Page 34 of Their Perfect Daddy

SKYE

“ W e might have a problem,” Daisy says as soon as I answer the phone.

I sigh loudly. “Tell me which of our siblings to deal with this time.”

“Not the siblings. It’s the parentals.”

Her words have me freezing right as I’m about to pour detergent into the washing machine. I can’t imagine what in the world I’ve done to get their attention at the moment. If anything, they should be checking on Poppy. She’s the one who just made them grandparents.

Martha and Tyreek Stanton will spoil the baby rotten. We all know it. Which is why I’m so fucking confused as to why my sister is calling to say there’s a problem.

“You need to spell it out for me. I’m clueless,” I admit after a prolonged silence.

It’s her turn to let out a sound of frustration. “Nothing to be confused about. Rayne let it slip you’ve got yourself a boyfriend. Mom immediately set about planning their return to Bellport. They’ve cut their trip short.”

“Should have already done so if you ask me.”

Why they weren’t already on a plane the minute we heard about Poppy is beyond me.

I get they wanted this time away for a bit; however, it’s a huge moment.

Missing out on the pregnancy and delivery is enough of a frustration.

I can’t fathom delaying meeting Juni or seeing how good Poppy is at being a mom.

She did learn from the best after all.

“You know how Poppy is. She told them both to finish their trip every time they called. Even threatened to not answer the door if they showed up before their original return date.”

“Well, wouldn’t this mean they still don’t get to see the baby anyway? Why come back?”

Daisy huffs, telling me, “You really can’t be obtuse about this. She gets to use the excuse of checking on you to come back early. It’s a loophole in the rules Poppy set.”

The truth of her words settles me. I finish loading the laundry, then lean against the machine as it begins to run. While I can definitely see how my mother found this to be a way to get what she wants twice over, I’m still perplexed as to why she cares so much.

When I voice this to my sister, she basically calls me an idiot.

“You are not the type to do the commitment thing. And you’re definitely not one to share who the person is. Mom knows this. She’s banking on this person being your forever.”

I smile at the notion. My boys are forever to me. It’s all happening quicker than I thought it would, of course. But then again, relationships never really go to plan. I can see the irony in how mine has progressed.

“Maybe you have a point,” I concede.

Daisy snorts. “Of course I do. And I’m also the best sister ever by warning you in advance. You can expect them to pop up any day now.”

“I’ll let the inflated ego of yours slide for now, little sis. You’re acting more like Gale than ever. Speaking of which, how is it Rayne let it slip and not Gale? Seems odd.”

“It is; however, Gale and Rayne had gone out for drinks the night before. I suspect being hungover and spending so many hours around our dear brother led to Rayne’s loose lips.”

Humming, I let her know I agree with the statement. It makes perfect sense this would be what prompted him to hand out such information. Rayne’s usually all about sibling confidentiality.

“Are you mad at him?” she asks carefully when I don’t say anything else.

“No, I’m not mad. Curious to see how they’ll react when they see us all, yes.”

“They’re going to be so happy to see you happy. When we met them, it was obvious to see the trust and affection there,” she gushes. “Though maybe don’t mention the Daddy thing with them. They're cool with a lot of stuff, but I’m not sure if the conversation is one you want to have.”

I hold back from telling her I know neither of them would mind.

Being the oldest in the bunch, I picked up on more than the others.

Our mother is more than familiar with the kink lifestyle.

I try not to think too much about the box I found in her closet when I was searching for my birth certificate years ago.

“Thanks for the tip. Anything else I should know?”

“Not to my knowledge. I’m only aware of the one thing. Do you think Tyreek will flip out about you having two partners? I know Mom loves us no matter what, but Tyreek is different.”

I shake my head despite the fact she can’t see me. “Ty gets a lot of crap when he’s really just a quiet dude. His heart is with Mom. He’ll support her with whatever she chooses. Besides, I’m pretty sure he’s bi.”

“Oh, shoot. You’re right.” She hums. “Then again, not every person who is queer is understanding. I know plenty of people who don’t support poly lifestyles no matter their sexuality.”

“True. But I think we’re safe here. Let me go warn my boys about the change. It’s best we’re all prepared for the storm that is Mom.”

“You’re lucky none of the others heard you. They’d make a joke about our sibling for sure.”

I smile, thinking of how our mother gave us all these unique names. We used to play a game where we would punch the person whose name naturally came up in conversation. To this day, I’ve been ‘love tapped’ — as Dewey calls it — far too many times.

“Love you, Daisy,” I say. She replies in kind, then lets the call drop.

Time to tell my boys about the Stantons. Here’s to hoping this visit goes as well as the one with Monty’s parents and my siblings did.

It only takes two days for Mom and Tyreek to show up on our doorstep. Of course, she doesn’t call before she comes to get directions. With Rayne dropping the news, I’m sure he was forced to tell her exactly where to find us.

“Good morning, Mom,” I say as she pulls me into a tight hug.

“My baby! I’ve missed you so much.”

I pull back to look down at her, careful not to spill any of the coffee in the mug I’m holding. “You saw me not that long ago.”

“Doesn’t mean I can’t miss you.”

Tyreek takes a moment to lean around Mom. “She’s very eager to get inside and start the introductions. Might want to speed up the process, bud.”

I chuckle at his teasing tone. “Come on in, you two. I’ve got some people for you to meet.”

Mom’s steps falter. “People? Who all is here?”

“Why don’t we just find out naturally, love? No need to hold an inquisition at the entry.” Tyreek puts his hand on Mom’s lower back, carefully guiding her to follow me.

The minute we enter the living room, her eyes light up. “Oh! Who are these handsome young men?”

Extending my hand, I motion for them to come over. “Mom, these are my partners. This curly haired cutie is Danny. The smirking handsome fellow is Monty.”

“Monty? Monty Tempest, is that you?”

My boy turns to face my stepfather, and his eyes damn near burst from his head. “Coach T? What the hell!”

The two of them embrace as if they're long-lost friends. I’m starting to suspect they might be.

Danny tugs on my sleeve. “Did I miss something?”

Mom chuckles at his obvious confusion. “Since he called my husband coach, I suspect at some point or another, Monty played t-ball. It’s the only thing this man loves as much as he loves me.”

“Ain’t that the truth, love,” Tyreek says as he wraps his arm around my mother.

“T-ball?” Danny asks. “Like little kid baseball.”

Monty comes back to us, his arm moving across Danny’s shoulder. “You got it. This man right here helped me realize I wasn’t meant for baseball at all. It was a few weeks later when I first picked up a football. The rest, as they say, is all history.”

“It still amazes me to this day to find out the whiny boy who fought me tooth and nail about the color of his bat at practice is now a professional athlete. And apparently, he’s also dating my son.

” Ty’s voice holds a note of curiosity as he turns to Danny.

“I’m sorry to have been rude. I’m Tyreek, but please, call me Ty. Nice to meet you.”

“You too, sir. Sorry, I never played sports. Could have been cool if we both knew you.”

Ty laughs at Danny’s rushed words. “No need to feel bad. Means I don’t have any preconceived thoughts about anything. Why don’t we sit down, and you can tell us about you? Then maybe we’ll let Monty brag for a bit.”

My brat crossed his arms. “I do not brag.”

“Sure you don’t sweetie,” Mom says as she pats his cheek gently.

He beams a smile my way, which means he completely misses the wink she gives me. Danny, however, does not. He giggles at the exchange, then skips over to the couch. Neither of my parents bat an eye at how Little he acts.

While we had a conversation to not be overt about our dynamic, I refuse to let my boys think they can’t be themselves in our — I mean, Monty’s — home. We’ve been living together long enough, I’m starting to see it as ours.

I push away those thoughts as I settle into the seat beside my two boys. They hold hands and wait for some signal to begin.

“Danny, why don’t you tell them about what you do for a living? I think that’s a good starting point.” I nudge his leg with mine to encourage him a bit.

As soon as he gets going, the rest of his defenses drop. The room warms the more animated he gets. I can tell from the looks on my parents’ face’s they’re already smitten with him. It could also be because my own smile shows how happy I am with these two.

No matter the cause, it’s obvious how well we three fit together. My mother makes sure to tell me such when she decides to help me make some tea in the kitchen.

“I’ll admit I was worried at first. You quickly put it to rest though. One look at them both, and I knew you were hooked. I’m so happy you’ve found your loves.” She tugs at my shirt, her signal she wants me to lean over so she can kiss my cheek.

“Thanks, Mom. It’s good to know I won’t have to make a PowerPoint to prove why we’re all meant to be together. I already had a few dozen slides in mind.”

She snorts at the joke before hip bumping me out of the way so she can make everything. As I lean against the counter watching her, I can’t help but to appreciate how lucky I am. Between my amazing boys and two sets of supportive parents, I couldn’t be happier.

Maybe one day we’ll meet Danny’s parents too. Well, maybe isn’t really the right thing to say. I fully intend to meet his folks, if for no other reason than to assure them I’m going to take good care of Danny for the rest of my days.

Hopefully they like me and Monty enough for their son. If not, the PowerPoint idea might actually come in handy after all.