Page 39 of Secret Daddies

But that quiet didn’t last long, as Lee buzzed on the door and came up laden with shopping bags. I cast an eye over the mountains of product he was carrying, shaking my head slightly.

“This is way more than?—”

“I wanted to make sure we had enough for everyone,” he replied, ducking through the door. “Where’s the kitchen…?”

I directed him through to the kitchen, where Taylor had set about making some pasta dish. I had never been much of a cook, but he seemed confident enough that I was willing to just stand back and let him work. With everything that Lee had brought with him—which he refused to let me pay for—the apartment was soon filled with delicious savory scents, eventually coaxing Devon and Matty back out to join us.

“Where have you been?” Lee asked playfully, as though he was jealous that Devon had gotten all that time with Matty alone.

“He was showing me his Trio toys,” Devon replied, looking down at Matty fondly and giving his shoulder a squeeze. “It’s a pretty good collection, I have to say.”

“I’ll have to check it out,” Lee remarked, but Taylor glanced around from where he was standing over the stove.

“After dinner,” he replied. “It’s almost ready.”

“Let’s set the table, huh, Matty?” I suggested, and then I winced. “Oh, damn, I don’t know if I have enough seats for everyone…”

“We’ll figure it out,” Devon told me softly—and, judging by the smile on his face, he wasn’t just referring to the seating arrangements.

We did figure those out too, though, pulling a beanbag from Matty’s room for Lee to sit on and stacking up a couple boxes that I could perch on top of so we all had somewhere to sit around the table. The meal that Taylor had made was delicious, a rich tomato sauce that clung to thick strands of pasta, covered with a generous helping of cheese.

“Where did you learn to cook?” Lee remarked as he took a hefty bite. “This is actually pretty good…”

“Not all of us have had personal trainers and chefs our whole lives,” he shot back, flashing Lee a grin.

“Oh, yeah, I forget,” Lee teased. “You actually had to take care ofyourselffor a while, right…?”

The conversation flowed easily, with Matty just listening in as best he could—whenever I looked at him, his eyes were widewith delight and surprise. Though I knew this was likely going to invite all kinds of complications into my life that I sincerely didn’t need, I would have given anything to see him that happy. I loved knowing that my little boy was so full of joy, so glad to be surrounded by these men who he adored so much.

After dinner, once we had cleared up, I could see that Matty’s head was beginning to droop.

“You should get some rest, baby,” I told him, and he shook his head at once.

“I’m fine!” he protested, but it turned into a yawn before he could even get the words out. Devon chuckled.

“You should listen to your mom, buddy,” he told him. “Get some sleep.”

“Will you guys come visit again?”

A silence lay over the room for a moment. Devon hesitated, and looked over at me. He clearly didn’t want to make any promises that he couldn’t keep, but I could see the hope in his eyes, clearly wishing that I would just agree to what my son was asking.

“We’ll see, sweetheart,” I replied. “Come on, let’s get ready for bed…”

I took him to get washed up, and tucked him under the covers, pulling them up to his chin like I always did. Though he was obviously still pretty excited, today had been so much that he could barely keep his eyes open by the time I flicked the light out.

“I love you, honey,” I told him as I pressed a kiss against his head. As I straightened up, I couldn’t help but smile as I looked down at him. So happy. Just the way I liked him.

But as soon as I stepped out of the door and closed it behind me, I was struck by a sudden realization—I was now alone with the three of them. The three guys I had been trying to avoid, the three guys from whom I was keeping one big-ass secret. Though there was no way they could guess what I’d been concealing from them, I couldn’t help but worry that it might bubble up to the surface at any second and come spilling out before I could stop it.

Gathering myself, I took a deep breath and stepped back out into the living room. Sure enough, there they were, just where I had left them—though, without my son in the room, the vibe felt very different than it had before I’d left.

“Hey,” I greeted them awkwardly, leaning in the doorway, twisting my hands around themselves as I tried to stem the doubts rushing through my mind.

“Hey,” Lee replied, taking the initiative. “I got a bottle of wine when I was out. You want me to pour you a glass?”

“Uh, I’m good, thanks,” I replied, my hand brushing over my stomach almost without realizing. “But you guys go ahead.”

Lee headed to the kitchen, and I noticed Taylor giving me a slightly odd look—as though he had noticed my reaction, perhaps reading into it more than I would have liked. I cleared my throat and drew my gaze away from him quickly, and turned to Devon instead.

---