Page 33 of Single Mom's Undoing

“Of course I had to,” he says, cutting me off. “Now, I think I saw a churro stand farther up ahead,” he adds, his demeanor softening slightly.

Damon nods in agreement, giving the roughed-up vendor a dirty side look. “Sounds about right. I’m not going to eat where I don’t feel like me and my people are respected.”

“I really am sorry,” the vendor says. “Can I give you a discount or something, Mr. Lockwood?”

“You can shove that discount up your ass,” Carter growls.

I smile as I stick to his side, walking up the fairway. It was a silly thing, something I normally would’ve let slide, but it feels nice to know that I’m protected by these men.Leaning into his shoulder, I look up to find him watching me.

“I guess it’s as close to a knight in shining armor as a girl’s going to get, right?” I giggle softly.

“Except you get three of them,” he replies.

Damon rests a hand on my hip as Jace scans the crowd around us. He’s always assessing. Always watching and analyzing. Damon once told me how important that characteristic was to their SEAL team; the precise and cautious way he approaches every situation and every angle.

Safe.

That’s the keyword. For the first time in a long time, I feel safe.

Slowly but surely,I ease into the day.

The atmosphere is nice, particularly on the eastern side of the fair. We sit at one of the picnic tables on the lawn, watching Jodie as she chases the kids around. They’ve got a bubble machine and the sun to enjoy, while I dip a fry into a pod of hot sauce and wonder if maybe, just maybe, things will turn out alright in the end.

The four of us have spent the past couple of hours talking—mostly about the old days, about Stephan and their time in the military. It’s been quiet for a few minutes.

“What’s on your mind?” Carter asks.

“Not much,” I tell him. “Just how strange this whole thing is.”

“You mean us?” Damon replies with a raised eyebrow.

“Yes.”

“It’s strange, but it works,” Jace says. “There’s no denying that.”

“How will it work in the long term, though? We can’t be together in public, not really. I mean, rumors aside…”

Carter covers my hand with his. “One of us would have to be the official boyfriend, I guess.”

“You want to be my boyfriend?” I laugh lightly.

“Yes, Clara. And so do they,” he says, nodding to Damon and Jace. “And you’re our woman. What people see while we’re in public, that’s just a headline, a ruse, nothing important. Because at the end of the day, what we are to each other when nobody’s watching is what matters.”

I let a sigh leave my chest. “There’s a lot I still need to deal with.”

“And there’s a lot we can help you with, if you’ll let us,” Damon replies. “You don’t have to do this alone, not with Matty’s heart condition, not with anything else.”

“It’s more complicated than that.”

How do I tell them that I’m just buying time? That as soon as I meet with Stephan’s lawyer, as soon as I’ve got the trust fund sorted out, I’ll have one foot out the door, ready to bolt at a moment’s notice.

“Help us uncomplicate it then,” Jace says. “Tell us what’s bothering you.”

“There’s more to us than what we do in the bedroom,” Carter reminds me.

“Oh, I know that,” I reply with a soft smile. “But can’t we just sit here and enjoy today precisely the way it is? I mean, the food is good, the lemonade is cold and minty, our kids are having a ball with Jodie.”

Damon laughs and puts an arm around my shoulders, gently pulling me close. “Fair enough. You’re right. It is a pretty good day, despite the earlier skirmish.”