“Well,” he says lightly, recovering quickly, “maybe today she deserves to sleep in. She works very hard.”
“She does,” Ella agrees, pulling a piece of the pancake next to her off and eating it. Her hands are covered in syrup, and as much as I want to tell her to use a fork, I don’t. I want them to enjoy this moment. “She helps me with my letters and studies for her tests at night when I’m sleeping. Uncle Zach says she’s the best mom in the entire world.”
“I think he might be right,” Jamie says softly.
“Reese says Mommy is a superhero,” Ella continues, oblivious to the effect the name has on him. “He says she can do anything.”
Jamie goes still for a beat, holding the spatula over the pan. “Yeah?” he asks quietly. “That makes sense.”
Then he sets the spatula down and turns toward her, managing a small smile. “You know what? I think your mom used some of her superpowers this morning.”
Ella tilts her head, matching him.
God, they are so similar.
I guess I’d never noticed since I hadn’t spent any time with Jamie before, but he’s hers, and she’s most definitely his.
“What did she do?” she asks.
Jamie taps her nose lightly. “She used her powers to make these pancakes disappear. How else do you explain that I keep making them, but the stack doesn’t get any bigger?”
Ella giggles, holding up her sticky hands. “I helped!”
“You did?” he teases with a wide, shocked expression right before he tickles her. “Then I guess that means you’re her sidekick.”
Jamie scoops Ella up as she squeals with laughter, and he tickles her until she’s hiccupping through her giggles.
I lean against the banister, my heart tugging at the sight before me. The two of them—laughing, covered in sugar—look like a family.My family.
Shit. Did I just think that?
I swallow down the implications of that thought.
My family.
He’s hers. She’s his, but am Itheirs?
“Mommy! You woke up!” Ella beams when she spots me.
Jamie’s head turns, his grin faltering for just a heartbeat before softening again.
“Hey,” he says. “We were just talking about your secret identity.”
I make my way down the stairs just as Ella wiggles out of his arms and scrambles toward me. “Jamie madeIced Outpancakes, and I helped. I didn't wake you up because he said you needed extra sleep.”
“That was very thoughtful of both of you,” I say, moving to kiss the top of her head. I check her forehead as I do—cool to the touch, no sign of last night's fever. “How are you feeling this morning, baby?”
“All better!” she declares.
I glance up, catching Jamie watching us, and I can feel it. The adoration in his eyes.
It can’t be real, can it?
He quickly returns his attention back to the pan.
“We’ve been making Mr. Nibbles pancakes,” Ella says, beaming with pride.
“I can see that.” I plop her onto the countertop, next to the plate of pancakes and her Mr. Nibbles stuffed fox. “They look delicious.”