Chapter 21
Chapter Twenty-One
Sydney
The snow had started again.
Big, soft flakes drifted down from the sky, catching in her hair and on her lashes as Sydney ran, half-laughing, down the quiet path toward Levi and Roland’s apartment.
She was underdressed, she knew it, just as well as she knew that both her new Daddies probably wouldn’t like it very much but she had spent all night thinking about her decision and when it was finally late enough for her to get up and go to them, she couldn’t wait anymore.
She was dressed in her pajama pants and her favourite hoodie, her feet shoved into socked slippers not meant for slush, but she couldn’t bring herself to care.
This time, the snow didn’t scare her. It wasn’t the sign of panic or uncertainty from her previous mad dash through it after she’d overheard Levi talking to Nanny J.
Now it was beautiful. Magical, even. If she was a smidge more romantic she’d almost say it was like a sign or omen or something related to the choices she’d made the night before.
She tipped her head back mid-step, letting it fall on her cheeks and her nose, the cold biting and sweet all at once.
When she spun, once, quick and breathless, the whole world tilted around her in a blur of white and quiet joy.
Okay, and maybe her feet got a little squishy, but she was almost at her intended destination so it wasn’t really the end of the world.
She was still grinning when she reached the front door. Before she could knock, the door flew open.
“Sydney Jane du Preez, what in God’s name are you doing running around in the snow in socked feet?”
Levi’s deep voice was sharp with concern, but the sight of him—barefoot, open shirt, and a pair of flannel pajama pants—made her smile even more.
“I—” she started, just as Roland appeared behind him, rubbing sleep from his eyes and dragging a robe around his shoulders.
“She’s gonna catch her death,” he muttered, stepping past Levi and eyeing her from head to toe. “You’re freezing. What are you thinking? Honestly, where are your damn boots? Or a coat? You’re gonna get sick.”
Sydney’s heart warmed at the two men and their obvious care for her. This was exactly the thing she’d been missing in her life since her mother was killed.
Roland turned, already muttering to himself. “Ordering winter gear first thing. A proper coat. Boots. Maybe one of those puffy marshmallow jackets—she’d look adorable—”
“I’m sorry,” Sydney said quickly, stepping inside as Levi pulled her in with a warm hand at the small of her back. “I didn’t mean to worry you. I was just… really excited to come and tell you something.”
Levi’s brow lowered, his hand lingering. “Couldn’t this have waited until you to get dressed properly?” He helped her sit down on the couch so he could take off the sodden socks while Roland fetched a towel. The second man knelt down in front of her, carefully drying her feet.
“I didn’t want to wait,” she said, voice softer now, heart starting to race for entirely different reasons. “Because I know what I want now.”
Both men paused.
“I want to stay,” she said, looking between them.
“At least for a few more months. I don’t know if I’m ready for forever yet.
But I know I don’t want to leave. Not yet.
Maybe not ever if I think about how I felt going back to my room last night.
It felt empty, even with Chloe in there with me.
It was all wrong. I missed you both so much. ”
She swallowed, blinking snowflakes from her lashes. “And I want to talk to the sheriff. About Greg. I want to make it official. I want to take that power back.”
For one long, suspended breath, neither man spoke. Then Roland let out something between a laugh and a choked sigh, and stood up to pull her into a crushing hug.
“You’re amazing, little bird,” he said against her hair. “You know that?”
Sydney blinked hard. “Not really. But I’m working on it, Daddy.”
Levi stepped closer, lifting a hand to her chin and tilting it up gently. His eyes searched hers, the heat in them unmistakable.
“You’re sure?” he asked.
She nodded. She’d never been more sure of anything in her life.
She might have told them that she wasn’t sure about staying permanently, but she was.
Levi and Roland made her feel things she’d never felt before in her life.
Her affections and feelings toward Greg were a mere shadow to the things happening inside her for these two amazing Daddies.
And then Levi kissed her.
It wasn’t soft or hesitant like she might’ve expected.
It was deep, warm, consuming—everything Levi had held back until now.
His hand slid to the back of her neck, anchoring her as she swayed, as if the floor had dropped out beneath her and all that held her together was him.
She whimpered softly against his mouth, her fingers bunching in the fabric of his shirt to keep herself grounded.
As it was with these men and the kisses they gave her, all it took were a few careful swipes of their lips against hers to get her aching and needy for them.
When he finally pulled back, breath rough against her lips, Roland was there. One arm slid around her waist, the other bracing lightly on Levi’s shoulder, drawing the three of them into a tight, perfect circle. He leaned down, his mouth brushing the soft skin just beneath her ear.
“Now let’s get you out of these cold, wet things so we can go warm you up,” he murmured.
Sydney laughed, breathless, overwhelmed, glowing. “That sounds like the perfect way to start the day.”
Both men chuckled with her as Levi took her hand and led her to the bathroom.
Sydney’s heartbeat was loud in her ears, and her breath came in short gasps as Levi pulled her against him in the tiled room.
He pulled her arms up so they were in the air, and then slowly peeled the hoodie over her head, while Roland slowly rolled her pajama bottoms down her legs.
When he worked her panties down next, she was slightly embarrassed at how damp they were, but from the small growl that escaped Roland, she didn’t need to be ashamed.
Her Daddy was very pleased at how much she wanted them.
Strong, calloused hands lifted her sleep shirt over her head next as Roland stepped away to the bath where he set about filling the tub with the sweetest smelling bubbles and warm, steamy water.
“Now, little miss,” Levi whispered against Sydney’s lips as he wrapped his arms around her waist, pushing his naked chest against hers and drawing a sharp intake of breath from her, “You’re going to bend over that bathtub, hands holding on to the edges, and then you’re going to count out as Daddy spanks this delicious butt of yours for running through the snow without proper winter gear. Are we understood?”
Well, hell. That wasn’t the kind of warming up Sydney had in mind at all.