Page 26 of Choices

"And where were you two?" I ask suspiciously.

The boys share a look and simply giggle at each other. I roll my eyes but can't help the smile that spreads across my lips. I love that these two have bonded instantly.

"Oh, you two are going to be trouble together, aren't you? Do I need to separate you two?"

Matty gasps in mock horror. "Never!" He says, grabbing Jack and pretending to run away with him.

Viv's leans down whispering something into Santiago's ear, likely pointing out someone suspicious, because his head swivels and he glares, making a soccer Dad speed up his pace a little.

Viv's interests have always leaned toward the morbid, or serious. She never liked the Disney-fied Grimm brothers tales, she wanted the originals.

She didn't want the Cinderella who got revenge on her step-sisters by marrying the prince. She wanted the Cinderella whose step-sisters got their eyes plucked out by ravens.

Somehow, it makes her and Santiago seem cut from the same cloth.

Rico sits next to me on the bench and loops his pinky finger over mine. The gesture is so small and so intimate, but it sets my chest on fire and I purse my lips to hide my stupid smile.

"Why don't you leave him,mami?" He asks, leaning towards me so he can whisper intimately.

"I don't have any money," I reply sadly.

Because at the end of the day, it all comes back to money.

"He has control of all of the accounts. It's his name only on the deed. He gives me a small allowance every week for groceries and bills. I can't even afford a lawyer to draw up the paperwork."

"You know Matty's a lawyer, right? And I could set you up financially."

I lean my head on his shoulder. "I couldn't take your money, Rico. Once it runs out, what will I do? I need something sustainable to provide for my kids. I'd need a safe space for them." I turn to face him more. "Rico, there's no way he would let me divorce him and take the kids. It would be a blow to his image and reputation. He'll lock me up in divorce court and bleed me dry."

Rico seems to consider this.

Instead, I look out at my kids. Viv's trying to teach Santiago how to do a handstand and Jack's trying to figure out how to backflip off of Matty's shoulders.

"It's nice seeing them smile. I mean they're happy with me at home, but it's nice to see them interact with men."

He nods silently. I'm afraid I've said something wrong or offended him somehow, but he simply helps me pack up from lunch before we move to the field Aiden's playing on.

Once the chairs are all set up - Viv in her pink one, Matty pacing some distance off on the phone, with Jack on his shoulders again, I sit in mine and Rico reclines next to me again, propped up on one elbow.

Silently, he reaches over and runshis finger up and down the side of my ankle. When I don't stop him, he casually caresses the outside of my ankle, his forefinger tracing the bone and tendons there. His finger wanders to the inside of my ankle, and it may have well been my pussy. The intimate touch of him, so slow, so leisurely, so decadent. It's sexual but not, intimate but not, teasing but not, and for the hour and a half Aid plays my breathing gets deeper and deeper, my palms get sweatier and sweatier, and my panties get wetter.

I never knew such an innocent touch could ignite a fire under my skin. I don't know if Rico knows just what he's doing to me. For all I know, it's completely innocent. But I'm about to push him down and fuck him in front of a crowd of soccer moms and their children.

Finally, I clear my throat and inch my foot away. Instead of letting me go, Rico's fingers slowly wrap all the way around my ankle, holding me firm. A mental image of him, his hand wrapped around my ankle like this while he pulls me down a bed towards him flashes before my eyes and I squeeze my thighs together, painfully aching.

I let out an embarrassing whimper, and while I can't see Rico's face from this angle I can almost feel his predatory smile. He gives my ankle one last squeeze before letting it go again.

I don't know what's going on with these men. I'm a frumpy stay-at-home soccer mom, while they're powerful criminal kingpins. I'm insanely attracted to all three of them, there's no denying that. It's like they appeared in the middle of the night, found my libido, and then lit a raging fire underneath it.

And I haven't missed the heated looks they throw my way, too. Rico's are intense, and he doesn't try to hide his attraction in the least. Matty's heat has an almost manic energy behind it. I've even caught Santiago lookingat me with a mixture of something like desire, awe, and a heavy dose of shyness. I get the feeling he doesn't put himself out there very often - doesn't allow himself to be vulnerable.

But clearly there's no future here, right?

All I know is that I like being around them, I'm happy and I feel more myself around them. And I'm rediscovering I kinda like who I am.

After the game Rico and Matty help me load everything in the back of my car while Santiago gives each of my kids a fist bump and proceeds to scan the parking lot.

After closing the back hatch, Rico closes in on me, placing his hands against the car on either side of my head. His gaze is intense, setting me on edge. I swallow hard.

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