CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR THEO
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
THEO
Iwave goodbye to the guys after our morning and head in the opposite direction, strolling down the hall to the trainer’s room. The door is half-open and I poke my head in, lifting my hand to knock, when I stop.
Lucy’s alone in the room and she doesn’t see me as I hover in the doorway, completely transfixed by her.
She’s just past twenty-five weeks now and her swollen stomach has started to stick out from her small frame, perfect and round.
I swear, the weeks have been flying by so fast, but being on the road and the grueling schedule of the hockey season will do that.
Her body’s changing and so are things between us. I can’t seem to keep my hands off her, although, things between us haven’t gone any farther than dry humping, heavy petting, and oral sex.
Lucy’s back is to me, and I lean against the doorframe, still going unnoticed as I watch her labeling a handle of small containers. Her auburn hair falls in loose waves down the center of her back with half of it pulled back, secured by a small clip.
My chest warms, my heart swelling as I quietly watch her.
She’s so perfect, flaws and all. There isn’t a single part of her I’m not obsessed with.
She lets out a soft laugh, her hand instantly moving to cradle her stomach.
A smile tugs on my lips, my eyes growing misty as she stares down at her stomach in wonderment.
I’m so lucky to be experiencing this all with her. There’s no way I could have let her do any of this alone.
What if she wasn’t doing it alone?
The unwarranted thought creeps into my mind and my stomach churns.
If he were involved, I don’t know what things would look like for me.
If Lucy was in love with another man… I shake my head.
It’s just a what-if, which means nothing.
The asshole who got her pregnant isn’t here—I am.
That’s the difference and that’s all that fucking matters. His existence is insignificant.
I shove the thought away, refusing to give it anymore of my attention as Lucy tucks the containers in a cabinet and closes everything up. She grabs her purse, her breath catching in her throat as she turns around, wide eyes meeting mine.
“You scared me.” She laughs, pressing her hand to her chest. “How long have you been there?”
I lift my shoulders, pushing away from the doorframe. “Not long.” I close the distance between us, meeting her in the middle of the room as I take her bag from her and sling it over my shoulder. “You ready to go home?”
“I am.” She lifts her hand to conceal a yawn, walking into the hallway. “I slept terribly last night and might have to take a nap before the game like you do.”
We fall into step beside one another, my fingers brushing against hers as we head toward the exit. “Nap with me.”
We’re living under the same roof, pretending to be in a relationship, exchanging orgasms, yet she still sleeps in a different room. She claims she’s a restless sleeper and needs space to move around and get comfortable, although a part of me thinks it’s bullshit.
She glances at me from the corner of her eye, a soft smile tugging on her lips.
“Maybe I will,” she says, her voice trailing off as her hand slips into mine when we walk out into the parking lot.
My heart hammers away in my chest as I help her into the car and walk around the front, making my way to my side.
I’ve never been more excited to get home to take a nap than I am right now.
Lucy settles into her seat, her phone ringing as I pull out of the parking lot and onto the street.
“Hey, Mom,” she says into the speaker, holding her phone to her ear as she glances at me with a small shrug. “Yeah, I’m with him now. We’re on our way back to his house until we have to come back for the game later.” I glance at her and she arches a brow. “Yeah, sure, hold on.”
She pulls the device away from her face and presses a button on the screen. “Okay, you’re on speakerphone.”
“Perfect.” Hadley’s voice comes through the speaker. “Hey, Theo.”
I glance at Lucy. “Hey, Hadley.”
“I wanted to talk to you both to see how things are going, since we haven’t been able to get our schedules to line up.”
“I just talked to you earlier,” Lucy reminds her, her soft laugh swirling around us. “We talk every day.”
Hadley chuckles. “Okay, well, I don’t get to talk to both of you at the same time every day.”
“We’re doing well, Hadley,” I assure her, a smile drifting across my face. “Lucy’s a bit stubborn at times, but she’s working on it.”
“And Theodore is a bit annoying and likes to have a say in everything.”
My eyebrows tug together. “You think I’m annoying?”
“Not really.” She giggles, shaking her head. “It just feels like you’re always asking me how I’m feeling or treating me like I’m a piece of glass.”
My head tilts. I know she didn’t appreciate me inserting myself when she was near the bench, but this is news.
Hadley starts talking again before I get the chance to respond to Lucy’s statement.
The conversation shifts into talking about the baby, our work schedules and when we’ll be able to get together for dinner.
Lucy ends the call with the promise that we’ll be over next week, just as we’re pulling into the driveway. She glances at me as I put the car in park in the garage. “Sorry about her. She wanted to talk to us together.”
Lucy smiles and my heart fucking breaks like glass in my chest. “I think she’d be happy if we ended up living together forever.”
My heart stumbles over itself. She’s not the only one. “What makes you think that?”
Lucy gets out of the car and I do the same, meeting her at the door that leads into the house. “She all but came out and said it the one day.” She chuckles, pulling the door open. I take it from her, holding it for her to walk ahead of me.
She shakes her head, amusement in her face as she kicks off her shoes. “At this point, you’re going to have to kick me out to get rid of me, anyways.”
I leave my shoes beside hers, reaching for her as we walk into the kitchen. My hands find her hips and I spin her around, pulling her body flush against mine. “Then I suppose we’ll end up making your mother very happy.”
She tilts her head back, hues of blue swirling in her eyes. “Why’s that?”
“Because I’m never kicking you out, love.” My face dips down to hers, my lips brushing against the corner of her mouth. “What if I told you I wanted to keep you for myself?”
She hooks her arms around the back of my neck, guiding her mouth to mine. “What if I told you I might let you?”
Her lips find mine—eager, yet soft and warm. They’re quickly becoming one of my favorite things about her… But then again, I don’t think I could pinpoint a single thing about her that supersedes the other.
She’s my favorite.
Her hands tangle in my hair and the air leaves her lungs in a rush as I sweep her into my arms, carrying her through the house, past her bedroom and into mine. I’m careful of her stomach as I set her back down on her feet, her hands clinging to me, pulling me closer.
We fall onto the mattress together, burrowing under the covers as she burrows herself farther into my heart. My hands are on her waist as I roll onto my back, guiding her on top of me. She straddles my body, a fire burning in her eyes as she stares down at me.
My hands are on her hips, my lips parted, shallow breathing, heart hammering. She presses her weight against my groin and I groan, lifting my hips, my cock throbbing against her center.
She grabs the hem of her shirt, pulling it up and over her body, tossing it onto the floor.
Jesus fucking Christ, she takes my breath away.
Her wavy hair hangs down her back. Her breasts are swollen and full, threatening to spill from the top of her bra.
I lift my hands, cradling her stomach before sliding them around her back, undoing her bra.
Her eyes never leave mine as she drags the straps down her arms. I take it from her, leaving her breasts exposed, her nipples pebbling from the cool air around us.
“Look at you,” I murmur, my gaze raking her body, my hands following after I discard her bra. My fingers brush the underside of her breasts and she lets out a low moan. Her hands find mine, guiding them over her full tits. My fingertips brush her nipples, and she sucks in a sharp breath.
“My god, you’re fucking perfect.” I knead her breasts in my hands, rolling her erect nipples between my fingertips when something on her skin catches my eye. It’s on her rib cage, right where the strap of her bra or bikini top would cover. “What’s this?”
Lucy shifts her body, looking down at the tattoo etched in her flesh. “A tattoo.”
I lift my brows, looking at her and then leaning up to look at the drawing. I recognize it immediately. It’s no bigger than a quarter. An outline of a goose with a flower hanging from its beak. It’s a tattoo of the drawing I used to put on all the notes I wrote her when we were younger.
My heart hammers against my rib cage, my eyes flicking to hers, my breath caught in my fucking chest. “Lucy,” I rasp, emotion washing over me. She stares down at me, her nostrils flaring, eyes filled with indistinguishable emotions.
I cup the sides of her face, my eyes burning, heart wild in my chest as I pull her flush to me. Her swollen stomach is hot against my skin and her mouth crashes into mine. She steals the oxygen from my lungs, draining every last molecule.
My hands are all over her, soft and tender as her lips melt into mine, tongues tangling, breath mixing. I’ll never get enough of her. There isn’t a single coherent thought in my mind. All it is, is Lucy.
Lucy, Lucy, Lucy.
She’s all I hear, all I see, all I feel. Every scent is attuned to her, consumed and overwhelmed in the best way possible. She’s everywhere, everything, and honestly… fuck the rest. Nothing else matters but her. Always her.