94. Tessa

94

Tessa

" I hate you."

"Mean."

"You're supposed to be my friend."

"I am your friend."

"Friends don't force friends to finish a bottle of wine and then laugh when they fall off the sofa."

"What can I say? It was hilarious." Stella swipes her phone and shows me the video she took of me stumbling over the sofa and collapsing in a heap on the rug. The video ends when Juno walks in and calls us out for being drunk in charge of juveniles.

I'm legit embarrassed at my behavior. It isn't becoming of a 30-year-old mom of two.

"You better not have posted that on TikTok," I warn her while nursing a cup of double espresso. Quinn pushes some Advil across the table and smiles sympathetically. If he wasn't Stella's guy, I would consider marrying him. He's so much nicer than my so-called best friend.

Who I officially hate right now.

"I can neither confirm nor deny what happened to the video after I recorded it."

"Oh god." I swallow an Advil washed down with coffee and rest my head on the table. "Please, someone kill me now."

"Mommy! Buttons ate another shoe. I think she's in big trouble. Uncle Brax said so." Harry sounds gleeful about the deceased shoe. Brax less so, judging by the yelling coming from upstairs. I'm guessing the expletive filled rant has added to Harry's swear jar fund.

I still have no clue what he's saving up for, but whatever it is, it won't take long to get there given how often the inhabitants of this house cuss.

"Tell Uncle Brax I'm sorry, and I'll pay him back for the shoe."

"Don't worry about it," Quinn tells me while making scrambled eggs. "He has too many shoes. And besides, they were limited edition Yeezy sneakers." I groan a little louder. Brax must hate us right now.

We've been here less than 24-hours and already Buttons is in the doghouse. She's lucky Brax adores Harry too much to send his pup to the shelter.

Quinn continues cooking food around me while Stella disappears to wrangle her children and mine. I offered to help, but she insisted I take it easy.

"Dinner will be ready about 2 PM."

"Sounds good."

I hope I feel better by then. Otherwise, today will be a complete write-off.

Last night was actually fun, even if the hangover is a killer. I managed to forget about everything for a few hours. We chatted, reminisced about our college days, and laughed a lot.

Today, though, my head is a mess. And it isn't just the horrific hangover. Thanksgiving is supposed to be about family. Stella is my family. More family than my father. But even though I love being here with her and the guys, I can't help but wish my guys were here too.

Cin messaged me this morning to say he and Madden were busy, but he'd call this evening. Kade hasn't messaged at all.

Dad is spending Thanksgiving with his new girlfriend. He invited me and the kids to spend it with them, but it's still awkward between us.

It's going to take time, I think.

There's a knock on the door just as I have Chloe strapped into her high chair.

"I'll get it," Stella yells.

"Are you expecting anyone?" I ask Harley. He winks and walks away, leaving Quinn to deal with Angelo. Callum and Juno come running downstairs, with Harry and Buttons in hot pursuit.

"Sit down and watch the boys," Quinn orders Juno, who rolls her eyes but does as she's told. "Once we're all seated, I'll bring the turkey out."

I'm so lost in my thoughts that I don't hear them walk in. It isn't until I feel lips brush the back of my neck that I realize someone is standing behind me.

"Dada!" Chloe yells with delight, and I spin around in shock.

"Hey, sweetness," Cin murmurs in my ear. "I've missed you."

Madden is behind him. He winks at me, then leans down to kiss my other cheek. "I hear you've been a bad girl. Stella says you got drunk last night."

"You've been chatting to Stella?"

"Yep."

I can't believe she knew they were coming and didn't tell me. She's supposed to be my friend!

Then Kade strolls into the room looking like a hot cover model from a mafia romance novel in his fitted black suit and charcoal shirt. My heart swoons, my cheeks flush, and my core tightens.

The guys sit down, the kids all take their seats, and we tuck into the delicious feast Quinn has spent all morning preparing. It isn't long before my mood lifts and my headache vanishes.

"God, I'm full," Stella groans, patting her stomach.

"Don't worry, sweetheart," Harley grins, "you'll feel better after a nap." His hand disappears under the table and Stella's cheeks turn an interesting shade of pink.

"She will feel better because she'll be with me," Quinn smirks. "You and Brax are on cleanup duty and then babysitting."

Brax looks up and scowls at Quinn, but he just grins and then winks at Stella. "Right, angel?"

"Oh, leave me out of this. I'm long over your pissing contests." She gets up and lifts Angelo from his chair. Like Chloe, the toddler is ready for a nap.

"Come on, Tess. Let's put the babies down for a bit."

We leave the guys and the older kids to clear the table. Once Chloe and Angelo are both settled, she turns to me.

"You and your harem need some alone time."

"No, it's fine—" I begin, but she presses her fingers to my lips.

"Tess, listen to me. The guys have come all this way to see you. Give them a chance. I know you're scared, and I get it. Really, I do. But if you don't give this a chance, you might regret it for the rest of your life."

"But what if they're only here because they wanted free food?"

She rolls her eyes and then grabs my hand, tugging me into the guest bedroom. The door is kicked shut to prevent anyone from listening to our conversation.

"Be serious! As great as the food is when Quinn cooks, I'm pretty sure they came for you, not the turkey, idiot!"

I drop onto the bed and stare at the carpet. There's a chewed-up bit of leather half under the bed, most likely more evidence of Buttons' crimes. I decide not to draw Stella's attention to it, just in case Buttons has eaten another designer sneaker. That pup has expensive tastes.

"I have nothing to offer them. I'm a single mom, the lost daughter of a criminal, and my last partner was murdered."

Stella snorts and rolls her eyes. "Yep, you're a walking red flag, babe. But they adore you anyway!"

"They probably just wanted sex and I was convenient."

"Dear Lord, give me strength!" Stella pulls out her phone and swipes it for a few seconds. "Have you seen this?" She shoves it in my face and I look.

"Cin's Instagram? Of course I've seen it!" His shirtless selfies have kept me entertained for more than a few nights, although I haven't checked his profile for a few days. Has he posted some more sexy selfies?

"Then look a bit closer at his bio."

I grab her phone and peer at the screen. His bio says... in a relationship. In a relationship? Oh, my god. How have I missed this? He's been seeing someone else?!

My heart implodes. The thought of my sexy Cin kissing... fucking ...some other ho-bag makes me sick. How could he do this to me?

"I can't—"

"Oh, for fuck's sake," Stella snaps. "Open his last post and read it, then scroll down to all the comments!"

My hand shakes as I click on the last photo he uploaded this morning, a lovely image of a sunrise, a sliver of moon still visible in the sky. Cin doesn't do moody landscapes. It's nothing like his usual aesthetic.

The comment attached says: This is the first day of the rest of my life with Tessa, the woman I love to the moon and back. #offthemarket #foreverlove #reverseharem

There are thousands of comments, most of them women expressing disappointment and shock that America's most eligible bachelor is off the market. There's also an unhealthy interest in the 'reverseharem' tag, with commenters asking who's in his harem and can they join. I see he's replied to a few of them to say his harem is full and he's taking a break from Instagram.

"He's made a public declaration that you're together. If that doesn't say committed, I don't know what does."

"OK, so he's into me. It doesn't mean Kade and Madden are in it for the long run!"

"Jesus Christ," she mutters. "Talking to you is like trying to reason with Juno." I'm about to argue, but she cuts me off. "Here, take this key and get your ass over to the cabin by the lake. You and the guys are staying there tonight. We'll have the kids. You're welcome."