"I'd say there's nothing wrong with that if you're serious about her. You know how Mom feels about us getting involved with single moms."
"I wouldn't have invited her if I wasn't serious about her. I just don't know if she feels the same." She'd asked for help a few times, which was a big deal for her. But I wasn't sure how open she was to dating anyone right now.
Ford nodded. "You won't know if you don't ask."
"I tried to ask her the other day, but Morgan and Maverick interrupted our conversation. It's tough getting time to talk about anything when there's always a child and annoying brothers around."
"We're not that bad, are we?"
"Eh." Ford was the oldest, so the one who tried to keep us in line. But he wasn't usually successful. We were a wild bunch, and the only thing that had reined us in was when Aspen was born. We sensed that we had to protect her from us and anyone else who could hurt her.
Aspen said we were overprotective, but that's what happened when you had so many older brothers. I had a feeling she didn't talk about who she was dating because she didn't want us butting in, and now that I was on the receiving end of their curiosity, I couldn't blame her.
"Are you ready for everything a single mom brings to the table?"
I nodded. "I like spending time with them. Tonight, it felt like we were a family."
Ford slapped my shoulder. "Don't screw it up."
"Honestly? I don't know what I'm doing. I've never dated anyone with a kid, and I don't want to hurt either one of them." My gaze was on Angela who was talking with Penny and Aspen.
Ayla had convinced Maverick to play a board game. Maverick looked comical sitting on the floor with his tattoos, listening intently to a little girl explain the rules to him when I was positive he already knew them. I appreciated that he was making an effort with her.
Ford nodded. "That's a good start."
"Are you the expert on love now that you locked things down with Natasha? Or is Lincoln probably a better resource? He made Penny fall in love with him during a snowstorm."
"They made a blanket fort in the living room. Maybe you could hope for a blizzard and hunker down with the girls, under the guise of keeping them safe."
"I mean, I would do that, yeah. But I'm not going to wait for a snowstorm to make my move."
"Christmas is tomorrow. What are your plans?"
"Today just kind of happened naturally. She called me, and I rolled with it. I want to be part of their day tomorrow, but I'm not sure how to invite myself over, or if that's even appropriate."
Ford pulled up his phone and showed me the weather app. "There's snow predicted for the weekend."
I chuckled. "That's plan B then."
He tucked his phone away. "I'm fairly sure Mom will want you here all day tomorrow."
"I have a feeling she'll be supportive once she knows my intentions."
Morgan approached us with mugs of hot chocolate. "These are for you."
"Thanks," I said, accepting mine. There was nothing better than Christmas Eve at church with a woman I was interested in and bringing her home to meet my family. The hot chocolate was the icing on the cake. The sweetness would hold me over until I could get Angela alone.
"And what are your intentions?" Ford asked, and it took me a second to remember what we were talking about.
"To find out if she feels the same way I do. She could shut me down."
"There's one more issue," He gestured up and down at my body. "You're not the prettiest Sterling."
I gave him a look as he chuckled. "Relax. I'm sure she finds you passably attractive."
"I want to be more than passable." I'd seen her practically naked on that chaise lounge. I knew how I felt about her, but wasshe attracted to me? We'd touched by accident here and there, and I'd felt a spark of something. But that didn't mean that she did too.
"There's something about Christmas. It makes you believe in possibilities," Ford said, sipping his cocoa.
