Page 115 of Baby Daddy

“A girl after my own heart.” I chuckled.

“When did you first suspect she was yours?”

“Maybe when my mother said Ty reminded her of my sister. It took a while. The clues kept adding up, but I was in denial. Then when I was sick this past week, I had a weird dream about her. The dream clicked when I saw side-by-side photos of my sister and Tyson in my father’s office; they could almost be twins. And then tonight, when I found out about her blood type, I was 99.9% positive she was mine.”

“Why not 100% sure?”

“I needed to hear it from you.”

Needing to take a break, I took another sip of my coffee.

“Dee, did you ever think I was Tyson’s father?”

“N-no, never; I still can’t believe it.” A new wave of tears streamed down her cheeks. Taking my unused paper napkin, I reached out and dabbed them away. I took in her face. Even with the bloodshot eyes, blotchy skin, and swollen lips, she was beautiful. In fact, more beautiful than ever at this moment, knowing that she was the mother of my child.

She sniffled. “Oh God, Drake. This is all too much for me. What if we lose her?”

I narrowed my eyes at her. “Stop it. Don’t go there. We’re not going to lose her. She’s my kid. She’s got my blood and genes. And she was wearing my cape. She’s got superpowers. She’s Mighty Girl and she’s going to live. You got that?”

Tears still trickling, Dee bopped her head up and down. I think I convinced her, but the real truth was I hadn’t convinced myself. I was worried sick, but I didn’t want to show it. I had to be strong for the both of us. For the woman I loved with all my heart, body, and soul. The woman who was the mother of my child. If Tyson died, I would die, too, because she was a part of me.

I took a bite of my burger while Dee took in a shaky breath. Another question was on my mind, but she beat me to one.

“What should we do?”

“About me being Tyson’s father?”

Biting down on her lip, she nodded.

With a small smile, I took Dee’s hands in mine. They were still icy cold, but I was going to warm them up.

“It’s simple.”

“Simple?”

“We’re going to become a family.”

“Huh?”

“Don’t ‘huh’ me, Deandra Walker. You love me as much as I love you.”

“You love me?”

“Yeah, I love you like crazy. I think I loved you from the moment I met you.”

“Really?”

“D-baby, do I have to prove it to you by standing up on this table and shouting out how much I fucking love you? So loudly everyone in this hospital will hear me, including our daughter?”

I pushed my chair back and started to rise.

“Wait! Don’t do that.”

“I won’t if you answer one question.”

“Anything.”

“Will you marry me?”

Dee’s kissable mouth fell open. But before she could utter the one word I yearned to hear, my cell phone buzzed. She quickly reached for it and saw the text message.

“Tyson’s out of surgery!”

“C’mon, let’s go.” Leaving behind the rest of my burger, I leaped up and rounded the table. Grabbing Dee’s hand, our fingers entwined, we jogged out of the cafeteria.

My question wasn’t going to get answered. And now there was an even more important one weighing on my heart.

Was our precious little girl going to be okay?