Chapter 38
“Fuck, I did not realize I had so many surfboards.”
Miles lets out a loud laugh as he helps me stack them on the front porch of the house, making room for the deck we’re going to build. It’s happening before any of the renovations are, but at least it will give us a place to eat and sit while the kitchen is ripped out.
“Bro, for real?” he questions. “We actually make them for a living, you know.”
“Yeah, I know,” I reply, rolling my eyes. “But how the hell did I end up with so many? I literally use the same one every day.”
“Um, because you collect people’s old boards, you fix up broken ones, you make your own,” he now says. “Do you need any more explanation?”
I flip him off as I turn to Eli, who is literally carrying planks of wood on his bare shoulder. Dude is just showing off at this point, not wearing a shirt, his stupid muscles, the fucking tattoos.
“He’s right, you know,” Eli chimes in. “But if you wanna donate that blue one, I’ll take it,” he adds with a wink.
“I tell you what,” I start. “You put a shirt on, and it’s all yours.”
This time it’s both Miles and Eli laughing, as Eli says, “Feeling threatened, Kai? I’m happy to help you work out if you wanna get in shape.”
He puts the boards down, turning to me, his hands on his hips, a shit-eating grin on his face as he flexes, his pecs dancing on his chest like muscled man titties.
“Stop fucking showing off,” I say, pointing a finger at him.
“I’m not,” he says with a shrug. “It’s hot out, and you’ve got me working my ass off on my day off. Of course, the shirt’s coming off. Not my fault if your woman appreciates the view.”
I exhale, shaking my head at my former roommate. The guy loves giving me shit about hooking up with Quinn and moving in with her. “I know, I know. Don’t think I don’t appreciate it,” I tell him.
“Oh, you like the view too?” Eli teases. “Didn’t know you swung both ways.”
I roll my eyes as the door slams and Daisy walks out, saying, “Pretty sure before Quinn, Kai would’ve swung all ways.”
“Um, excuse me, but what the hell,” I start, turning to my soon-to-be sister-in-law. “What the hell is that?” I add, pointing at the comically large cupcake she’s holding.
Daisy smirks, holding it up like we’ve somehow all missed it. “This, Kai Olsen, is the cupcake costume you’ll be parading around in tomorrow on account of me winning our little bet.”
“What bet?” I ask, as I take in the huge cake costume, the sparkly glitter on the top, the smiling face on the side.
Daze laughs now, shaking her head a little as she glances at my brother before saying, “The bet where I said you’d be all in love and shacked up with someone within the year.
” She waves her arm around the place, as though to emphasize her point.
“Seems you’ve not only managed to get a girlfriend, you’ve also bought a house together, moved in together and are actively trying to make a baby with her.
Trust me on the last one. We’ve still somehow heard it enough. ”
I chuckle, slinging an arm around Miles’s shoulder. “What, you jealous, Daze? My brother not giving you enough of his d—”
“Daze has no complaints, shithead,” my brother responds, hitting me with a hard elbow to the stomach that only makes his fiancée laugh. “And she’s also right. You lost the bet, so you’re definitely wearing the costume.”
“Fine, fine,” I say, pulling my brother into a friendly headlock. “I can admit when I’m beat.”
“Good, perhaps you should go try it on,” Daisy says, holding it out to me.
“Daze, it’s like a hundred degrees out,” I say.
She rolls her eyes. “It’s not actually and seeing as you’ll be spending several hours in it tomorrow, you might wanna get used to it. Or at least see if it fits,” she adds, giving me a wink.
“Fine,” I mutter, grabbing the costume before heading inside.
I make my way down to our bedroom, throwing the giant-ass cupcake on the bed just as Quinn walks out of the bathroom.
“Hey, babe, you okay?” I ask, pulling my shirt off and throwing it on the floor. I reach for the costume, pulling the scratchy material over my head, the huge body of the cupcake covering my torso as my head sticks out the top like an idiot. “Shit man, can you believe I gotta wear this?” I say.
Quinn doesn’t say anything, and when I look up, she’s staring at something in her hands, not even looking at me.
“Babe, is everything okay?” I say, immediately walking over to her.
She looks up, her eyes wide as she whispers, “I don’t know. I think so.”
“What is it? What’s...” I trail off as I look down at what she’s holding.
A white stick.
With two lines in the window.
“Is this...does this...” I say, not quite believing what I’m seeing. I mean, it’s not like I’ve ever even seen one in real life, but I’ve seen enough movies and TV shows to know what she’s holding.
“I’m pregnant,” Quinn whispers, her eyes finding mine.
“Pregnant,” I repeat.
“Uh huh,” she says, nodding.
“Holy fucking shit!” I yell, pulling her into my arms as I lift her off the ground and spin us around. “We’re having a baby!”
Quinn laughs as I put her down. Smiling up at me, she says, “Slow down. This is really early, and we don’t know what’s going to happen.”
“Nope,” I reply, shaking my head at her. “Right now, you’re pregnant. Right now.” I cup her face in my hands, tilting it up to me as I lean in and press a soft kiss to her lips. “Right now, we are having a baby.”
She huffs out a laugh. “And you’re still okay with all this, right?”
I pull back, my gaze locking with hers. It doesn’t matter that we’ve been together for months now, that we’ve bought a house together and are making a life together, there are still times when Quinn’s doubt creeps in.
Times when she worries that I might have changed my mind or not want this anymore.
And I get it. Because her ex did that to her, did so much shit to her, and I know it’s still something she’s trying to deal with.
But that’s okay, because I’m not changing my mind, and I don’t care how many times I have to remind her of that.
“I’m so much more than okay, Quinn,” I whisper, kissing her again. “I want this so much, babe.”
“Me too,” she whispers, her eyes filling with tears.
“Good,” I say. “So are we telling everyone?” I ask, not sure I’m going to be able to keep it a secret anyway.
“It’s really early,” she says, glancing down at the test again. “But...”
“But...” I prompt.
She laughs. “But I know you’re not going to be able to keep it a secret, are you?”
Grinning, I kiss her again. “Nope, probably not. I’m excited, babe. I want everyone to know.”
Quinn rolls her eyes, but I know she’s only playing. “Okay, fine, if you can’t keep your mouth shut, then...”
Letting out a whoop, I grab her hand and practically drag her outside to where everyone is working on our deck. Lacey and Jonah are here now too, and I don’t miss the laugh Jonah lets out when he sees me in this ridiculous costume.
“Guys—” I start, only to get cut off.
“Oh my god, that looks perfect!” Daisy shouts, clapping her hands together.
“Of course it does,” I reply. “But that’s not what I was going to say.”
“What?” Daisy says. “Don’t even try to get out of this, Kai Olsen. A bet’s a—”
“Quinn’s pregnant!” I shout, cutting her off this time.
Daisy lets out a loud squeal as she comes running over to hug my girl. My brother grins, shaking his head as he also joins us, pulling me into a hug.
“Congrats, bro,” he says. “Really happy for you guys.”
“Thanks,” I say as he lets go and hugs Quinn, Daisy now wrapping her arms around me.
Eli, Jonah and Lacey also come over with their congrats, Eli unable to resist ribbing me about becoming even more tied down now.
“Fuck off, it’s exactly where I want to be,” I say, giving him a friendly punch on the shoulder. “Maybe you should try it.”
“No way, man, I like my life exactly as it is,” he replies.
“You sure about that?”
Eli laughs, glancing over at Lacey and Jonah, who are signing to each other, once again back in their own little bubble. “Reckon those two have more of a chance than me,” he says, a grin on his face.
Laughing, I hold my hand out to my former roommate. “Oh yeah? Wanna make a bet?”