Eric’s cedar scent enveloped him like a hug. But the bed was empty, and so was Jenn’s cot on the baby monitor.
Olivier groaned, a twinge of loneliness seeping through his chest. Where were they? Since when have I started missing Jenn, too?
He rolled off the bed, staring down at his belly. At eighteen weeks, it was close to half the size of a watermelon, and faint stretch marks lined his skin. Eric’s baby was in there.
It was a baby that would love Ollie regardless of anything.
Smiling now, Olivier pulled on a bathrobe to cover up his nakedness, padding out of the room.
Traffic sounds rumbled faintly through the apartment. Golden sunlight slanted through the windows, illuminating his sheet music on the walls. The aroma of coffee teased his nose.
Great, now I want coffee, too. But it was probably regular coffee, wasn’t it?
Now itching for a taste of coffee and salmon, Olivier followed the baritone of Eric’s voice. Jenn squealed somewhere.
Water splashed behind the hallway bathroom door. Olivier grabbed the doorknob, about to open it.
Then Eric’s voice dipped into a low note, lifting higher, and Ollie realized Eric was singing.
His heart tripped. Ollie pressed his ear to the doorjamb, closing his eyes so he could focus on Eric’s voice.
“Under the stars on a lonely night, when all the world’s alone,” Eric sang. “I’m somewhere out there in the world, my love is overgrown.”
Jenn babbled along to the song, out of tune. But she was singing, too, and Olivier desperately wanted to see them. If he opened the door... would Eric stop?
Ever so slowly, he turned the doorknob. Held his breath. Pushed the door open bit by bit, until Eric’s singing washed over him like the rumble of the ocean. It was a song they’d sung together, once upon a time—Stories With Us.
“My tears are shed and my voice is thin, but my love is like a stone. If I could be a shooting star, my feelings for you will be known.”
The words rose out of Ollie’s memory like bubbles to the water’s surface. He thought about singing along, but he hadn’t had practice in years. Instead, Ollie poked his head into the bathroom.
Eric sat naked in the tub with Jenn, suds all over their bodies, the air heavy and humid. Jenn splashed in the water, sending bubbles flying. Then she glanced up.
Ollie held his breath. “Keep on singing,” he said.
Eric’s smile turned mischievous. “Only if you join me.”
“In the tub?” Olivier asked. Was there even space?
“You’ll have to sing, too.” Eric grinned. He hauled Jenn closer to himself, leaving an empty spot on the other side of the tub. “The water’s warm if you wanna join in.”
Ollie gulped. A warm bath did sound good, even if it only reached up to Jenn’s stomach. “Is that appropriate? Bathing with your child?”
Eric shrugged. “It’s how I did baths with her when I was parenting alone. Easier to give up and get wet yourself, than trying to avoid being splashed. ‘Cuz you’re definitely gonna get splashed.”
Olivier chuckled. He shut the door behind himself, tempted.
“Not like you’re wearing anything under there.” Eric eyed Olivier’s bathrobe.
“Well, no.” Olivier shivered, slipping out of the robe.
Eric’s gaze coasted down his body like a warm, heavy caress.
“It’s almost as though you haven’t seen me before,” Ollie mumbled, his cheeks prickling.
“I can’t get enough of you.” Eric caught Jenn’s hands, clapping them together. “C’mon, Jenn. Let’s cheer for Ollie to get into the tub. Go, Ollie go! You can get in the tub! You can do it!”
“Gods, Eric!” Olivier laughed, stepping into the warm water.
The heat soaked into his skin, drawing him into the tub like a siren’s call. Olivier sank into the water with a sigh. Eric lifted the shower head, testing its spray before he handed it to Ollie. “Here. Water’s warm.”
Olivier let the water patter all over himself, sighing at the welcome heat.
“Good?” Eric rumbled.
“Better if you’re singing to me.” Olivier grinned.
“Then you’d better sing along,” Eric said. “Still remember the lyrics?”
“Just the ones you sang.” Olivier winced. “It’s been a while.”
Years back, when Ollie was sixteen and Eric, fourteen, they’d attended the same music class. It had been somewhere safe, where Ollie could lean into Eric without being judged, and their voices had melded together.
“Let’s start over, then.” Eric met his gaze, his eyes warm with love. Olivier’s insides melted.
“Gi-gigi,” Jenn said, splashing water everywhere. “Dada!”
Eric laughed. “Yeah, yeah. Let’s sing again.”
“Ya-ya,” Jenn said.
Eric grinned, starting the first verse. Slowly, Olivier joined in, singing louder when he felt a little more confident. And as he sang, Eric’s smile grew.
“You sound different now,” Eric said between verses. “A little deeper.”
“Do you like that?” Olivier asked, cradling the shower head against himself.
“Yeah,” Eric growled. He lifted Jenn, moving her over so she could cozy up against Olivier.
On instinct, Ollie shuffled closer to cushion her. Jenn was tiny, and he didn’t want her getting hurt.
Will I ever be worthy of being her dad? Would Alice mind?
When they sang the second verse, Eric lowered his chords. He was trying to harmonize with Ollie—the moment Olivier realized that, his nerves tingled.
It wasn’t easy, harmonizing with someone. You had to alter the notes here and there, experiment a little, practice a number of times to get everything perfect.
Twice, Eric’s voice blended with Olivier’s in spine-tingling perfection. Eric’s smile grew. And as they sang the same verses over and over and Eric hit more perfect notes, Ollie’s pulse quickened.
“I can’t believe we’re doing this again,” he breathed, holding Jenn’s hands.
“Believe it,” Eric said, grinning wide. “About time we were. When’d you last sing with anyone?”
Olivier swallowed. “It’s been a while. Since... since you.”
Eric’s eyes darkened. He was the only person Ollie had ever tried harmonizing with. They’d sung the best duets in music class, and after Eric left, Olivier had turned to violins, unwilling to sing again. It hadn’t been the same with anyone else.
“So sing with me,” Eric murmured, squeezing Olivier’s hand. “Maybe someday we’ll get Jenn and the baby to join
