13. Chapter 13
Lucian
This holiday was shaping up to be complete and utter bullshit. First, Mason wasn’t able to come, and I had to be the bad guy. Second, Cameron couldn’t come because someone needed to stay home with our pet disaster while she maybe went into labor. And, finally, Sebastian was here.
We didn’t even buy him a costume, so all he had was a black hoodie and half-assed face paint.
Oh yeah, and to make it worse, he was pissy because Mason didn’t come. At least he was content taking the kids from house to house while Sophia and I watched from the safety of the sidewalk.
Together, she and I trudged a few paces behind Seb and my hellions.
Jasper looked content to have time with his uncle, and Juniper dragged them along.
Even with his shitty attitude, Sebastian seemed to enjoy himself as much as he could.
He mentioned he needed practice so he could be a good dad when the baby came.
And while that was very sweet–the idea of my brother touching my wife weirded me out.
We forced our way into a more crowded part of a dimly lit street. The air was alive with excited chatter as children and parents milled through the neighborhood. Crisp autumn air nipped at my nose, and Sophia hooked her arm into mine and pulled me closer. My elbow sunk into her soft flesh.
I cast her a glance. “What?”
“What are the hard no’ s for our relationship?” she chirped.
My nose wrinkled in confusion.
“Like… sex-wise?”
“Lucian, there are kids everywhere!” She gasped.
“And you’re the one talking about sex.”
“I am not!” Her sapphire eyes bore into mine as a subtle pinky hue crept into her cheeks. “Like, romantic-wise.”
Her words stopped me in my tracks. “We have rules?”
For the most part, as long as we were honest and safe, we could date or fuck whoever we wanted. That’s how Cameron got us into this mess.
“I, uh, well, not really.” she admitted.
It was weird hearing Sophia be so quiet. She seemed to be completely immune to social anxiety, but now something had her timid.
“As long as you come home, I don’t give a fuck, you know that,” I grumbled. “Mason’s the only one who cares, and her stipulation is just tell me before you do it. ”
Sophia went on the most dates out of all of us.
She just had this unconditional love for humans as a species.
At least once a week, she was out with someone she met either at the gym or through work.
Sophia had no desire for commitment, but she liked having a few consistent partners to snuggle up with at night. That’s where Cam, Mason and I came in.
“So… What if the person I want to date lives in the house?” Her words came slowly, and for a second, I had no idea what she meant.
She was in a relationship with everyone in the house… everyone except for one person.
“Sebastian?” I tried to hide my disgust at the idea.
I looked over to see him standing with his back toward us. Sebastian was tall and built like a goddamn superhero. So, while it wasn’t shocking that Sophia would be interested in Seb, it was still surprising when she nodded .
“You realize that I think Seb might actually be a psychopath… Right?” That was the only way I could explain the two hours daily he spent at minimum in the gym and his obsession with clean, whole foods.
Seriously, if I gave that man a Pop-Tart, he’d probably combust.
Sophia shot me a smile that suggested she knew that fact better than I did, which made sense because she worked from home and actively had a small friendship with my brother while I was out of the house nine to ten hours a day at work and also avoided the shit stain on my genetics.
Weirdly enough, she had also known Sebastian longer than I had.
One of her moms, Heather, was Sebastian’s nanny.
This started when he was two days old. Seb’s whore of a mother, Sabrina, decided returning to her corporate lawyer duties was more important than raising her son.
My sister and I didn’t meet Seb until after our parents’ divorce was finalized, and he was almost a year old.
“Crazy runs in your family,” she teased.
My lips pressed into a thin line as I stared her down. “Leona and I are fine, thank you.”
“Leona’s fine, but you poke holes in–”
I silenced Sophia with a finger to her lips. It didn’t take a genius to know she was going to bring up Ashley and how I’d allegedly poked a hole in the condom used the night we made the twins. To this day, I denied that claim. But I was genuinely too high to remember what happened that night.
Either way, karma caught up to me when Ashley left me alone with two babies in the NICU.
“The Point is… would you be upset if Seb and I…. you know?” With one hand, Sophia formed a circle by pressing her thumb and pointer finger together. She then used her free hand to slip a finger in and out of the hole.
I probably should have told her fuck no . The only reason Mason got a pass was because she’d been dating Seb first, and Cam got a pass because I knew he wouldn’t take it. But Sophia… she and I had been together for over a decade.
I mulled the idea over in silence as we continued walking.
Deep down, I knew Sophia and I were closer to besties with benefits than an actual romantic relationship.
If she and I weren’t polyamorous, our relationship would have crumbled years ago.
We just didn’t like each other in that way, which was fine because we didn’t need to.
But… maybe if I let Seb have fun with Sophia, he’d just leave Mason the fuck alone.
I reveled in the fact that I was Dad’s biggest disappointment…
Seb still wanted his approval. He’d never get that if Dad found out we were sharing Mason Albright.
And if I let Sophia have her fun, she might not be as sad around the holidays.
Plus, she might take the news that Mason and I were maybe secretly married a little better.
“You promise I’ll still come first?” I asked.
She nodded once.
“Then knock yourself out. Hope you have fun with the household virgin.”
That wasn’t entirely true. Seb’s only had sex with Mason. But, while I knew Mason was an absolute freak with kinks better suited to books than real life, she was also a little shy with that stuff. So, while Seb had gotten laid, it probably wasn’t anything crazy.
Before Sophia and I could continue the riveting conversation on why exactly she wanted to rail my brother, Juniper dashed through someone’s lawn before leaping onto my legs. She wrapped her tiny arms around my knees, and my heart swelled.
I reached forward to smooth her pigtails.
“What?” I asked.
Juni leaned back with a crooked smile plastered on her face.
“Daddy, I got your favorite candy,” she teased in a sing-song way.
“Oh yeah?” I challenged. “Prove it.”
Juniper released me from her embrace before digging in the plastic pumpkin she was toting around. After a moment, she pulled out a blue raspberry lollipop, the type with gum in the center.
While it wasn’t exactly my first choice of candy to steal once she went to bed, it was close enough. Plus, it was a fucking honor to have a child who almost remembered something about you .
“Since you have my favorite, does that mean you’re going to share?” I scooped Juniper off the ground.
We’d been walking a while, so her legs were probably starting to get tired.
“Nu-uh. I just wanted to rub it in your face.” She beamed.
Sophia choked on a laugh, and suddenly, I knew the exact piece of candy that I’d claim for my dad-tax later.
“Mommy!” Jasper called, his voice drew nearer with every second. “Mommy! Looky!”
Jasper darted to Sophia just as Juniper had done with me; the only difference was a very flustered-looking Sebastian running close behind.
Sophia knelt to be on his level. “What’s up, buttercup?”
Jasper breathed heavily before rooting around in his bucket. Once he caught his breath and found whatever he was looking for, he lifted his gaze to meet Sophia’s.
He held his hand out, and she did the same. After a moment, he deposited a pink piece of taffy into her hand.
“Awww, is this for me?” she cooed.
Jasper's mop of ebony curls bounced as he beamed up at Sophia, who wrapped him in a hug and kissed the top of his head.
“Thank you, Jasper!” she said as if he had just given her the key to world peace. “I’m so proud of you for being kind.”
A smile tugged at my lips. Sure, my kids were as different as night and day, but they were both unique and not afraid to be who they wanted to be. That being said, the lack of praise seemed to rub Juniper the wrong way.
Her expression turned sour as her little brows furrowed and her lips pressed into a pout. She started to squirm in my arms, so I put her down. Juniper then stomped over to Sebastian and tugged on the black cotton of his sweatpants.
His eyes widened slightly, and he mirrored Sophia’s crouched stance.
Juniper’s nostrils flared as she angrily dug through her basket before finding a singular rope of black licorice and pushing it into Sebastian’s hands.
“Here,” she mumbled .
Rapid blinks obscured Sebastian’s icy gaze as he looked down at the candy like it was a trap. And, knowing Juniper, it probably was.
Juniper expectantly looked at Sophia, who smirked.
“You want me to tell you how nice you’re being, don’t you?” She laughed.
“Duh. I’m a good girl.” Juniper crossed her arms and wiggled her little shoulders.
If she was this sassy at three, God help me when she’s a teenager.
“Good girls don’t do nice things just to get rewarded,” Sophia scolded.
Juniper tossed her head back with a groan.
“Mommy,” she whined. “I shared my candy with Uncle Bash, and I hate him!”
I choked on a laugh, drawing a glare from Sebastian.
Jasper frowned at his sister’s admission before toddling over to his uncle. Jas wrapped his arms around Seb’s neck and patted his back.
“It’s okay. I love Uncle Bash.”