Page 67 of My Secret Santa Daddies

“Last I checked, we’re all grown-ass adults,” Wyatt says, standing up, and crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m sure as hell not going to ask Sierra to choose one of us over the other. It’s whatever she wants.”

“You guys are my family,” Cody says, “You’re not going anywhere. But Sierra’s part of that family too. There are only four people in this world I give a fuck about, and all of them are under this roof, except for one.”

I rub at my temples, trying to push away the headache forming behind my eyes. “She’s better off without us.”

Wyatt sighs, shaking his head. “You really believe that? You think she would have stuck around this long if deep down she didn’t really want to be here?”

“What do you want me to do? Just show up at her doorstep and tell her I changed my mind? I don’t even know if she’ll listen to me anymore. It’s not that simple.”

“No. It really is. But you know what else isn’t simple?” Wyatt asks. “Watching you mope around like a lovesick teenager when you don’t have to be. She’s right there, Griff. And if you don’t want to be alone for Christmas, you better damn well do something about it.”

“You’re so afraid of losing her that you’ve already fucking lost her bro. We all have,” Cody sighs, shaking his head.

“You think she’ll even want to see me?” I finally ask.

“Only one way to find out.”

“Yeah,” Wyatt adds, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “You can always say it’s for Secret Santa.”

“You’re both idiots.”

“Maybe,” Wyatt says, clapping me on the shoulder. “But at least we’re not scared idiots.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“You better do more than think,” Cody warns, a grin spreading across his face. “Otherwise, we’ll have to kick your ass for being a coward.”

“Good luck with that.”

I turn back toward the window, watching the snow continue to melt under the pale winter sun.

Seeing Sierra with Jack over the past week, and the way she fit so naturally into the chaos of our makeshift family—it brought something back to life inside me. Watching her play in the snow with Jack, cooking with him, tucking him in at night—it was like seeing a glimpse of the future I’d never allowed myself to hope for.

“She was good with him,” I murmur, almost to myself.

“Yeah, she was. Jack loves her. You know that, right?” Cody says, side-eying me from the kitchen.

“I know. And that’s part of what scares me. I don’t want to put him through more confusion. I don’t want to screw this up.”

“You’re overthinking this, man. Jack’s a kid, but he’s not stupid. He knows when people care about him, and Sierracares. She’s not going to hurt him.”

“I know she won’t,” I say, my voice low. “It’s me I’m not sure about.”

“Cut the crap,” Cody interjects, “You’ve spent enough time beating yourself up over the past. It’s time to figure out what you actually want.”

It takes me a moment, but I finally voice my desire, “I want her to come back here and live with us. Well, if you guys want her too.”

“Of course we do,” Cody says sounding thoroughly exasperated.

“I just don’t know if that’s what she wants. She left, man. She left us.”

Wyatt sighs. “And? You think we haven’t done something stupid in our lives?”

“This isn’t the same.”

“No, it’s not. But I know for a fact she didn’t leave because she wanted to,” Wyatt says firmly. “She left because she thought she had to.”

He’s got a point. Sierra never would have left if she didn’t think it was what was best for me, for all of us.

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