30. EPILOGUE
EPILOGUE
30
Iwrap my arms around her, mindful of the precious cargo she's just announced she's carrying, and lift her from the couch swiftly—that's part adrenaline, part sheer elation. Her squeal of surprise is music, the best victory chant I could have ever imagined.
"You're serious?” I solicit quickly. “We're—you're—" I can't even get the words out.
I'm going from zero to a hundred, just like that. Excitement, love, and wonder are all mixed into one heady cocktail of emotions.
My wife is pregnant.
I’m still reeling with that sentiment that she’s mine in name and everything else that matters.
She chose me.
Through all the ups and downs of the game, the injuries, the triumphs, nothing has ever compared to this.
Rory, in my arms, bringing in a whole new chapter of life. We're a team- expanding and growing.
We’re about to have a baby.
A fucking baby. I swoop her up in my arms.
“Where are we going?” she asks with a laugh as I stride to our bedroom.
“Oh, I’m making some love to you, my beautiful wife. You’re pregnant!”
“I know.”
“With a baby.”
“I know.” I stop midstride and look up, finding her smiling down at me. “Excited?”
“Thrilled. We’re pregnant!”
“It’s going to be a lot.”
“I’m ready. I’m ready for all of it, baby.” My career slams into my head next, and I can’t help the frown that overtakes my face.
“What’s wrong?”
“I can’t play,” I mutter. “I need to be here for you and the baby—”
“No,” Rory cries out with a shake of her head. “I got this. We’re going to be fine. This changes a lot, but not everything.”
“I can’t leave you here alone with a new baby.”
“I want you to leave me alone here with a baby,” she retorts. “I would never dream of having you retire when you’re still in your prime.”
“Rory, I love you—”
“I love you, too,” she replies, cupping my face with her palm. “And I said no.”
“But—”
“No.”
Rory’s "no" hits me harder than any check on the ice ever could. It's firm, unwavering, the kind of 'no' that’s a 'yes' to a life bigger than us. One that includes diaper changes and late-night feedings mixed with goals and road trips.
“I just don’t want to miss out,” I confess. “On you, on the baby—anything.”
“You won’t. We’re a team, remember? I’ll send you videos, call you after every appointment, and make sure you’re as involved as possible. Always.”
I shake my head. “I need to be here with you.”
Rory must see the anxiety coursing through my features because she nods. “Some. As many as you can, but after the baby is born—”
“I’ll hire a doctor. One that can travel with us.”
Rory’s face falls from surprise to shock. “Well, that’s—babe, I’m not going to the doctor daily.”
“You sure?”
She smiles. “Positive. Now…” Rory gives me that look that tells me I'm being an overprotective doofus. “Put me down and show me how thrilled you are about being a dad.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” I start for our bedroom again. “Here, let me remind you.”
I start peppering kisses over her face, each one an “I love you” and “I’m here with you.”
Rory tries her best to evade but fails. “Wells, we’re not hiring a doctor.”
“Then I’m staying with you.”
“Oh my God,” she whines loudly. “You’re so annoying.”
I spread her ass cheeks and receive a little moan of satisfaction. “I know, baby, but you love me. You’re not doing this without me.”
“Fine,” she finally concedes with a light slap to my shoulder. “We’ll do it your way.”
“Thank fuck.” I softly place her on the bed and cover her with my body, nestling my face between the crook of her neck and shoulder. “I’m going to do it my way here, too.”
“You are never satisfied, are you?”
“When it comes to you, every single fucking day. I can’t get enough of you. I always want more.”
“We’re going to be too tired to do this soon.”
“I condition every day, baby. I have stamina and energy for days.”
“You’ve never dealt with a baby,” she retorts, threading her fingers through my hair. “This will be different.”
“Then I’ll train for that, too.” I lick up the column of her throat. “Because I’m not missing this. And no little bundle of joy is going to cock block me from my wife.”
“Alright, Killer. Whatever you say.”
I do say.
And she’ll see.
There's no way a baby is going to keep me away. I will overcome any level of exhaustion as long as I get my girl right here underneath me.
“God, I love you, Snowflake. Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For you. For this. For everything.”
“I should be thanking you for being the sweetest guy alive.”
I bite softly into her neck. “Not always.”
“Not always,” she agrees. “But where it matters. I can’t wait to see you raise our child.”
“Together. I’m never letting you do anything alone. I’m going to be here to support you forever and always. I will always take care of both of you. And the ones after.”
“You might only want the one.”
“Nah, I want at least five.”
“Five?” Her voice comes out as a bit of a shrill, and I smile against her skin. “Are you insane?”
“No. Maybe.”
“Five kids?”
“Maybe four. I’ll let you decide.”
“How about we have the one first, and then we’ll go from there.”
“You think I’m going to only go through this one time? I’ve only known you’ve been pregnant for two minutes, and I’m already losing it. I love you like this.”
She laughs. “I don’t even have a belly yet.”
“I knocked you up, Snowflake. That’s enough ego boost for me over any goal I score or any crazy headline I make.”
“I’m about to depress every woman in the world when they find out we’re pregnant.”
I pull out from the safe space of her body and shrug dismissively. “Oh, fuckin’ well. They never had a shot in hell.”
Rory smiles. “Oh yeah?”
“Nothing compared to you. There are men wearing t-shirts for you, not me. And I’m the asshole playing hockey.”
“They’re just trying to rile you up.”
“They’re New Brunswick fans. They should watch the game instead of trying to steal you from me.”
“Well, the guy that said he’d be my sugar daddy was tempting.”
I glower at her. “I’m your sugar and baby daddy. You'll never have anyone else. I am yours, and you are mine.”
“I know.” She bats her eyelashes, and her eyes fall to my lips. “I don’t want anyone else.”
I lean forward, knowing she’s messing with me, but I still don’t like the idea. “I’m glad you see it that way because when I said forever and always in our vows, I meant that shit.”
“Good, because I intend to hold you to every word.”
"We've got a good thing, Rory. You, me, and our little bean. It's more than I ever dared to ask for."
"I always knew we'd have a good thing," she whispers back, her breath warm against my chin. "From that first game I watched you play, I watched you glide across the ice—so sure of yourself and of me.”
"I was showing off for you," I confess with a chuckle, though we both know she held my unspoken affections long before I dared admit them. “And I knew you were going to be mine.”
“Same. I knew you would be the craziest thing I’ve ever done. And I’m glad I kept that rebellious streak going.”
“Still a bad influence on me.”
Rory gives me a soft little shove, and I roll to my back while she straddles my hips. “Then let me show you how much of a bad influence I can be, husband. I’ll have you dazed by the time I’m done.”
“You do that just by breathing, baby.”
A few months later...
I have made the New Brunswick Arena my second home. I love it here, and I always sit in the same seat to see my amazing husband wink at me. Today, though, I will bring him over to the glass to see me. I stick an orange Post-it note near the end of the second period as he is headed toward the tunnel. He cocks his head in confusion and slowly skates over with a grin on his face. He squints to read my message as he gets closer.
“Daddy, it’s twins!!!”
“What?” I see him say to himself. He puts his hands on his head and smiles in disbelief.
Next to the Post-it, I roll out the pictures of my latest ultrasound, showing the two babies, our precious gifts, to my husband.
His eyes well up, making my heart swell and tears stream down my cheeks. He kisses his fingers and touches them to the glass. A sweet gift for me. His teammates skate up next to him, and he disappears into the raucous as they cheer and crowd around him in celebration. My dad comes up, too, and the team parts to let them talk. They embrace and then turn to look at me, both beaming with smiles and tears in their eyes.
I feel a stirring in my belly, and I know that even though I think my heart is as whole as it could be, it will make plenty of room for all the love that is about to come into the world.
The End.