Chapter 17
seventeen
Bored.
I’m fucking bored out of my mind.
All my schoolwork is complete. Even some of it I’ve worked ahead on, and yet, I’m bored.
I never realized how much time skating took up in my life until I couldn’t do it anymore.
God, I miss skating.
I miss the cool air on my face, the way that fresh ice feels under my blades. Most of all, I miss pushing my body as hard as I can and doing as many spins and tricks as possible. I miss it all.
My phone vibrates next to me, so I pick it up. When I see his name, I can’t help but smile. The last thing I am when I’m with Brett is bored.
I open his text and chuckle.
Brett
Give me a reason to ditch class. I’m bored out of my mind.
Me
Funny, I was just having a pity party thinking about how bored I am.
Brett
Let’s do something.
Me
Like?
Brett
Actually, I have an idea. Do you trust me?
Me
You know I do.
Brett
Good. I’ll come pick you up. Pack a bag.
Pack a bag. He already has some of my things at his place, but apparently, he wants more.
He’s asking me to pack a bag so I’ll stay.
What the man doesn’t realize is I will gladly stay with him, which scares me to death.
Me
I can drive to your place, you know.
Brett
I’ll be there soon. Now get ready.
Laughing, I toss my phone down on my bed and get up. Moving around my room, I grab everything I could possibly need.
When I finish, there’s a knock on my door. Grabbing my bag, I go out and answer it.
“Hey.” I smile at him.
“Hey, buttercup.” He leans down and kisses me softly.
All too soon, he pulls away. He takes my keys from me and locks my apartment up before handing them back.
“I could have done that, you know,” I tease.
“I wanted to,” he says as he takes my bag from me.
He grabs my hand and pulls me outside.
“So where are we going?” I ask as I get into his car.
“It’s a surprise,” he tells me before shutting the door.
I watch as he rounds the hood of the car and gets in. When he starts to drive, he reaches over and takes my hand in his.
I look down at our hands and smile.
I’ve never been one for physical affection, but from Brett, I love it.
I crave it.
Before I know it, we’re pulling into a parking lot.
“Where are we?”
Brett shuts off the car and points to the building to the side of us. “I thought it would be fun for us to go browse baby shit, see what we like, what we don’t like. That kind of thing.”
“Wait, really?”
He shifts in his seat, like he’s uncomfortable. “I mean, yeah. We’re going to need stuff. I would rather get an idea now than wait until the last minute. Unless you don’t want to.”
“Come on.”
I jump out of the car, making him laugh as he joins me.
When we head inside, we are greeted by an employee.
“Welcome to Baby Mart, where you can get all of your baby needs! Let me know if you need help finding anything,” the lady chirps.
“Thank you.” I smile as we walk past her.
Brett leans down and whispers, “She’s way too fucking happy to be working in a baby store.”
“Stop it.” I giggle, slapping his stomach.
“Where do you want to start?”
Baby clothes catch my attention, so I drag him toward them. There’s a pink and white little outfit on the rack next to a pair of overalls with a baseball on the front pouch.
Both are equally adorable in their own way.
“Boy or girl?” I blurt out.
“What?”
I turn toward Brett. “Do you want a boy or a girl?”
“Buttercup, I genuinely don’t care what we have as long as you and the baby are fine in the end.”
Huffing, I turn back to the clothes. “Do you have to be so perfect?”
“You think I’m perfect?” he jokes, making me roll my eyes.
“I’m serious. Which would you prefer? Then again, how can I ask you to choose when I don’t know what I want.
Should we find out? If we don’t, how will we pick a baby name?
If we don’t know a name then we can’t leave the hospital, right?
Oh god, if we don’t know the gender how will we pick what type of crib to get?
What if we get something that’s feminine and we end up with a son? Or vice versa.”
Brett turns me toward him and places his hands on my shoulders. “Breathe, buttercup. Breathe.”
I take a deep breath and blow it out slowly, then repeat it again, and then a third time for good measure.
“Better now?”
“I think so,” I murmur.
“Good. Now don’t worry about being stuck in the hospital.
We are going to pick up a book of baby names before we leave here, and then we will slowly work our way through it.
We will pick a couple of girl and boy names ahead of time.
Then when the baby is born, we can decide which one we like best for our child. Okay?”
“You make it sound so easy.”
“Because it is.”
“Now, as for the crib, it won’t matter. The baby won’t care as long as they are comfortable.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“I’m being ridiculous, aren’t I?” I groan, dropping my head to his chest.
“Buttercup, you’re pregnant. Your hormones are raging, so you’re bound to have moments where you aren’t your usual level-headed self.”
“There you go, sweet-talking to me again.”
“I try, now do you want to start looking at things or do you want to leave?”
“Stay. I want to stay.”
“Good, I was hoping you would say that. There’s this stroller-car seat combo I was wanting to show you.”
I chuckle under my breath as he drags me to the other side of the store. I should have seen this coming. Already having baby stuff in mind is completely his MO, and I love it.
“Did you know people name their babies after fruit?”
I wince. “Sorry, but that’s not going to happen. I want our child to have a real name.”
Emery sighs. “Thank God. What about Cassian for a boy?”
I look over at Emery, and her nose is buried in the baby book we bought. Looking back at the road, I smile.
When we got to the store and she freaked out, for a split second, I thought I had messed up. In true Emery form, though, she rallied, and since we got into the car, she’s been completely consumed with the book of names.
“It’s not horrible, but it’s definitely not my top choice in names for a son or a daughter, for that matter.”
She hums but keeps reading.
“Huh,” I murmur when I see a strange car in my driveway.
“What’s wrong?”
“Someone’s here, I just don’t know who.”
“Do you think Wyatt invited someone over?”
I scoff. “I wish, but no. I highly doubt it.”
I park the car, and we get out and make our way to the door. When we step inside, laughter greets us. Laughter I haven’t heard in a minute.
“Son of a bitch. What are you two doing here?” I ask, smiling at my friends.
Clay and Beckett get up and walk over to me and give me a hug.
“We had a weekend off, so we thought we would come down to you guys for a change,” Clay says.
“If I didn’t know any better, I would think you aren’t happy to see us,” Beckett teases.
Clay steps forward and hugs Emery, catching her off guard.
“Oh,” she says, hugging Clay back.
“Welcome to the family,” he tells her.
“Thank you?”
The way she says it like a question makes me chuckle.
Beckett pulls her into his arms and hugs her as well.
“Are you cheating on me already, husband?” Peyton sasses.
Beckett scoffs as he lets go of Emery to face his wife. “Never.”
All of us laugh at Emery’s wide-eyed expression.
“Chill, I was only teasing,” Peyton tells her before hugging her.
“Forgive my friend. She thinks she’s funny, but she’s not,” Grace tells her.
“It’s fine,” Emery says.
“How long are you guys in town?” I ask.
“Only for the weekend,” Beckett tells me.
Emery turns toward me. “Do you want me to go? That way you can spend time with your friends.”
“No!” everyone yells in unison.
Grace sighs. “What we mean is, we would love for you to join us. For us all to hang out together.”
“Family night isn’t family night without all the members,” Cora says from her place on the couch.
I touch Emery’s shoulder. “We can go back to your place if you want.”
“Actually, I would love to stay, if it’s okay with everyone,” Emery tells me.
Kellan chuckles. “Let’s be real, they came down to see you. We’re just an added bonus.”
“Are you jealous already that the baby is cooler than you?” Grace quips.
“Gracie Bear, that baby can only hope to be half as cool as me,” he tells her, making her roll her eyes.
“Let’s sit,” I tell Emery.
We all move and sit down in the living room. I pull Emery close so she’s practically sitting in my lap.
“What’s the book?” Wyatt asks, tipping his chin toward Emery’s hand.
“A book of baby names,” she tells him.
“Kellan is a great name. Strong too,” Kellan tells us.
“We are not naming my child after you, and before any of you ask, you will know the name we pick when we know,” I tell them.
“I’m hungry,” Peyton says, changing the subject.
The topic turns to food, and I look down at the girl in my arms.
“You’re staring,” she murmurs as her eyes ping pong between my friends.
“You good? We can leave if you want to.”
She looks up at me and smiles. “I want to be here.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive.” She looks at my friends for a moment before looking back at me. “You know, I’ve always been kind of jealous of you and these guys.”
“What do you mean?”
She gives me a sad smile. “You met these guys because of hockey, but you bonded. You all moved in together and created your own family. Then you accepted the girls when they came into the picture. You have this sense of community that I’ve never had.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy you have them and everything, but it makes me a little sad that I’ve never had it. ”
“You know they are your family now, too, right?” My hand touches her stomach, lightly. “I’m not saying they are just because of our baby, but because they’ve always wanted to know you. Grace and Peyton wanted to get to know you when they first heard about you, but I told them no.”
“Why? Why did you tell them no?”
“Because I was afraid it would overwhelm you, and you would run.” I shrug.
“Well, I guess it’s a good thing I’m not running anymore.”
“No, you are not.” I lean down and kiss her.
“Awww,” the girls coo all at once.
Emery drops her head to my chest, but her shoulders shake in silent laughter.
“Could you not?” I glare at the girls.
“Dude, you do know that turnabout is fair play, right? You gave us shit about our relationships, and now it’s your turn,” Beckett points out.
“Emery, how do you feel about Mexican food? Would the smell or anything bother you? Does it sound okay?” Grace asks, changing the subject once again.
“What about me? Are you going to ask if I want some?” Clay teases his girl.
Grace rolls her eyes. “I’ll ask for your opinion when you’re the one who’s pregnant.”
“I love Mexican food.” Emery laughs.
“Awesome. Everyone, tell me what you want, and I’ll get the order placed,” Grace says as she looks down at her phone.
While everyone throws their orders at Grace, I look around the room. I’ve dreamed of nights like this for years and never thought it would happen.
I guess sometimes dreams do come true.