better outcome.” Jude flipped on his left blinker.
“A better outcome? Our child didn’t even notice we were leaving!” Cope’s blood was boiling. How dare his husband say this was a good outcome?
Jude’s hand reached out to rest on Cope’s left knee. “I know this day is hard for you. Our son is only eight months old and he’s going to spend the first of many days without us. Pardon me for worrying more over how Wolf would react to this new normal. You are a grown man, Cope. You understand perfectly what’s going on today. Our son doesn’t know if we’re ever coming back for him. The fact that he’s confident enough in us to not notice our leaving should be something to celebrate. Instead, you’re hanging your head and acting like this is the end of the world. It isn’t.”
It was on the tip of Cope’s tongue to tell Jude where he could get stuffed, but the calmer, more rational side of him knew his husband had a point. His heart hurt because his son didn’t even notice he was leaving. Not that Cope wanted Wolf to be inconsolable, but a tiny squeak to note his leaving would have been nice. Did that make him the world’s worst father?
“No, Cope, you’re not the world’s worst father.” Jude maneuvered the car into a parking space across the street from West Side Magick. He turned to face his husband.
“How did you know that’s what I was thinking?” Jude knew Cope better than anyone, but still, his mind had taken him down a rocky slope over the last few minutes.
“No, your psychic gifts haven’t started rubbing off on me through osmosis. If you remember Wolf failed to notice when I left the house on my first day back to work. Face it, babe, we’ve got the chillest baby on earth.”
Jude made another good point. Nothing much seemed to bother Wolf. He was a calm baby, wasn’t a fussy eater, and didn’t wake up in the middle of the night. The only way he could be a better child was if he were potty trained and could make his own dinner. “We’re very lucky. I remember when Fitzgibbon and Jace first brought Aurora home. All that baby did was scream.”
“That little girl suffered something awful.” Jude pecked a quick kiss against Cope’s cheek. “See how much we have to be thankful for? Now come on, let’s get inside. You can’t expect to win Employee of the Month if you’re late to work on your first day back.” With that, Jude was out of the Thunderbird and heading around toward Cope’s door.
He could do this. He could get out of this car and walk inside the Magick shop as if this were any other day at work. Along with his lunch, he’d packed his favorite picture of himself with Wolf. He knew exactly where on his desk the frame would sit. It was only eight hours until he could go home and see his son. Eight long hours.
“Welcome back!” Carson, Cole, Tennyson, and Kevin shouted in unison. The men were standing in front of the glass merchandise cases. A rainbow banner above the cash register proclaimed the same sentiment.
“Hi, everyone.” Cope barely had time to get the words out of his mouth before he was mobbed by his friends. Carson and Tennyson both whispered to him that he was going to be okay. Fitzgibbon promised they’d sneak away together at lunch time to go home and visit the kids. Cole just hugged him tight. No words were needed.
“Cassie made a cake. It’s in the break room. I thought maybe you’d like a little time to get yourself settled and then we could dig in after Tennyson’s first appointment.” Carson was all smiles.
“Thanks. I’ll look forward to that.” Cope left his friends in the store to head off to his desk. He couldn’t believe how long it had been since he’d been there. He brought the baby in several times to visit Jude and to catch up with everyone, but he’d never made it as far back as his desk.
Waiting for him were balloons wishing him well and a vase filled with peach roses, Cope’s favorite. There was no doubt his husband had those delivered. To the left of his monitor were several framed pictures of himself with Wolf and Jude. One picture in particular caught his eye. It was a shot of their whole family gathered together on the day he and Jude brought