Chapter 13
ALLY
He was coming home this afternoon, and I was jumpy. It was the best way to describe what was going on in my head. We’d texted daily and video-chatted twice since the road trip started and it felt just, I don’t know—right, I guess.
Ugh. What the hell was I doing?
Getting to know the father of my child so we could all exist together.
I put my head in my hands. I’d told everyone that we were going to act like roommates, but that didn’t stop me from wanting him. I moved one hand to my bump, and a chuckle bubbled forth.
I obviously had a history of wanting him.
My computer pinged with a notification, and I looked up to see an email from my boss. Yes, while I was getting distracted by thoughts about Dom, I was supposed to be working. Not that I was slacking off or anything. I just managed to spend way too many spare minutes thinking about a certain gorgeous man.
I shook my head and opened up the email. He had notes about my last report, so I pulled up my research and data points and responded. The next two hours flew by as I examined my findings on another case and started to write up my analysis. I got into a rhythm, and before I knew it, my stomach was growling and demanding lunch.
I pushed back my glorious desk chair—seriously, this thing was magical—and headed into the kitchen. I was almost out of a few of my favorite snacks that Dom had stocked for me, so I made a list of what I needed.
His sweetness and consideration still surprised me. Never would I have ever guessed that he would do all that for me. Of course, never would I have guessed that he’d knock me up and we’d be living together, but here we were.
“Phew. No turquoise.”
“Holy shit,” I screeched, turning around to see Dom standing just inside the door. “Oh my god, you startled me.” How had I not heard him coming in?
He dropped his bags and rushed over to me, gripping my arms. “Shit, sorry. Are you okay? Whoa, your heart is racing.”
“Because you scared the hell out of me.” And also because you’re touching me. I kept that last part internal.
He rubbed his hands up and down my arms. “I’m sorry. You okay? The baby?” One of his hands dropped to my belly.
“Um. Yeah. Fine. I’ll be fine.” I stepped out of his hold and immediately missed his touch.
Dammit.
“Now, what did you say when you came in?” I asked.
He quirked a brow. “No turquoise.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. I might’ve teasingly texted him that I was going to paint the living room turquoise to add some color to the white walls since he said I could do anything I wanted.
“How about pink and turquoise stripes? It’ll bring the room to life.” I tried to sound nonchalant, but I could hear the wobble in my voice.
He tugged me back into his arms and gave me a hug. “How about something neutral? And are you good now?”
I swallowed hard. It wasn’t like this man never hugged me, but it felt so nice to be touched by him. He’d been doing it a lot more since I’d moved in, and I definitely wasn’t mad about it.
“Yeah, I’m good,” I said. Then, my stomach grumbled again. “I was just making a late lunch. Want anything?”
He released his hold on me and stepped back. “No, I’m good. Movie and takeout tonight?”
“Sure. But don’t you want to go out with the guys?”
He scoffed. “I just spent a week with them nonstop. You’re coming to the game tomorrow, right?”
“Yes.”
“Great. I got you a family pass already and you can use my seats or hang out in the family suite.”
***
I stepped into the family suite the following night and glanced around for some familiar faces.
“There she is!” Brooke called, a huge smile on her face. “Get over here.”
I sighed with relief. Of the Strikers currently on the Stampede, she was the only spouse I really knew. Timmy had just gotten together with his girlfriend—his best friend since childhood—during last season, and Fishy was perpetually single.
“Hi,” I said, walking toward her.
She pulled me into as much of a hug as was possible with my belly.
Which made me remember Dom pressed up against me yesterday when he’d come home, looking stupidly hot in one of his favorite game day suits. The deep green three-piece perfection brought out his eyes and molded to his body so perfectly. Dammit. I wanted him.
“You cold?” Brooke asked, mistaking my shudder for the temperature in the arena and not the hot flash rocking through me.
“Um, yeah. I’m good,” I said, pulling back.
“You’re glowing. And I see you’ve got Dom’s jersey on. Oh girl, I have so many questions for you, so feel free to tell me to mind my business,” she said, her eyes twinkling.
I laughed. “Lots of changes. Yeah, it just happened.”
She chuckled. “You two had chemistry the first time you met. And maybe now is the right time. Just be happy.”
I put my hand on my belly. “I’m happy about her, but Dom and I aren’t together.”
She quirked a brow. “We’ll see about that. Never thought I’d see that man so excited to be a father. He spent years being a total player.” She paused. “Sorry.”
I shook my head. “It’s nothing I didn’t know. We were just having fun back then. I definitely wasn’t looking for long-term either. And now, we’re navigating this, and it’s totally weird, but he’s been great, so I’m just going day by day.”
“That’s all you can do. But you’re here now, and I can’t wait to introduce you to the Stampede family. You know I love all my Strikers, but there’s something about this team. Hey, Violet, come here,” she called out.
“Oh my god, she’s getting so big,” I said as Violet walked over to us.
“No kidding. She’s five going on twenty-five, and her sass is going to break me,” Brooke said, shaking her head.
I hadn’t seen Violet in almost two years, not since the Strikers won the Cup. Flower had been traded to the Stampede a month later.
“Honey, remember Ally? Harty’s sister?” Brooke asked, swooping her daughter up into her arms. The little girl tilted her head back and forth as if trying to remember me.
“Maybe,” she said.
“It’s been a while, but I remember you. You love chocolate chocolate chip cookies, right?” I asked.
“Yes, she does,” another woman said, coming to stand next to Brooke.
“And you’re always sneaking them to her,” Brooke said to the woman. “Ally, this is Cora. She’s dating Nate, the team captain, and her brother is one of the team’s co-owners.”
“Oh wow. How’d he take it?” I asked without thinking.
The woman grinned. “You must be Ally. Welcome to the team. And yeah, brothers are so annoying.”
“So annoying,” Violet said dramatically. “I’m happy I don’t have one. But a sister would be nice.”
Brooke rolled her eyes. “That’s Violet’s current fixation. Maybe one day, honey. Remember? We talked about it. But Ally’s having a little girl, so you’ll have another playmate.”
“A girl!” Violet gasped. “Good. ’Cause we’re the best.”
I laughed.
“Yes, we are,” Cora said, grinning. “You totally deserve a cookie for being so smart.”
“Can I please?” she asked.
Brooke lowered her to the ground. “Okay, but this is the last one. I mean it.”
“Welcome to the team, Ally. Let me get this girl a cookie, and I’ll be right back. I can’t wait to hear about you and Dom.”
“Uh. Yeah, sure,” I said, slightly wishing I’d stayed at the condo tonight. But Cora seemed friendly, and most WAGs, in my experience, were nice and supportive.
I missed Darcy and Penny.
“Come on. I’ll introduce you around, and then we’ll fix a plate and watch the game. Dom’s been playing amazing since you moved in, so we’re going to do everything to keep you here,” Brooke said.
“You’re almost as superstitious as the guys,” I teased. She laughed and shrugged, then guided me toward a group of women sitting in the front section of seats.
***
“Stupid bladder,” I muttered the next morning as I reluctantly got out of bed. I’d planned on sleeping in after getting home late last night, but Baby Girl obviously didn’t approve of that plan. I tugged my pj top down and made my way to the door, spotting my new jersey on the floor where I’d tossed it last night. The game had been a lot of fun, and hanging out in the family suite had been exactly what I needed.
Everyone had been so nice and welcoming, and Dom had scored a goal. I swear Brooke sighed when he looked up toward the family suite after the goal and gave a little salute.
Hell, I’d almost sighed, too. But he’d just done that because he apparently thought I was good luck now.
Focus. Need to pee.
I walked across the short hall and grumbled when I heard the shower going. Why the hell was he up so early? This one bathroom thing was going to be a problem because a pregnant bladder waited for no one. Lifting my hand to knock, I froze, hearing a groan.
And then another one.
No. He. Was. Not.
Was he seriously jerking off in the shower when I had to pee?
I snorted. Okay, he didn’t know I had to pee.
He groaned again, and my body clenched as I vividly could picture him tugging on his cock while the water rained down on him.
“Fucking hell,” I moaned, crossing my legs as heat spiraled through me and my bladder threatened to burst.
“Shit,” I whispered, my nipples hard against my pj top. Being turned on was so not a good thing right now.
I started to turn the knob because what else was I going to do? No fucking way was I peeing my pants in the hallway.
Then I heard it.
My name. A groan and then a fuck, Ally.
Oh my god. I squeezed my legs tighter, doing a little potty dance as I waited for him to go silent.
Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore. I gave a little considerate knock and opened the door.
“Sorry! I know you’re in the shower, but pregnant bladder and all. Don’t turn off the water!” I shouted, quickly moving toward the toilet.
“Ally.” His voice sounded choked.
Much like he’d probably been choking his cock.
I bit back a groan.
“I’ll be fast, promise,” I said, peeing quickly. Then I washed my hands and got the hell out of there.
My entire body buzzed with excitement as I thought about him coming and gasping out my name.
What the hell had just happened?
DOM
Fucking hell. How much had she heard? Why was she up so damn early?
Why did this place have to only have one bathroom?
I pressed my forehead and my clenched fist against the cool tile on the shower wall as the water continued to cascade down my back. My cock was already starting to harden again, and she’d only left the bathroom two minutes ago.
When her voice echoed through the shower very shortly after I groaned out her name and came, I thought my heart would stop. What a fucking disaster. I couldn’t even enjoy my post-orgasmic haze because I was panicking about what she might’ve heard.
Dammit to fucking hell.
I glared down at my offending cock. It was his fault that I was in the mess. Not that getting Ally pregnant was a mess. Unplanned, yes, but with every day that passed, I was more excited to meet my little girl.
And more anxious that I was going to fuck up and have no clue what I was doing. Ally said that last part was normal.
And it wasn’t like I was going to reach out to my family for tips on not fucking it up since they’d failed that goal miserably. My mom still hadn’t messaged me about Ally or the baby, and I hadn’t volunteered up any information. What was the point? My father continued to send sporadic asshole texts, but I ignored him the best I could.
And now my cock deflated again.
***
“Why so glum, you bum?” Sin asked later that morning as we sat around the team meeting room waiting for the coaching staff to show up.
Tally smacked him in the back of the head.
“Thanks, man,” I said.
“Hey,” Sin squawked, but we ignored him.
“Seriously, you okay? Kick-ass game last night. You’ve been on fire for the last week or so. Keep that shit up,” Tally said.
“Yeah, I’m good,” I said. “And thanks.”
“He’s going through a lot of changes right now. We should be more sensitive,” Sin said. I rolled my eyes.
Luckily, Millsy and the rest of our coaches walked into the room.
“I’ll start with great game last night. We needed the win, and we got it. Lines are working, but we’re going to play around with the third and fourth today,” Millsy announced.
I half paid attention, and half thought about Ally.
I hadn’t been able to look her in the eyes this morning. After getting dressed, I walked into the kitchen to find her sitting at the table eating breakfast. Muttering a good morning, I grabbed a banana, and she made a strangled sound in reply.
Then I picked up my gear bag, hoped everything I needed for the day was in it, and mumbled something about getting to practice early.
It’d been a fucking disaster, and since she worked from home, it wasn’t like she’d be at an office all day so I could avoid her if I wanted to go back to the condo.
Fucking. Fucking. Hell. I was internally babbling. Was that a thing?
“You look like you ate something bad,” Micah muttered next to me.
“What? Nah, I’m good.”
The last thing I was going to do was tell any of the guys about my morning, especially with Sin in hearing distance. The man would probably die laughing. Plus, secrets never stayed secret among my teammates, so I was taking this one to the grave.
I turned my attention fully to the front of the room. At least I had a long day at the arena filled with meetings, tape review, practice, and some cardio. That was on top of all the cardio I did this morning because I’d had to get out of my condo. I’d had the workout room to myself since no one else was getting up that early to work out after a game day.
Yeah, I definitely wouldn’t have time to think about coming with Ally’s name on my lips.
I bit back a groan.
Which is what I should’ve done this morning.
Fuck. It. All.
***
I was exhausted when I walked into the condo later that night. I’d almost gone out with the guys for dinner, but I knew I was just avoiding coming home, and I needed to get my head out of my ass.
“Hey,” she said when I walked in.
I tried to read her expression, but it was neutral and happy. Normal Ally.
Okay. I could do this.
Fuck. She looked beautiful. Her hair was piled on her head in her usual messy bun and her oversized shirt stretched over her belly and left one shoulder bared so I could see her bra strap and that perfect skin I wanted to taste.
Damn. It.
“Hi,” I said, attempting to sound nonchalant. “You hungry?”
Because I fucking was.
I swear I was going to slam my head against the wall as soon as she was out of sight.
“Sure. What are you thinking?” she asked as she unfolded her legs and stood. She turned to grab something off the back of the couch, and I was greeted with her delectable ass in leggings.
“Takeout of some kind,” I said with a shrug.
She laughed softly. “One of us is going to have to learn how to cook. I mean, I have a basic skill set, but we can’t do takeout every night.”
“I know, I know. It’s just easy, and cooking for one sucks.”
“Agreed. Maybe we could cook together,” she said, stopping in front of me and looking up. Her blue eyes twinkled. Fuck. She was stunning.
“Uh, sure.”
“You okay?” she asked.
“Yup. Never better.” Apparently, we were going to pretend this morning didn’t happen, which was fucking fine by me.
Except I couldn’t stop thinking about what would’ve happened if she’d stepped into the shower with me. I had a very vivid memory of her doing that when we fucked after Ethan and Penny’s wedding last year, our skin sliding together as I lifted her into my arms and pressed her against the shower wall, then sank my cock inside of her.
Fuck.
My body clenched, and my cock hardened.
“You must be wrung out,” she said.
“What?”
She narrowed her eyes on my face, a small smile playing on her lips.
“You know. From practice all day? Especially after a game last night. Usually, they don’t have early morning practices after a game night, I thought. Millsy pushing you too hard?”
Had she emphasized hard?
Fuck. My. Life.
“Uh, yeah. Just trying to keep on top of my game.”
Why did everything sound so fucking sexual right now?
“On top. Yeah. Makes sense,” she said, that twinkle back in her eyes.
This woman had been testing me since we first met.
“You want to talk about something, Ally?” I crowded into her, relishing the pink staining her cheeks as she took in a breath. Two could play at this game.
“Dinner. Weren’t we figuring out what to eat?” If she batted her eyes at me, I was going to lose it.
“What are you in the mood for?”
“Tacos? Let’s get Mexican,” she said, and I sucked in a breath.
Tacos could be sexual… or was she just in the mood for Mexican? Fucking hell, my brain was not firing on all cylinders since its normal blood flow had headed south.
“Sure.” I pulled up the app for my favorite Mexican restaurant. “What do you want?”
She gave me her order, and I quickly placed it.
“You meeting up with the guys later?” she asked.
“Nah,” I said, keeping it short and sweet before I got myself twisted up in my words again.
“Maybe we could watch a movie or something. I promise to try to stay awake during the entire thing.” She gave me a wink.
Dammit. What would she do if I pulled her into my arms and kissed her right now?
***
Her little sigh was destroying me. The movie had probably twenty minutes left, and she’d been out for the last forty.
And snuggled into my side. Her head was turned into my body, her hand on my chest. And every soft breath coming out of her was slowly driving me insane. My hard cock had been pitching a fucking tent for way too long, so at least she was asleep and missing that embarrassment.
As soon as she curved into me, I’d put my hand on her bump in the hopes that being reminded of our child between us would drive home the fact that we were just doing the roommate thing and not the fucking thing I so desperately wanted.
I was failing miserably at keeping that in mind, so much so that, without thinking it through, I leaned down and pressed my lips to the top of her head. She murmured something inaudible at my touch but didn’t wake up. My arm moved from the back of the couch to wrap around her, and I swear she smiled against my chest.
Fucking hell, man. Do you hear yourself?
Groaning, I turned my attention back to the movie. It was some action film Ally had picked, but currently, the main leads were kissing as shit blew up around them. The actress looked like Ally, and now I was back to thinking about kissing her.
Finally, the movie ended, but now I had to figure out what to do. I hated waking her, so I scooped her up into my arms, telling my cock to calm the fuck down as I shifted my hold on her, and she nuzzled her mouth under my chin.
Be a fucking gentleman, asshole.
I carried her into her room and sat down with her on the bed.
“Ally,” I started.
Her eyes drifted open, and she gave me a sleepy smile. “Hi. Did I miss the movie?”
I chuckled. “Just a bit of it. I didn’t want to wake you but figured you’d want to get ready for bed. Go to the bathroom. Whatever.”
She licked her lips.
“I heard you this morning, Dom.” Then she patted my chest and shifted away from me, scooting up the bed to put her head on her pillow.
I was frozen.
Then I heard a soft snore and barely stopped myself from bursting out laughing. Instead, I lifted her and pulled back the covers before settling her into bed. After I made sure she was fully tucked in, I stared down at her. She looked so peaceful while my mind twisted and turned all over the place.
I wanted to wake her up to make sure I’d heard her correctly, but I knew I had. Fucking hell.
My cock hadn’t gotten the message that nothing else was going to happen tonight, so I leaned down, pressed a quick kiss to her cheek, and escaped so I could take care of my damn dick.
This time, I made sure to keep her name silent as I came.
Fucking hell.