Instant Daddy

“I will,” she called over her shoulder.

Peter dragged his gaze back to the man on the other side of the work bench.

Her father’s eyes bore into Peter’s until the screen door slammed behind Jessie and Jake. “My wife and I are very proud of both our daughters. But for reasons I’ll never understand, Clarissa felt her research was more important than being a mother. What I want to know is why she found it necessary to keep her baby a secret from you.”

Off and running. “I don’t know the answer to that question.”

Max studied Peter, sadness filling his lined face.

It must be hard to lose a child.

“I could use something cool.” Max strode to the back wall. He pulled a couple cans from an under-counter refrigerator, strode back to Peter and handed him a can of Dr Pepper.

“Thanks.” Peter popped the lid, the hiss of carbonated air filling the silence between them.

Max raised his soda. “To reasonable men.”

Peter could hope. But the steel glint in Max’s eyes warned him to stay on his toes. He raised his can in a toast, then took a sizable swallow, the liquid cold and refreshing.

Max drank thirstily before he lowered his can and focused a narrow gaze on Peter. “Clarissa and I had our differences of opinion, but she knew what she was doing when she gave Jake to Jessie. Jessie’s the best thing that could have happened to that boy.”

Peter had no argument with that. Just thinking about the love on her face when she looked at Jake made him smile. “She’s wonderful with him.”

“Think about it, Peter. If Clarissa had been a different person, she might have given him to some agency for adoption. You would never have known you had a son. And little Jake would have been lost to all of us.”

Peter could only stare at the man as he absorbed his words. Rather than blaming Clarissa for leaving him out of the loop, maybe he should be thankful for the things she’d done right. He could only imagine how difficult the situation had been for her.

But Max wasn’t finished. “The way I see it…the measure of a man is in how he takes care of his family. If you’re the man I hope you are, you’ll do what’s best for Jake. If you don’t, you don’t deserve to be his father.”

Somehow Max had managed to challenge Peter’s integrity, prod him to live up to it and shame him if he fell short. The man was good. “Of course, I want what’s best for Jake.”

Max took a drink of his soda. “What’s best for Jake is Jessie.”

As if summoned, she walked out of the house, Jake in her arms. “Jake left his musical car out here.”

She was just as pretty in jeans and a green T-shirt as she’d been in her sundress, Peter noted.

“Want a Dr Pepper, Jess?” Her father looked at her expectantly.

She shook her head.

“Did you talk to your lawyer?”

“Yes. He said I’ll have to give you DNA samples eventually anyway, and I’d just as soon do it now.”

“Great. Then let’s get started.” Peter swept the kits out of the drugstore bag he carried.

Max gave him a level gaze. “There’s more to being a father than DNA, Peter.”

“Of course there is.”

“Like feelings, love, commitment. How do you feel about being a father?” Max asked.

Peter laid the kits on the nearby table. “Jake’s great.”

“Yes, he is. But that’s not my question.”

He should have known Jessie’s dad wouldn’t accept a superficial answer. Buying time, he laid out vials, small packages of swabs and labels while he sorted through thoughts he’d been struggling with about what to do regarding his son.

Bottom line? No way could he let Jake grow up without a father, like Peter had. “Jake needs to know his father. I can’t let him grow up thinking he doesn’t matter to me.”

“Fair enough. But think long and hard about how best to accomplish that. As long as you remember what’s best for him, we’ll get along just fine.”

In other words, as long as he remembered Jessie was best for Jake, everything would go smoothly. A not-too-veiled threat if Peter ever heard one. But he admired Jessie’s father for laying it on the line.

Max looked at Peter, obviously waiting for him to be just as straightforward about what he wanted.

Peter’s thoughts began to gain clarity. He wanted more than just to know his son and his son to know him. He wanted the kind of relationship with Jake that Jessie and her dad had.

And if that was what he wanted, he needed to step up to the plate. “Jessie’s fortunate to have you, Max. You’re here when she needs you, and you’re not afraid to go to bat for her. I don’t want to be anything less for my son.”

“What?” Jessie’s eyes went wide. “You want to be a father like my dad? But you have to get back to your lab, remember?”

She was right. He’d been in a hurry to get the DNA swabs so he could get on the road. Slight change of plans. If he was going to be a real father, he needed to get to know his son a little better. “I’ve decided to stay in town the rest of the weekend.”

Unfortunately, the shock on Jessie’s face wasn’t the least bit encouraging.

In the steamy little bathroom, Jake’s shampoo mingled with the subtle spice of Peter Sheridan’s aftershave.

“Make bubbos,” Jake squealed, slapping the water in the tub with both hands.

Jessie rocked back on her haunches to duck a spray of soapy water, a jab in her hip making her wince.

On his knees beside her, Peter took the splash at full force. Laughing, he swiped his hand over his wet face, his arm bumping Jessie’s.

He turned to her, his laughing brown eyes concerned. “Sorry. You okay?”

She nodded vigorously, his presence seeming to fill the room.

His gaze softened. “I tend to throw myself into things, I’m afraid.”

She squinted. Too warm, she scooched over to allow him more space.

“Pedo. Chug.”

With an apologetic little smile, Peter turned to Jake and went back to making chugging noises and pushing a plastic tugboat in circles while Jake laughed and clapped and wildly slapped the water.

Grateful that Peter’s focus was back on Jake, Jessie gave her head a little shake. What was her problem? Did she need to remind herself of Peter’s declaration in the backyard this afternoon? He seemed to think he could pull Dad’s qualities out of thin air. Ha.