22. Kat

Chapter 22

“ L ast night, your old man agreed to let me bring her down to the office to talk about the possibility of sharing her.”

“Which she clearly agreed to,” Desmond says, his voice full of sarcasm, and I imagine he’s rolled his eyes too. It’d be funny if I weren’t so outside of my comfort zone with them right now.

Yes, a few months ago, I was in the middle of a wonderful sandwich with the two of them, but I was heartbroken and a little tipsy. Not to mention, I didn’t live in their house or work for them.

A lot has changed in the last few months. I squirm between them, hearing Alex recount the way he fucked me on Nathan’s desk as he watched and again in my room last night before fucking me in the shower this morning. I can’t bring myself to regret a single thing, and I don’t think I’m going to regret this either. How could I when I’ve been dreaming of them like this?

The truth is, it was great being with Alex again, but I’d missed Desmond too, and knowing I’d been wrong about what I saw that night, well, it left me with a lot of regret.

What could have happened if I hadn’t run away the way I did?

Would we have gotten to this same outcome? Probably not.

Honestly, I can’t imagine a world where I would still be Addison’s nanny. Hell, she might not even like me if I’d come in as one of their girlfriends instead of her teacher. We’d built our friendship while she was my student, and she learned to trust and turn to me.

No, everything happened a little crazy, but I can’t say I’m not happy with where we are now.

Desmond's fingers dig into my hips, and he drops his head forward until his forehead rests on the top of my head, and he groans as if he’s in pain.

“Don’t be such a baby,” Alex says with a chuckle as he presses his lips to my neck. Desmond’s head snaps up so fast that it’s a wonder he didn’t hurt himself.

“Don’t be a dick. You know I love shower sex,” he snaps, and I feel my brows climb my forehead in disbelief as my eyes open impossibly wide.

“Don’t worry, Kitten. My bathroom's soundproof,” he tells me, sounding very proud. While I can’t say I’ve ever heard of someone soundproofing a bathroom, I can’t say it sounds like a bad idea—especially not after Alex had me shouting and moaning this morning.

Alex’s hand snakes around my waist to the front of my pants, where he makes quick work of my button and zipper. It’s impressive, honestly, but I quickly grab his hand before we can get any further, and he instantly stops.

“What about Addison?” I ask because not only is it my job as her nanny, but I’d be lying if I said I still wasn’t worried about how she will handle me with any of them. The last thing I need is for her to come looking for us.

“Nathan is getting her into bed. He knew what would happen when Desmond found out you agreed.” His words take the edge off, but I can’t help feeling just a little bit bummed to know he once again didn’t care to be a part of the sharing.

Not that he shouldn’t prioritize his daughter; of course, he should. But it still feels as though he doesn’t want me, despite him saying he did and looking like he did in his office yesterday.

My shirt is pulled up and over my head without warning, leaving me standing in only my bra and pants. However, before I can register what's happening, my shorts are also being pushed down.

“She has a nasty habit of overthinking, it would seem,” Alex says as I look down to find him at my feet. Having been the one who just took my pants, he taps one ankle and then the other to have me step out of them.

“Damn Kitten.” My head snaps up to look at Desmond, who stands in front of me, his teeth sunk into his bottom lip as his eyes trace up and down my body. Without thought, I cross my arms over myself in an attempt to hide, but that seems to have been the wrong choice.

Desmond's brows pinch together, and he takes a step toward me. Instead of looking up to meet his gaze, I turn my head down to the ground.

“Hey, what are you doing?” he asks, and this time it’s my turn to bite my lip, unsure how to answer him.

A sharp sting on my thigh makes me squeak in surprise as I jump away, looking down to find Alex still on his knees.

“Did you just pinch me?”

“Actually, I bit you, but same thing.” With a shrug, he pushes to stand, snagging one of my arms and yanking me into his chest. His fingers tangle in my hair, pulling my head back until our eyes meet, and his eyes are hard and not at all playful the way they usually are.

“If you don’t want to do this, all you have to do is say so,” he pauses for a moment as if waiting for me to respond, but I don’t because that’s not what this is. “But what you're not going to do is hide from us and pretend like you're not beautiful. Do you understand?”

Again, I can’t bring myself to respond, so instead, I nod and hope he will accept that.

Desmond moves up behind me, his arms wrapping around me, his fingers closing around my wrists so that he can gently pry my arms open. I don’t fight him. I don’t want to hide from them; they make me feel better about myself than anyone ever has, but it’s a habit.

He drops my arms at my sides before his fingers slowly begin to trail back up my arms, leaving goosebumps in their wake. My fingers twitch, and I fight the urge to cover myself, feeling Alex’s eyes on me. His gaze is intense as he watches Desmond’s hands until they disappear to my back, and a second later, my bra falls.

Clearly, these men are experienced in ways I wasn’t ready for because they make bra clasps and pants buttons seem so easy. I’ve had days I struggle with my own bra, damn it.

Desmond steps forward, and I feel his bare chest press against my back as he pushes the bra off my arms until it drops to the ground.

Alex moves in a blur of motion, quickly scooping me up before he moves toward my bed and tosses me onto it. I bounce more than I would have thought possible and can’t stop the giggle that works its way past my lips. It’s silly and not at all a sexy thing to do in the moment, but it was unexpectedly fun.

Desmond is on the bed with me a second later, a smile on his lips as he looks down at me. Before I can say or do anything, I’m being pulled back down the bed by my ankle. Alex’s grip is firm but not enough to hurt, and when my ass hits the end of the bed, he wraps my leg around his waist, and I quickly do the same with my other leg. It’s not until he moves forward that I feel the heat of his lower body pressed against my almost naked lower half and realize at some point he’d lost his own pants.

When had that happened?

“Have you ever been fucked in the ass, Cherry?” Alex asks, his hands moving around my waist to grip my ass as he talks about it.

“Ugh… I—” My mind blanks as I attempt to answer him, leaving me gaping at him like a fish out of water.

“I’m going to take that as a no,” Desmond says with a chuckle, and I snap my mouth shut.

“That’s okay. We can work up to that,” Alex says in what I’m sure is supposed to be a reassuring tone, but somehow, it’s not.

His eyes dart up to meet Desmond’s gaze over my head, and a smirk curves the edge of his lip up. “Too bad you’ll just have to deal with her mouth until then,” he teases, and Desmond barks a laugh as he moves closer to me, only for me to realize he’s also missing pants.

My eyes drop to the steel bars that line the underside of his cock, and I swear my mouth waters. Desmond is the only pierced dick I’ve ever seen. Honestly, before him, I hadn’t even put much thought into the idea of it. I’d read about it in a book or two over the years, but it always seemed exotic, like something very few people had. So either that was wrong, or I’d somehow just gotten extremely lucky.

“I think we’ll live,” Desmond says, and I quickly look up to find him looking down at me. No doubt he saw the way I was just looking at his cock, if his comment is anything to go off of.

“What do you say, Kitten? Can I choke you with my cock while Alex fucks that perfect pussy?” His question catches me off guard, and it’s not just because of the question itself but because it’s hot as fuck despite it having no reason to be.

Dirty talk was never something I got into. In the past, it always felt forced, but not with Alex and Desmond. No, with them, it’s hot, and for the first time in my life, I think I might just understand why women go crazy for it.

It takes me a second to realize he’s waiting for me to answer him.

“Um, yeah…” I say, and honestly, it’s probably the least convincing thing I’ve ever said in my life, but I’m kind of distracted.

Alex and Desmond apparently hear the lack of conviction in my voice as well.

“Come on, Kitten, I think you can do better than that,” Desmond says, reaching down to grip his dick before slowly pumping his hand down the hard length, over each bar, until they disappear under his hand.

Alex’s hands start at my knees before slowly working their way up to the edge of my panties, where he teases me instead of continuing where I want him most.

“Yes!” I hadn’t meant to say it so loud, but their teasing seems to be getting the best of me right now.

“Yes, what, Kat?” Alex presses, his fingers still teasing the edge of my panties.

I groan in frustration from their teasing, but also the fact that he’s going to apparently make me spell this out for him.

Asshole, he’s enjoying this way too much.

“Yes, Desmond can choke me with his cock while you fuck me.” I refuse to call my pussy perfect, but apparently, I’ve said enough. One second, I’m on my back, damn near ready to beg them to touch me, and the next, I'm on my being flipped on my stomach.

“Up on your knees,” Alex says, slapping a hand to my ass and spurring me into action.

The bed dips behind me, and I feel Alex, though I don’t look back at him. Instead, I keep my eyes on Desmond, who is on his knees in front of me, his cock hard and dripping.

Without a thought, I lean forward, darting my tongue out to lick at the bead of pre-come that’s collected at the tip of his cock while he’s waited for me. It’s not the best-tasting thing, and the texture is strange, but the hiss followed by his mumbled curses make it worth it.

Alex pulls my underwear to the side, not even bothering to pull them off, before he runs two fingers over my soaking wet pussy and gives a husky groan of his own.

“So fucking wet for us.”

Desmond growls at his words before pulling his gaze from me to look toward Alex, and I follow his gaze curiously to find Alex holding up his fingers to show Desmond the evidence of my arousal.

“Fuck, I missed you too, Kitten,” Desmond says, no doubt seeing the red that tints my cheeks.

Alex presses the head of his cock to my opening but doesn’t fuck me the way I want him to, the way I need him to right now.

“Fuck me, Cherry. Choke yourself on his cock and take what you need from me. Let’s show Desmond how much you missed him and all that metal in his cock.”

It sounds like he’s teasing, making fun of Desmond’s piercings, but I honestly don’t think he is. If anything, I think he somehow understands how much I enjoy his piercings, which is crazy because I hadn’t said anything about it to him.

Whether he knows or just guessed, I don’t need to be told twice. Alex and I have had more than enough sex in the last twenty-four hours, but I feel as though I’ve been being teased for days.

I want both of them.

Before I can let myself overthink it or second guess, I sink back onto Alex’s waiting cock in one swift press of my hips that has him bottoming out. This angle lets him get even deeper, and I gasp at the feeling of him so deep inside me. Desmond takes the opportunity with my mouth open to move forward, letting his head rest on my bottom lip. I quickly dart my tongue out to swirl around his head before swallowing him down as far as I can.

His hand grips my hair as he presses in further, and I swallow down the urge to gag, instead rocking back to once again impale myself on Alex’s cock.

Me being in control is great, but it only lasts about three minutes before the guys take over, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t prefer it.

They work together just as well as I remember, and without even needing to communicate, they fuck me hard and fast, and before I know it, Desmond is coming down my throat.

“Fuck, I missed you, Kat. There won’t be any escaping a second time,” he tells me, holding my chin as I look up at him through my lashes as Alex continues to fuck me, pushing me closer and closer to release.

“No, this time you're ours,” Alex says in agreement, wrapping a hand around my waist where his fingers skillfully find my clit and begin to rub slow circles. With each circle, he picks up the pace of his fingers and his thrusts to match.

I come with a shout as my orgasm is ripped from me, and my arms and legs give out, leaving me a pile of boneless mush on the bed.

“I think she likes being ours,” Desmond says, his voice breathy, still not quite back to normal, and I can’t help but chuckle.

My eyes are drooping as my orgasm subsides, and I swear I could sleep right here like this, damn near naked and dripping come.

Instead, strong arms scoop me up and carry me to the bathroom before gently cleaning me up with a warm, wet towel.

“Just a few more minutes, and we can go to sleep.”

He’s so damn gentle as he cleans me—not something I think people would expect from either of them based on their appearances, but I love it.

Desmond finishes up before once again picking me up and bringing me back to the bed, and I’m happy to find Alex there. I’m not sure why, but the idea of him being gone when we came back made me sad. Don’t get me wrong, I want Desmond here, but I prefer both of them, especially after we just all had time together like that.

I’m a cuddle after sex kind of girl, sue me.

“Sweet dreams, Kitten.”

I know they’re both gone when I wake. I have a distant memory of them kissing me and telling me they were going into the office for the day. It’s strange how quickly I’d become used to them being in my bed. Just one night with Alex and last night with them both, and now my bed almost feels too big without them.

It’s still a bit early. Addison will probably sleep for another hour or two, and while I’m tired, I can’t bring myself to go back to sleep. With a groan, I push myself up and out of the bed and make my way into the bathroom to shower, hoping that will wake me up a bit more.

By the time I’m done, I feel alive enough to start my day. I decide against putting my hair up, letting it hang loose to air dry, and risk it frizzing in the heat. My hair is long and thick, so putting it up while it’s wet is almost certain to give me a headache, and I just don’t have the energy to blow dry it right now. Not to mention, if we swim again, it's all for nothing.

I finish up my morning routine, brushing my teeth and putting on some lotion before I grab my daily birth control pill from the medicine cabinet. I’m not fantastic at remembering these things and I make a mental note to get into the doctor for something different soon. For the last few months, it hasn’t been a big deal, as I wasn’t having sex. But missing a pill or two now…well, it matters.

The guys hadn’t said anything about it or even seemed concerned about if I was on anything, and it’s not as if we’ve been using protection.

Shit, that wasn’t very smart on my part, but it’s a bit late to worry about that now. I’ll just have to talk to them about it later.

Ruby’s waiting outside of my door when I leave my room. His ears perk up, and his tail starts wagging the second he sees me and I can’t resist stopping to give him some scratches.

He follows me down to the kitchen, where I make my own cup of coffee. I sip it while wandering around the kitchen, looking at the ingredients available. There’s a bit of everything, and eventually, I settle on pancakes before shooting off a text to Nathan to let him know Dale won’t be needed this morning.

By the time Ruby pops up again, I have everything prepped, and a moment later, Addison comes running into the kitchen right into my arms.

“Good morning, Princess,” I tell her, hugging her close as she nuzzles into me.

“Morning,” she mumbles with a yawn.

I hold her until she begins to squirm, clearly having enough hugs for now. When I set her back down, her eyes go right to the little station I’ve made for us to cook at on the counter.

“What are we making?” Her eyes light up as she turns to me, waiting on my answer, and she’s just so stinking cute!

“Pancakes.”

She lets out a squeal of excitement before rushing to the stool I have set up so she can get a better look.

“With chocolate chips?” She’s all but vibrating on the stool now, and I move forward to make sure she doesn’t fall, but I can’t help but smile down at her. For a little girl who has literally everything she could ever want, she’s so excited about the little things like this, and it warms my heart.

“Of course,” I tell her seriously, reaching out to boop her nose and making her laugh. “What kind of pancakes don’t have chocolate chips?”

With only the two of us, we don’t need to make a lot, and it doesn’t take long before we have a nice stack of steaming chocolate chip pancakes ready to go. Addison eats them so fast I have to tell her to slow down, worried she might choke. After we’ve finished, I send her upstairs to get dressed and work on cleaning up the mess we made in the kitchen before going to get dressed myself.

My hair is dry now, so after I change, I braid it so it stays out of the way. Unfortunately, I still haven’t been shopping, and most of my clothes are still work attire. So, I ended up picking a dress because shorts are limited.

The thought gives me an idea, and I leave my room to go find Addison. I’d half expected her to come find me already, but sometimes she stays in her room to play, and that’s where I find her. She doesn’t look up as I approach, and I stop in the doorway to watch her with a smile.

“Mommy, Mommy, I love you so much. You're the best mommy ever,” she says, holding a little doll in one hand and another full-size one in the other. I love you too, Princess,” she says to the other one and makes them hug.

It’s adorable and so innocent, but it also pulls at my heartstrings.

I’d thought about the conversation about her calling me Mom, and while I haven’t said anything or had a chance to talk to Nathan, I know if she ever called me Mom, I wouldn’t stop her.

“Addison, honey.”

She turns at the sound of my voice, dropping her dolls before coming to grab my hand and pull me back to her dollhouse.

“Here! You can play the mommy!” she says, shoving the mother doll in my hand with a smile.

I sit and play with her, the dolls swim and cook, and every time she calls ‘mommy,’ she looks at me with the biggest eyes, and just like that, I’m putty.

When she seems to have become bored with the dolls after a while, I ask, “Addison, I was wondering if you wanted to go to the mall with me today. "

The second the question is out of my mouth, the dolls are all but forgotten as she lunges into my arms.

“Yes!” she shouts happily before releasing me and running out the door. With a chuckle, I quickly follow her, hearing her talk to Ruby as she goes, seemingly unaware of me behind her.

“She’s the best mommy ever, Ruby!”

Nathan had given me Vincent’s number and told me to text him should we need or want to go anywhere, so I do just that. He texts back even before I can put my phone away, saying he will be here in less than five minutes.

Addison makes a beeline right to the door, throwing her shoes on in record time and going out to wait on the porch. A fence blocks off the whole property and sits back a ways from the road, but I can’t help rushing to put my own shoes on, not liking her outside alone. Ruby sits on the porch with us, and we give him all the belly rubs until Vincent pulls up. Then, he takes himself to the door to be let in.

He’s the best-trained dog I’ve ever seen, and honestly, it kind of makes me sad I’d never had one growing up.

“Uncle Vinny!” Addison flies down the stairs and right into his arms, and he smiles as he grabs her.

“Hey Princess, where are we off to today?” Vincent asks her, but his eyes meet mine over her head.

“Mommy’s taking me to the mall!” she shouts, and I watch as his eyes go wide. I’m almost positive mine are the same right now, but neither of us corrects her, and she doesn’t even seem to realize what she did.

Vincent recovers before I do. “That sounds like a great time.” He moves back to the car, which for once isn’t the typical limo I’m used to him chauffeuring the Lawson’s around in. He opens the back door before letting her down, and she quickly scrambles inside, clearly used to this car as well. I, on the other hand, pause. I’d thought the limo was expensive, but even before I get in, I know this is more.

The seats have footrests that look like they recline!? And the back doors open from the opposite side of a normal door.

I didn’t even know cars could have this many features.

“Kat,” he says to me with a nod as I meet him at the door to get in, and I’m not sure why, but I can feel my cheeks heat under his gaze.

Fuck, who am I kidding? I know exactly why. He’s a very handsome man, and being the center of his attention like this is almost intimidating.

I nod in return, murmuring a soft hello as I climb into the car. I hope he thinks my reaction is from Addy calling me Mom, and not him. I have more than enough crazy shit going on right now and more than enough men…I need to get it together.

“Did you have a specific mall in mind?” he asks as he slips back into the driver's seat and pulls away from the house.

Crap. It’s a good question. I guess I really hadn’t thought about that. In Maine, we only had one mall close enough to go to.

“Um, no. I’ve never been to any of them, so whatever one you think would be best would be great.” Vincent nods, and I let out a small sigh of relief that he seems to know where to go.

Addison talks to Vincent and me about everything and nothing the whole way there, making it less awkward, and the drive seems over in no time.

“Call me if you need anything. I’ll be out here when you're done.” He holds the door open as we get out. Addison’s jumping around, but I keep a good grip on her hand as I stop, not wanting her to slip away.

“That’s not necessary. I have no idea how long it’s going to take. I can just text you when we're done,” I insist, feeling bad about the idea of him just sitting out here doing nothing for God knows how long.

He pushes the door closed before turning to face me with a smirk that somehow makes him look even better than he usually does.

What is with these men and their smiles?

“It’s actually my job, so it’s not a big deal. Oh, that reminds me.” he reaches into his pocket and pulls something out, holding it out and offering it to me.

I don’t reach out to take it, unsure what it is.

“The boss said to give you this.”

He opens his hand, and in his palm lays a credit card, but not just any credit card…it’s a black card.

Instead of taking it, I take a step back, shaking my head. “Absolutely not.”

He chuckles and shakes his head. “Yeah, I told him you would probably say that, but he insisted.”

His words catch me off guard, and for a moment, all I can do is look at him.

What does he mean he told him I would say that? How would he know?

“I don’t care if he insists. I’m not taking that.”

Without another word, I turn and head into the mall with Addison happily skipping beside me. Nathan already pays me more than enough. I don’t need more of his money. Especially not when he’s already paid me for my first three months to ensure I had everything I needed when I moved in.

We ended up spending a few hours at the mall. I get clothes that are less school teacher and more suitable for anywhere. Addison gets a few things, too, and we even get a pair of matching sundresses. We stop in a kids' play area for a few, and I let her burn off some of her energy before we grab a snack from the food court and head out.

Just like he said he’d be, Vincent is there waiting. He quickly exits the car before coming around to take the bags from me. I scowl at him, but if he notices, he ignores me, making his way to the trunk and dropping them in. Taking advantage of him being occupied, I move to the door and open it for Addison before I climb in and close it behind me.

When he slides in the driver's seat, he catches my eye in the rearview mirror and cocks a brow but doesn’t say anything. I can’t stop the smile that pulls at my lips, knowing I won this round.

We get back to the house, and Vincent, seemingly learning, lets us out first, ushering us toward the house, not letting me get near the trunk. Addison runs right to Ruby and starts telling him about her fun day with Mommy, and this time, it only makes me pause a moment.

“Hey, Cherry.” Alex’s arms come around my waist as he pulls me into his chest and drops his lips to my cheek, making me jump. I hadn’t realized he was home yet. “Just what I needed after a long day at the office,” he breathes the words against my neck, and I shiver.

“Uncle Alex!” I jump at the sound of Addison’s voice and try to move away, but Alex doesn’t let me go, instead pulling me closer.

I glare at him, but he seems unfazed as he simply moves me over a step and pulls her up into his arms. Addison launches into a step-by-step playback of our day at the mall and everything we did. And while Alex only has his arm around my waist, it still feels very intimate, especially with Addison in his arms.

I’m not sure if she doesn’t notice because she’s so immersed in her own story or if it just doesn’t phase her, but she doesn’t seem to care. I wish I could say the same; instead, I can feel how warm my cheeks are.

“Oh, matching dresses?” Alex asks, raising a brow before turning to me, and I roll my eyes. Of all the things she said, that’s, of course, the one thing he focused on.

“Yes! Do you want to see?” Addison exclaims, all but jumping out of his arms and running over to the bags to rummage through them before he can answer.

“I want to know what else you got,” Alex whispers in my ear, and my eyes widen, knowing exactly what he means.

“Alex,” I hiss, smacking his chest and darting my eyes back to Addison, who is thankfully still blissfully unaware.

“Trust me, she won’t hear a word I’m saying right now. Someone gave her an amazing day out, and it will be all she talks about all night,” he says with a laugh, dropping a kiss on my head. It’s such a sweet gesture, it’s almost worse than when he’s being overly touchy.

These men will be the death of me.

“All I did was take her to the mall,” I tell him with a huff. He’s acting as if I did something amazing.

“It was more than that to her.”

Before I can say anything, my phone rings, pulling my attention from him.

Nobody ever really calls me. I don’t give my number to many people, and most of the people who do have it live here and usually text.

Fishing my phone from my pocket, I see the school's number on the screen. Strange, I still have a few weeks of vacation before teachers have to report back, so what could they need?

I guess there’s only one way to find out.

“Hello.”

“Hello, Katherine, this is Barbara.” Funny enough, I’ve never spoken to Barbara on the phone before, but I somehow recognize her voice just fine. Maybe it’s the snotty, stuck-up tone, or maybe just the way she spit my name. “The headmaster wanted me to call and inform you that a few rooms had to be changed over the summer, one of which is yours.”

She sounds bored, as if she’d rather be doing anything but calling me, and I can’t say I don’t feel the same. Of all the people in the building, she had to be the one to call me. Most people have been standoffish with me since I’d been talking to Nathan, but I’m pretty sure she actually hates me.

“We’re going to need you to come in tomorrow and get everything sorted.”

I stand almost in shock, unsure of what to say to that.

Tomorrow? Really? They couldn’t give me more time than that?

“Um, I’ll have to see if I can…” I turn to look at Alex, unsure who I need to ask or what I should do. It’s my job to watch her. I could probably bring her with me.

“Well, if you can’t be here tomorrow, I can have the janitor handle it. This should be a priority over simple summer plans, Katherine.”

Bitch.

“I—I didn’t say it wasn’t a priority, but I have another job, and next day is very short notice,” I explain, trying very hard to keep my annoyance out of my voice despite her attitude.

She laughs, and it rings out loud enough that I have to pull the phone away from my ear with how loud it is.

“You’ll be there,” Alex growls, and I can’t help but smirk when Barbara all but chokes on her laugh.

“Yes,” she clears her throat, no longer sounding so amused. “Very good. Have a wonderful night.”

The line goes dead, and as much as I enjoyed hearing her get put in her place, I can’t help but worry about tomorrow.

“Alex…” I trail off, but I don't need to explain. Apparently, he’s a mind reader now.

“I don’t need to go in for a whole day tomorrow,” he says with a shrug. “I’d hoped to steal you away for a little while, but I’m okay with waiting until bedtime, if it means shutting that bitch up.”

He looks like he wants to say more, his brows pinched in a way I’m not used to seeing. For the most part, he seems pretty laid back, ready to go with the flow, but not right now. The only other time I can remember him looking like this was the first night I met him when he and Desmond handled the asshole at the bar.

I hate to admit it, but damn, is it attractive. I have to bite my tongue against asking what else he thinks about her.

“Oh, you like that, huh?” he asks, dropping a kiss to my cheek and chuckling.

“What? No!” I say, a bit too loudly, making him laugh harder.

“Mommy!” Addison exclaims, and I turn to find her with our matching dresses clutched in her little fist and a huge grin on her face.

I’d never thought that a bit of fabric would make her so happy, but I can’t help but smile back.

“Mommy, huh,” he growls, pulling my back to his chest, and it’s impossible for me to miss the feel of him pressed against my back. “I quite like the sound of that.”

Oh, shit.

That shouldn’t be so hot, but at this rate, I’m going to have to do more than change my clothes when I put that dress on.

“Well, what are you girls standing around for? I’m waiting for my fashion show.”

Addison lets out a squeal of excitement before she runs to me, grabbing my hand to pull me behind her and up the stairs. Our laughter bounces off the walls as we rush up the stairs, and I feel Alex’s eyes on me the whole way.

I can’t remember the last time something so simple made me feel like this or when I was this happy, ever.