Page 29 of Triplet Babies for Pucking Christmas

I glance down at the baby, my mind still racing. “And Jamie’s out?”

Troy groans, running a hand through his hair. “Yeah. He left, right before…all this.”

“And he doesn’t know?”

“No. I haven’t called him yet. He’ll freak.”

“Right,” I say, barely able to keep up. “So, it’s just… you, Savannah, and this baby?”

He nods, his eyes flicking between me and the baby. “Jared, what the hell do I do?”

Savannah’s holding the baby close, looking far more relaxed than either of us. “Well, for starters, I think you should at least try to calm down. Panicking’s not gonna help.”

He throws her a look. “Easy for you to say—you’re not suddenly a parent.”

She raises an eyebrow, not looking the least bit intimidated. “Look, I may not be, but freaking out isn’t helping. He’s probably hungry or maybe needs his diaper changed. Basic stuff.”

I stifle a laugh. Troy’s staring at her like she’s speaking a foreign language. “You’re saying that like it’s just…normal.”

She shrugs. “I know a little about babies.” She glances back at me. “What about you, Jared? You ever held a baby before?”

I scoff. “I’m usually the one handing them back.”

She rolls her eyes, then looks at Troy. “All right, let’s start with the basics. We need baby formula.”

Troy looks lost. “Formula?”

“Yeah, you know—the stuff babies drink?”

“Uh…” He frowns, glancing at me as if I might have the answer. “I don’t know…should we order some?”

Savannah sighs, and I can tell she’s barely holding back a laugh. “Yes, that’s probably a good idea. And you might want to pick up some diapers, too. Like, now.”

I chuckle, shaking my head at the absurdity of this. “All right, let’s divide and conquer. Troy, why don’t you go pick up the essentials? We’ll keep an eye on…uh, what’s his name, again?”

“Noah,” they reply in unison.

“Okay…Noah. Savannah, do you think you can write down a list of everything Troy needs to get at the store? List anything you think Noah may need,” I tell her.

“Perfect. One of you is going to need to hold him, though,” she says.

Troy shakes his head vehemently. “No way. He is so small. I feel like I could drop him.”

Savannah turns her attention to me. I can feel myself sweating as I settle on the couch and then she is bending over and placing the little bundle in my arms. Noah stretches his little arms and then settles back against my chest, his eyes fluttering closed.

He is such an adorable sight.

Savannah heads to the kitchen to come up with the list, and that is when I turn my attention back to Troy. “So, man…any idea who the mother is?”

He wraps his hand behind his neck and squeezes. “No. The fact that the letter left was addressed to me and Jamie could mean that she’s one of the girls we have shared.”

I nod. “Do you think you could come up with a list?”

He shakes his head. “I think Jamie would be better equipped to know their names. They are mostly puck bunnies we pick up after games. Jesus,” Troy rubs his eyes furiously. “Jamie is going to freak out.”

“He really has no idea?”

“Nope. I was waiting on a puppy from Chase, so I asked him to go pick him up from the clinic.”

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