Encouraged by what must have been the funny expression on my face, Angel laughed and said it again. “Da!”
My jaw dropped. “Are you trying to say ‘daddy’?”
“Dada.”
Joy burst in my chest. I leapt up—with considerable effort, given my uncomfortable belly and prosthetic leg—and cried, “Ryu! Ryu, she’s talking!”
Ryu nearly dropped an entire cocktail. He glanced over his shoulder from the counter and exclaimed, “Oh my gods! What did she say?”
“She said ‘dada’!”
Ryu quickly finished dealing with the customer then rushed over, grabbing Angel’s hands in his own. “Can you say it again? Say dada!”
“Da-do,” she said.
“Oh, close enough!” Ryu scooped her up and twirled her around, making her golden hair spin. She laughed and slapped his arms. “I bet by the time the baby’s born, she’s going to be making full sentences.”
I took her back and smirked. “Very funny. Maybe she can comfort me while I’m giving birth.”
“No way. That’s my job.” Ryu grinned.
Suddenly, Nate’s familiar face pushed through the crowd and braced himself on the counter. “Geez, you really weren’t kidding about it being busy on Fridays,” he muttered.
“Do you need a break?” I asked.
“Nah, it’s not that.” But his mouth was set tight, like something was bothering him. “There might be a bit of a problem, though.”
“What?”
Nate winced. “One of those guys you kicked out of the bar is here.”
Fury raged inside me. “What?” I spat. “I told them they can never come back here!”
Nate looked sheepish. “He’s not doing anything bad—I think he’s actually looking for you.”
Ryu glanced between Nate and I, wondering if he should step in. Finally, he said, “Why don’t I see what’s going on? You stay here with Angel.”
I frowned deeply, wondering why either Mav or Henry would dare show their faces around here again. Ryu hopped over the counter and Nate led him deeper into the crowd. Among all the people, it was difficult to see anybody. If Nate hadn’t told me, I wouldn’t have known either of them was here now.
I held Angel closer. “Don’t you worry. No one’s ever going to take you away from your dads again.”
Ryu and Nate returned a moment later flanking Mav like two bodyguards on the verge of attack. Instantly I glared at Mav, ready to chew him out, but then I noticed the meek expression on his face.
“What are you doing here, when I explicitly banned you?” I growled at him.
Mav raised his hands. “I know, I know.”
“There better be a good reason for this,” I warned.
“Well, to be honest… I really did miss the booze here,” Mav mumbled, staring at the floor. “But I did wanna, uh, apologize. For acting shitty.”
My glare narrowed.
“And also, I thought you might wanna know something about your kid,” Mav added.
My grip tightened on Angel again. “What?”
Still sheepish, Mav rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, when me and that omega Henry were watching her for those two weeks—”
