THEO
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
But what would really eliminate any worry is if she’d come stay at my house already.
We may be best friends. We may have known each other our whole lives, but the last thing I’m going to do is lay on any more pressure. If she comes around to the idea, great… if not—well, I suppose it will just be me and my worry against the world.
“Yo, Simms.” Warren Cross, our captain, knocks my elbow with his. “Are you coming to dinner with us?”
I glance around the locker room as I pull the Velcro straps on my chest protector and pull it over my head. “I don’t know. I think I might get delivery from somewhere instead.”
The rest of the team are mostly undressed already, some heading to the showers and some getting ready to go back to the hotel.
Usually I go to dinner with the guys, but things have been different lately.
More nights than not, I’ve been finding myself in Lucy’s hotel room, ordering room service or delivery and watching movies.
“With Lucy?” he asks, mischief dancing in his eyes.
I smile sheepishly, ducking my head as heat creeps up my neck. What the hell? It’s Lucy. I’m not blushing—it’s just from my body temperature after practice.
“Thought so.” He chuckles, shaking his head. “I’m happy you’ve finally settled down a bit. I was getting whiplash with all the different women you were talking to or seeing.”
Shaw leans forward, looking around Volkov at the two of us. “There weren’t that many women,” he chimes in, sticking up for me.
Matty nods his head on the other side of Cross. “He wasn’t sleeping with all of them either.”
I close my eyes, pursing my lips and pinching the bridge of my nose. They think they know all about my sex life. Sure, they’ve seen me with different women. Before this situation with Lucy, I dated a lot. It’s nothing I tried to hide.
But they don’t know the truth of it.
Matty’s wrong when he says I wasn’t sleeping with all of them… Because I wasn’t sleeping with any of them.
Cross arches a brow at me. “Regardless of what you were doing, it’s what you are doing now that’s important.” He lifts his hand and clasps my shoulder. “You’re doing great, Theodore.”
I dip my head and clear my throat. “Thanks, man. It’s different, but it’s good. Lucy seems happy and everything is good with her and the baby so far.”
“Are you guys going to find out the gender?” Shaw asks.
Hm. Lucy and I hadn’t talked about it at all. It’s been a whirlwind this last month and I swear the weeks are passing by so quickly. “I don’t know,” I admit, raking my hand through my damp hair. “She has an appointment in a few weeks, so I guess we should talk about that before then.”
Matty chuckles. “Yeah, that might be a conversation you should have.”
“No shit, Sherlock.” I look over at him, rolling my eyes.
He gives me a look. “You say that like you know it, but you still haven’t talked to her about it.”
“Well, I plan on it, probably tonight.”
Matty snorts, rising to his feet as he grabs his stuff for the shower. “Good luck, Simms. Let us know how it goes.”
“What about a gender reveal thing?” Shaw asks, curiosity burning in his gaze. “My brother and sister-in-law had one last summer. It was fun.”
Cross’ eyebrows tug together. “Are you going to be the party planner?”
“He should stick to hockey,” Volkov mutters under his breath, shaking his head.
It hasn’t been long enough for us to forget the birthday party Shaw tried to throw for Volkov last season. We ended up at a location for a strip club that went out of business, and we couldn’t get a car to pick us up in the shady part of Vegas we were in.
“I’m just saying, if you guys wanted to do one, I think it would be a fun idea,” he says defensively before pinning his gaze on Volkov. “I apologized profusely for your birthday, Vasily. I thought that was water under the bridge?”
Volkov purses his lips and lifts his eyebrows at Shaw. “It is, but that doesn’t mean you should be planning any other parties.”
“We probably won’t,” I interject, speaking for both Lucy and I when I have no idea what she wants. Whatever she wants isn’t any of their concern. “And even if we did, I’m sure Lucy will figure that all out.”
“I was gonna say that, but someone didn’t give me a chance to.” Shaw huffs out a breath, heading to the showers without another word. Shaw and Volkov haven’t been on the best terms lately, since Shaw blamed him for a goal that was scored against us the other day.
I can’t help but wonder if there’s something else going on with Shaw right now. I know he was recently having issues with his ex not leaving him alone, but I haven’t checked in with him on what’s happening with that situation lately. I need to pull him aside when I get the chance.
Regardless of what’s going on with Shaw, I know him and Volvo will make up soon enough. We’re family. At the end of the day, we’ll always get over our differences and have each other’s backs.
It’s an hour and a half later when I’m standing outside Lucy’s room with a bag of food I had delivered to the hotel. A few seconds after I knock, the door unlatches and Lucy pulls it open.
“Hey.” She smiles, instinctively stepping out of the way for me to come inside. She closes the door, and her eyes, inhaling deeply. “That smells so good.”
I smirk. “Me or the food?”
Lucy’s blue eyes spring open, landing on mine. “Both,” she says, winking before turning around and heading into the hotel room. My stomach does a flip and my heart stumbles over itself. Calm the fuck down, Theo. She’s being playful and nothing more.
I follow her and she climbs onto the bed, patting the spot next to her. She’s already showered with her hair in a bun and her silk, baby blue pajamas on.
“Come sit. I’m starving.”
I kick off my shoes and climb onto the bed in my clean clothes. “When was the last time you ate?”
“I don’t know,” she says with a shrug as I hand her a container with a tossed salad from the bag. “Probably lunchtime?”
I glance at the clock on the nightstand.
It’s already six o’clock in the evening, meaning it’s been hours since she last ate.
“You have to make sure you’re eating, Luce.
” I click my tongue and shake my head. She takes a bite of salad, giving me a knowing look.
“You’re growing a whole-ass human. Since you’re in the second trimester, you should be eating at least an extra four-hundred calories. ”
Lucy stops chewing, tilting her head. “How do you know that?”
“The pregnancy app.”
She coughs, half-choking on her food before she clears her throat. “What?”
“The app that the doctor told you to download.” It’s been sending me weekly updates on the baby’s growth and the changes in Lucy. “I got it, too.”
She stares at me and the silence stretches between us. I didn’t think it was weird that I downloaded it, but the way she’s looking at me right now has me second-guessing. She’s staring at me in disbelief.
“Why?”
I shrug, heat creeping up my neck. I don’t know why I feel so nervous suddenly. “So I know what’s going on too.”
She’s silent for another moment and then her expression softens. “Okay.” A slow smile creeps across her lips. “I like that.”
I stare back at her, my eyes diverting to trace the constellations of freckles across her nose before meeting her gaze once more. “We need to make sure you’re eating and drinking enough.”
“It’s easier at home.”
“Well, we’ll figure it out on the road too.” I make a mental note to make sure Lucy always has some snack bags ready to go. “I’ll take care of it.”
She swallows another bite of food, shaking her head. “You have enough to worry about.”
“You and the baby are my main concern, Lucy. I can’t help but worry about the two of you.”
It’s funny how priorities can change…
She sighs softly. “I don’t want you to worry about us and have that distract you or anything.”
A smile pulls on my lips. “Then let me make sure the two of you are good.”
Her eyes shine back at me. “Okay, fine.” She laughs quietly, shaking her head. Her gaze latches onto mine. “I wanted to talk to you… about what you said about staying with you.”
My chest tightens. “Yeah?”
“I think you’re right.” She swallows hard. “I think it would be a good idea. If we’re doing this, if we’re going to pretend this baby is yours, I think it makes the most sense.”
My body immediately relaxes, my shoulders sagging with relief. I wasn’t sure if she’d dig her feet in and stay at her apartment or come to her senses and see this is the best option. If she’s with me, I know she’s safe. I know everything is good.
“Even if it’s just a temporary thing,” she adds. “I’m sure after the baby is born and I’m back to work and stuff, I can find a bigger place then.”
“Let’s just take it one day at a time.” I smile. We don’t need the added stress or pressures of what may come in the future. All we can do is focus on now and what makes things easiest in this moment. I’m in this for the long haul. That baby isn’t biologically mine, but it is mine now.
I slip my hand into the bag, pulling out a container I left inside and handing it to Lucy.
“What’s this?” she asks, opening the lid. A smile drifts across her lips as she looks at me. “Crème br?lée. My favorite, oh my god.” She laughs, abandoning the rest of her food to dig right into dessert instead. “This is the way to my heart.”
I smile back at her, ignoring the tug inside my own chest. The tug that reminds me that even though I’ve refused to ruin our friendship, I’ve always been on the road that leads straight to her heart.
I’m right here, Freckles. When are you going to let me in?