Chapter 17
ALLY
Iwaddled around the condo, fluffing pillows and making sure my desk was tidy, and the bathroom was clean.
“Can you pick up your socks?” I called out to Dom as he walked into the living room to find me lining up the remotes on the side table.
“Sure,” he said with a half-smile.
“Don’t judge, I’m nesting,” I grumbled.
He walked over to me and tugged me into his arms. “It’s totally normal, and I’ll get my socks. But I demand a kiss first.”
I gave him a quick peck. “Don’t get any ideas. Darcy’s plane is landing in less than an hour, and we have to go pick her up, and I want to make sure everything is perfect.” Darcy wouldn’t care about the state of my pillows, but I wasn’t lying, I was in the mood to nest big time. She was going to stay in my bedroom-slash-almost-done nursery since I’d pretty much moved into Dom’s room weeks ago after our first night together.
Heat bloomed in my chest. The last few weeks had been amazing and perfect.
“But we have to make up for the last week, and she’s going to be here for days.” Dom fake pouted.
“Don’t give me those sad eyes. It’s not my fault you had a road trip. And we had last night and all this morning in bed.”
He made his eyes look extra sad. “This is just how I always look. And I owe you at least five more orgasms—no, maybe ten.”
I let out a squeak when he leaned in and sucked on my neck.
“Oh my god. No hickeys.” I gasped, ducking away from his mouth and trying to ignore how much I wanted him to kiss me again. He made me feel so desired, even when I felt like a waddling, oversized duck.
“I think I need to get you off really quick to calm your nerves,” he replied, a mixture of desire and humor in his gaze.
My body tingled, and I tried to laugh him off, but maybe we had a little more time before we had to leave.
“Fine,” I said like it was a chore.
Then he was urging me to sit on the couch and dropping between my spread thighs. The pillows could wait.
God damn. This man.
What was I going to do with him?
***
“Well, someone looks very happy,” Darcy whispered in my ear as she hugged me in the arrival area while we waited for Dom to bring the car around.
We’d made it to the airport just in time to meet her flight. Dom feasting on me had turned into a quickie with me bent over the couch. My body shivered at the memory.
“One might say flushed and glowing,” she continued.
“Stop it,” I muttered.
“As long as you’re happy, I’m happy. You know that,” she said, pulling back to look at me. “Are you?”
I sighed. “Really happy and trying not to freak out.”
“Sounds about right,” she said. “And you look amazing. Look at that belly. I can’t believe she’s almost here.”
“I know. I’m trying not to panic,” I said. It didn’t help that Christmas was just over three weeks away, eight days after my due date. Dom and I had done minimal decorating, but at least the tree was up.
“You’ve got this. And I’m here for a few days to help you with some last-minute prep and to keep Jake and Ethan from injuring Dom.”
“Ugh. Don’t remind me. I told Ethan that he wouldn’t get to see his niece until she was five if he pulled any bullshit,” I said, just as Dom stopped in front of us with the car.
He jumped out to help get me in, and I swore Darcy sighed.
“Ready to go, ladies?” he asked once he was back behind the wheel.
The Strikers were in town tomorrow night for a game against the Stampede, and judging how the last matchup had gone, I was not beyond threatening my brother and his teammates. Penny was flying in tomorrow to keep Ethan in check, and I was grateful to have both Darcy and Penny in town at the same time. I missed them so much, and it was going to be weird to do Christmas this year without my family.
But I’d known I was making that choice when I agreed to move in with Dom. Taking a possibly week-old infant on a plane was not happening, but it did suck to not have them around for the holidays. My mom made great cookies that I could totally go for right now.
Not that I was low on delicious sweets since there was always something from Anna’s bakery in our condo. It wasn’t completely the same, but a box of her treats every few days helped.
“I’m going to meet the guys at Tipsy for a beer or two so you can catch up,” Dom said once we were back home. “You’re both welcome to come, too, of course.”
He ran his finger down my spine and it took everything in me not to squirm as Darcy looked at us with knowing eyes.
“No. We’re going to stay here and talk about you.” Darcy smirked.
He winked. “Should be a glowing conversation, then.”
“We’re not just going to talk about you. Go away.” I playfully smacked his arm, ignoring the flutter in my belly as he grinned and sauntered out the front door.
His ass in those jeans should have been criminal. The fabric cupped him just like I wanted to do with my own hands.
“Um, you need a towel to wipe up that drool, Ally?” Darcy taunted.
I glared at her. “I’m not drooling. But seriously, hockey butts are ridiculous.”
She sighed. “Don’t I know it. Okay, what do you want to do first? Chat? You need a nap? Because I’m assuming you had a lot of fun this morning before I got here.”
I patted my hair. “What? Does it look bad?”
She burst out laughing. “You look fine. Just teasing. You know, like you did to me.”
“Yeah, I deserved that.” I’d teased her enough with Jake in the beginning, so it was only fair I take what I dished.
We went over and settled down on the couch, me grabbing a pillow to shove behind my back so I could get comfortable.
“You good?” she asked.
“Yeah. Just getting harder every day to find a good position to sit or lie down in.” Pregnancy was putting me through such a weird combination of emotions, making me both excited and nervous at the same time.
“I bet. Now, spill all the stuff—about Dom, my precious little soon-to-be-here niece, all the things.”
Tears pricked the back of my eyes. “I missed you so much.”
“Don’t make me cry five seconds into my visit.” She reached out and squeezed my hand. “Ugh. I know this is where you chose to be for a very good reason, but I miss walking into our old place whenever I wanted to. But you’re happy here, right? I mean, you seem pretty happy.”
“I am. Dom’s been—well, he’s been amazing. I had no clue what to expect moving in. Hell, I figured it would be a disaster, that I’d need to take advantage of Ethan keeping the apartment for me, but it hasn’t been. I’m falling for him, Darc. Like hardcore. He’s been there for me through it all, and we have fun together too. And the sex. Fucking hell, the sex shouldn’t be this good with me the size of a blimp, but he finds ways to make sure I’m enjoying myself. He’s always been such a player. Hell, it’s why we were just for a fun time, not a long time. I mean, could I have had this great guy all these years?”
“Okay. Wow. That’s a lot, and I’m so freaking happy for you. And neither of you wanted long-term years ago, so you can’t think that way. Just focus on right now and how happy you are. Also, you’re not a blimp. You’re growing a whole freaking person inside of you that he helped create. He’d be a jerk if he thinks you’re anything less than gorgeous.”
My laugh was watery. Darcy always knew exactly what to say. “I know. And he’s never even hinted that he’s not attracted to me in my current state. Hell, it’s definitely the opposite.”
“Damn right, it is.”
“Ugh, I just don’t want to rush into anything.”
She quirked a brow. “Uh, a bit late for that. You’re about to pop out a kid.”
“You know what I mean. My life is about to get super crazy, and part of me just wants to know where I stand with Dom. Am I dumb for falling for him and thinking we’re going to be all perfectly happy and everything?” It was so refreshing to voice my concerns out loud to Darcy rather than just stewing about it on the inside. I always felt better with a plan.
“You are not dumb. There are a lot of emotions and hormones swirling around you right now, so it makes sense to question everything. Just take it one day at a time. Obviously, I have no clue how you’re going to feel or deal with taking care of a baby, but I know that you’ve got this, and with Dom, just do what feels right.”
“Oh, I am,” I said with a wink.
She snorted. “That’s not what I meant and you know it.”
“I know. One day at a time. I can do that.”
“Can you?” she asked.
I shrugged. “I guess we’ll see. Now, let’s talk about fun stuff. Want to see the nursery?”
“Of course.” She grinned and helped me stand.
“It will be nice to see my feet again soon,” I muttered.
“Soon, Ally. Soon.”
“I’m so happy you’re here,” I said, hugging my best friend and ignoring the tears that wouldn’t leave my eyes.
“Me too. I missed you a lot.” She squeezed me back, and then we headed down the hallway to the bedroom that was no longer mine.
Not that I minded sleeping—or not sleeping—in Dom’s room every night.
Ugh.
I needed to know how he was feeling.
DOM
“She told me not to send you into the boards, but if you hurt her, or if this is just a bit of fun for now, sending you into the boards will be the least of your worries,” Harty said.
“Are we going to have another showdown during warm-ups?” Flower asked. “Come on, Harty. Dom’s a good kid, and Ally’s happy, so don’t be a dick.”
I was grateful for Flower’s support and secretly loved that Ally had told her brother to play nice. Probably pissed him right off.
“Nope. Just stating my intentions,” Harty said, his gaze still on mine.
I knew Ally had met up with her brother before the game, but I’d already been at the arena. Plus, I figured it was good for the siblings to talk without me there since Harty always had a pole up his ass when it came to me and his sister.
“Dom?” Flower asked, drawing my attention.
“Look, Harty, I have strong feelings for your sister and I’m not going to go into them further until I talk to her, but just know that I’m not going anywhere. I’m going to be exactly what she needs me to be for her and our daughter. Just try not to be an ass around me because it frustrates her. Ally means a lot to me, and yeah, we didn’t have the smoothest beginning, especially because we were super young. I know she was flirting with me all those years ago just to annoy you, but I’m not that guy anymore, and she’s not that woman. Hurting her would destroy me, so learn to deal with seeing me around for a long time.”
My heart was racing as I held his gaze. He tilted his head as if trying to read my expression, but I wasn’t giving him anything but honesty. I wasn’t going to tell him that I’d fallen in love with her. At least, not before I told Ally first, and I had no clue when or how I was going to do that. The thought of her saying she didn’t feel the same made my throat seize.
“Fine. I still don’t love this, but she seems happy,” Ethan grumbled.
“See? That wasn’t hard. Now, we’re all going to play nice—well, as nice as any hockey game is,” Flower said with a chuckle. “Good to see you again, Harty. Sorry about your loss tonight.”
Harty barked out a laugh. “Yeah, we’ll see about that.” Then he gave me a nod and skated off to join the rest of his teammates.
“He’s all bluster right now, but he’ll get over it. Nice seeing you put him in his place, Dom,” Flower said. “And it’s not my business about you and Ally, but she seems happy, and you aren’t that punk rookie anymore. I could’ve told you that last year.”
I swallowed hard. “Thanks, man.” It felt fucking good hearing Flower’s words. He’d been a vet I’d looked up to since I started on the Strikers, and I was glad he was still my teammate here in Denver.
“Now, how about we knock our old teammates down a peg and get those two points,” Flower said.
I glanced over the center line toward where the Strikers were warming up. Some of our old teammates caught my gaze, offering me a grin or a nod. I was so ready to kick their asses. “Done.”
He chuckled and slapped my shoulder before skating back in line with the rest of our current team to finish out our warm-up.
“Glad you and Harty had a heart-to-heart,” Baz said as he shifted in front of me, trying to block me from taking my shot on goal halfway through the first period.
“We chitchatting now?” I fired back, attempting to deke around the big, burly defenseman.
“I can multitask,” he said as he moved to poke the puck away from me, flashing me a grin that I knew was toothless under his mouth guard.
I skated back slightly and knocked the puck over to Haldy before skating around Baz. “Too slow, old man,” I taunted.
We were still scoreless, and I was trying to rectify that, but my former teammates weren’t giving me any breathing room tonight. At least I hadn’t had any run-ins with Harty so far, but the night was young, and I wouldn’t put it past him to send me into the boards, no matter what Ally said to him.
Hell, I’d probably do the same if I was in his situation.
I turned my focus back to where it needed to be, just as Haldy passed the puck back to me. The guys knew I wanted to get on the scoreboard tonight against my old team, so they’d already started feeding me the puck.
“I can’t wait to see what kind of trouble your daughter gets into over the years,” Baz said as he moved back in front of me again. The man was a fucking menace.
I ignored him and skated around the back of the net. Just as I cleared the pipe, I angled my shot, adrenaline pumping through me as it flew into the back of the net before Gally could drop to block it.
“Fuck, man,” he barked out. I flashed him a grin before my teammates crashed into me as the crowd went crazy.
“You like that?” I called out to Baz as he skated past me. He just glared, but there was a small smirk on his lips. He was going to be on top of me even harder for the rest of the night for that slip.
“Sweet goal, Dom. That fucking angle,” Xan said, crushing me in a hug. I glanced up at the Jumbotron to see the close-up.
Yeah, that was definitely a highlight reel. Then I turned my attention to the family suite and gave Ally my little salute. It was cheesy, but I would keep doing it every time because I knew she was up there cheering for me, even if she kept it a little quieter tonight since her brother’s team was also on the ice.
My teammates tapped gloves with me as I skated down the bench with my lineys, and I was still grinning when I slid down the bench while Tally’s line took the ice.
“Nice goal,” Millsy said, slapping my back. “Baz was running his mouth and forgot to actually play.”
I chuckled. “You know he never stops talking.”
Millsy just shook his head. He knew exactly what it was like to have Baz as a teammate.
***
I braced my stick on my legs as I looked across the face-off dot at Cheesy. Harty had already been thrown out of the face-off for moving in a little too quickly to try to block my stick. He bitched about it but skated to the side while Cheesy slid in. As the puck dropped, I won the face-off and sent it back to Haldy. We had seven minutes left in the third and were tied at three. The game had gone back and forth all night with very few penalty minutes. We’d all been on our best behavior, even if I was still questioning the hit Harty had had on me during the last period. My shoulder ached, but I was fine.
Ally was fuming, according to the text I’d read during the second intermission. Probably telling Harty that she was pissed at him when he’d been across the dot from me had contributed to him crowding me and getting kicked out, but who’s to say. It was all just part of the game.
And to be honest, I loved thinking about her being fired up watching the game.
Fuck. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on her tonight. Her goodbye kiss after a nice pregame nap earlier this afternoon hadn’t been enough.
“You keep smirking like that and Harty’s going to punch you,” Cheesy said with a chuckle as he skated past me to track Haldy, who still had the puck.
I moved around Crow, one of the Strikers’ other defensemen, to get ready in case Haldy needed to send the puck my way. But his pass was interrupted by Cheesy, and then we were skating toward Tucks at the other end of the ice. Cheesy, Harty, and Jake passed the puck back and forth like the well-oiled machine. They’d been linemates for a few years now, and that ease was what I wanted with Xan and Haldy or whatever linemates I ended up with. Solid producers who could be relied on.
Jake’s shot banged off the pipes, but Harty easily grabbed the rebound and took his shot. It sailed over Tucks’s shoulder, and the goal buzzer blared.
“Fuck,” I shouted as the Strikers celebrated another goal and were now one up on us.
***
But a few minutes later, I tied it back up again, and with one minute left to go, Santa scored the game-winning goal.
I looked up at the family suite and swore I saw Ally yelling and clapping as the stars of the game were announced, happy that I was one of them.