39. Veronica #2
“Brey, I can assure you that even if he didn’t see you, Shane knows they were from you.” I pat her leg, then take a sip of my tea.
“We don’t know that.” Her eyes go wide.
“We do,” Lionel answers for me.
I watch with a happy smile as they continue to bicker about whether or not Shane knows who the baked goods are from. I’m happy to see Aubrey getting along so well with him; it reassures me that she’ll be safe at the condo alone.
Now if only this asshole could show his face and get this all over with.
GAbrIEL
~ Two Weeks Later / October ~
Next week is our first home opener of the season, and I am beyond thrilled to get back in the game.
I know we’ve been having exhibition games, but that’s not the same.
I want to get back on the ice, hear all the fans shouting with every victory.
That exhilarating sensation that flows through your blood as the puck comes flying your way, and you catch it just in time before it passes the red line and into the goal.
God, hockey is where I belong. It feels like home.
But that’s not the only place that feels like home. No, the only other place is in the arms of a five-foot-ten, slim, blue-colored hair beauty. Fuck, how did I ever get so lucky to have this amazing creature in my life?
I lean against the doorframe to the bathroom, watching her finish straightening her hair in the mirror. She had it changed yesterday to a vivid dark blue with pure white ends. It’s sexy as fuck and gives her this naughty glint in her eyes.
When I asked her why she was straightening her hair, since it’s naturally straight to begin with, she gave me the ‘are you dumb?’ look and didn’t say anything. So, I quickly shut up and instead have been standing here for the past hour, taking in every step of her beauty routine.
“Don’t you have something better to do? Like maybe get ready?” She looks over from the corner of her eye. She’s being sassy, but I don’t miss the little smirk playing along her lips.
I look down at my dark blue jeans and gray sweatshirt that cling to my muscles with the sleeves pulled up to my elbows. I even have my black sneakers on my feet. I don’t know how much more ready I can get.
“I am ready.” I narrow my eyes at her. “I’ve been ready for the past hour, compared to you,” I finish with a smirk that earns me a glare.
“Yes, well, having you standing there is distracting me.”
“Oh, is it?” I step into the bathroom, coming behind her and wrapping my arms around her waist as I rest my chin on her shoulder. “How so?”
“Because you keep looking at me like you want to eat me, and it’s making my panties wet. Again.” She smiles at me through the mirror.
Twenty minutes ago, she left the bathroom without saying a word and headed for the closet, where she quickly took off her thong and exchanged it for another. When I chuckled, she told me to shut up and went back to getting ready. I like knowing I affect her this easily.
“But I like getting you all wet.” I nibble at her neck. “I could take care of you right here, right now, if you’d like,” I whisper into her ear.
“Don’t you dare, we’re already five minutes behind schedule. Now go away. I’m nearly finished.” She turns her face to the side and pecks my lips before shooing me away.
“All right, all right. I’m going.” I lift my hands in surrender and walk backwards out of the ensuite, taking one last lingering look at her.
She’s wearing a tight black leather skirt that reaches her mid-thigh with a white long-sleeved shirt that’s glued to her body and tucked into the waistband of the skirt.
Instead of her usual thigh-high stockings or socks, she has a pair of black heeled boots that reach just above her knees.
Her makeup is pretty simple, with cat-eyed black eyeliner, a bit of gold eyeshadow, and nude lipstick. She looks sexy as sin.
I finally leave her alone and head down to make sure Noah’s ready as well. We’re about to head over to Burkley’s for their gender-reveal party. And unlike Cecilia’s, where Silas couldn’t keep his mouth shut, no one knows the sex of the babies, not even the parents.
I find him standing in the living room, fingers tracing over one of the picture frames Ronnie hung in the living room for him. All the pictures he apparently had of his sister and father. Of the family he no longer gets to see, but that follows him everywhere he goes.
He’s been doing this a lot over the past week, where he’s present, but we can tell his mind is elsewhere. Dr. Hallaway said it was all a normal step of grieving. That we should simply let him be but remind him that we love him and are here for him if he needs to talk.
“Hey,” I say softly, stepping up beside him.
His hand drops from the frame, but his eyes remain focused on the picture. It’s one of him as a young boy, holding his baby sister in his arms. She must have been only a few weeks, old given the tiny onesie and newborn hat on her head.
“Hey.”
He’s dressed similarly to me. But instead of blue and gray, he has light-gray jeans on, with a white sweatshirt, sleeves pulled up, and white sneakers on his feet.
I place my hand on his shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. “You know we’re here for you, brother. Anything you need, just say the word.”
He finally turns to look at me, a small smile lingering on his lips. “Thanks, man.”
I look back to the photograph, smiling at the tiny baby sleeping soundly in his grasp. “I can’t wait for us to live that.”
“Live what?”
“A baby. Holding that tiny little fragile life in your arms, knowing it will forever own your heart. Watch it grow and become its own person. Figuring out if it takes more after Mom or Dad.” I chuckle.
“If we have a girl, I hope she looks exactly like her mother.” My heart constricts.
“She’ll be the most beautiful girl on this earth. ”
“Just like her mom,” he finishes for me.
“Yeah…” My cheeks hurt from how wide my grin is until it drops. “Fuck!” I turn to face him with wide eyes. “You do realize how hard it will be to keep men away from our little girl, right? I mean, look at Vixen. They are drawn to her everywhere she goes…”
He nods with a frown. “We’ll probably have to hire one of Julian’s men to follow her everywhere. No way in hell am I letting any fucking prepubescent jock get near her.”
“That’s a good plan. We should probably mention it to him in advance. You know, so we can go through his guys and choose the best-fitted one.”
“You mean the one who looks like he could crush you with his bare hands,” Noah says.
I snap my fingers at him. “Exactly.”
A giggle sounds behind us, making us turn toward it.
Ronnie stands a few feet away, arms crossed over her chest with a raised brow and an amused look on her face.
“You do realize that you two are jocks and that this child you are talking about doesn’t exist, right?
And before talking about hiring someone to follow her around, maybe mention it to the mother first.”
I walk up to her, taking hold of her hips. “We just want to protect our little girl as best as we can.”
“A little girl that isn’t even in the making yet. And what if it’s a boy?” She smirks.
“Simple, we’ll teach him how to play hockey and how to get girls.” Noah comes up and kisses her cheek.
“And what if he likes boys?” She narrows her eyes, still holding that side smile.
Noah and I exchange a wide-eyed look, unsure how to respond to that until I finally shrug.
“Then you’ll teach him how to get boys. I mean, look at the two you picked up; you know what you’re doing.
” I wink and kiss her other cheek. We have no issues when it comes to that and will support our child no matter who they choose to love.
“Oh, you two are unbelievable.” She laughs and pushes me away, picking up her purse from the side table. She kisses Blubber on the head who’s sleeping on the couch, then walks toward the elevator. “You guys coming? And don’t forget the gifts.”
We arrive at Clay and Morgan’s house a little over half an hour later, and apparently, we aren’t the only ones late. Aubrey’s just stepping out of her car as we park behind her.
“Oh, thank God! I thought I was the only one not on time.” She rushes out as we walk over with our gifts in hand, hugging her quickly.
“Nope, this one was taking forever.” I nod toward Ronnie as I lower to kiss Aubrey’s cheek. “How are you doing, baby Ford?” I look around with a frown. “Where’s your man?”
She turns pink. “He’s not my man. You all need to stop calling him that,” she whisper shouts.
I suck in my lips, holding back my laugh as Noah chuckles and Ronnie hides her face against my shoulder. “Umm… I was talking about your guard.”
Her eyes go wide, the pink along her cheeks turning a bright red as clear embarrassment shines in her eyes. “Oh… um, he’s down the street somewhere. He said I didn’t have to worry and that they were around here watching from a distance.”
“That’s good.” Noah nods.
“Yeah, although he thought someone was following us yesterday. He reported it back to Julian with as many details as he could give. He thinks it was Victor. I just don’t understand why he would be following me.” Aubrey frowns as Noah’s eyes find mine quickly.
He told me about what happened a few weeks ago during his morning jog, but we both agreed it was best to keep that information from Vixen, not wanting to cause her more worry.
Ronnie goes stiff beside me. “What?! He went after you? Why didn’t Julian tell us?”
“Because we are still going over all the details and street surveillance.” Julian pops up out of nowhere behind us with his two brothers. “We did not want to worry you without having actual proof that it was him.”