“He’s going to love it,” Rosalie said, kissing the tip of Ellis’s nose.
I peered over Ellis’s shoulder to see the messy cupcake she was decorating in vibrant pink and neon green.
Rosalie winked at me as Ellis stuck out her tongue, hyper-focused on trying to make a pink flower on top of the already messy frosting.
“Daddy, do you want to make one?” Ellis asked. “For other First Daddy?”
“Sure, nugget.” I sat beside her and grabbed a cupcake.
I took the purple frosting and set to work. Ellis’s work was better than mine. Clearly, I wasn’t cut out for cake decorating.
“Is it a monster?” Ellis asked, staring at the sloppy cupcake I was working on.
I frowned. “It’s a purple puppy. See? The black dots are his nose and eyes.”
Ellis giggled. “It’s very nice, Daddy. It can be a monster puppy.”
I chuckled at her sweetness. At least she didn’t tell me it was trash.
“Let me try.” Ryder took a seat on Ellis’s other side and grabbed a cupcake and a piping bag.
We watched as he set to work, creating a hell of a masterpiece.
“Is that… a flower?” I asked.
“Hibiscus,” he said as he worked without looking up.
“Wow,” Rosalie murmured. “That’s amazing, Ry.”
“Daddy, where did you learn how to do that?” Ellis asked.
Ryder stilled, and we all went silent.
Finally, he looked up from his cupcake and stared at Ellis.
“What did you call me?” he asked, his voice soft.
“Daddy?” She gave him a wide, unblinking look. “You’re my daddy too, right?”
Rosalie opened her mouth, likely to correct her gently because we hadn’t really had the talk about it with Ryder. I evenrested my hand on Ellis’s back to guide her attention to me. The last thing I wanted was for Ryder to feel put on the spot like this. He and Rosalie had only just started. While I didn’t see him ever going anywhere, I knew this was fast, despite the five long years of friendship.
“Yeah. I’m your daddy now too,” Ryder said, smiling at her. “Come here, little princess. Let me show you how to make a hibiscus.”
“In pink?”
“In any color your heart desires,” Ryder said, opening his arms so she could slide onto his lap. She did so with gusto, looking eagerly at the new cupcake he’d grabbed.
I looked at Rosalie to see the tears in her eyes. I reached for her, and she moved around the counter and leaned into me.
“Love you, Ro,” I murmured. “Look at our family growing.”
“Love you,” she whispered back, nodding.
There was a knock at the door, and I got up to answer it, finding Cole standing there with his bag in his hand. I pulled the door open and let him in.
“You look tired,” I commented.
“Little bit,” he said, zeroing in on Ellis on Ryder’s lap, decorating cupcakes.
