Wires still attached, the woman placed the child in the man’s arms. Eyes crinkling at the corners showed the man’s smile.
She handed him a bottle. The man cradled the child in his arms, offering the bottle. Sleepy dark eyes blinked open, and the baby latched on to the nipple. The man fed the child, pushing the chair back and forth with his legs.
Who was this man? A hospital volunteer, maybe? This kid belonged to Yolanda, right?
Lucky watched for a while, heart clenching at the image. Would he one day hold his own child, rocking and holding a bottle?
At least the little boy wasn’t alone—for now.
He should leave. He’d accomplished what he set out to do: ensure the baby was okay. Somehow, he couldn’t make himself move.
Folks milled around him, coming and going, admiring this baby or that. Ever so gently the man removed the bottle from the child’s mouth. Again his lower lip quivered as though he still sucked, though he’d quite obviously fallen back asleep.
“Eat, sleep, and grow. That’s what babies do,”his mother once said while rocking Todd.
The man took a cloth from the nurse, placed it over his shoulder, and raised the baby. He gave a few pats, his eyes crinkling at the corners again.
The nurse held out her arms.
The man kissed the child’s forehead, slowly surrendering his precious bundle.
He stood and followed the nurse with his eyes as she returned the child to the incubator, placing his hand on the plexiglass in a silent goodbye.
For a single moment he looked up, long enough for Lucky to get a good look at the man’s eyes.
Holy shit!
Bo?
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Several times on the way home Lucky picked up his phone, planning to call Bo and ask why he’d been feeding Yolanda’s baby. Keeping secrets? After scolding Lucky for doing the same? Did he think Lucky would object?
He placed his phone back on the car seat beside him. When Bo wanted to talk, he would.
Oh, but he’d looked so good with the baby in his arms, holding the child so naturally. He’d make an excellent father.
Lucky imagined him holding their child. The vision of a baby Bo changed into the tiny boy from the nursery.
***
“How’s Walter?” Lucky asked when they’d settled into bed for the night. With Charlotte and Ty gone, Moose and Cat Lucky condescended to join Bo and Lucky in their room, furry little traitors.
Moose snored from the floor rug at the foot of the bed, and Cat Lucky sat on the windowsill, staring out at the night.
“He’s fine. I’m so tired.” Bo yawned, sending the hint to end the conversation.
No confessions tonight, then. “Are you okay?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“How’s Yolanda and her son?”
“Fine, as far as I know.”
Why wouldn’t Bo admit to seeing them earlier? What was he hiding?
No one came close to Bo in integrity. He never remained closed-lipped without a reason. Though the words perched on the tip of Lucky’s tongue, and doubt squirmed in his innards, he had to trust Bo. Be there for him.
