Like Father, Like Son ✔

Chapter 36 - Mama Knows Best

CHAPTER 36

CAT

"You're supposed to be my dad! Not his."

The look on Luke's face as he watched Nick interacting with the new baby broke her heart. He seemed unsure how to act at first, remaining at Cat's side, but the moment the word godparents left Amanda's lips, it was like something in Luke just popped. He crossed his arms defensively over his little chest, pouting at the ground.

"Jeremy already has a dad, Matt is his dad," Cat was the first to speak up after a few seconds, running her fingers through Luke's hair, only to have him shrug her hand away. "Nick is his uncle, just like Matt is your uncle," she added.

Matt scooped Jeremy out of Nick's arms, exchanging uncomfortable looks with his wife.

"You're still my dad?" Luke asked timidly, inching closer to Nick again and placing both his palms on the man's knees.

"Of course I'm still your dad. Come here," Nick grinned, although it definitely seemed a little forced on his face. He helped Luke climb up onto his lap and wrapped an arm around the little boy's shoulders. "You're my buddy and I'm always gonna be around for you, nothing's gonna change that."

"And you're not the baby's dad?" Luke asked.

"No, I'm not," Nick chuckled.

"Because you're my dad," Luke nodded.

"Yes," Nick answered.

"Okay," Luke sighed, visibly relieved.

Cat was feeling a little weird about the whole situation, but also incredibly upset that James was putting her son through this to begin with. He was so used to being abandoned by the one man that was supposed to give a damn that it was hard for him to trust anyone. Cat didn't want that for her son. She didn't want that for herself. She'd spent so many years thinking she had to do everything on her own... rely on nobody but herself... well, not anymore.

She glanced over at Amanda in her hospital bed, fully intending on giving her an apologetic smile. She didn't expect to find huge tears rolling down her best friend's face.

Seeing Amanda crying, Cat felt like she was about to start crying as well. She wiped at her dry cheeks and sunk on the side of Amanda's bed, reaching for her best friend's hand.

"Hormones," Amanda smiled through her tears.

"Right, of course," Cat smiled sheepishly.

Nick didn't speak to her the whole ride home and Cat didn't have the nerve to say anything to try and break the tension that seemed to have built up between the three seats they occupied on the bus. Luke was also being rather quiet, his sad eyes glued to the game he was playing on Nick's phone. The moment they got back to the apartment, he made a straight line for his bedroom and closed the door behind him.

Cat turned to Nick, looking up at his face and finding the same sadness there that'd been on Luke's. He looked so defeated.

"This isn't fair," she murmured.

"We're doing the best we can," Nick answered her as he crouched down to undo Duke's harness, setting him free after a hard day's work – a really hard day. "Nothing more we can do than that," he added, still kneeling on the floor.

Cat knelt down in front of him and took his face in her hands.

"I love you," she said.

"I love you too," he breathed.