Chapter twenty-six #2
I gasp. “Shane! I can’t wear this!”
“You can, and you will. My mother insisted.” He kisses my cheek.
“Pamela knows?”
“She wore it before you. It’s why she came down last week.” He smiles at me as I look down at the gorgeous ring on my finger.
“I can’t wait to tell everyone.” I bite my lip, feeling all giddy inside. I can’t believe I get to marry the man of my dreams.
“Why don’t we do it right now?” Shane grins and reaches for his phone on the nightstand.
He sits down on the side of the bed and pulls me into his lap, my back to his chest, then holds up the phone and starts a video call with Morgan, Cecilia, Emma, and Ronnie.
“You called the girls and not the guys?” I giggle.
“It’s more likely that they’ll pick up.” He chuckles.
It takes a few seconds, but eventually all their faces fill the screen.
“This better be important. I was just about to go nap,” Emma hisses through her teeth.
“It is,” I say. “Is everyone around?”
“Yeah, what’s going on?” My brother’s worried face pops up beside Em. “Is everything okay? Is the baby okay?”
Suddenly all the men show up as well, Clay behind Morgan with Trinity in his arms. Silas with his hand on Cecilia’s shoulder. Noah and Gabriel on either side of Ronnie. All of them wearing equally worried faces.
“Yes, the baby is fine. But we do have some news,” Shane says with a wide grin just as I lift my left hand up to the screen.
“SHUT UP!” Emma shouts just as Greyson glares at her and tells her to quiet down.
“No fucking way! You’re freaking engaged!?” Ronnie shrieks loudly.
“Ronnie!” Morg, Cece, and Em say at once.
“Sorry! Sorry. We don’t have any kids here, okay! And it’s not like shut up is any better.” She narrows her eyes, I’m guessing at Emma.
“She’s right, Bunny. We’ve been over this,” my brother says to his wife, which earns him the death stare. He simply kisses her head then looks back at the camera. “Congratulations, you two, although I’m surprised you were able to wait a whole week.” He chuckles, talking to Shane.
My brows rise as I turn and look at Shane. “You told my brother?”
Shane nods, rubbing up and down my arm with his free hand. “I asked his permission, as well as your parents.”
God, can this man get any more perfect? I melt into him, my head resting in the crook of his neck.
A smacking sound through the phone catches my attention. “You knew and you didn’t tell me!?” Emma says as she hits my brother on the arm once more.
“Hey! It wasn’t my place to tell!” Greyson calls back to her.
“I am your wife. You’re supposed to tell me everything!” She smacks him repeatedly. Jesus, this call is getting out of hand.
Suddenly a high-pitch wail sounds from behind them and Emma growls loudly. “Look what you did! You woke them up!” She drops the phone on the counter and seems to storm off. “Bye-bye nap time. Thank you very much!” she shouts as her voice gets farther and farther away.
The camera moves again as my brother picks up the phone. “Sorry, about that. I’ll go help her before she really calls the doctor and schedules my vasectomy.” Everyone laughs as he ends his side of the call.
“I still don’t understand how those two got married,” Silas says while shaking his head.
“None of us do,” Noah agrees with him.
“Mommy, I’m hungwy.” Dante’s voice filters through the speaker.
“Come on, buddy.” Silas reaches down and scoops up his son in the background. “Let’s go clean you up, then we’ll have dinner.” He looks at the screen before leaving, addressing us, “Congratulations to both of you.”
“Yes, I’m so happy for you both. We’ll do something this weekend to celebrate,” Cecilia says as she waves us bye and hangs up.
“Yeah, we have to go too. The twins are starting to wake up. But congratulations, I can’t wait to talk wedding and see that ring in person.” Morgan sighs happily as Clay nods goodbye.
We end up with only Ronnie, Gabe, and Noah left on the phone. Ronnie stares at me through the phone with so many emotions in her eyes, it’s like I can feel them through the screen.
“My best friend is getting married,” she whispers.
“I am,” I murmur back.
“I’m so happy for you, Brey. You too, Shane. But Jesus, it feels like everything you ever wished for is finally coming true, and I’m just beyond excited for you. You deserve all of this.”
I wipe at a tear that falls. “Thank you, Ronnie. It means a lot to hear you say that.”
She begins to flap at her face as her eyes fill with their own tears. “Oh God, why am I getting so emotional right now? I swear, those pregnancy hormones are contagious.”
“Or maybe she’s pregnant,” I hear Gabe whisper to Noah who nods in agreement.
Ronnie closes her eyes and inhales through her nose with irritation. “For the last time, Gabriel, I am not pregnant!” Her eyes open back up as she makes an annoyed face. “What is it going to take to get that thought out of his head?” she asks us as Shane and I chuckle.
“Just accept it, Kitten. He won’t stop until there’s a baby in you.” Noah kisses her shoulder.
“Knowing him, he won’t even stop then. He’ll just start planning for the next time you two can knock me up.” She rolls her eyes.
“That’s actually a genius plan. We should just always keep you knocked up, have a whole herd of kids.” Gabe gives her a big toothy smile.
“Oh God, what have I done?” Ronnie mumbles just as she’s lifted off the floor with a scream. “Pretty boy, put me down! What are you doing!?”
“Practicing impregnating you,” he tells her as she seems to hang upside down from his back. I’m not exactly sure, but there’s a lot of moving around.
“You should probably hang up that phone now, Kitten. Unless you plan on giving them a show,” Noah says from somewhere behind the screen.
“Umm, yup, okay. Bye guys, see you this weekend. Congrats again! Love you both!” And then the last of our video call ends.
SHANE
Once the calls are ended, I throw my phone onto the bed while chuckling to myself. That group of friends is a little crazy, but I get why they’re all so close.
“They’re all really something, aren’t they?” Aubrey giggles in my arms.
“They are,” I tell her truthfully with a smile. “But that’s what families are like. As annoying as they can get at times, be proud to call them your family. Not everyone gets the chance to have that.”
Yeah, I have Julian and his brothers, but it mostly ends there.
I thought I had a family like this one when I was still playing pro.
But then my injury happened, and overtime they all grew distant, or maybe I did.
I’m not sure, but in the end, if they were really my family, they would still be here.
“I am,” she says softly, resting her head back against my shoulder once more.
“But you know, they’re your family now too.
” I guess she’s right. They have been including me in all their things.
Even their group chats, which is pretty much just the guys being competitive over who has the cutest child or pet.
“I guess that’s true.” I tighten my arms around her, kissing the top of her head. “What would you like for dinner, sweetheart? Antoine isn’t in today, so we’ll have to make something ourselves.”
“Hmm, can we have pancakes?” I can almost feel her excitement through her body at the prospect of having breakfast for dinner. She’s even rubbing her belly, so I know that’s what our daughter wants.
“With whipped cream and hazelnut spread?” I grin when she gasps.
“You know me so well.” Her hand comes to my nape as her head tilts back and she kisses me. “Oh! You know what would be amazing with that?”
I already know this is going to be one of her weird mixes. “What?”
“Oranges!”
The hairs on my arms stand with disgust. “You want oranges on your pancakes?”
“Yes! God, that’s going to be so good!” She’s practically salivating.
I chuckle and shake my head. “All right, whatever my girls want.” I grab her by the waist and lift her to her feet. “Come on, up, let’s go feed you.”
“Wait, don’t you want to call your family and tell them?” She pulls my hand to keep me in place when I stand from the bed.
“They can wait until after dinner, but you probably should call your parents.” I drag her out of the room and toward the kitchen.
“Oh, right! I forgot.” She bites her lip and blushes.