Bestest Daddy [ON HOLD]

2.

[unedited]

Liam burst through the front door, wiping his brow. He had worked up a sweat due to being so nervous. What if Claire was lying?

"Ms. Noff?" He called out. There was no reply, but he heard the echoing of footsteps down the hall. They were quick, short strides, he could tell. "Audrey?" He asked again, louder than before.

"Daddy!" He heard his daughter squeal with joy. He saw her round a corner and come running towards him, arms outstretched. He heaved a sigh of relief as she jumped into his arms, mesing his perfectly gelled hair up at the moment, but he didn't care. He cooed and buried his face in the little girl's neck, causing her to erupt into a fit of giggles. Liam then heard a louder set of footsteps and looked up. There stood the woman from earlier today, Claire Noff.

To be honest, she was beautiful. He hair framed her face perfectly and shone in the oddly angeled sunlight that broke through the windows. Her eyes sparkled with glee, and they were kind and loving. He broke his gaze from her quickly when he saw her lips moving.

"Pardon?" He asked, a slight blush surely creeping onto his unshaven cheeks. She kindly smiled and wondered what had been distracting him. Her eyes flickered to the girl and the smile that danced upon her lips stretched even wider.

"I said, would you like some coffee? Or tea? I was just heating up the water." He sniffed and kissed Audrey's hairline once more.

"You'll have to excuse me, but I think I"m goingto be late for my job," he rejected her invitation, making her smile falter the slightest bit. She shrugged.

"It's quite alright. You two can stop by whenever you like." She bit her tongue after that to stop her from mentioning that he had already been at his job. Did he have a second one?

"Daddy?" A tiny voice called. Both adult's eyes were then trained on Audrey's smalled figure that was still clinging to his shirt.

"Yes, princess?" He whispered in her ear. She giggled once.

"I thought you left me!" She exclaimed, laughing all the more at the end of her outburst. A smile spread across his lips, showing off his pearly whites. He shook his head and opened the door to the front of the house.

"Why would I ever leave my perfect little angel?" He asked, bouncing her up and down, glancing back at Claire who was studying carefully. He curtly nodded once and was gone, without a goodbye, or a single word.

Claire cocked her head to the side. Liam Payne was an interesting man, leaving her craving for more information about him.

~

"Alright. You have fun at Uncle Lou's and Uncle Hazzy's, okay?" Liam asked, patting his daughter's head gently and standing up straight. He was now eye to eye with two of his gay best friends, that happened to be married, Louis Tomlinson and Harry Styles.

"Aye aye, captain!" She saluted her father and ran off into the much bigger house, in hopes of finding her cousins. Louis' eyes had crinkles in the corners of them as he formed one of the world's biggest prize smiles ever. His husband-- who towered over him-- was occupied with his hands-- one of his rings was stuck on his thumb after he stupidly put it on for no reason. Liam shook his head at Harry. He had always been the weirdest of the three.

"We'll take good care of her, Li," Louis assured his best friend. Liam heaved a sigh.

"You remember the rules, right?" He asked, as if talking to his own child. Louis' smile was even wider by now.

"Yeah, keep an eye on her at all times, don't give her nuts, she's allergic to them, and no kissing in front of them. I know, I know. Go!" Louis ushered Liam out of the house and went to find Audrey. Harry followed Liam outside and put his hand on Liam's shoulder. His touch was gentle and was an action of kindness, but Liam tensed under his touch anyways.

"You know I don't approve of what you're doing, Liam," he scolded quietly, voice deep and raspy. Liam brought a hand up to his head, massaging his temples in a stressed manner. He stood there for a few minutes and then looked back up at Harry, tears in his eyes.

"I don't have a choice, Harry. What else am I supposed to do? It pays really well and-" he choked, his voice breaking. Harry rubbed circles on the elder's back and pulled him in for a warm hug. Liam gladly accepted the heart-warming gesture and hugged one of his best friends back, wishing that his own girlfriend were still here to help pay the bills...

"We could help you, Liam. We could pay off your debts, and you could move in with us if you have to--" it was Harry's turn to get inturrupted. Liam shook his head and pulled away from Harry quickly.

"I can do this, Harry. I'm responsible and I can raise my own child, without any help." And with that, he walked away, leaving Harry shaking his head solemnly.

"Be careful, Payne!" He shouted after the fleeing man, and then muttering, "what the hell have you gotten yourself into this time, Li?"

~

I'm sorry it's kind of short. I didn't want to rush things. Thanks for pushing me to update, guys. I really need motivation. XD

~Emi