Hearts Need Love

Chapter 9

Nico di Angelo was the hottest dad Will had ever seen. Fuck, he was the only dad he had even looked twice at. That dark hair pulled up in a bun, the dark blue sweater and the black skinny jeans. His daughter stumbled in beside him, her hand clenched tight in his.

Bianca looked just like her father, having the same dark hair and eyes. But her hair had a little more effort to it, running down her back in a complicated braid Will couldn't even begin to understand. Bianca had on a pink dress and leggings, a bow just as pink on her head.

They were the perfect family. Every time Will caught sight of them as they walked into the café, he couldn't stop the smile that spread over his face.

"I love your dress," Will commented. He slid into the booth across from Nico and Bianca, offering the later one of his biggest smiles.

Bianca grinned and stumbled out a few words before looking up at her father. "Drink!"

"I doubt they have apple juice here so you're going to have to settle for water," Nico muttered. He reached for his wallet but Will grabbed his hand, stopping him.

"I'm paying," Will insisted. "And I'll go get everything. What do you want?"

Nico was staring at their hands, his cheeks as pink as Bianca's dress. "Um...any coffee, I don't care."

"Any food?"

Nico looked to Bianca. "Hey, you hungry?"

Bianca nodded as she began to pull at Nico's loose strands of hair.

"Maybe some donuts," Nico decided.

Will nodded before walking over to the register, the butterflies in his stomach eating him alive as he waited in line. He could already imagine a life living with Nico, raising Bianca, maybe someday becoming her father-

The barista asking him what he wanted kicked him out of his thoughts, thoughts that were coming way too early in a relationship. But he smiled nevertheless. He was with Nico, it wasn't just unacquainted anymore.

He brought the order to their table, giving Nico one coffee and keeping one for himself. "They had orange juice, too, so I got her that and a water. I didn't know what you wanted to get her."

Nico grabbed a sippy cup from his bag and emptied the orange juice into it. "Bi, tell Will thank you."

Bianca stood with her small feet on her father's lap, her arms against his chest to keep herself up as she looked around the room, too busy seeing who else was there to focus on the order.

Will sat in his seat again and slid the order of donut holes over. "I got an assortment, didn't know what you two liked. Does she have a favorite donut?"

Nico shrugged as he got the lid on the sippy cup. "Doesn't get them often. She's already hyperactive without us pumping sugar into her."

And that's how Will found himself having deep conversations with Nico di Angelo at a small coffee shop, a toddler crawling over both of them without any end in sight. But whenever Nico apologized, Will waved him off completely. He enjoyed spending time with them. Both of them. He couldn't believe how anyone would want to walk out on that relationship.

(Bianca's mother came to mind, her departure to France and no word since. Would she one day come back, realize her mistake? Try to take her from Nico and Will and all the others that cared so much about her...)

"Look!" Bianca had shoved a donut in his face, the chocolate frosting smudged all over her skinny fingers.

"Chocolate," Will said. "Is that your favorite?"