Chapter 15
fifteen
Irouse slowly and smile as I feel Brett’s heartbeat beneath my face. Then I feel his hand, playing with my hair.
This is nice and exactly what I’ve been missing since I last woke up in his arms. Not only am I feeling well rested, but I feel safe and cared for.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned about Brett Woods, it’s that he’s never one to shy away from affection when he knows he can give it freely, and I love it.
“Good morning,” he murmurs as he presses a kiss to the top of my head.
“Morning. How long have you been awake?”
“Just a little while,” he admits.
“You should have woken me up.”
I feel him chuckle. “Buttercup, you are growing our child. The last thing I’m going to do is wake you up when I don’t have to. Now kiss me.”
I tip my head back and meet him halfway. All too soon, he pulls away.
“Have I told you how much I like waking up next to you?” I murmur.
A beautiful smile crosses his face. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“I like it too.”
“What do you have planned today?” I ask.
“I was hoping we could spend the day together. It’s my last real free day before the season starts.”
“I’d like that.”
“Do you have anything in mind?”
I bite the inside of my cheek as I stare at him. I don’t know how he’s going to take what I have in mind.
“Actually, I would really like to go to the gym and work out.”
His hand stops playing with my hair as he freezes.
“You want to work out?” he asks slowly.
“I really do. I used to hate going to the gym, but I miss it. Besides, if the goal is for me to make the next Olympic team, I need to stay in shape.”
Brett sighs and starts playing with my hair again. I give him a moment to think.
Is it my body and can I do whatever I want? Yes, but I’m also carrying his child, and whatever I do affects the baby as well.
“I’ve read that it can be safe to work out while pregnant as long as you are safe,” he says after a moment.
I nod. “My doctor said I should be good as long as I don’t overdo it. I need to do this, Brett. I need to stay in shape, otherwise…”
Otherwise, I won’t make the team.
“You’re right,” he says, making me relax. “But I have one favor.”
“Name it.”
He lightly pulls on my hair until I look up at him.
“I need you to promise me that you won’t work out without me. I know it’s stupid and I can’t explain it, I just need to be there when you do.”
“Done,” I say with no hesitation.
Will it suck when he’s out of town for a game and I want to work out but can’t? Absolutely, but in reality, it’s a small ask. Besides, who knows how long I’ll want to work out. Maybe it will become too hard the further along in my pregnancy I get.
“Well then, I guess we’d better get up and head that way before the gym gets too busy.”
I roll over and get out of bed.
“On second thought, maybe we should just stay home.”
I look over my shoulder and see nothing but desire in his eyes.
“Maybe later, mister. We’re going now before you can change your mind.”
He groans dramatically. “You’re an evil woman, evil!”
Laughing softly, I get dressed in my clothes from yesterday. “Would you mind if we stopped by my place so I can change?”
“We can stop on one condition.”
“Name it.”
“You pack a bag of things to keep when you stay over here,” he says as he puts on his shirt.
My breath catches. “Are you serious?”
“Yes.”
Once again, Brett Woods leaves me speechless.
He wants me to keep things here.
I know it sounds silly where we’ve done everything backward, but it’s a big step. One that I like.
“Okay,” I tell him softly.
He smiles slowly until the corners of his eyes crinkle with happiness. “Good. Now let’s go. Do you need something to eat before we head out?”
“I have some protein bars at my place that are good before a workout. How about we grab one of those and then get breakfast after?”
He nods. “Sounds like a plan.”
We leave his place and make our way to mine.
“Do you think your roommate is home?” he asks as I unlock the door.
“Knowing my luck, yes. Let’s just hope she’s asleep,” I mutter.
Things between Ashley and me are…tense. I don’t know how much more I can take. Just the idea that she thinks so low of me eats at me.
We enter the apartment quietly and head to my room. As we pass by her room, I hear music playing softly.
As we head into my room, I move to my closet and start grabbing some things as Brett shuts the door.
“Well, I guess she is home,” he says quietly.
“Hopefully, she’s still sleeping. Can you grab my bag, please?” I ask, pointing to the top of my closet.
Brett walks over and grabs it while I move onto my dresser.
After grabbing everything I need, I hand it to Brett, who immediately begins to pack it.
“Do you need your chargers or anything?” he asks.
“If you don’t mind grabbing them, that would be great.”
Quickly, I strip out of yesterday’s clothes and throw them into my hamper and start to put on a pair of spandex shorts and a sports bra.
Brett sucks in a breath, and I look over at him.
“What? What’s wrong?”
He shakes his head, but he doesn’t look away from my stomach.
“Your bump is really starting to show. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not big or anything yet, but usually in the morning it seems smaller.”
I look down. Sure enough, I have a little bit of a pooch.
“Does it look okay? Should I cover it?”
“Don’t you dare. You look beautiful,” he says adamantly.
“I don’t even look pregnant yet. Not really. More like I’m bloated.”
“Yeah, but we know you are, and I like it.”
“I do too.”
He nods as he zips my bag shut. “Good. Now that we have that settled, let’s get to the gym.”
I walk toward him and pull his head down to me. “Thank you for this. Thank you for always being supportive,” I say before I kiss him softly.
The corners of his eyes crinkle. “You’re welcome.”
Breathing hard, I take a drink of water as I watch Emery. Her back is to me, and I watch as she does lunges. Her ass looks fantastic in those little shorts as she drops low before pushing up. When she turns to face me, my eyes drop to her stomach.
She’s still tiny, and the spandex sucks it all in, making her stomach still look flat.
An image of the future hits me so hard, I can’t help but suck in a breath.
She’s got on tiny spandex shorts and a sports bra that has a bunch of useless straps that zigzag across her shoulder blades.
From the back, you can’t tell she’s pregnant.
Not until she turns to face me. Her stomach is round, growing with our child.
Her face is red from exertion, and her hair is falling from her ponytail, but when she looks up at me, she smiles.
“Are you going to keep staring or are you going to work out?” she teases, pulling me out of the daydream.
I look down at her stomach and smile. I can’t wait. I love the idea of seeing her pregnant and pushing her body as much as she can before I take her home and fuck her. Just thinking about it makes my dick twitch.
“Earth to Brett,” she says, snapping her fingers at me.
“Yeah?”
She tilts her head to the side. “Are you okay? You seem awfully distracted.”
“Have you looked in the mirror? Of course I’m distracted.”
She rolls her eyes but smiles. “You already knocked me up. No need for sweet talk,” she says for only us to hear.
“Buttercup, if you think that’s sweet-talking, you haven’t seen anything yet.”
“If you say so. Anyway, if you don’t start working out, you’ll be out of shape for the next game,” she teases.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah…”
Laughing makes us both look toward the door, and we watch as some of her teammates roll in. Emery rolls her shoulders back and sucks in a deep breath.
If I didn’t know any better, I would think she’s preparing for battle.
“What’s wrong?” I ask quietly.
“Nothing,” she lies.
Bullshit.
The skater girls don’t notice us at first and move over to the treadmills.
“Come on, let’s keep going.” Emery grabs my hand and pulls me toward the other side of the gym. About as far away from her teammates as possible.
What in the fuck is happening? I know she said shit with them wasn’t good, but it can’t be that bad, can it?
For the next twenty minutes, we work out. Emery isn’t as locked in as she was before, though. No, her eyes keep darting to the other side of the gym, and she keeps chewing on her lip.
Almost as if she’s waiting for something to happen.
“Emery.”
She shakes her head and looks down. “I’m good. I promise.”
She’s not good, though. She’s so far from good it’s not even funny.
Before I can press her, though, the sound of footsteps has us looking over.
Emery groans under her breath as we watch the figure skaters approach us.
We turn to face them as they come to a stop in front of us. Half the girls look at Emery with disdain, while the others just look uncomfortable. Almost as if they would rather be anywhere than here.
“Oh, look, it’s little Miss Goodie Two-Shoes. Then again, I guess you aren’t very good when you get knocked up.” Ashley looks over at me. “I guess I should thank you for taking out my competition for me so I didn’t have to.”
Surely I didn’t hear this bitch right, right?
“Looking a little out of shape there, Emery. Are you sure you aren’t pregnant with twins?” one of her teammates says.
What. In. The. Fuck?
“Excuse me?” I demand.
The other girls shift uncomfortably, but Ashley just crosses her arms over her chest and smirks.
“Did she tell you Wyatt stopped by our place? If I were you, I would get a paternity test,” Ashley says.
This girl is a piece of shit. As if I don’t know that my buddy went to see my girl or that he takes care of her when I can’t. I’m guessing this bitch doesn’t have a family to rely on.
I open my mouth to go off on her but stop when Emery lightly touches my arm.
“Don’t. They aren’t worth it. Let’s just go. We have plans, remember?”
Is she serious right now? She wants me to walk away and not defend her when her roommate is talking shit and making up lies? I know why Wyatt went over to her place.
“Emery.”
She shakes her head. “Please, let’s just go.”
The way she pleads makes my heart ache.
“Okay.”
I reach out and take her hand in mine. When we pass by the posse of mean girls, I give them my middle finger.
Is it childish? Probably, but it makes me feel fucking better.
When we reach the door, though, Emery pauses and turns to look over her shoulder.
“Oh, girls,” she says, getting their attention. “Life can turn on you quickly. You should watch out. You never know if you’ll be next.”
Before anyone can say anything, Emery pulls me out of the gym. I stay quiet until we get outside.
“I fucking hate that this is how it is for you. They were your friends. Your teammates. They should support you.”
“They were never my friends, and teammates for me are nothing like what you are used to. It is what it is,” she says, sounding completely exhausted.
“Buttercup…”
She shakes her head. “It’s fine. Besides, revenge will come to them.”
“Yeah, and what will that be?”
A wicked smile crosses her face. “Well, revenge will be that none of them will make the Olympic team, and then in four years I’ll make it when none of them have.”
She will. She will make that team. I don’t care what I have to do to help her achieve it, but I’ll do it. Her dreams will become a reality.
“You’ll make it.”
She looks over at me and smiles.
“Come on, you owe me breakfast.”