Page 48 of Goal Line (Boston Rebels #4)

Chapter Thirty-Six

EVA

“ H ey, baby.” Luke’s breath is hot in my ear as consciousness swims around me. I don’t want to wake up yet, but his words and my bladder are pulling me from sleep anyway.

“Hey,” I mumble without opening my eyes.

The bed moves as he sits up, and then he’s pressing his lips to my belly and saying, “And good morning, Baby Squash.”

I love that no matter how big this baby gets or what fruit or vegetable that app compares the baby’s size to, he or she will always be Baby Squash to Luke.

“I’m dead,” I groan, and his rumble of laughter shakes the bed. “But I have to pee. I don’t think I can even walk to the bathroom.”

“Can you really die from having too much sex?” Luke teases.

“Apparently, if that’s all you do for a day and a half, yes.

” I groan as I sit up and throw my legs over the edge of the bed.

Every muscle in my body is sore, because I’ve used them all.

We haven’t left the apartment since we got home from the Neon Cactus two nights ago, and I’m pretty sure we’ve had sex on every horizontal surface in this place.

I stand, but the spots at the edge of my vision have me putting both hands out for balance, and Luke’s goalie reflexes must kick in because he springs out of bed and is standing with his arms wrapped around me before I even realize what’s happened.

“Okay,” he says. “Clearly, it’s time to get some food and water in you.”

I breathe in deeply as I rest my head back on his shoulder, and the dizziness fades. “First, I have to pee, though,” I tell him. “Baby Squash is dancing on my damn bladder.”

“Okay. I’ll walk you in there, and then to the kitchen when you’re done. We’re getting you hydrated and fed before everyone arrives for this interview.”

“What time is it?” I ask, still feeling quite groggy. I’ve barely slept the last two nights as Luke and I spent every waking moment exploring long-suppressed desires and confessing all our pent-up feelings for each other.

When we were still just friends, I would’ve said I’ve never felt closer to another person than to Luke, but what’s shifted between us in the last two days puts the relationship on an entirely different plane of reality—one I didn’t believe existed.

And now, I’m borderline hostile about the fact that people from the magazine are showing up here this morning.

First to arrive will be hair and makeup, then wardrobe, then Jillian Vance, the celebrity reporter who will interview us.

Morgan’s already provided the article we’re “allowing” them to publish, but we’ve agreed to meet with Jillian so she can add in some personal details and observations about us as a couple.

“Eight-thirty,” Luke says, and I groan, because I’m pretty sure that means I got about four hours of sleep. If I look half as tired as I feel, it’s a good thing a professional makeup artist will be here in an hour and a half.

When he leads me into his bathroom and I catch sight of myself in the mirrors above the vanity, my heart sinks.

I look well and truly wrecked—my thick, long hair is a matted mess, the purple bags under my eyes are like welts, and the skin on my face, neck, and chest looks like someone ran sandpaper over it.

I look like a woman who just spent the last thirty-six hours being fucked senseless by her husband.

Husband . This marriage has gone from a stark reminder of everything I couldn’t have, to everything I’ve ever wanted, all in the span of a couple of weeks. I’m the luckiest girl on the planet, and I’m too exhausted right now to fully appreciate it.

“All right, Peaches,” he says, turning me toward him so I can sit on the toilet.

“I’m not peeing in front of you.” I nod toward the door with narrowed eyes.

Luke chuckles, like it’s ridiculous that I’ve been stark naked with him for the last day and a half, had his cum dripping out of me, and let him use my body in nearly every way imaginable—yet I won’t pee in front of him.

“I’m going to go grab you a T-shirt, and then I’ll be right outside the door,” he says.

“Please don’t stand up too quickly when you’re done. ”

“Promise. ”

Once I’m finished and have washed my hands, I run a brush through my hair and open the bathroom door.

As promised, Luke is waiting for me and pulls one of his Rebels T-shirts over my head so I can slip my arms inside.

This soft shirt probably clings to every muscle in his upper body, but it’s basically a dress on me.

“Let’s go make you a breakfast sandwich, and then we’re going to shower.”

“Luke, if we get in that shower together, we probably won’t be out by the time the people from the magazine start showing up.

” And then I remember. “Oh, shit. Morgan said she’d get here before they did, so we can review our story and she can make sure we don’t say anything that we wouldn’t want to make it into the article. ”

“We’ll have to save showering together for another time because we need to hustle,” he says, giving my butt a little smack that has us both laughing. “Let’s go.”

F rom my spot on the bench where I’m currently trying not to die after a round of weighted hip thrusts, I look over at Luke.

The late afternoon light from the floor-to-ceiling windows in the gym bounces off the thin sheen of sweat across his bare skin, highlighting the dips and valleys of his muscular build.

His shorts are low on his hips, and that V of muscles headed into his waistband has me wanting to peel off my clothes.

We’re alone here now, the last person we were sharing this space with having left just a moment before probably because she was uncomfortable with the way I was openly undressing my husband with my eyes.

“You can’t look at me like that when there are other people around,” Luke groans as he walks toward the mirrors to rack his weights on the stand.

“Why not? We’re newlyweds. No one is going to be surprised if I’m looking at my husband like I want to have sex with him.”

Luke chuckles. “You weren’t looking at me like you wanted to have sex with me, baby. You were looking at me like you were picturing it happening.”

“Maybe I was. Or am,” I say with a shrug, loving that I suddenly don’t care what people think, when my whole life, other people’s opinions of me have mattered as much as, or more than, my own. Maybe this marriage has been good for my self-confidence, too.

His eyebrows dip as he looks into the mirrors behind the weights, watching me stare at him.

“My god,” I say. “It’s so unfair that you look like that after working out, and I look like this hot mess.”

“Nothing about you sweaty and panting has me thinking ‘hot mess.’” Luke’s voice is low and sensual, but then he clears his throat and looks away, and I’m guessing he’s trying to stop that semi hard-on in his gym shorts from getting any more out of control in a public place.

But the thought of teasing him gives me a sudden burst of energy, and I stand and cross the space between us, coming up behind him and trailing my fingers up one bicep. “You’ve never told me about these new tattoos...”

Every time I considered asking about them this past weekend, I was too tired from all the sex and fell asleep instead,only to be awoken by my husband either trying to feed me or fuck me again.

The hedonistic pleasure of it all is a welcome memory that’s spurring me on, wanting more, even though I’m exhausted from this workout.

“Which ones do you want to know about?” he asks.

I trace my fingertips over a few clusters of small flowers up one arm and across his shoulders as I follow the path down his other bicep—some are single clusters, others are a series of clusters on branches. “Tell me about the flowers.”

His gaze locks on mine in the mirror, and he runs his lower lip between his teeth. “They’re peach blossoms.”

My sharp inhale is loud in the silent space. “Why peach blossoms?”

“Why do you think, Peaches?”

Swallowing down the emotions thick in my throat, I wrap my hand around his upper arm and turn it slightly so that I can see the reflection of two scoops of ice cream atop a cone. “The ice cream?”

“I’m convinced we still haven’t found the best flavor yet. This is my reminder that I get to keep looking...with you.”

My fingers trail around his shoulder and over his chest, landing on a full moon with a shadow across most of it. “The moon?”

“The eclipse we watched from the beach in the middle of the night last summer.”

“When the clouds rolled in and blocked our view right before the total eclipse?”

He nods his chin. “Keep looking.”

And that’s when I notice the hazy clouds below the moon, above a beach scene.

“What about these waves?” I ask, trailing my fingers along the waves hitting the grassy cliffs. It makes me miss the beach, since in summers past so much of our time has been spent there. Maybe while we’re up in Newbury Falls this weekend we can make a quick trip down to the water.

“The waves that crash into the cliffs below your house at high tide.” As I understand that each of these tattoos is tied to me, my eyes water.

Then Luke grabs my fingers and holds them to the waves on his chest as he spins to face me, stepping closer so my forearm and hand are flattened against his body.

“The sea was my first love. And then it was hockey. And finally, it was you.”

I swallow down the lump in my throat, and instead of showing him how emotional I am, I try to play it off. “Third place isn’t exactly the best?—”

“You’re my last love, Evie, and that’s all that matters. After the waves have eroded those cliffs and hockey is a distant memory, it will still always be you.”

I choke on the sob that erupts from the back of my throat, and then laugh at myself. “I’m sorry, but you can’t say things like that while I’m pregnant without me getting overly emotional.”

He drops my hand, then rests both of his on my hips as he presses a kiss to my forehead. “I’m okay with Emo Eva. Truth be told, I quite like knowing you have feelings.”

I tilt my head back to look up at him as he lets out a low rumble of laughter. “Way to ruin the moment.”

“Nothing’s ruined, Peaches. But now I see that the way to prevent you from mauling me in public is to start talking about my feelings.” He winks at me then, and I can’t help but smile back .

“I can’t believe you have our memories inked all over your body.”

“It shouldn’t surprise you in the least,” he says, shaking his head.

“It shouldn’t surprise me now . But you got those tattoos over the last several years—putting permanent reminders of me on your skin, without knowing that we’d ever be here.”

“I think somewhere deep down, I always knew we’d end up here.”

My cheeks push up as my smile spreads, suddenly feeling warm all over. “Did you now?”

“Well, I hoped you’d finally come to your senses and see what was right in front of you.”

I know he’s teasing, but in a way, he’s right. Whether it was my pregnancy or him living in Boston now, or something else, things shifted between us this summer. And the man who I’d been telling myself my whole life I couldn’t have was suddenly looking at me like he wanted me too.

“Good thing I’m nothing if not sensible,” I say.

“I’m glad to hear it, because I’d really like you to not kill me when I tell you what I’ve done.”

I lift an eyebrow. “What have you done that’s going to warrant murder, exactly?”

“Uhhh...” He pauses, then bends to grab the T-shirt he’s left hanging off the bench behind him. “Maybe I better show you instead?”

“Ominous,” I say playfully, but I follow as he starts walking toward the door while pulling his shirt over his head.

He stops at the elevators, but when we get in, he doesn’t press the 60 that would take us to our floor.

Instead, he presses the P2 button at the bottom, and we head down to the parking garage.

As we step out into the underground garage, I’m about to ask him if we’re going somewhere, but then a shiny black mid-size SUV—wrapped in a thick red ribbon and parked right next to Luke’s car—catches my eye.

“Please don’t be mad,” he says as he leads me toward it and presses a key fob into my hand.

“You...” A thrill runs through me as I stare at the gorgeous car. “You bought me a BMW?”

“I wanted you to have something safe, that you could easily get an infant seat in and out of, and would handle well in the snow but not be too big for city driving.”

“Listen to you being all practical while I stand here drooling over this car. You really didn’t have to do this. I could have waited until my convertible sold and then bought something...more modest.”

Maybe I don’t dream big enough, because never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d be driving a car like this. It’s so much nicer than anything I’ve ever owned that I’m almost afraid to touch it.

He wraps his arm behind my back and pulls me to his side so we’re hip to hip. There’s amusement in his voice when he says, “Evie, what’s the point of having money if you can’t spoil the people you love?”

I rest my head against him, thinking how easy it is to forget he’s so wealthy, given how down to Earth he is. “You don’t have to spoil me, Luke. Just being with you is enough.”

Turning to face me, his cool blue eyes are dark in the low light. His lips turn up in a small smile, and the look he’s giving me tells me I’m cherished. “I know I don’t have to, but I want to. And when have you ever known me not to get what I want?”

I click my tongue at him and shake my head, but I can’t hold in my smile. “So cocky.”

“Just confident. You’re my future, Evie, and despite everything I might already have, you’re all I ever really wanted.”

I close my eyes, trying to capture the feel of this moment as he leans in and presses his lips to my forehead. But then my stomach rumbles so loud it’s almost like someone started an engine. “You know what I really want?”

“Besides me?” he says, his voice husky like he’s trying to remind me that not five minutes ago I was about to jump him in the private gym in our building.

“Always you,” I say. “But first, ice cream. I hear there’s a hidden gem on the South Shore where you can get huge lobster rolls and fries with four types of dipping sauces, followed by amazing soft serve flavors. They have all these different twist combinations?—”

“Say less,” he says with a chuckle as he guides me to the driver’s side of my new car, before reaching to the roof and pulling off the enormous red bow. “We need to make sure Baby Squash is well-versed in ice cream flavors. Let’s go.”