Ed flushed, shook his head and wordlessly joined the others. Hopefully that would ward off some Park questions for a little while at least. He didn’t want to have to pull out the obscene pollination joke he had ready, but desperate times and all that.

For the next hour, Cooper managed to avoid his father, and chatted with Cayla, which mostly consisted of listening to her read the informational placards to him at every exhibit, peppered with what he could only assume were completely made up facts like “The beaver’s incisors keep growing all his life and his favorite color is purple.”

“That makes sense” was all Cooper ever seemed required to say, and Cayla would nod as if satisfied at his gullibility.

Sadly, his guard against adult conversation eventually skipped ahead to walk with Ed and Sophie, and Dean immediately fell back to join Cooper.

“Funny kid,” Cooper offered to his brother.

“She’s awesome,” Dean said, vibrating with pride for his stepdaughter. “She could be the next great zoologist, if she wants. Make bonkers discoveries, change the world, you name it.”

Sweet as it was, Cooper couldn’t help but think of the last great zoologist he’d known and the discoveries she had wanted to use to change the world. True to her word, Dr. Freeman had maintained her stubborn silence after the Trust refused to give her a deal, not even speaking to Cooper the two times he’d visited.

The first month after that meeting with Cooper, Park and Cola had been on high alert for any whisper of a threat. The second month only Park had remained vigilant, side-eyeing anyone who got close to Cooper and coming up with excuses not to leave him alone. Now, after three months without anything more dangerous than a paper cut, even Park had to agree her ominous warning act may have been nothing more than that: an act meant to manipulate him one last time. After all, who on earth would have any reason to be obsessed with Cooper, of all people?

Dean nudged him out of his thoughts. “What’s with the look? Is my parental bliss giving you ideas? Might there be little Park-Daytons in your future?”

Cooper snorted. “I think not.” One afternoon seemed far too little time to decide parenthood wasn’t for you. On the other hand, it had been a long afternoon. He liked Cayla a hell of a lot, but awkward Uncle Cooper was about as much energy as he could currently imagine putting into all of that.

“You never know,” Dean said teasingly. “Two years ago I wouldn’t have predicted you’d be getting married, but here we are, big day just around the corner.”

“Corner? What corner?” Cooper protested. “We haven’t even set a date yet. There’s no game plan. No decisions made. No reservations booked. No guests invited. And definitely no corners, approaching or otherwise.”