Chapter 3
three
Kyleigh
I’m sitting on the toilet, staring at the stick with two pink lines glaring at me.
There is no way.
No possible way.
My phone vibrates on the counter, and I pick it up, seeing Jade’s name.
I want to swipe my thumb and tell her what I just found out and ask how this happened. Not that I don’t know how it happened, but it’s all so surreal. I have a sleeping baby in the other room. Two kids under two?
I mentally do the math, figuring out when the baby will be born, while the call goes to voicemail. Great, we’ll get maybe a month before Rowan is back in training for the season.
My phone vibrates on the counter again, and this time, Rowan’s name comes up.
I slide my thumb across the screen. “Hey.”
“Hey.” He sounds tired and frustrated and worried.
I hate this part of the season, when the holidays are coming. There are so many obligations that I attend alone, and I don’t ever want him to feel guilty. After Parker was born, the guilt seemed to pile on him.
“How was the morning skate?” I put the stick on the counter because this is not the time for me to tell him.
“Good, but I really wish I was at home with you. Parker’s napping, right?”
“Yeah.”
“God, Ky, if I was home, I’d have you in bed naked, fucking you so good.”
“I know you would.”
When I don’t play along in his phone sex game, silence descends over the line. “You okay?”
“Yeah.” I inflect as much elation in my voice as possible.
It’s not that I’m unhappy about having another baby. We wanted another. It’s just that Parker is exhausting, and he’ll be walking by the time this next one comes into the mix. It’s going to be a lot.
“I’m sorry again,” he says. “You sound so tired.”
“We’re good. I’m going to take him for a walk when he gets up.”
“Ky, it’s freezing out.”
“Well, that’s why they invented coats and blankets. I need to run to the shop anyway. The dress for that winter wedding I was telling you about is done and the bride has her fitting today, so I want to make sure it’s perfect before we leave for the cabin.”
He groans. “I can’t wait for a few days off. My body is beat to shit right now.”
“A straight week of hotel beds and games will do that.” I desert the test and go into the kitchen to wash the bottles before Parker wakes up.
“Well, Florida put a little more into their hits this time around. You should see Tweetie’s ribs.”
“You boys and your competition,” I say, rinsing dishes and putting them in the dishwasher.
“It was Tweetie’s old team. We had to.”
“Even though you like the Fury players? I’m pretty sure I remember you going on a deep sea fishing charter with Aiden Drake and Warner Langley this past summer.”
“Friendship has no place on the ice, babe. They got Tweetie’s ribs pretty bad though.”
“I’m sure Tedi will kiss his boo boos.”
“Are you going to kiss mine?” he asks in that flirtatious tone he uses when he really misses sex.
I guess I should be happy he’s in his room wanting to have phone sex with me rather than having his pick of the puck bunnies who flock to the out-of-town teams. I ditch the dishes. I’ll do them after Parker goes down tonight.
“Of course I will. Where are you hurt?”
“Everywhere, but there’s one place in particular that needs your special attention.”
“The same area that’s usually completely covered during the game?”
“Hey, how do you know someone didn’t give me a dirty shot?
” He chuckles. “God, I miss you, Ky. This has been such a long week. I was so prepared last night to climb into bed with you in the middle of the night after we got back from Boston. I was going to take Parker for the morning and let you sleep in.”
“I know.” I sit on the chair in our family room and put my legs on the ottoman. “You can do it tonight.”
I should surprise him tomorrow morning and show him the test.
“Go to bed naked for me?” he asks.
“I like teasing you, so it’ll be a surprise.”
“What the hell, Landry, get your hand out of your pants!”
Conor.
“Tell my big brother not to be jealous that you’ve got better equipment than him.”
Rowan laughs, then I hear some fumbling before Conor comes on the line. “First off, you have no idea what I’m carrying, and second, have you talked to Eloise today?”
The concern in his tone makes my back straighten. “What’s up?”
“Nothing.” He groans. “Fuck, man.”
“Just tell her,” Rowan says.
“You two keeping secrets from me?”
“Well, yeah he made me pinkie swear and everything.” Rowan laughs, but Conor isn’t laughing, so I worry something happened. If so, why didn’t Eloise call me?
“She had a doctor’s appointment today and you know it’s not coming as easy for us as the two of you assholes.” I’m put on speaker, and I hear Conor fall onto his bed. “So we were going to the doctor to get a check-up, and because of this delay, I couldn’t go with her, so she went alone.”
I frown. “Why didn’t she call me? I would’ve gone even if I had to drag Parker along.”
I hate that Eloise hasn’t felt comfortable enough to talk to us about her pregnancy challenges, but then again, she probably feels as though we wouldn’t understand since I’ve got Parker, Tedi has Addison, and Jade is expecting soon.
“I told her to call you, but she knew you’d be busy with Parker. Fuck! I just want to go home,” he shouts.
“Shit, Pinkie, calm the fuck down,” Rowan says. “You’ll wake the guys next door and we’re here, so we might as well win this game tonight.”
“True. Okay, I’m napping.”
“And there go the pants,” Rowan says.
“Night night time, Ky, time to kiss and hang up,” Conor shouts from what sounds like the other side of the room.
“Take a picture for me? Something for me to look forward to coming home,” Rowan says.
“Sure, what do you want?”
“You holding Parker in our bed?”
“Done.”
“Thanks.” I hear the smile in his voice.
“Say bye bye now,” Conor says.
“I love you,” Rowan whispers. “Don’t forget my surprise.”
“Fucking hell,” Conor yells.
“I love you. Good luck tonight. We’ll be watching.”
We hang up and I hold the phone to my chest for a second, knowing at some point in the middle of the night, I’ll be in Rowan’s arms.
My phone vibrates again, this time with Eloise’s name.
I slide my thumb over. “Hey, you.”
“I’m personally offended you didn’t answer for me, but you did for her,” Jade says in the background. Clearly, I’m on speaker.
I could tell them what I just found out. Say I’m processing, I’m freaking out, I’m about to have a mental breakdown.
“Have you gotten your hubby a gift yet? We’re thinking retail therapy is in order and maybe Peeper’s after,” Eloise asks.
She sounds happy. That has to be a good thing, right?
I think about Parker in the other room, asleep, and run through my list of options for a babysitter. “Let me see who I can find for Parker.”
“It’s already been taken care of. We’ll meet you at my parents’,” Jade says.
“Really?” A smile forms on my face.
Reed and Victoria have become the street babysitters for all of us.
“Call us your fairy godmothers for the day. We’re on our way, so get some stain-free clothes on. Girls’ day out,” Jade says.
The phone clicks, and I shake my head.
The test in the bathroom grabs my attention again, those two pink lines vivid in my mind as though they were in neon. But all the unanswered questions and concerns will still be there after a day with the girls.
So I do what my friends suggest. I take off my stained sweats and sweatshirt, fixing myself to be as presentable as a mother with a young baby can be.
Then I do what no one would ever suggest, and I wake my sleeping baby.
“You’ll have fun with your friends,” I say to myself as guilt rips through me. I should be loving being a mom, not be in need of a girls’ day out.
But the boys were due back late last night after a long travel week. So, I’m claiming today as a break for Mommy before I lose my mind.