Page 87 of 3 Daddies to Go

I shake my head. “It’s okay, I’ll be fine.”

“Kendall—”

I squeeze her hand. “Thank you, Trudy. I’ll call you later, okay?”

Trudy gives the guys another harsh look before she leaves.

“We want to explain,” Tag says, his eyes pleading.

“You’ve got to be kidding.”

“Just hear us out,” says Trace. “And after we’ve said our piece, if you don’t want to see us again, we’ll leave. Deal?”

I nod warily.

Tanner and Tag sit beside me on the couch, and Trace takes a chair. They’re all looking at me with such intensity that it’s hard to look them in the eye. But I manage to keep eye contact.

“We’re sorry, Kendall,” Tanner begins. “We should have told you everything from the start, but you have to know that this is different. We want a relationship with you.”

I laugh bitterly. “A relationship? What we have now is a relationship, technically.”

“I mean arealrelationship. With dates, handholding and the whole nine yards. We really like you, Kendall. You’re different.”

I wait for the tears to come, but they don’t.

“You keep saying I’m different,” I say calmly. “But how can I be different? You’ve done this before.”

The guys are slow to answer, and I open my mouth to tell them to get out once and for all, but Tag speaks before I have the chance.

“Yes, we’ve done this before,” Tag admits. “But we realize the way we treated those women is wrong. We can’t just go around banging girls and then leaving parting gifts. We don’t want to be those guys anymore.”

The ice around my heart begins to thaw, but I will it to stay. I’m angry with them. I need to be angry with them.

“And with you, we never were those guys,” Trace says, picking up where Tag left off. “As we got to know you, we fell in love with you.”

“What?” I gasp. That was the last thing I expected to hear from them. Do they mean it, or are they just trying to get me back in bed? I don’t know if I can ever trust them again.

“I mean it, Kendall,” Trace continues. “We love you. We love your innocence and your pure heart. We love how giving you are and how good you make us want to be. Everything about you, Kendall, has made it so easy to fall in love with you.”

“We were idiots not to see it sooner,” Tanner adds. “You’re an incredible woman, Kendall. Please give us a chance.”

I don’t know what to say. Their eyes are sincere, but have they truly changed? I got into bed with them without knowing who they were and what they were capable of. I can’t go down that road again.

Could this even work? They’ll be back in New York tonight. Tag, Tanner, and Trace don’t seem like long-distance relationship types. Our entire relationship was based on sex, and it’s hard to have sex when you’re living in different states. They could meet another girl in another state or country and decide I’m not worth it. Can they really give up their lifestyle for me?

“I’ll think about it,” I tell them after too long a pause.

The guys are surprised. They’re not used to hearing anything but yes. Tag, Tanner, and Trace stare at me, confused at first, but their eyes quickly fill with lust.

“Maybe we can change your mind,” Tag says seductively. He puts his hand on the back of my head and drags my lips towards his, kissing me hard. His tongue dances with mine and I moan.

He pulls away.

“What do you say now?”

“One kiss isn’t going to change anything.” Even if it was an amazing kiss.

“I guess we’ll need to convince you, then.”