I bustled around Sammy’s party, making sure all the guests had food and drink. Scott was overseeing the gift table and playing games with the children, thank fuck. I couldn’t focus on anything today, and had pretty much been a nervous wreck since the moment Grazer had arrived.

Thankfully, Scott hadn’t left my side since he’d found me rushing down the hall to my apartment in tears yesterday afternoon. After I’d told him the story, Scott had been amazing. He’d hung out all evening, helping me get Sammy to bed before breaking out the wine—and listening to me whine.

I needed to focus on the party, but I’d been low-key freaking out all afternoon about whether or not Grazer was going to hate me now. Tom was watching both of us with a knowing gaze.

I don’t know how he did it, but that little dude always seemed to have a finger on the pulse of whatever was going on around him. He was either psychic or the most observant person ever born.

And was it my imagination, or were Ian and Cecil acting weird too? Still. Grazer had been nothing but kind since they had arrived. Ian hadn’t left his side, either. He’s spent most of the party with his eyes flitting back and forth between us from time to time with an almost sad and disappointed look to them.

But then again, maybe that was my own guilt talking. Cecil was being the most awkwardly, over the top social version of himself. Every time Samantha was mentioned, Cecil’s eyes would flick from Grazer to me and he’d break out in a blush before babbling about some fact he’d read recently or telling a story about one of the kids.

Yeah, I was pretty much ready for this party to just be over. And that made me feel like the world’s shittiest dad, since today was supposed to be about Sam.

And what was with Grazer insisting on taking pictures of everything with that fancy digital camera? Although, if you asked me—he was pretty much just hiding behind the camera… not that I blamed him.

“What’s the story, morning glory? You look like you’re about ready to cry. Talk to me, bro. Tell me whose ass I need to kick… Greg and I’ll even do it together if you want more muscle.”

Greg shook his head at Braden as he slipped an arm around my shoulders and gave me a light squeeze.

“Ignore him. Of course, we’re not going to kick anyone’s ass at your daughter’s birthday party. Although, I wouldn’t be opposed to taking care of business later if necessary, just say the word. You don’t have to talk about it, but if you need any air—we’re here for you.”

I sucked in a breath and immediately demurred. “No ass needs to be kicked, I promise. I’m just having the standard new parent freak out at the first birthday party, you know how that goes.”

Braden breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh, shit. Is that all? I should’ve known. Don’t worry about it, bro. You’ve got this. You’re the fricken Omega Manny, remember? You even did an entire episode on first birthday parties. Take your own tips, Luke. It’s pretty legit advice, I’m here to tell you.”

“And the reason he knows this, is because he watched it no less than five times while we were planning Shannon’s first party.” Greg said with a grin as he gave my shoulders one last squeeze. “All right, we’ll leave you alone. But if you need anything, remember you can ask us for a hand. In fact, I’m already planning to stay behind and help you with the cleanup.”

Braden smirked at Greg. “Like anybody is surprised that you would stay to help clean? Seriously… We should have just made your cleanup services our gift. The park will probably be cleaner after we leave than it was when Luke arrived to set up.”

Greg and I both laughed at Braden’s words, because he wasn’t wrong. “Thank you, Greg. I appreciate it. I’m pretty sure that I’ll be ready to drop when this party is over and I’ll be happy for the help.”

When they wandered away a few minutes later, Tom sidled up to take their place. He matter-of-factly took me by the arm, and pulled me off to the side.

“When Tom saw Grazer arrive earlier, his first thought was that this was a Very Bad Idea and could possibly ruin Miss Samantha’s first birthday party. But Tom has now decided that he is proud of Luke.”

I grinned at Tom’s use of the third person. He always seemed to do that when he wanted to be particularly dramatic. I sighed and decided to confide in him.

“It wasn’t planned, but I ran into Grazer at the store yesterday with Sammy. And things happened that probably gave away my secret. So... I invited him to the party today. I figured it would be a good way for him to get to know Samantha at her best. Not to mention, I’ve already cheated him of her entire first year—I didn’t want him to miss her first birthday party too.”

Tom smiled kindly. “Luke, I know you didn’t plan this on purpose… But you did let it slide way too long while you were busy being the fucking Scarlett O’Hara-ass-bitch who wanted to think about it tomorrow. Well, guess what, sweetheart? It’s tomorrow and your ass has to give that alpha some answers. Omega up, and deal with your shit. Even if it wasn’t done maliciously, you’re right—he did have a year of his child’s life stolen from him. Just talk to him, Luke.”

“But what if he doesn’t want to talk to me? I can feel as guilty as I want to, but it won’t take away what I did. And you’re right in that I didn’t do it maliciously, but it still happened. I don’t see how he’ll ever forgive me for this, you know? And even if he wasn’t smart enough to piece together the fact that Samantha is his daughter, which of course he did once he saw her beautiful gray eyes, it’s still way past time for him to be finding out.”

Tom stood on his tiptoes to give me a hug. I wasn’t quite six feet tall, but Tom was a tiny guy, so he had to stretch until I bent to meet him a little. After he’d hugged me, Tom stood back and gave me a stern look as he pointed to the nearby walking path that led to the pond.

“Yes, you need to talk to him—sooner, rather than later. But first, you need to calm the fuck down and quit walking around here like a nervous Nelly. Go take a walk, and get some air. Once you’ve calmed your shit, come back and we’ll sing Happy Birthday and cut the cake. After that, Sammy can open her prezzies, we will all ooh and ah appropriately, and then you can go home and have a big-ass glass of wine to celebrate having made it through the day. Now, go on, git. That’s an order, mister.”

“But the party! I’m the only official parent here, I can’t exactly wander off in the middle of the festivities… can I?”

Tom waved a hand. “Please. You’re talking to Tom, doll. Go take your walk, Uncle Tom’s got it from here.”

I nodded gratefully and hurried off to take the prescribed walk. Tom was right, I really did need a break from the party. As I went around the first bend, I spotted the bunny I’d seen a few days ago in that parking lot.

He was sitting under a flowering shrub, his floppy ears twitching as he watched me approach. He really did seem to be friendly and docile, which convinced me more than ever that he was someone’s escaped pet.

Right as I got close enough to pick him up, he raced off. I gasped as I noticed that right behind where he’d been crouched was another egg.

I picked it up and examined it, smiling to see another painting of the same two men in silhouette on the beach at sunset. But this time, they were holding a small child between them. Needless to say, the image touched me in ways I didn’t care to examine too closely.

After giving it a quick shake to see if there was another prize inside, I dug my keys out of my pocket and widened the bottom hole just enough to pull the hidden scroll out.

My eyes bugged out as I read the message written yet again in beautiful calligraphy. What the hell were these things? Fortune telling eggs? I read the message a second time, still amazed at the timeliness of it.