Page 77 of Detention with Daddies

Okay, that’s an exaggeration, my dress is still beautiful—nearly perfect—after the night I’ve had. And so much of it was fun.

But describing the way each of them looked when they found out about each other…

I drain the rest of my wine and pour myself a new glass.

“They all looked devastated.”

“How do you feel about them all? Situation aside. Think about it. If you’d caught them with another woman, how would you feel?” Shawna raises a single brow at me, an admonishment for not having considered this in the first place.

I shrug. “I don’t know. Jealous? But also, not surprised, I guess. Okay, I would have been surprised if I’d caught Matteo with someone else, but…”

“But not Nick? Not even after you met his ex and that whole thing went down?”

I deflate. “No, I would have been surprised and hurt by that too.”

Because he’d done so much to make up for what happened that day.

“Yeah, he seemed pretty smitten with you when we went to the beach. And it certainly wasn’t all sexual either, although…” Shawna waves her hand in front of her face like she’s hot. “He certainly thinks you’re sexy. He couldn’t keep his eyes or hands off of you that entire afternoon.”

I grimace and flush. “Yeah.”

“Didn’t you also have that come-to-Jesus talk with Dr. Wright too?”

I laugh. “Waylen. I think I can call him by his first name now.”

Shawna grins at me. “Don’t try and change the subject.”

“Yes, we did. But we haven’t gotten much further than sex.” Even if having him near me makes my heart speed up. And the way he defended me at the gala to that rude donor…

He’s trying.

I down another half glass of wine, barely tasting it.

But it mixes with the champagne, and I’m feeling heavy, floaty, like I’m sinking slowly into a warm pool of water.

“And now, you have to make a choice between the three of them?”

“Mmm. They told me not to rush into anything, but yes, it seems that way. I’m nowhere near ready for that.”

Shawna hums. “And there’s no way to keep seeing all three of them until you feel solid in making that kind of decision?”

I bark out a laugh. “I highly doubt it.”

“Okay. Well, I don’t think this is something we’re going to be able to talk through tonight. Especially not with how quickly you’re fading. Let me grab you some spare sweats before you fall asleep in that dress and absolutely ruin it.”

She coaxes me to the bathroom, helping me out of the dress and into some ill-fitting sweats before I completely crash on her couch.

A pang of disappointment hits me before the dreams take over because I’d imagined Waylen unzipping and undressing me when I’d put it on.

When I wake from a restless night of chasing and being chased by all three of my men, of being caught again and again and pulled in different directions, I have a single question.

What’s the difference between being private about my love life at work and hiding it? I don’t feel like I hid anything while I was at work. But I tried to be a little discrete. Closing the door, but I didn’t keep that I was closed in with them any secret.

I eat lunch with Nick nearly every day. I’m closed in Matteo’s office almost daily as well. And Waylen liked to have me visit one of his offices two or three times a week. I didn’t sneak in and out. I didn’t refrain from interacting with them outside of those private moments either.

It beats back the shame that built in me overnight.

But settling that truth for myself doesn’t have me anywhere closer to making a decision.

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