Page 19 of Single Mom's Christmas Wish

“Okay, thanks. And it’s no trouble.”

I watch her head back to her parents’ house, closing the door once I see her arrive safely home. I turn around to find Maddox leaning against the staircase railing. “Dakota is… something else,” he says.

“I know.”

“I’m worried.”

“About what?”

“That we’ll get too deep. She’s different.”

I shrug. “We won’t. We’re careful. We’ve always been careful. What’s scary about it is how responsive she was to us.”

We crave intimacy, and Dakota seems to be the unexpected but superbly right answer to our many prayers on the matter. A woman who understands the stress of parenting but also the joys of it. Despite the adversities that she has faced—and I’m sure we’ve barely scratched the surface of her personal history tonight—Dakota keeps rising above it all.

I’m curious. I want to know more about her. To see her again. To kiss her.

Maddox is right to worry. I’m fucking worried, too, that this might blow up in our faces. But we owe it to ourselves to give it a try and see where it leads.

5

Dakota

Reed was exceptionally gallant on the way home. He didn’t even try touching me again. Every fiber in my body screamed for his lips, but he kept our rapport gentle and respectful, a sure-fire way straight into a woman’s heart. Decency—a rare quality in people today yet the Faulkner triplets seem to carry it in bucketloads.

The whole evening was a whirlwind of moments that continue to baffle me.

I had no clue that my body would react the way it did. That my own brain would shut down if only for me to feel the physical desire of three men at once. Had anyone told me a few years back that I’d be into something like this, I would’ve laughed to the point of crying.

It was insane, debauchery at a completely different level, but it was real. The Faulkner triplets are clearly into me. It was fire at first sight during that Single Dads Club meeting, and it’s only escalated from there. But where does it lead? Where do we go with this?

Chelsea comesdownstairs after putting Maisie to bed. “Thanks for bringing her home,” I say as I pull a bottle of pink prosecco from the fridge and a mason jar filled with berries. “Let me treat you to something nice.”

“Oh, Dakota, honey, don’t worry about it. You know it’s always a pleasure. Besides, I just want to know how your date went,” Chelsea shoots back and takes a seat at the counter island, a huge smile slitting her tanned face.

I set the ingredients on the beige marble counter, then pick a few other things from the pantry and the fridge, along with some of my bar tools from the bottom drawer. I’m feeling creative tonight, and if there’s one thing that takes the edge off for me, it’s mixing, just me and the flavors, experimenting until something wonderful happens.

“It was… nice,” I say, wondering if I should tell Chelsea about the whole thing.

Would she understand? Would she be okay with it? We’ve known each other since we were kids. She’s pretty open-minded, but three guys? It might be a stretch, even for her. I start adding berries and several spices into a mixing bowl while Chelsea follows my every move.

“Just nice?” she asks. “You’re kidding. I thought Archer was a super-hot hunk.”

“He is. So are his brothers.”

“Oh, right. Triplets. Come on, Dakota, give me deets, girl. I spend most of my days with children. I need my dose of filth once in a while. Let me live vicariously through you.”

I laugh as I add mint leaves to the bowl, bringing out their aroma with hard, circular, crushing movements. “The date was really nice. We went to Dante’s, we tried some cocktails, we kissed.”

“Ah!” she exclaims, eyes wide with excitement. “You and Archer kissed? Holy smokes!”

“No, me and Reed.”

Now, she’s confused. “I thought you went out with Archer.”

“Actually, I went out with all three of them. I almost kissed Archer. Actually, if the waiter hadn’t come along, I’m pretty sure I would’ve kissed Maddox, too,” I mutter, remembering their touch. My breasts tingle. My core tightens. There’s a vibrator in my bedroom drawer that’s going to need new batteries after tonight.

Chelsea keeps staring at me. “Wait, what?”

---