Carter looked at himself in the mirror. “What the hell,” he said out loud.

He didn’t do one-night stands. Not even before Olivia. He’d met her in his Introduction to Architecture seminar, for crying out loud.

What had he been thinking?

Well, he knew what he’d been thinking. That is, he hadn’t been thinking at all. He’d been entranced by a gorgeous woman with curves and a great ass and a gleam in her eye and he’d let his dick do the decision making.

Not that Leticia had been awful or anything. She’d been amazing, in fact. If he closed his eyes, he could still remember how she tasted on his tongue, the way she’d rode his lap, the desperate screams she’d made as he’d fucked her against the wall. The way she’d looked up at him after sucking his dick…

Carter quickly focused on brushing his teeth. Nope, he was not going to dwell on any of that. He had to hurry and pick up Molly from his parents.

When he’d told Mom and Dad he needed them to watch Molly for the night, he’d told them that it was because of the party and he’d be out late taking care of whatever stupid decisions Brian and the others made. He hadn’t thought that he’d be the one making questionable decisions.

But what was questionable about it?

He’d used protection. He hadn’t been drunk. He’d gotten home safely so he could wake up in time to pick up Molly. He’d checked in on Brian and the others and all of them were fine.

Maybe it was just the residual guilt. Olivia had passed away a few years ago, but she still lingered in the back of his mind at times. He was so used to the idea of her presence there that he often forgot about it until moments like these.

He didn’t have a reason to be guilty, he reminded himself. Olivia would have wanted him to move on, and it had been years. Molly needed another adult presence in her life. She needed a woman, someone besides her grandmother, to help her. God knew that half the time Carter had no idea what to say to her.

Perhaps the fact that he’d had a one-night stand proved that he was ready to date again. Of course there was a world of difference between getting laid and investing in someone emotionally, but still... It had to be a sign.

He finished getting ready and hopped in the car to pick up Molly. Mom and Dad never complained about babysitting her but he didn’t want to take advantage of them. Dad, especially, appreciated it. He was the one feeling his age, more than Mom, and Molly was their only grandchild. But that wasn’t an excuse to abandon Molly with them for however long he felt like it. He’d said he’d pick Molly up at ten and he’d meant it.

Of course, at the time, he hadn’t thought that he’d be working off of so little sleep. Thank God he hadn’t stayed the night at Leticia’s. As much as he’d have liked to, it wouldn’t have been wise. Her apartment was clear across town from his, and his parents’ house was an additional twenty minutes away from that, in the suburbs.

The idea of morning sex had appealed to him. He could imagine what Leticia would look like, sleepy-eyed, all that golden skin laid out just for him. He could have woken her up with teasing kisses, stroking lightly at her sides, making her fall apart slowly.

Ah, well. At least he had the night to remember, and what a night it had been.

When he arrived at Mom and Dad’s, he found Molly ready to go and sitting on the front step. She was more independent at times than he’d like. He was continually worried that she’d run away to live in the New York Met museum or something like that book. But she was also always so happy to see him. It made his heart clench.

If he was going to start dating, then he would have to be careful. Molly deserved to have women in her life that were the best. He wasn’t going to bring home someone who wouldn’t care about Molly and see how special she was.

“Dad!” Molly yelled. She stood up and waved as he pulled into the driveway.

“Hey there, Artemisia,” Carter said, getting out of the car.

It was his special nickname for her. Artemisia Gentileschi was one of his favorite artists and had been a gifted painter, her first major piece being completed when she was only seventeen years old. Artemisia’s father had also been a painter and involved in the art world, just like Carter was. Molly had always had a huge talent and love for art, and so the nickname had come about.

Carter had never told Molly this, but another part of why he called her that was that Gentileschi had lost her mother at a young age, just like Molly had. Gentileschi’s father had never given her a good replacement figure, and Gentileschi’s work had shown that craving for a strong female relationship and the importance of female solidarity. It was a reminder to Carter—he didn’t just want a wife. Molly needed a mother.

Molly ran up and hugged him, and he hugged her back just as tightly. “Did you have fun with Nan and Pops?” He asked. Carter smiled at the thought of Molly’s names for her grandparents. Since Molly had assigned them these names a few years ago, Carter himself had stopped thinking of them as Mom and Dad, and referred to them only by their duly appointed grandparent names.

She nodded. “They’re cleaning up breakfast and said I could wait for you. Do you want some pancakes?”

“Sure, why not?”

His parents greeted him with warmth and he helped himself to the leftover pancakes. Once Molly was occupied with finishing a drawing, he drew his parents into the kitchen so she couldn’t overhear. There he put forth the idea of dating.

“Do you think it’s time?” He asked. “Molly’s only seven.”

“I’ve found that children are more adaptable than we think they are,” Nan pointed out.

“But what if I date someone and bring them into Molly’s life and then they leave?” Carter asked. “I don’t want to hurt her. And, I mean—dying, that—nothing is like that. But Olivia didn’t choose to go. She didn’t want to leave us. And Molly knows that. But if a girlfriend walks out on me, that’s different. She’s choosing to leave us. I don’t want Molly to feel abandoned that way.”

“Then don’t tell Molly at first,” Pops suggested. “Go on a few dates and make sure this woman is serious before you do anything.”

“Even if your relationship ends,” Nan added gently, “Doesn’t mean that she’ll walk away from Molly. A girl can have multiple mother-figures in her life.”

“And you need to think about yourself, too,” Pops said. “Now, you know we don’t like to pry, but it’s been four years. Molly is your main concern and that’s how it should be, but you need someone, too.”

Carter thought about it. He’d really wanted to spend the night with Leticia. He must have been lonelier than he’d realized.

“All right,” he said. “It’ll give you guys an excuse to babysit her more, if nothing else.”

Nan laughed. “That was our nefarious plan all along.”

Carter tried to ignore the nervous twinge in his gut. He could do this. He could date again.