Chapter 33: Morning Routines

The smell of coffee woke me up early at 6:15 AM, even though the machine was set for 6:30. I stayed in bed for a bit, hearing quiet sounds from downstairs – cabinets opening, the fridge humming, someone moving around.

Mikel.

The thought made my stomach flip in a way I wasn't ready to think about. He was up making coffee, probably trying to help with Emma's morning routine without me even asking.

My phone buzzed. Another text from a weird number. I knew the drill by now. Any happy moment always brought on a new wave of creepy messages.

*Aww, cute morning. He's trying so hard to be the perfect husband again. Too bad you know what he can really do.*

I trashed it without reading more. Sophia was getting sneakier, trying to mess with me. She wasn't just making threats anymore; she was trying to make me doubt every good thing with Mikel.

But I wasn't going to let her ruin this morning.

I found him in the kitchen, already dressed, hair wet from the shower. He was staring into the fridge like it held the secrets of the universe.

"Looking for something?" I asked, and he turned around, smiling.

"Emma mentioned you make her special pancakes on Thursdays," he said. "I wanted to surprise you both, but your fridge is too organized. I can't find anything."

I laughed. "That's because the pancake stuff is in the pantry. Emma wants very specific things—blueberry pancakes, dolphin-shaped."

"Dolphins?"

"Don't ask. She started when she was three. Now it's a thing." I went to the pantry, feeling him behind me. "I can show you how to make them."

"I'd like that."

Being in the kitchen together felt easy. Mikel did what I said, asking about Emma and listening as I told him about our mornings. He was careful as he poured batter into the molds. I kept watching him, seeing how focused he was.

My phone buzzed again. Another text.

*So cozy together. Like the old times never happened. But they did, Bella. And some things never go away.*

I turned the phone over, but Mikel saw my face.

"More texts?" he asked quietly.

"Nothing," I said, but that wasn't true.

The messages had been coming a lot lately, always when Mikel and I were getting closer. It was like someone was watching, waiting to make me doubt things.

"She likes them a little crispy," I said, standing close to show him. "And she wants three, exactly."

"Why three?"

"Because dolphins are in groups, and a family group needs at least three." The words just came out, and we both froze at what that meant.

"A family group," he said softly, looking at me. "I like that."

Emma's footsteps saved us. She showed up in her unicorn pajamas, hair all curly.

"Daddy! You're making my dolphin pancakes!" She ran to Mikel, hugging his legs.

"Good morning, princess. I hope I'm doing it right."

Emma peeked at the pan. "They look good! Mommy, did you show Daddy the secret stuff?"

I looked at Mikel. "Love," I said. "The secret thing is love."

"Oh," Mikel said, playing along. "I think I put in extra love today."

Emma laughed and sat at the counter while we cooked. I got her juice, and Mikel flipped pancakes like he'd been doing it forever.

But even though I was happy, I also knew how it looked to anyone watching. How easy it would be to twist this into us moving too fast, trusting too much, just waiting for another fall.

"Mommy, how is Daddy so good at it?" Emma asked, cutting up her dolphins.

"Some people are just good cooks," I said.

"Actually," Mikel said, sitting down, "I spent the last few years learning to cook. I figured if I ever got to make breakfast for my family again, I wanted to do it right."

The way he said "my family" made my chest hurt. Emma smiled at him, but I had to look away, understanding he'd been getting ready for this for years.

My phone buzzed again. I ignored it, but Mikel saw.

"What else did you learn to cook?" Emma asked, not knowing what was going on.

"Well, I can make grilled cheese, spaghetti, and something called 'emergency cookies' for when someone is sad."

"Emergency cookies?"

"Chocolate chip cookies that take fifteen minutes when someone needs cheering up."

Emma's eyes went big. "Can we have emergency cookies tonight? Not because I'm sad, but because they sound good."

"If your mom says it's okay."

They both looked at me, waiting, and I knew this was how it would be. Two pairs of eyes asking me, including me in everything. Being part of a team again scared and thrilled me.

Especially when someone was watching, trying to find my weak spots.

"After dinner," I said. "If you eat your veggies."

"Deal!" Emma put out her hand to shake Mikel's, making him laugh.

After breakfast, we did our new morning thing. I packed Emma's lunch while Mikel helped her with her school stuff.

"Daddy, do you know about show and tell?" Emma asked as he put on her backpack.

"What about it?"

"Today, I will talk about our family. Mrs. Patterson said we could bring pictures."

She held up a drawing from yesterday—three stick figures holding hands that she'd given to Mikel. "I'm going to show them this and tell them my daddy came home."

My heart hurt. To Emma, things were easy: her daddy was home, and now they were a family.

But I thought about the texts, about someone watching us, and wondered if Emma's fun was making us weaker.

"What are you going to say about me?" Mikel asked.

"That you're the best daddy, and you can make dolphin pancakes, and you live in our house to take care of me when I'm sick."

"That's good, princess."

My phone buzzed as we went to the car. I looked at it anyway.

*Aww, sweet. Emma's going to tell everyone about her perfect family. Too bad perfect things break so fast.*

I put the phone in my purse, but my hands were shaking.

Emma talked the whole way to school. Mikel and I smiled at each other in the front seat. It felt normal that I had to remember it was new.

And someone was watching.

"Bye, Mommy! Bye, Daddy!" Emma kissed us and ran to class, her backpack bouncing.

"She's cool," Mikel said as we watched her go inside.

"She's been asking for both parents to take her to school since she was four," I said. "I used to make things up about other families and why she only had one."

"What did you tell her?"

"That some families are different, but they all have love." I stopped. "She used to ask if her daddy would ever come to her school."

"What did you say?"

"I said maybe, if we were lucky."

Mikel was quiet as we drove. "Bella, I want to come to everything. Plays, fairs, meetings, games—everything I missed."

"Emma would love that."

"What about you? How would you feel if I was there?"

I thought about it. The texts whispered to me to go slow, not trust so fast.

But looking at Mikel, I knew Sophia wanted me to doubt this—the chance for a real love, a family that could stand anything.

"A little while ago, I would have said it was too hard, too confusing for Emma. Now?" I looked at him. "Now I think she should see both her parents cheering her on."

He smiled. "Really?"

"Really. But Mikel, you have to understand—you can't change your mind. Emma couldn't lose you again."

"I'm not going anywhere, Bella. Ever again."

He said it so surely that warmth spread through me. As we drove home, I saw that, for the first time in years, I wanted to be home for dinner, help with homework, and read stories with two parents.

My phone buzzed again. I ignored it.

"So, what's our plan today?" Mikel asked as we parked.

"Our plan." He just said it like we were a team. My heart jumped a little.

"I have meetings until three, then I work from home to be here when Emma gets back."

"I can pick her up," he said. "I made sure to be free this week for whatever you two needed."

"You made sure you were free?"

"Bella, I have five years of missing afternoons to make up. Things can wait."

I almost cried. "She'll be so happy. She's never had a parent pick her up during the week."

"Then today will be another first."

We were in my kitchen, sun shining in, and I realized this was what I'd wanted all those years ago—someone to share the work of loving Emma, someone who wanted the small things as much as the big ones.

"Mikel," I said softly, "thanks. For caring about the little stuff. For those pancakes and learning cookie recipes. For wanting to be at everything."

"Thanks for letting me," he said. "For letting me be the father Emma should have, and the man you thought I could be."

We were standing close, and I could see the gold in his eyes, smell his cologne and coffee.

"I should get ready," I said, but I didn't move.

"Me too," he agreed, also not moving.

"This morning was..." I looked for a word. "Nice. It's really nice."

"It was good," he said. "Like we've been doing this for years."

"It feels like it sometimes. Sometimes it feels like no time has passed."

"And sometimes it feels like I'm meeting you all over again," he said softly. "Seeing you with Emma, seeing the mom you are, the woman you've become—it's like liking someone new with the face of the person I never stopped caring about."

The words hung there, real and scary.

My phone buzzed. Again. And again.

"You should check that," Mikel said.

I took out my phone. Three new messages:

*He's good at this, huh? The right words, the right moves. Like he's been practicing.*

*Remember how easy it was to believe him before? Until you found him with someone else.*

*Some people never change, Bella. But some people never learn.*

I looked at the messages, feeling Sophia's poison in the morning we'd just had.

"What is it?" Mikel asked, looking at my face.

"Nothing," I said, but I didn't sound sure.

"Bella, we said—no more secrets."

I showed him the messages. He got angry.

"She's trying to mess up every good thing we have," he said. "Every step we take, she pulls us back."

"I know," I said, but I started to doubt things anyway. The messages were too exact, too perfect. How could Sophia know when to send them if she wasn't watching us?

"Mikel," I said, "I know it's early to say this. I know we're taking it slow, trying to trust each other. But this morning, seeing you make our daughter laugh, working together—it makes me think we can do something great again."

Instead of the fear I expected, he smiled. "You know what I thought this morning?" I asked, stepping closer.

"What?"

"When Emma ran to hug us, when she was excited about show and tell, when you knew just how she liked her pancakes that I told you..." I realized she was not the only one who had been waiting for you to come home.

His breath caught. "Bella..."

"I've thought so much about protecting myself, not saying too much, now I can't help but notice it was you." I stepped closer. "I have waited so long that I noticed we are considered family once again."

"Are we?" he asked. "A family?"

Before I could say anything, my phone rang with Elena's call. We broke the spell.

"I should answer," I said.

"Of course."

But as I answered Elena and started talking about business, I saw Mikel watching me. I realized I was excited when I came home.

Because I felt both of them were waiting for me.

As I finished the call with Elena and Mikel went back to his office, humming while I was getting to work.

I felt like a woman would feel the touch of love, because Mikel makes sure I have this day for myself as well.

My phone buzzed: *Enjoy the honeymoon phase, Bella. They never last.*

I laughed, because the honeymoon phase I'm in is because of Mikel, and he showed a father to Emma and a love to me I needed. He said he was going to be here forever and never go away, because of love.

We were okay.

They were okay.

We were okay as a family.

And no amount of words can change love to hurt for the family.