Defensive Daddy

“Okay, okay. I’m going to burn breakfast if you don’t stop. What’s the question?” I turned the stove off, facing him again.

His hand reached out to caress my cheek, and he brushed his palm against it lightly before pulling me in for a kiss. Resting his forehead to mine, I could tell he was trying to muster up the courage to speak.

“What is it?” I whispered, concern bubbling within me.

“I love you, Samantha.” He cupped my cheeks in his hands and stared deeply into my eyes. “I want you, all of you. Levi, too. I want us.”

You could have knocked me over with a feather.

“I want to be with you. To take this to the next level,” he continued. “I love Levi as if he was my own son, and I love you like I’ve never loved anyone else before. I want you to be in Tommy and I’s life. I want you to meet him, because I think you’d be good for him, too. Just like you’re good for me.”

My breath caught, and I swallowed hard past the lump in my throat. I could feel tears brimming my eyelids. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t anxious about what he said, but I felt the same way about him, too.

That feeling created vulnerability, though, and I hated it. I trusted Cooper, but I’d once trusted Ethan as well. I wouldn’t be able to handle another heartbreak. Especially not with our children involved.

Cooper must have seen the uncertainty in my eyes. “We can take it slowly,” he promised. “Just one step at a time, I’m okay with that. But I want to be with you in every sense of the word, Sam, no matter how long it takes us. I’m in this with you and Levi one hundred percent, okay?”

The man exuded confidence in every word he spoke, and I had no doubt in my heart or my mind that he meant everything he said.

I inhaled deeply, slowly and softly pressing my lips to his before responding. “I want the same thing, Cooper. I do. And I’d be honored to meet Tommy, I would. Just...one step at a time. I can’t go through another heartbreak any time soon.”

“You won’t have to. Mark my words, I will never break your heart.”

A loud, exaggerated yawn pulled me out of the moment, and both Cooper and I turned to see Levi, stretching his arms above his curly bedhead.

“Good morning, Spidey!” Cooper ducked down to scoop him into a hug.

“Morning, Superman.” The boy’s voice was still thick with sleep. He reached his arms up toward me and I reached down to pull him into m

y arms, earning myself a bear hug and a kiss on the cheek.

“Morning, Mommy.” He rested his head on my shoulder, still groggy.

“Good morning, sweetheart. Ready for some pancakes?”

Levi’s head shot up, looking at me with widened eyes as he nodded his head emphatically. I lowered him to the floor, and he ran to the table without another word. You’d have thought I rarely fed the boy.

Cooper dished up our plates and I poured us some milk. Warmth filled my chest as I took in the scene around me, the simplicity of us waking up together and sharing a breakfast so comfortably, like we’d done it a thousand times before. I was excited for our future. And moments like this were something I would continue to look forward to.

After breakfast, Cooper took over with the cleanup so I could get ready before Ethan came to pick up Levi, glancing sporadically at the clock while I did so. He would arrive within the next hour and a half, but it would take that long to steel myself and mentally prepare to be face to face with the man.

I hurried to get ready, throwing on a red blouse and black pants, then pulled my hair into a slick bun.

“Levi, come here! Your daddy is going to be here soon,” I hollered down the hallway.

He immediately came running. “I don’t get to stay with Cooper today?” He puckered his bottom lip out in disappointment.

“Not today, buddy. I’m sorry, but you’ll have lots of fun with Daddy, okay?” I tried to reassure him, but I knew, just as he did, that he would have had much more fun with Cooper since he actually paid attention and played with him.

Cooper snuck down the hall and wrapped Levi in his arms again, surprising him enough to make him squeal shrilly. “I’ll be here to watch you in a couple days. Sound good? Maybe you can help me take care of my little boy, too.”

“You have a little boy?” Levi’s eyes widened yet again.

“Sure do.” Cooper grinned. “And I need you’re help teaching him all about Spider-Man.”

“I’m an expert.” Levi’s smile was huge. “I can teach him lots.”

“There’s no doubt in my mind, believe me.”