15
Quinn
Quinn shifted in bed next to Aiden. For a split second after waking, he thought the previous night had been a dream. He hadn’t exactly planned it, but the date turned out to be more than he’d expected. It almost seemed surreal.
He finally opened his eyes and turned so he could look over at Aiden. He appeared to be sound asleep next to him. Quinn smiled at the un-alpha-like scene of Aiden with his mouth hanging open, a fine line of drool running across his cheek. Laughing quietly, he lifted his hand and gently touched his fingers to Aiden’s well-groomed beard. He loved how soft it was.
He wasn’t sure when it had happened—maybe it was all the stolen lunches they had shared—but somehow, he’d fallen in love with Aiden. He couldn’t even believe it. After Barry, he never thought it would happen again. Yet… there he was… in Aiden’s bed… and now, the alpha had wormed his way into his heart.
He leaned over and kissed Aiden on the cheek, and the man made a sound before opening his eyes to look over at Quinn. “Good morning.”
Quinn smiled. “Good morning. You sleep like a baby.”
Aiden snickered. “Baby? I don’t know how to take that. Did I drool?” He scrubbed at his mouth. “I hope I didn’t snore.”
Quinn shrugged. “Well, I can confirm that, yes, you do drool, but if you snored, sadly I missed it.” He started laughing at the look of horror that came over the alpha’s face.
Aiden shook his head and then leaned in for a kiss, and Quinn couldn’t help but sigh into it. When he pulled back, he held Quinn’s gaze as he said, “Well, last night was amazing.”
Quinn grinned. “Glad you think so. Because I do too.”
Aiden leaned in again and brushed another kiss across Quinn’s lips.
Quinn had woken a few times through the night—it was just habit since he usually checked on the triplets at least once during the night, but this time, he’d just studied Aiden as he slept.
Just thinking about his kids had left a nagging feeling in his belly. He pushed it aside as long as he could, but it wasn’t until they woke up next to one another that Quinn knew the truth and what he wanted.
“What do you have planned for the day?” Aiden asked.
Aiden wiggled his eyes at Quinn, and he laughed. “I don’t have anything on at the moment.”
“How about we spend the day in bed wrapped up in each other’s arms? Sound like a plan? Because it sounds like an excellent idea to me.”
Quinn chuckled as Aiden grabbed onto his arm and pulled him down to him. They kissed, and Quinn lost himself in the moment, but as always, his kids weren’t far from his mind. Aiden had asked about his kids, and he didn’t seem to hate them, but Quinn actually had no idea how Aiden felt about kids in general.
Quinn pressed his hand to Aiden’s chest and pushed himself up. “What do you think about dating someone with three kids?” Quinn asked, allowing the seriousness of the question to come through in his tone.
Aiden frowned and sat up, and Quinn moved so they were seated next to one another. “That’s a silly question,” Aiden replied.
Quinn raised a brow. “Is it? Because I do have three kids, and that’s going to be a dealbreaker if you can’t see yourself dating someone with children. I mean, what happens if we’re set to go out, but Haley runs a fever or Leo has a baseball game? It’s not like I can choose our wants over my kids. They need their father in their life, and I guess I’m hoping the man I end up with is willing to be a stepdad to them.”
“Hey…” Aiden reached out and touched Quinn’s arm. “I would never ask you to leave your kids out of this mix. I know they come with you. You’re a package deal, and I totally get that. You don’t have to worry about me. I want your kids to be a part of this. I swear to you.”
Quinn studied him, and Aiden didn’t flinch. He could tell that Aiden wasn’t just giving him a line and meant every word. At least he hoped his gut instincts were right.
“It’s just that I’ve tried to do the dating thing before, and I’ve found that not too many men go for someone with kids. I don’t want you to feel trapped, and I definitely don’t want us to get in a fight over that down the road.”
Aiden shook his head. “I don’t feel trapped, and we won’t. Trust me.” He leaned in and kissed him, and Quinn didn’t withdraw from the kiss this time. He was choosing to trust Aiden and believe that he wasn’t just telling Quinn what he wanted to hear.
He slowly pulled back, and Quinn smiled.
“Do you trust me?” Aiden asked.
Quinn nodded. “I do, so I think that we should introduce you to the children. If we’re going to give this a whirl, then we need to be all in. What do you say?”
Aiden’s eyes lit up, and he eagerly nodded. “I think that is an amazing idea,” he agreed.
“Great! I can head home, and we can meet up after lunch if that works for you?”
