Page 34

Chapter 33

JORDY

“That was so reckless and stupid. What were you thinking?” Conrad yelled. Not only was he my brother-in-law, but he was also one of my coaches. “You could have gotten injured more than you already are,” he continued. “You’ve gotta think about the consequences! I know that you love Dani, but—”

“She’s pregnant,” I said, interrupting him.

Conrad’s face morphed into shock, his mouth parting and eyes widening. “I’m sorry. What did you just say?”

“I said, Dani is pregnant,” I repeated. I stood up, closing the distance between us. “With twins.”

Conrad dropped his clipboard and reached his big burly arms around me, suffocating me with a hug. “Oh my God! I’m so happy for you two. Wait—is that why you lost your shit on him? Because now this makes sense.” He patted my back and we pulled away from our hug. “In that case, forget everything I just said about being reckless because if someone were to touch Lenna, pregnant or not, I would lose my shit too.”

“Thanks,” I replied. “We were waiting to tell everyone until the next appointment, but I think the cat’s out of the bag.”

“I’d say so. Alright, let’s get going. I’m sure the ladies are waiting for us.” Conrad made a face as he finished his sentence, grabbing his phone and checking it. “This is from Lenna. Her, Becca, and Dani are at the hospital. They said to head to my house and they’d meet us there.”

Waiting for Dani to get to Conrad and Lenna’s house was torture. She texted me that she was okay and the babies were fine, but I wouldn’t believe her until I saw her.

“Honey! We’re home!” Lenna called out. I stood straight up, turning to look back at the door. First was my sister, then Becca, and finally her.

My girl.

Perfectly curled hair, beautiful brown eyes, and a smile that radiated through them made a path straight to me.

I rushed to her, wrapping my arms around her tiny frame.

My best friend. That was who she was, and what she had always been. I caught myself wondering: if we hadn’t become friends, would we be in this relationship? To be honest, I think we would. There was a feeling I had when I was with her that gave me comfort and assured me everything would be alright.

“I’m okay, Jordy. The babies are okay,” Dani insisted.

When I pulled from her embrace, I gazed into her eyes trying to communicate to her the way I felt. “I love you, Dani.” I kissed her and heard a chorus of “awwwe” around us. Reaching my arm around her shoulder, I placed my hand on her middle. “I know that all of you know, but it’s only right that we can tell you together.” I glanced down at Dani and she smiled back at me.

“We’re pregnant. Well actually Dani is, I just helped.” I chuckled. Everyone came in for a big group hug.

“Are you gonna call Mom? Or visit her?” Lenna asked.

I sighed, closing my eyes.

My mother.

“I think I’ll—” I felt a pinch on my side. “We’ll go see her,” I choked out, knowing it was important for us to tell her in person and also because it wasn’t just me anymore—it was us.

***

“Can you turn the butt warmer on? I’m freezing.”

I eyed her. “I can warm you up.”

Dani giggled. “No. Not tonight, I got rocked on the sideline; the last thing I want is to be rocked on the inside.”

“Touché.” I glanced back at the road. “Given any thought to names?”

She pinched my arm. “Shut up,” she laughed. We already knew where this conversation would take us. We needed to straighten up because we were going to visit my mother. “What are we going to tell her?”

“What do you mean? We tell her we fucked a lot and you got pregnant. Easy.” I spared a glance from the corner of my eye.

“My God, Jordy.”

“Ah. I’m just kidding.” I paused for dramatic effect. “You can tell her.”

She gasped. “No. No, I won’t be the one, you’re her son.”

“Whoa, why is this all about my mom? What about your parents?”

Turning down the road to my mom’s new townhouse, that she purchased and then moved into entirely on her own without telling anyone, Dani answered. “Please. My parents are hippies, they don’t care.”

My brows furrowed. “Wait, did you tell them already?”

“Well, yeah. I called my mom and she told my dad. They're ecstatic.”

I sat with that information for a moment before pulling into my mother’s driveway. I sat and stared at the steering wheel in an attempt at pulling myself together. I could do this. It was my mom, and I was an adult. Everything would be fine. I’d be fine.

“Jordy. Stop spiraling and get out of the car.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

I knocked on the front door where we waited for a moment. “We can just go back to the car; maybe she’s not home,” I muttered.

“Oh no. She’s here. I know it.” Dani gripped my arm to hold me still.

The door flung open and my mom greeted us, smiling from ear to ear. “My baby!” she yelled, wrapping her arms around me. “Ah, and Dani! How are you, my sweet girl?”

“We’re great,” Dani replied with a smile.

“That’s perfect! Come in, come in.”

We followed my mother to the living room where she was invited to prepare tea. We were not this proper—she never broke out the fine China.

“Mom, what’s up with all the boxes? You still haven’t unpacked?” I asked, taking my seat.

Her voice floated easily from the kitchen. “I’m taking my time going through everything. I saw a video about minimizing your life and your assets. It sounds amazing.” My mother brought a tray with chamomile tea and honey for us. “Here you go.”

“So,” I cleared my throat and grabbed Dani’s free hand with my own. “We have something to tell you.”

Mom smiled, glancing between Dani and I and placing her tea on the side table. “Okay, hit me.”

I took a deep breath, steeling myself. “Dani is pregnant.”

My mom’s eyes widened in shock, but her expression quickly morphed into absolute joy. She stood, raising her hands and shouting, “Oh, thank God.”

I was obviously confused why she was worried about it to begin with.

She laughed. “Oh, my sweet boy. I never thought you’d settle down and I thought I’d have to depend on your sister for my grandbabies. But oh, my God! Oh, my God!” My mother reached over to Dani, hugging her and squeezing. “How are you feeling? Do you need anything?”

“I’m doing great, Mrs. H,” she replied.

“So, tell me all the details. How far along are you? Boy or girl? I need to know everything.” Mom hugged me, urging Dani to spill the beans.

Dani and I glanced at each other. She raised a brow, signaling this was my time to shine. I shook my head no, a silent way of saying, “You do it.”

“I’m sitting right here. Just tell me,” my mother declared.

I took a deep breath and sighed. “We’re having twins.”

At that moment, I swore my mother’s face was glowing. “Are you serious?” We nodded, and she stood. “I'll be right back.”

She ran into the kitchen and the door to the backyard opened, followed by a faint yell of “Thank you, thank you!” before she returned. “That is so lovely.”

“We’re having babies!”

***

“I really need to see him,” I said to Lathan’s secretary, the tall black haired woman with long ass legs. She was taller than me…and scary.

“Like I said before, he is in a meeting,” she replied with a bite in her tone.

“But it’s really important. Very important. Top secret even.” I held a finger over my mouth, signaling just how secret it was.

She eyed me and her words did not falter, “No. He is in a meeting. If you continue to harass me, I’ll send for security.”

Well, shit.

“Fine. I’ll leave then.” As I turned to walk towards the exit, I pivoted and sprinted to Lathan’s door, pushing it open and being stunned to see Lathan meeting with Dani .

“Dani?” I said, looking between them.

“Oh good, you’re here.” Lathan beamed. “Come in.”

From behind me, the scary woman pushed the door open with her eyes searing into me. I felt like she might have superpowers and could burst me into flames at any second if she wanted to.

“I’m so sorry Mr. Allaire. He just sort of—”

“It’s alright, he actually should be in this meeting,” he remarked. “You may go. Thank you, Tara.”

Tara. Scary Tara. Would-kick-my-ass-if-she-could Tara.

“Both of you have a seat please,” he gestured to the seats across from his desk.

We sat and Lathan unbuttoned his suit jacket. I glanced at Dani. She looked nervous, but she spared one glance at me with wide eyes, silently telling me to not say something stupid.

“Originally, I called Dani here to ensure that she was feeling well after the hit from Calvin. But then she proceeded to tell me the reasons why and then… you show up.”

“Is this going to be a problem? Because I—”

Lathan held up his hand to cease my blubbering. “Not necessary, Mr. Hughes, although I do appreciate the sentiment. Like I’ve said before, your relationship is your own personal business as long as it doesn’t interfere with your jobs. Obviously, you getting a fine from the league interferes with your job, but I understand the reasoning behind it. Therefore, I am okay with it.”

“You’re serious?” Dani asked.

Lathan leaned back in his chair, placing his locked fingers over his midsection. He blinked and smirked between the two of us. “Look, obviously the two of you love each other. Why should I be the one to come between that?” He stood, and we followed suit. “How far along are you?” He directed the question to Dani.

She gently placed her hand over her growing bump. “About twelve weeks, sir.”

He nodded. “Very well. When it comes time, I will ensure that you get the best possible care, we’ll set up a social media team to prepare for your absence, and I’m going to give you a bonus.”

“A bonus? For what?” She was dumbfounded.

Lathan walked around the desk and grabbed her hand. “Because you are a fantastic employee, and I want to make sure that you know how valued you are. Also, Trevin has been adamant about making sure you keep your job.”

“Trevin? Tee was here?” Dani gawked.

Lathan deadpanned. “He shows up sometimes. His partner works for me, and he weasels his way up to my office every once in a while when he knows Tara is on lunch break.”

He patted our shoulders, guiding us to the door. “You kids be good. Don’t get any more fines Mr. Hughes.”

I nodded, struck by the moment.

We walked out of the door, past the Scary Tara as she eyed me. I wiggled my fingers goodbye as Dani slammed her hand into my stomach.

“Stop it,” she snapped.

“What? I’m just being polite.”