Page 33 of Their Perfect Daddy

MICAH

T he man standing in the doorway is an imposing figure. Not just because of his height. There’s an air about him. It speaks to his authority.

While I’m not intimidated, I do understand I’ve come onto his turf. I have to respect him and all those he considers to be his.

“He’ll be happy you’re here,” Skye tells me as he steps to the side.

I move over the threshold into my brother’s home. I’m pretty sure it’s Skye’s place now too. And Danny’s as well. They’ve made themselves at home while being there for Monty as he recovered.

“I’m happy to be here. It’s taken me far too long to come check on him in person. In my defense though, I’ve had to cover a lot between the boutique and my own boy’s needs. I’m sure you understand.”

Skye nods. “I do. The Daddy part of us demands we take care of every need our boys have. We'll often neglect to take care of ourselves or our work in an effort to give them the best.”

“Exactly. While I love my brother dearly, I knew he had you and Danny to support him. Plus, we’ve texted a lot.”

“I know,” he replies as he leads me through the house to the living room.

When we get there, it’s to find Danny on the floor in a princess dress and a tea party setup while Monty sits on the couch playing video games. Ignoring the boy on the floor is easy enough to do when I need to check on my brother.

I examine him from head to toe, noting each difference since the last time I saw him in person. Unfortunately, that was when he was still in the hospital. I wasn’t lying when I said things have been far too busy.

It still doesn’t make me feel any better about my absence.

Monty and I have always had a good relationship. We weren’t as close as some siblings, but we also didn’t hate one another. Our biggest issue was getting together in person. Despite living in the same city, it was rare we saw one another.

I chalk a lot of it up to my own issues. Too focused on work to care, I let a relationship I should have nurtured more suffer. Thankfully, he didn’t hold it against me. No matter how distant I became, Monty kept trying.

In the end, he got his way. At least he did until the injury.

It’s been far too easy to fall back into bad habits. Texting him is easy. I can do so and get back to work with no issue. But making the time to come out to see him is harder. My level of avoidance on the matter is ridiculous.

“MICAH!!” Monty yells, the shout disrupting my runaway thoughts.

I smile and move around the couch to him. While I know he’s more than capable of getting up and over to me, I don’t want him to push himself too far. I’d never forgive myself if he reinjured his leg simply from trying to get up to greet me.

Leaning over, I wrap him in a hug. He squeezes me tightly, a happy sigh leaving him at the contact.

“What are you doing here?” he asks me once I drop down beside him.

“Wanted to see how you were. It’s been really fucking busy these last few weeks. Took off early today to come by.”

He nods before turning his gaze to Skye. “Can we have a snack?”

“Of course you can,” he replies, then turns to me. “Do you have an allergies or preferences I should know, Micah?”

I smile at the gentle tone of his voice. It’s odd to be on the other end of a Daddy’s attention. I know Skye isn’t trying to role-play with me. It appears to be his natural inclination when surrounded by his boys.

“Nothing for me, but I would love something for Jett. I did tell him to come by once he was done for the day. He’s allergy-free as well and loves anything small and sweet.”

Skye chuckles. “I’m sure I can find something in the kitchen. You two relax and talk. I’ll be back in a few.”

As soon as Skye leaves, my brother takes my hand and smiles brightly at me. “Tell me how you’ve been. I want all the updates on you and Jett.”

Danny hums softly beside us, his state of mind clearly deep in his regression. He hasn’t even acknowledged me, nor do I think he will.

Monty must sense my thought process — or maybe he follows my line of sight, because he tells me, “This happens sometimes. I promise he’s fine. If anything, he’s going to be thrilled when he drifts back to his big self and sees you’re here.”

“Good to know. I’d like to make this a long visit if it’s ok with you three. I want to catch up on all the things and maybe have dinner with you. Kind of treat it similar to old times when Mom and Dad would force us all together.”

He laughs heartily at the memory. “Sounds perfect. It’s weird to think about how reluctant we were at first. Or at least, how we acted reluctant at times. Damn teenage hormones made us moody.”

“I think it was more. We’d been thrown into a completely new world neither of us knew how to navigate. It took time for those changes to settle. Doesn’t mean I ever hated you or anything.”

“Same here. You were the best kind of surprise. I’d always wanted a sibling. It only took forever and a day to get one,” he teases.

We hold each other’s stare for a long moment before the laughter commences.

For some reason, it breaks the dam of seriousness among us.

The minute we start, it’s nearly impossible to stop.

Which is why Skye finds us a few minutes later with tears rolling down our cheeks and hands pressed to our stomachs to quell the ache.

“I see I’ve missed a few things.” He places a tray of food and drinks on the table. “Are you two having fun?”

Our simultaneous head bobbing makes us laugh even harder. The minutes tick by as we fight to regain control. By the time we do, we’re both exhausted from the release of emotions.

I slump onto the couch, my breaths heavy in the quiet room. Monty’s head lands on my shoulder a second later. It’s comfortable to be this way. To be close to my brother and to have shared such happy emotions.

Danny is still playing on the floor, and Skye has picked up a book to read. He adjusts his glasses right before flipping the page. The move is familiar somehow, yet I can’t say from where. Maybe I’m have a déjà vu moment. Who knows?

It’s not as if it matters much. My whole point in coming here today wasn’t to watch Skye or Danny go about their routines. My visit is about Monty. It’s about connecting with my brother through more than a phone screen.

We rest in an easy sort of silence for several minutes. The calm is interrupted when the doorbell rings. Snapping out of my peaceful state, I check the time on my phone. It’s then I see all the texts from my boy.

“I’m guessing it’s Jett,” Skye says as he stands. “I’ll go let him in.”

Monty raises his head from my shoulder. His eyes are sleepy, as if he’d taken a nap, or was really close to taking one. It brings me far too much joy to see him this relaxed. Our once-distant relationship has changed so much.

“Daddy,” Jett says as he strides into the room. His bag lands on the couch, then he’s scooping me into his arms and burying his face in my neck. I feel the shift in the air as we drop to the couch.

My Daddy side goes on alert. Something is wrong with my boy. Something bad enough he needs to be soothed.

“What’s wrong, sweet boy?”

“Missed you,” he mumbles in reply.

I smile at the honesty. Monty must hear him too, because when I look over, he’s grinning from ear to ear.

Not wanting to let him sit in this sad state for long, I change the subject. “Do you want some snacks? Skye brought out some things a few minutes ago.”

“Micah is right,” the other man adds. “I’ve got some cookies, a few petit fours I grabbed from the bakery this week, and even a chocolate chip muffin. Of course, there’s also some juice and milk to go with it.”

Jett slowly raises his head. He turns to Skye, then to Monty, and finally to me. “I want cookies, Daddy.”

Before I can even reach to grab them, Monty is diving for the plate. He shoves them our direction before snatching up the muffin and taking a big bite.

“Were you waiting to do that this the whole time, Brat?” Skye’s voice is full of amusement.

Monty nods as crumbs drop from his mouth onto his lap.

He looks every bit the brat his partner calls him.

I shake my head as Jett carefully nibbles on one of the cookies he was given.

Whereas my brother is devouring his snack like a ravenous feral creature, my sweet boy delicately eats over the plate to ensure he doesn’t make a mess.

Seeing how opposite they are is a wonder.

And then of course there’s Danny playing on the floor.

Skye must think of him at the same time I do because he leaves the couch to kneel beside my friend.

I watch as he whispers some words to him.

Danny nods back, then opens his mouth when Skye slips one of the petit fours off the plate.

As I continue to sit in my boy’s lap, I bask in the rightness of the day. It might not be everyone’s norm, but this is paradise to me.