Chapter 19
Chapter Nineteen
Reid
“Are we late?” Bellamy asks as we park in Landry and Rowan’s driveway.
I bite down on my cheek to keep from smiling. “Rowan said six-ish, right?” I nod toward the dashboard that displays that it’s fifteen minutes after six.
“There are so many cars here,” she muses. “You know I hate to be late.”
“It’s a night with friends. Ish means there’s no set time, so that means we’re not late.
We’re right on time.” I wink, climb out of the truck, and make my way to her door.
I help her down and reach into the back seat to grab the dip she insisted on making.
I tried to talk her out of it, but here we are, carrying in a covered dish to a party, of which she is the guest of honor, but I couldn’t tell her that. It would ruin the surprise.
I offer her my free hand, and she takes it, allowing me to lead her to the front door.
I don’t bother knocking. They know we’re here because I texted the guys in our group chat before we left the house.
Now that we also live in the neighborhood, they knew we were just minutes away.
As soon as we step into the house, everyone yells, “Surprise!”
Bellamy stops, her mouth falls open, and tears well in her eyes. “What is this?” she asks, as her mom comes rushing toward her, hugging her tightly.
“It’s your baby shower, silly. Co-ed, of course,” Landry calls out.
“Really?” Bellamy’s voice cracks.
“Come on, Bell. Let’s go say hi to everyone.
” Sliding my arm around her waist, I hand the dip off to Rowan as we make our way around the room.
The guys, Corie, Rowan, Sloane, Candice, and Amanda are all here.
Rowan wanted to invite her friends from work, but after a quick phone call to Grant, he told me they planned to have her an office baby shower, and by "they," he meant his wife and his sister-in-law, so it’s just us—close friends and family. There’s only one person who’s not here, and I need to ask her about that now.
“Hey,” I say, pulling her off to the side once we’ve hugged everyone to say hello. “We didn’t invite your dad. I wasn’t sure if you’d want him here.”
She bites down on her bottom lip. “I mean, I guess I would have been okay with it.”
“You want me to call him?” I ask her.
“Will that be weird? The coach being here?”
“Nope. What about your mom?”
She peers over her shoulder, catching her mom’s eye, and waves. “Wait, who’s that with my mom?” she asks, as they both start walking toward us.
“Bellamy, I’d like for you to meet Cliff. My boyfriend,” Candice adds. She’s smiling, but I can see the apprehension in her eyes. “I realize this might not be the best time to introduce the two of you, but he makes me happy, and I wanted you to meet him.”
I’m holding my breath, waiting to see how she handles this meeting.
When a bright smile curves her lips, I exhale.
“It’s so nice to meet you, Cliff. I’ve heard nothing about you.
” She laughs. “But I know that if you’re here, you’re important to my mom.
” She turns her gaze to her mom. “How long have the two of you been seeing each other?” There’s no anger in her tone, just pure curiosity.
“A few months,” Candice replies. “I didn’t want to tell you in case it fizzled out, but he’s still hanging around,” she says, smiling at Cliff, before turning back to Bellamy. “Amanda convinced me you’d be okay with him being here.”
“I can go if it makes you uncomfortable,” Cliff adds. “We drove separately just in case.”
“What? No, of course not. Stay, please,” Bellamy tells him. Cliff slides his arm around Candice’s waist, and she leans into him, which only makes my girl smile wider.
“Did you want something when you called me over here?” Candice asks her daughter.
“Oh, um—Reid asked if I wanted Dad to be here. I was going to ask you how you felt about that, but we don’t have to.”
“Bellamy, he’s your father. He gave me the greatest gift in this life: you. Of course, you should invite him.”
“Are you sure? I mean, it’s last-minute, so I’m sure he’s got work to do, or something.”
“You won’t know unless you try.” Candice gives her a pointed look.
“Like he did,” Bellamy whispers, and Candice nods. Taking a deep breath and squaring her shoulders, she looks up at me. “Will you call him?”
“Sure, Dream Girl. Anything you want.” I kiss her temple and drop my arm from around her waist. “I’ll be right back.” Stepping into the hallway just off the living room, I hit Coach’s number and wait for him to answer.
“Montgomery.”
“Hey, Will,” I greet him, and he growls. I’m not talking to my coach right now. I’m talking to my girl’s dad. “What are you doing right now?”
“Going over plays.”
I nod, even though he can’t see me. “Well, I know it’s short notice, but the girls are throwing Bellamy a surprise baby shower. We just got here, so the fun hasn’t started, but she said I could call you and pass on the invitation.”
He’s quiet for a very long time. “She said that?” he asks.
“She did. No gifts are necessary, but this is your chance. This is her olive branch. Are you going to take it?”
“Where are you?”
“Landry’s place. I’ll text you the address.”
“I have a gift,” he tells me, which shocks me.
“Not necessary,” I tell him again.
“I’ll be there. I’m leaving now.”
“Sounds good,” I say, ending the call and slipping my phone back into my pocket. When I step back into the living room, I find all the ladies gathered around Bellamy. Corie has her hand resting on her belly, and they’re all smiling.
A hand lands on my shoulder, and I look over to see Knox. “A lot has changed for us recently,” he says, nodding to the group of women.
“Yeah,” I agree.
“Gotta admit, I’m a little jealous,” he tells me.
I turn to look at him. “Of what?”
“I’m ready for us to start our family.”
“You trying?”
“We’re not not trying, if that makes sense.” He laughs.
“Give it time. Not everyone’s swimmers are as strong as mine,” I joke.
“Mine are,” Baker says, joining us.
He’s not wrong. We both had one-night stands that resulted in pregnancy. The only difference is that I’m in love with my baby momma, even though I haven’t told her that yet, and Baker, well, he’s miserable dealing with his, but he loves his son.
“I didn’t think you had Cam this week?” Knox asks him.
“Natasha had another shoot. This time in Australia.” Baker rolls his eyes. “Not that I’m complaining. I’ll take more time with my son whenever I can get it.”
“Fellas,” Landry says as he and Foster join us in our little corner of the living room. He pops the last bite of cookie into his mouth. “I can get behind this having babies thing,” he says. “The snacks are on point.”
“Maybe you and your wife should work on that,” Foster says.
“We’ll get there. See, I need all of you to do it first so that I can learn from your mistakes. Besides, I’m already the favorite uncle.”
“Keep telling yourself that,” Foster jokes. “We all know, I’m the favorite.”
“I don’t know,” Baker muses. “My son looks mighty happy sitting on Amanda’s hip.”
“Of course, he’s happy,” Landry replies. “He’s surrounded by beautiful women who are giving him all of their attention.”
Before we can reply, there’s a knock at the door. “That’s Coach,” I say, moving to answer it. I hear the guys ask about why he’s here as I make my way to the door. Pulling it open, I don’t invite him in. Instead, I step forward, forcing him to take a step back, and close the door behind me.
“Glad you could make it,” I say, crossing my arms over my chest.
“Do I get to go in and see my daughter? I’m not here for you,” he says.
I know he’s angry, but he doesn’t need to be. I’m all in with his daughter. “You can go in, but remember, you’re not here today as the coach of the Rampage. Today, you’re just my girl's dad. She’s happy and smiling, and that’s how it's going to stay.”
“What are you saying, Montgomery?” he asks.
“I’m saying that no matter how you feel about Bellamy and me, you keep that shit to yourself today. You will not ruin this day for her.”
“I don’t want to ruin anything for her.”
“Candice is here,” I tell him. “She brought her boyfriend.” I watch as his face falls, and his shoulders drop. “Please be cordial. I don’t care if it’s fake. This is Bell’s day, and she’s extending you an olive branch. If you want more, you’ll keep yourself in line.”
“You’re not my keeper.”
“No, but she’s mine, and that means I defend her and stand beside her always. That means that she’s my entire fucking world, her and our baby. I don’t give a fuck who you are. You won’t upset her.”
The door opens behind us, and Bellamy steps out. She wraps her arms around her waist to ward off the chill, and I immediately pull her close to keep her warm.
“Hi,” she says, as I place my lips against the crown of her head.
“You’re glowing,” William says with a sad smile. “How are you feeling? The baby?” he asks.
She moves the hand that was resting against my chest to her belly. “Good. Really good. She’s healthy, and so am I.”
“That’s great,” he says, with a crack in his voice.
“Yeah, she’s healthy.”
“A granddaughter,” he breathes, as if he’s in awe of the fact that he’s going to be a grandpa.
“Are you coming inside? What are the two of you doing out here?”
“I wanted to warn him that your mom was here with Cliff,” I tell her. I don’t mention that I also told him to keep his ass in line, but it’s okay. It’s not a lie if it’s an omission, right?
“It’s been a long time,” William says. “I’m happy for her.”
“Me, too.”
He hands her a light pink gift bag. “This is for you and the baby.”
“You have a gift?” she asks, surprised.
“Yeah, I was gonna wait until the baby was born, but when Reid called, I grabbed it on my way out the door. I’ll just have to buy another one when she’s here.”
“That’s not necessary. Thank you for this,” she says, as a shiver races through her.
“Come on, babe, let’s get you inside.” She steps out of my hold and opens the door. I motion for William to follow her, and I trail them.