacy?” I ask Ian.

He shakes his head. “No, stay. Please.” And then, to Rhonda, he carries on the conversation. “You locked me in my bedroom for hours at a time, in the dark! Do you have any idea how scared I was?”

Rhonda pales. “I’m so sorry.”

“Do you have any idea how much that traumatized me? How frightened I was? It still affects my life.” He glances at me. “It affects my relationships. Hell, I’m a grown man, and I can’t stand being in the dark.”

Her eyes tear up. “I’m so sorry, honey.”

“I don’t want an apology ,” Ian says, frustration edging his voice. “I want to understand how and why.”

“All right.” She sighs heavily as she runs her fingers through her hair. It’s a nervous trait Ian shares. “Your father left me right before you were born.”

“Wait, what?” Ian says. “I know nothing about him. Who was he, and why did he leave? Were you married?”

“No, we weren’t married. His name was Carter Lynch. He was about ten years older than me. We weren’t married because—well, he was already married.”

Ian leans back in his seat, his expression dumbfounded.

“He never wanted to be a father,” Rhonda said. “He already had a bunch of kids with his wife. He didn’t want any additional responsibility.”

“I don’t understand,” Ian says. “If he didn’t want a kid, why did you—” He freezes. “ Oh. I was an accident.”

I move to stand behind Ian’s chair so I can rest my hands on his shoulders.

“We got drunk one night and forgot to use a condom, and I ended up pregnant. He may not have wanted you, but I did. I was scared of going it alone, sure, but I wanted you. The problem was, I worked a minimum wage job, and with the cost of rent and utilities and food and daycare, I just didn’t bring in enough to make ends meet.”

“Were you using drugs then?” Ian asks.

She shakes her head. “Honestly, no. That didn’t come until later. When I was pregnant with you, I was totally clean. But not long after you were born, I was desperate for cash, so I started doing tricks to supplement my income. Before long, I was making more at that than I was at my job working at a convenience store, so I quit my job. I stayed home, and that saved me from paying for daycare because I could keep you at home with me. But after a while, what I was doing got to me, and I couldn’t handle the pressure. One of my regulars offered me drugs, and I started using to escape, and before long, I was addicted. It was a vicious cycle. The more I did drugs, the more tricks I had to do to pay for them. It got so bad that my apartment became a revolving door. I would do several tricks a night. Then they started coming during the day, too. It got out of hand, but I needed the money, so what could I do?”

She turns to stare out the window. “Eventually, they started asking about you. Not all of them, of course, but some. They saw your toys on the floor, your pictures on the walls, the high chair in the kitchen. They realized I had a little boy. Some of them were curious at first. When a couple of them started showing interest in you—suggesting that they could—” She shudders. “That’s when I started locking you in your room whenever a trick was in my apartment. It was to protect you, Ian. I didn’t know what else to do. There was nowhere else for you to go. I had no friends, no family to watch you. I had no one.”

Pretty soon both Ian and Rhonda are in tears and on their feet, hugging, crying together. I’m glad. I want Ian to find resolution with his birth mom. And while I’m inclined to believe Rhonda’s take on things, part of me will always be a bit reserved where she’s concerned. She could hurt him again so easily, it scares me. And I swear to God, if she does, I’ll make sure she regrets it.

After Rhonda leaves, Ian and I head upstairs to our bedroom, where hungry babies are starting to stir. Ian lies on our bed with the babies while I go downstairs to make up bottles. We end up feeding them in our bed, both of us propped against the headboard, each holding a baby.

After they’re done eating and have burped, we lay Will and Lizzie side by side on the mattress between us and watch them interact with each other. They roll to face each other and reach out to hold hands. They sound like they’re having an actual conversation, gibbering in a language only they can understand.

“I hope they’ll always be close,” Ian says as he brushes Lizzie’s hair.

I reach for Ian’s free hand. “I imagine they will.”

Lizzie manages to grab Will’s hair and tug hard. Will bursts into tears, which startles Lizzie, who follows suit.

“Let go of your brother’s hair, sis,” Ian says as he gently extricates Will’s hair from her tiny grasp. “That’s not nice, sweetie. We don’t pull hair.” He picks Lizzie up, kisses her plump cheek, and sits her on his lap.

I pick up Will, who’s still crying and bounce him in my arms until he stops. He reaches for my nose.

“They’re getting so big,” Ian says wistfully. “We’re going to have to move them to their cribs soon.”

The babies’ nursery, which is right next door to our bedroom, is decorated and fully furnished with two of everything—matching cribs, dressers, changing tables, rocking chairs—it’s just waiting for the little occupants to move in. We’ve been reluctant to move them out of our bedroom, but Ian’s right. The time is coming soon. Once they’re able to sit up on their own, the bassinettes won’t be adequate for safe sleeping.

Lizzie lays her head back against Ian and sticks her thumb in her mouth. She gazes up at me, looking so pensive I wonder what she’s thinking.

Later that night, after the babies are sound asleep, Ian falls asleep in my arms, his head on my shoulder. I stroke his back lightly and marvel at the unexpected turns my life has taken. If someone had told a younger me that this was my future, I never would have believed them. I thought I was destined to remain a bachelor forever. And I was okay with that. Until the night I stumbled upon a distraught young man sitting on a boat dock, about to pass out, in shock over the murder of his close friend. That night changed my life, my priorities. My everything.

Suddenly, I had someone who needed me, someone to take care of, to protect.

And now, I have three someones who need me.

* * *

Thank you for reading Episode 2 of Tyler and Ian’s series, Daddy Detectives. I love these characters too much to let them go. I hope you enjoyed this second installment. Stay tuned for Episode 3, which is a real doozie. Imagine swoonworthy Tyler on territorial overdrive when a shameless admirer zeroes in on Ian. I’m envisioning these stories as TV episodes, each a short read. I hope you approve. If you haven’t read their first three full-length books, I hope you’ll check them out, starting with Somebody to Love .