“It’s the truth.”
“Thank you.Hadley is just waking up.You can come in to see her room, if you’d like.”
“I’m nervous about meeting her.”
She glanced at him over her shoulder.“Why?”
“What if she takes one look at me and says, ‘Nah’?”
“When was the last time a woman took one look at you and said, ‘Nah’?”
“It happens.”
“When has it happened?”
Was she teasing him or being serious?He had no idea until she smiled and immediately put him at ease.“She’s going to like you, Griffin.All you have to do is show up, and she’ll like you.She might even love you.”
Griffin rubbed the spot on his chest that ached at the thought of his daughter loving him.What would that even be like?He couldn’t begin to know.
He followed Mac into a room that’d been done in neutral, soothing colors with animals playing a central role in framed photographs and a mural on the wall next to the crib.Every detail had been seen to with loving care, including the rocker in the corner and the stuffed animals in a hammock.“This is such a nice room.”
“Thanks.It kept me busy while I was waiting for her to get here.”She bent over the crib to pick up the baby.“We have a special guest today, sweetheart.”Mac turned so Griffin could see the baby’s face, and holy shit…
She was the prettiest baby he’d ever seen, not that he’d seen many up close, but at first glance, he could tell this baby was special.
“She’s gorgeous.”
“She really is.I find myself staring at her for incredibly long stretches of time.”
“I can see why.”
He watched as she efficiently changed the baby’s diaper, talking to her the whole time.The way the baby’s legs were constantly moving and how Mac kept a hand on her at all times to hold her in place was fascinating to him.
Mac picked her up and turned to Griffin.“Do you want to hold her?”
“I’d love to, but I’m a bit scared I’ll drop her or something.”
“You won’t drop her.”She used her chin to point to the rocker.“Have a seat, and I’ll bring her to you.”
“Okay.”He felt stupid, inept, out of his element and already on his way to being in love with the little being she lowered into his arms, bringing the familiar, fresh scent of Mac’s hair and baby smells that were all-new to him.
Griffin was surprised by the solid weight of the infant as well as the heat she generated as she looked up at him with big blue eyes that seemed to see all the way through him.Could she tell he was a novice, a fraud and way less of a man than she deserved for a father?
He hoped not.
“Let her grasp your finger.You won’t believe how strong she is.”
Griffin gave her his index finger and was indeed surprised by her tight grip.“She’s…” The huge lump in his throat caught him off guard.
“She’s everything,” Mac said.“And then some.”
He nodded in agreement because that was all he could manage thanks to the huge swell of emotion that overtook him as he gazed at the face of his daughter.
He had a daughter.
“You want some photos with her?”
“That’d be great.”
