A Little Thankful (Small Town Lovers #8)

Hunter 4

I couldn’t help but spot Sage as she drove through town. I still had a crush on her a mile wide. Ever since her last visit, when our rivalry moved onto the next level, I couldn’t shake her from my mind. I’d called her several times, and we’d had some nice conversations, but then about eight months ago all communication stopped. I’d had some vacation days coming, and wanted to see her. I hinted at driving down to spend some time with her, even asked if she’d like to hop on over to Maui for a week, my treat, but she declined. She said she couldn’t afford to take the time off from work, but I’d gotten the impression she just hadn’t wanted to take the time off with me.

After that, I’d waited for her to call and tell me that she’d changed her mind, but she never did.

Time passed, and I decided to move on. I dated a couple other women, but nothing stuck. I couldn’t shake Sage from my mind, or from my heart.

And now here she was, with a baby. I was hoping she’d come for Thanksgiving, now that her folks were back in town, but I wasn’t expecting the cold shoulder. Hell, I didn’t know what to expect… it certainly wasn’t a drive-by.

I spotted Sage sneak out the back door, carrying a bottle of wine, so I snitched a couple glasses and joined her.

She sat on a chair at a wooden table. The expanse of the pool was covered, and bright orange and yellow leaves rained from the trees that surrounded the terrace.

“Mind if I join you?” I asked as I approached. She struggled to get the bottle open.

“Sure, but only if you’ll open this thing. I was never good with these kinds of wine bottles.”

I took the bottle and it opened easily for me, then I poured the wine into the two glasses.

“My mother would throw a fit if she knew we had glass out on her deck.”

“Your mother is busy with the giggling baby. I take it she’s yours?”

I had no idea what was going on, but I would respect anything she had to say. At least it explained her keeping her distance from me.

She nodded. “Yes, she’s my daughter. Her name is Autumn and she’s six months old.”

There was something in the way she spit out the words, as if they should mean something to me.

“Pretty name. Where’s her dad?”

She took several gulps of her wine, then she said, “That’s why I’m here.”

“Her dad lives in town? Or are you running away from him?”

“He lives in town.”

“Do I know him?”

“Very well.”

“This is Cricket where everyone knows everyone’s business. How could Autumn’s dad live here and I don’t know about him?”

She sipped more wine. “Because I haven’t told him yet.”

“You had a baby without telling the father?”

“I didn’t tell my parents either.”

I slammed back in my chair. “What? You mean they didn’t know until today, until you showed up?”

She nodded.

“Let me get this straight. You had a baby all on your own? Why would you do that? What if something happened?”

I knew this woman was strong, and fiercely independent, but this was way over the top.

“I would’ve called my parents, but nothing went wrong. Everything was totally normal.”

“I hope you had a girlfriend or somebody with you. Why would you do something like this? It’s mad.”

“No girlfriend. An older neighbor looked in on us, and brought me food when I first came home. Convinced me to hire someone to help, which I did, an all-around wonder woman for the first three months. Now, she comes in once a week to clean, cook and give me a break. She’s great, but no friends or co-workers or family. I didn’t want to be influenced. Autumn is my miracle baby.”

I could hardly believe she’d gone through all of this without any family support.

Who did that?

“What does that mean, you didn’t want to be influenced?”

I had a new admiration for Sage, for her determination and her strength. I’d delivered a baby or two in my career. Part of the job, so I knew what it took, and not having someone to lean on had to be tough.

“These were my choices from the very beginning, and I didn’t want any outside forces influencing those choices. My family can be very persuasive, so can friends and even co-workers.”

She sipped her wine as sunshine tried its best to break through some of the pine trees that surrounded us.

“But you told us you couldn’t get pregnant. I assumed you were on the pill.”

“No pills. I have a rare genetic problem, and my doctor told me I couldn’t get pregnant, or at least it wasn’t likely to, but she was wrong.”

“Must’ve been some powerful sperm.”

“It came from a powerful man.”

I drank down more wine. I didn’t like hearing about another man in her life. I wasn’t over her, yet. I knew I had to move on, but I still wasn’t ready to.

“Who is this sperm god. Do I know him?”

“Yes, but I’d like to wait for a bit before I tell you.”

“Wait for what?” Mace said as he walked out on the deck, carrying a pink box of goodies that he placed on the table along with some napkins. He looked at Sage. “I made some cupcakes I thought you might like.”

“Double chocolate?” she asked, grinning, then flipping open the top of the box. There was an entire assortment of cupcakes tucked inside the box. They looked way too good.

“What else?”

She reached for one, along with a napkin, took a big bite and moaned.

I knew that moan well, and my dick reacted.

I grabbed my own cupcake as a distraction.

“Even better than I remember,” she said, with chocolate frosting smeared on her lips. I stared across at her, imagining licking it off for a moment, before she swiped that napkin across her lips, obliterating all the chocolate.

“Glad you like it.”

“What am I missing?” Forrest asked as he walked towards us with another bottle of wine and two more glasses. He opened the bottle with a traditional opener and filled the glasses, then took a chair next to me, while Mace sat next to Sage.

“Apparently Autumn’s father lives here in Cricket,” I told Forrest.

“And how do you know this?” he asked, then he took a few long swigs from his wine, leaned over and snitched a vanilla cupcake, and did it in with only a few bites. The man wasn’t the type to savor his food… just his women.

“Sage just told me,” I answered.

Forrest stared at Sage. “If my calculations are right, that means it’s either one of us, or you had sex with some other guy who lives here in Cricket when you visited on that July fourth weekend. However, having grown up around you, it’s highly unlikely. You’ve never cheated on any of the boys you’ve dated. So, I would say it’s one of us. Am I right?”

He sounded so fucking logical, and it was so apparent, I hated myself for not seeing the truth as soon as she began telling me her story.

“No way. Come on,” Mace groused. “She would’ve told us right away.” He turned to Sage. “Wouldn’t you? I mean, why would you keep something like that a secret? We could’ve been there when she was born. We could’ve helped you go through your pregnancy. We could’ve held her when she was first born. Why wouldn’t you have told us?”

Sage didn’t respond. Instead, she merely stared at him, like she didn’t know what to say or how to say it.

If what Mace just said was a shock to her, his words were equally as shocking to me. I had no idea he was so into kids.

I had to say something in her defense. “Because she didn’t want to be influenced on her decision on whether or not to keep her baby.”

“You mean, what I just said is true? I could be a dad?” Forrest mumbled. “Theory is one thing, but reality is something else entirely. You assured us you couldn’t get pregnant. Said you had some sort of issue in that department. This doesn’t fit into my plans. I can’t be a father. Not now. It has to be either Hunter or Mace. Not me. I’m not ready.”

“Calm down, cowboy,” I told him. From the time we were on a baseball team together when we were kids, Forrest always overreacted whenever the agenda changed. He hated interruptions in his plans. “She hasn’t verified anything yet.”

“Of course, that was your decision, but that’s not a reason to keep it from the dad once you made up your mind, or is it? Sage… what the hell?” Mace seemed miffed now. As if he’d missed out, which he had if he was the dad. Just like I knew Forrest had his own plans for fatherhood, I knew Mace wanted to be a dad as much or probably more than he liked to bake.

Me? At the moment, I just wanted Sage to feel safe, like she could tell us anything and we’d be on her side, but so far, I didn’t think she felt very safe or secure about anything. No wonder she chose to keep her baby a secret.

I finally got it.

She drank down her glass of wine, then went to fill up her glass again, but I stopped her.

Instead, I pulled out my phone, hit Spotify and played September by Earth Wind and Fire.

“We can always dance,” I told her, as a beautiful smile stretched her lips. I held out my hand as I jammed to the beat of one of my all-time favorite songs.

“Do you remember…” we sang as I twirled her around.

At once the tension drained away, and we danced around Forrest and Mace who eventually joined us. One thing was for sure, before everything turned to complete shit, we could spin a song and head on into a much better mindset… “ never was a cloudy day!”

ABOUT AN HOUR later, once Autumn was fed, changed and went down for the night, and her dad ordered in several large pizzas, the family settled into having a baby in the house, we followed Sage over to the guest house for a little more privacy. I grabbed a couple pizzas and a six pack of beer, before we trotted over. Hunger had taken hold, but Sage wasn’t about to hang with the family yet. Good thing, because I had no idea what to say to them, and I knew that was the same case for Forrest and Mace.

Mrs. Pilgrims seemed more than happy to listen for Autumn on the baby monitor, while Grandma Iris wanted nothing more than to nap in the same room. It seemed the Pilgrims couldn’t get enough of their new little miracle.

“Okay, now spill. What’s going on?” I asked Sage once we were seated in the small living room. Mace had flipped the switch on the wall for the gas fire in the hearth, which was fine with me. No mess. “I think it’s time.”

I opened the pizza boxes, while Sage brought in some plates and napkins. I popped open the beers and everyone took one, including Sage.

She plopped down on the sofa, took a big bite of her pizza, then washed it down with a quarter of the beer, wiped her mouth, sucked in a deep breath, then said, “To be honest, I have no idea which one of you is her dad. I thought I could tell when she was born. I thought she’d look like one of you. Have your coloring or maybe a nose that looked like Forrest’s or hair color like Hunter’s, but she looks exactly like me when I was her age, down to her red hair and her button nose. Even her lips are shaped like mine.”

“So, then it’s one of us for sure, right?” Forrest asked looking even whiter than usual. He’d already downed most of his beer, but it wasn’t giving him the courage I think he’d hoped for. I could tell this whole baby thing was more than he’d ever bargained for.

“Yes,” she confirmed. “It happened during those three days we were stuck in the cabin.”

“But you said…” Forrest argued, as he paced and ran a hand through his hair.

“I fucking know what I said, Forrest. Don’t you think I was as surprised as you are right now? I wasn’t supposed to be able to get pregnant. I must have taken five different pregnancy tests, then confirmed it with an official test from a doctor before I could accept it. Once I did, I knew I would do everything in my power to protect her. That’s why I didn’t come forward. Your reaction is exactly why I hid her for all these months. If she’s yours Forrest, I understand if you don’t want any part of this. I get it. She’s a huge responsibility. She’s life changing. Believe me. I know. But she’s the best thing that ever happened to me, and I want to thank you… all three of you for blessing me with my sweet baby girl. I love her more than I will ever be able to put into words.”

And with that, Forrest did something I’d never in a million years thought I’d ever see from him.

He cried. Flat out bawled worse than that giggly little girl tucked inside the house.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” He wiped his eyes, and sucked up his emotions so he could go on. “I thought I would never have any kids of my own. Why do you think I pretended to want to put it off until I was older. It was because I never, ever thought it would happen.” He walked over to Sage, and knelt down on one knee. “Whether she’s mine or not, you broke through my fear and gave me the best gift of my life… a baby girl and I love you for it.”

“What the fuck, bro?” Mace asked. “You gonna propose or what?”

“If that’s what it takes to be part of her life, then yeah. I’ll do anything,” Forrest said.

“Not so fast,” Sage urged, holding up a hand, then sat back in her chair. “I didn’t come here for a proposal. I came here to… well… to spend Thanksgiving with the people I love and to introduce Autumn to her family, and that includes her father.”

She drank down more beer, then took a few more bites of her slice.

“Maybe all three of us are her father,” Mace said, grinning.

“Yeah, maybe we don’t want to know which one of us shot the potent seed,” I said, meaning every word. “Maybe this is one of those times when it’s better not to know the exact truth, and instead just be thankful she’s here.”

“Speak for yourself, man” Forrest said. “I want to know if she’s mine.”

“And that’s what we’re going to do,” Sage said. “I’ll contact Doctor Charles tomorrow and set up DNA tests for everyone. Once it’s resolved, you can either choose to be in her life, or not. It’s up to you, but just know, there’s no half-ass bullshit. Either you’re all in or you’re all out. I won’t have it any other way.”

“And where will you and Autumn be living?” I wanted to know just in case Autumn was my biological daughter. I loved Cricket and never wanted to leave, but I would if I had to.

The ice-cold beer felt good on my parched throat. This entire day had been an emotional rollercoaster. I started in on my slice folding it in half. I was too hungry to piss around. I needed it in my stomach, fast.

“That’s just it. I don’t know where I want to live. That’s up in the air. My job, my office is in San Francisco. I don’t know if that’s all transferable. Not that I’m in the office very much, but still. When I started really showing, I never went in, but afterwards, yes, at least once or twice a week. When I was a kid, I couldn’t wait to leave this town, but every time I come back here, I realize how much I miss it.”

“And us?” I asked. “Do you ever miss any of us?”

I wanted her to tell us that she would consider moving back here to be with us… with me.

“That was just sex,” she fired back, crushing my hopes. “We don’t really know each other very well. We never even dated. I mean, yes, we grew up together. And yes, I’ve had a crush on each of you at one time or another, but I’ve never dated any of you individually. How do I know or better still, how do any of us know if we’re even compatible? Maybe if we spent some real time together, we’d hate each other.”

Not likely, I thought.

Mace messed with his phone, as if whatever was going on was important. We just ignored him, knowing damn well that bakery of his sucked up all his attention 24/7. Especially this time of year when everyone wanted not only pies from Sweetie Pies, but bread, cakes, cookies and whatever other desserts he and his staff created over at Just Desserts.

“Maybe we would, and maybe we wouldn’t, but we’ll never know if you run back to the city,” Mace said, looking up from his phone, and sounding more logical than Forrest. I was surprised he was even listening. He’d only taken a couple bites out of his slice, and never really touched his beer.

“Look at it this way, we’ve known things about each other our entire lives. We all grew up here,” Forrest said. “We know the basics. How long are you here for, Sage?”

“I’m supposed to leave on the Saturday after Thanksgiving.”

“That doesn’t give us much time to try this thing out,” I said, wanting a ray of hope in all of this. “Plus, it’s probably not enough time to see which one of us is the baby daddy.”

“You might be right on the DNA test. I don’t know how long those take, but what are we trying out, exactly?” she asked, looking like she truly didn’t get what we were proposing.

“Let’s see if we’re compatible? See if there’s any real chemistry,” Mace added. “I think that’s important, no matter what way this thing goes.”

Sage grinned, and my cock reacted. Every time that woman smiled, my entire body responded. No doubt there was a lot of chemistry going on, and had been ever since we spent all that time together. In one sense this whole thing with Autumn was like a gift. I didn’t know how the other guys felt, but for me, it didn’t matter who actually got her pregnant, I was willing to take on the role of Autumn’s dad. Fuck, I’d marry Sage if she’d have me.

I was in love with her.

My heart skipped a beat when I finally admitted the truth. When I finally was honest with myself. Seeing her again, and being this close to her only solidified what my gut already knew. She was my soulmate, my person, my woman and I’d be damned if I was going to let her walk away this time without giving our relationship everything I had to make it work.

“I’d say we already know we have chemistry,” Sage began. “Autumn proves that. But can we like each other… on a continual, daily basis? That’s the real question.”

She had a point, at least when it came to Forrest and Mace. There were plenty of group relationships in this town. More than any other town I’d heard of, but could we be one of those groups? And, more importantly, did we want to be? Forrest was a nice enough guy, but a little too logical to be around all the time. The guy only thought in black and white. There was never anything gray in his world. Could I handle that?

Then there was Mace who seemed obsessed with his bakery. Everything in his world revolved around the perfect chocolate chip cookie, or the perfect sponge cake batter.

What the fuck?

I was the only alpha male in this trio, so did I fit in? Or would they try to pin that toxic masculinity bullshit on me just because I run towards a fire when everyone else was running away from it?

That would be the problem.

I guzzled my beer down and opened another. Then I grabbed another slice, folded it in half and went to work on it.

“What are we talking about here? Are we talking about moving in together? Like all four of us?” Forrest asked, looking shell shocked by the whole idea of it. He held onto his beer bottle like it was some kind of life raft in a storm.

“Yeah, I guess we are,” she said. “Or maybe just me with Autumn’s dad. That would work as well. Or not. Maybe this is all coming at us too fast and none of us knows how to handle it. I know I don’t know how to handle it and I’ve had months to try and figure it out.”

I agreed that we were moving too fast, but maybe I had a solution.

“How about we just get to know you first, Sage,” I suggested. “You spend some one-on-one time with each of us, after we take the DNA test. Then if we truly don’t mesh, well, then…”

“Then we’ll sort that out in the coming days,” Mace told us. “And speaking of the DNA test, I’ve been texting Dr. Charles and she’s not busy tonight, so she can stop by in about thirty minutes to take a sample from each of us. Said that because of the holiday, the sooner we can get our samples to the lab, the better our chances to get the results before Thanksgiving.”

“Holy shit!” Sage said. “This is moving faster than I’d anticipated.”

“That’s the thing about Cricket. Everything moves faster than in a big city because everything we need is right here,” I said. “Are we all in this thing?”

“Damn straight, we are,” Forrest said.

“All in,” Mace said.

“Here we go!” Sage said. “Tell the good doctor, the sooner the better.”

Mace stared at his phone for a moment, then he said, “She’s already on her way.”