Alex was already drinkingfour ounces every four hours, and according to all the internet research, that was extremely unlikely. He was only about six hours old.
"Riley?" I asked after she picked up on the first ring.
"Hey," she chirped. "How's our little guy?"
"Good, good. Did Linna eat more than Michael?" Maybe it was normal for this particular species of baby. We had no idea what the shapeshifter babies were like.
"Yes, and she still does. The appetite on that girl is nuts."
I sighed in relief. "Oh, good. According to all the baby books, little Alex is an impossible eater."
"Yeah, you have to take those books with a grain of salt, even when the babies are human. There are always anomalies."
She had a point.
"Okay, well, I just wanted to make sure."
"How's Alexander taking everything?" she asked. "And Roan and Doryu?"
I smiled. "They're all amazing. They keep coming in here and trying to take him from me. I only seem to be able to let them have him for a few minutes at a time."
She snorted. "Sounds like motherhood. Be careful or you'll end up keeping him."
I didn't reply for a moment. "I don't know if I could do that."
"What?" she asked. "You love him already, don't you?"
I swallowed hard. "Yes," I whispered.
"If you love him, what difference does it make?"
She was right. It didn't matter that this wasn't the direction I'd expected my life to take. All that mattered was that I loved Alex, and he needed me.
"I think I'm going to keep him," I said. "At least for now."
There was a long pause. "Are you sure?" she asked.
"Yes," I said, feeling more certain with every passing second. "I'm sure."
"Okay," she said slowly. "If that's what you want to do, I support you one hundred percent."
"Thanks, Riley," I said. "I appreciate it."
"Anytime," she said. "And Jen?"
"Yeah?"
"Welcome to the club."
Riley was right. I did love Alex. And that was all that mattered.
I sat in the rocking chair, staring down at Alex as he slept. He looked so peaceful, and I had to fight the urge to wake him up just so I could see his eyes again.
"Hey," Alexander said softly as he came into the room. "How's my guy doing?"
"He's good," I said, patting the empty spot on the rocking chair next to me.
Alexander sank down with a sigh. "I can't believe all this is happening." He looked closely at my face. "You're exhausted. You've been caring for a newborn around the clock for three days. Please let me hire a nanny. Or at least let one of us take a shift so you can get some uninterrupted sleep."
