Chapter 2

“She fell asleep about thirty minutes ago, Mr. Lambert. They all did. They were probably exhausted after playing together for more than three hours.”

“And the other two children? Why haven’t their parents fetched them yet?”

“They are mytwo-year-old twins, Nathan and Holly.”

“Oh!” Michael felt flush. “I guess your wife is busy at work, then?”

“Mr. Lambert, I don’t have a wife, but I do have a boyfriend. He usually takes care of them, but he had an errand to run, so here they are.”

“I see.”

This was disappointing news. It had been a while since Michael had been instantly attracted to a man. He had even entertained the thought of asking Lance Johnson out on a date, in spite of how infuriating he found him. Now it seemed he would not be able to do that. He had never been the type to intentionally come between another couple.

“Mr. Lambert?”

“Oh, yeah. Let me grab my daughter. I’ll just…I…”

“Go ahead. She’s a sound sleeper. I’ll get her backpack and water bottle for you.”

“Thank you, Mr. Johnson.”

The other man only nodded before walking away.

Michael went to the mat and picked up Megan. She whined a little at the movement, but otherwise remained asleep. He cooed softly into her ears and resolved to spend more time with his daughter. He hadto find a way to do that. As much as it annoyed him, he conceded that Lance was right. Megan needed him and he hadbeen neglecting her more often than not.

“Here are her things, Mr. Lambert.”

“Thank you. I…I’m sorry you had to stay so late, waiting for me to fetch her. I’ll rearrange my schedule and work things out somehow. Thanks again.”

“You’re welcome.”

He walked out of the classroom and headed toward the black SUV in the parking lot. He fitted Megan into her rear booster seat before placing her things on the empty seat beside her, then drove away.

He inhaled and exhaled slowly, mentally going through the various things he still had to deal with both in the office and at home. Unfortunately, he could not complete them until Megan fell asleep again after dinner. He wanted to spend more time with his daughter and he would begin tonight. This would be a long evening.

* * * *

“Papa! You’re home!”

Lance looked up from the stove in the kitchen. Holly was running toward the front door to greet a tall, muscular man, who quickly stretched out both arms to pick her up and embrace her. It was Adam Williams, Lance’s boyfriend for the past eight years. They had dated right after college and had been inseparable ever since. Now they had two kids together.

“Papa! Me, too! Me, too!”

Lance shook his head and chuckled at the sight of Nathan demanding the same treatment from Adam, who gamely lifted the boy with one arm, while the other still balanced Holly. Lance was still amazed at Adam’s strength, even after all these years.

He washed his hands and stepped out of the kitchen to greet his lover properly with a kiss. “Hey, love.”

“Hey, babe.”

“How’s the store?”

“Busy as usual.”

Adam owned a rather successful toy store catered mostly for younger kids. Granted, its size was not humongous, but it was always crowded with plenty of children around. Adam’s muscles might be huge and intimidating, but Lance knew that Adam was a giant teddy bear. The man was a fair businessman and a kind employer. All of his employees had enjoyed working there for years, while most of the children who came in did not find him frightening at all.

“Dinner is almost ready, love. Why don’t you bring the twins into the bathroom to clean up. Everything will be ready in about fifteen minutes.”

“Sounds perfect, babe. Okay, kids. Your dad has commanded. Washing-up time!”

The twins giggled joyfully and chattered a mile a minute while Adam responded only with a word or two.

Lance returned to the kitchen to plate up the stir-fried vegetables from the skillet before transferring the baked chicken from the oven. He placed everything on the table and waited patiently for Adam and the twins. When they were all seated, they began to eat.

“Dad, Papa said that Holly and I can stay up late tonight, but we need to ask you first.”

“Can we, Dad? Please? Nathan and I will be really, really, really, really, really good.”

He glared at his lover, who was sheepishly grinning at him, before softening his gaze to look at the twins. “Nine o’clock,” he intoned firmly.

“But, Dad…”

“Papa said…”

Lance’s steely gaze quickly shut down any further protests from them. “Nine o’clock,” he repeated. “And you both have to eat one extra spoonful of vegetables each.”

“Dad, that’s not fair…”

“I hate vegetables…”

“Twoextra spoonfuls of vegetables each,” he remarked calmly, but the twins knew well enough not to say another word even though they pouted adorably. He scooped up exactly two tablespoons of vegetables onto each of their plates before asking Adam about his day.