Page 6 of Peer & Coco

"He's happy to see you." Holly touched Coco's arm. "If you want to watch him for a few minutes, I'll run to the bathroom."

"Sure, go ahead." She squatted down to Tyr's level and slipped her finger into his grabby hand, directing his attention to her. "Your pappa thinks you're up to no-good."

"Pa pa pa pa." Tyr held up his arms.

She picked him up and smooched his cheek with a kiss. "We're going to seriously have to work on your vocabulary. Say, Co-co."

"Pa pa pa..." He laid his head on her shoulder.

She hugged him, rubbing his back. "I know, you love your Pappa," she whispered.

Not knowing what caused Peer's urgency for her to check on Tyr, she stayed at the clubhouse instead of taking him over to the bar for a few minutes.

Lizzy walked her way. She waved, motioning her over. Her best friend held her new baby on her chest and looked beautiful, naturally glowing. Motherhood agreed with her. She'd never seen Lizzy so content and happy. Even Roar walked around with a bigger chest since the baby was born, and she couldn't imagine him getting any bigger.

"I was going to walk over and see you at the bar, but Brage mentioned you were here when I arrived." Lizzy one-arm hugged her. "I've missed you."

Her and Lizzy had lived together for five years before Roar came into the picture and hired them both at the bar. For a while, she had lived with the two of them until she decided to stay with Peer and help him with Tyr.

She leaned over and kissed baby Hanne's head while keeping a firm hold on Tyr. In the past, Tyr had wanted to grab at the baby. He was all boy at his age. There was nothing gentle about his curiosity. He wanted to poke, tear, and hit everything.

"That's because you're always busy—as you should be with that little angel." Her heart melted. "I need to find time to come over and spend some serious auntie time with Hanne. When's a good time?"

Lizzy blew a raspberry with her lips. "You don't need to make an appointment, just stop by."

The dynamics of her living situation had changed over the last year, but her friendship with Lizzy had stayed the same. They remained close despite Lizzy living with Roar and being in a fully committed relationship with the president of Slag Motorcycle Club and starting her family.

"You're the best." Coco kissed the side of Tyr's head, looking at Lizzy. "I'll try and come over tomorrow if Peer's going to be around the house and I can get away."

"If not, bring Tyr." Lizzy shrugged. "It makes no difference. I just need to catch up with what's going on with you."

"Same ol' thing. Work, babysitting, sleeping, and the occasional trip to get my hair done." She spotted Holly coming back. "I'll bring over a taco salad when I do come, and we can gossip like old times."

"Okay." Lizzy lowered her voice. "And, you can tell me why you're over here with Tyr and not working."

Lizzy remained the manager at The Fire Ring even while being off on her extended maternity leave. Living across the street, it was easy for her to run over and deal with scheduling and filling in for an hour or two if needed while Roar kept the baby.

"Mm..." She turned her head and whispered, "If I knew what went through Peer's head, I'd be a lucky lady. I have no idea why he wanted me to check on Tyr, but it's a good way to spend my break, and I got to see you."

She straightened. "I should get back to work, though. Can't earn money if I don't work."

Holly took Tyr. She ran her hand over his head and kissed his cheek. "I'll see you later, sweet face."

Tyr had already lost interest and put all his attention on Holly's hoop earrings. She stepped over and gave Hanne a kiss on her head, hugged Lizzy, and walked toward the door.

The day Slag hired her and Lizzy to work as the servers in the bar had changed her life. For years, she'd floated, only existing, trying to find her place in the world while working her ass off in food-service type jobs.

She loved the work but until she started at the bar, she'd only known minimum wage and cheap tips. The Fire Ring provided enough money, she actually had a small savings.

She walked out into the alley, getting her second wind from the chilly temperature. The Fire Ring probably wasn't a life-long career. What she'd gained were friends that would last her whole life, no matter if they closed the bar.

Walking in the back door, she stopped in the breakroom to wash her hands, reapply her lipstick, and hurried out to the main room.

Customers grabbed her attention before she could check in with Peer, and she gave him a smile and nod as she scurried from table to table, letting him know that his son was perfectly happy.

Peer looked at her unblinking, wiping the outside of a glass. She had a hard time focusing on the orders and scribbled on her menu pad to keep everything straight. Peer's intense gaze coming from shockingly blue eyes followed her around the room, bothering her more. Something was wrong, and she couldn't figure out what was bugging him.

Not that he was the easiest person to figure out. Over the last year, he tended to keep to himself. Living with him, she'd discovered he had a talent for turning every conversation around to other people or about Tyr.