And three of them, to be exact.
Sawyer. Clint. Reid.
I cut a piece of pancake, shove it in my mouth, and chew slowly. But I’m on autopilot. The whole night keeps running through my head, and I have no idea how to process it. I mean, who am I? What did I do?
Violet’s sitting across from me, casually sipping her coffee with that “I know something’s up, but I’m gonna wait until you’re ready” look in her eyes.
She has this sixth sense; she can read me from a mile away. So, when the silence stretches on for too long, I feel like she’s practically daring me to spill the beans.
Until she can’t handle the tension any longer.
“Something’s off,” she says, cutting through my thoughts. “What’s going on with you, Dakota?”
I freeze, fork halfway to my mouth, eyes wide. I don’t even know how she does it. She’s like some kind of mind reader. I set the fork back down on the plate, feeling the heat in my cheeks.
I can’t lie to her. I never could. Especially not when she’s staring me down like that.
The silence between us drags out, and I swear, it feels like it’s going to crush me. I let out a long breath, finally breaking.
“Violet… I don’t know how to say this, but… I’vedefinitelydone something I didn’t plan for.”
She raises an eyebrow, that classic Violet move. “You’ve piqued my interest. Go on.”
I glance at her, then look down at my plate, nervously picking at a piece of pancake. “Last night…”
She groans. “You and Clint? Oh, I justknewthat was going to happen again. Dakota, you have to tell him the truth about Charlie.”
A heat rushes to my cheeks. “Yeah, it might just be a little more complicated than that.”
Violet’s head tilts slightly, trying to figure out where this is going. “Uh-oh. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen that look in your eye before.”
I sigh heavily. I know Vi won’t judge me, but it’s still a little wild to say aloud. I still can’t truly believe that it happened.
“Okay, I… kinda had a night with all three of them. Clint, Sawyer,andReid.”
There’s a long pause. Violet blinks a few times, trying to process it. “Hold up. Three of them?”
I swallow hard, feeling my face burn like it’s on fire. “Yep. All three. And I don’t even know how the hell I got here. It just kind of… happened. I was at home after Thanksgiving dinner,and they all turned up. Individually. Sawyer wanted to ask me on a date, Reid wanted to confess his feelings, and I guess Clint did too.”
It’s so overwhelming to even think about it. What has become of my life?
Violet’s eyes widen, and she leans back in her chair, a grin slowly forming on her lips. “Wait a minute, are you telling me Mr. Brooding Cowboy, the sexy accountant, and the cheeky playboy all wanted a piece of you?”
I wince, trying not to giggle at how over the top she’s making this sound. But… yeah. That’s basically it.
“I know. It’s insane, right?” I run a hand through my hair, trying to stay calm. “I didn’t plan on it. And then once it started… I didn’t want it to stop.”
Violet bursts into a laugh, practically choking on her coffee. She coughs, trying to compose herself, but I can tell she’s dying to ask more. “Oh, Dakota, you are living your best life! So, what was it like? Was it the same as one of those steamy romance novels you always tell me you read, or more of a… slow burn with awkward tension?”
I cringe. “Violet, this is not a movie, okay? It’s… messier than that. I don’t even know how to explain it.”
“Girl, it sounds sexy as hell.”
I think about it. The truth is, I did get overwhelmed. But more than that, I just didn’t want it to end. The connection was so… electric. Each of them brought something different to the table, and I didn’t feel like I had to choose between them. But does that make me crazy?
“I don’t know,” I admit. “I mean, it was. But in the cold light of day, I don’t know what to think about it all.”
Violet leans forward, her eyes shining with mischief, but there’s also something softer behind the glint. “Dakota, honey, you’ve got yourself in a bit of a situation, don’t you?”
