Page 28 of Daddy's Muse

And I wouldbecomewhatever I needed to be for him. I wouldearnthis space beside him, not just the one beside him in bed, but the one inside his walls, his heart, his little world.

No one else had ever tried to understand him, but I would.

Even if I had to tear myself apart and remake every bone of who I was, I would become the man he needed.

Daddy.

Hmm… no.

I would be hisPappa.

I carefully closed all the open apps, cleared the screen, and returned the phone to its place before taking one last long look at him.

I could do this.

That thought rang in my head again and again as I stood from the chair. The shadows swallowed my presence easily now—this room was familiar to me in a way no other space had ever been. It breathed with his rhythm, pulsed with his scent.

He had no idea I was here.

And yet… I felt as if he’d been waiting for me.

I crouched near the head of the bed, just enough to see his face clearly. His lashes fluttered faintly against his cheeks, and a small line of drool had started to form at the corner of his mouth.

I couldn’t help but smile. His lips looked so soft, so precious when they weren’t trembling with anxiety.

I reached into my coat pocket and withdrew a small rune I’d carved earlier that evening.Ansuz.For wisdom, communication, and clarity. I hadn’t planned to leave it yet—not until I was sure he was ready—but something inside me had shifted as I watched him.

Hewasready.

I slid it under the edge of his pillow, careful not to disturb him. I rose to my feet again and stared at him in the low light. I wondered what he’d say if he woke up right now. If he saw me here, hovering over him in the dark.

Would he scream?

Cry?

Or would he reach out his hands to draw me nearer?

I exhaled slowly through my nose and forced myself to leave.

* * *

I stood outside Mae’s Diner beneath the overhang, watching the glass fog slightly from the temperature shift as the door opened and a pair of regulars wandered out, laughing at something I couldn’t bother to care about.

Inside, Colby was behind the counter, cleaning one of the coffee machines.

When the little bell jingled above the door, announcing my entrance, his head snapped up. Pink immediately bloomed on his cheeks as he caught sight of me. His mouth parted slightly, then shut, then opened again with a stuttered breath.

“Hi,” he said, voice soft and skittish.

I gave him a warm smile. “Hello, Colby.”

He tucked a stray strand of hair behind his ear and asked, “Back again?”

“Best pie in the city,” I said easily, settling into the same seat I’d taken during my last visit. “I need to try every flavor.”

His lips twitched into a grin. “Of course you do. Which would you like to try today?”

“Dealer’s choice,” I said. “And maybe some light conversation on the side.”