Page 109 of Cross Check Daddies
He spots us and waves. “Hey! You missed the cool blue crab!”
Cam crouches beside him, smiling. “Hey, buddy. We wanted to talk to you about something.”
Jackson nods, dead serious. “Is it about the babies?”
Ace blinks. “You know about that?”
“Duh,” Jackson says. “Mom said we had to name two now.”
I smile. “She said that, huh?”
“Yeah. I already picked names. Can we name one Lazer?”
Cam coughs into his hand, clearly trying not to laugh.
Ace takes a deep breath. “We also wanted to talk about...us. You’ve seen us around a lot, right?”
Jackson nods again, this time without looking up from his sand pile.
“Well,” I say carefully, “we’re kind of... dating your mom. All three of us.”
Jackson shrugs. “Yeah, I know.”
We all go silent.
“You do?” Cam asks.
Jackson nods. “You kiss her. And bring her food. And hug her when she’s sad. That’s dating.”
I glance at Ace. His face is unreadable, but I swear there’s something like pride in his eyes.
Jackson looks up, finally, squinting. “Are you gonna live with us now?”
“Maybe,” I say. “If your mom says okay.”
Jackson frowns, thoughtful. “Then we need more beds. And another bathroom.”
Cam snorts.
Ace ruffles his curls. “We’ll figure it out.”
Jackson gives a solemn nod, then goes back to digging in the sand.
And just like that, it’s done.
No drama. No confusion.
Just a kid who understands more than we give him credit for.
I walk back toward the cabin with the others, something easy settling in my chest. We’re building something here—awkward, strange, unconventional, but real. Full of a kind of love I didn’t know I was capable of sharing.
And somehow, against all odds, we’re all in.
Together.
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
Ace
