Page 25 of Power Play (Titans Hockey #2)

Chapter twenty-two

Lacey

I shuffle on tired feet down the hall and into the kitchen. I need coffee. My OB said I could have one cup if everything else was going well with the baby, and fuck, I needed my caffeine.

In the last forty-eight hours, my sister tried to seduce one of my boyfriends, we flew home from Colorado, and moved me out of my apartment under the cover of night. Now, this morning, we're supposedly hashing out the details of this crazy arrangement.

Ben was still sleeping when I snuck out.

I just needed a minute alone to drink my coffee and think.

Think about what I want, what's best for me and the babies.

Because at this moment, I don't really know what that is.

We have a safe roof over our heads, and three men wanting to take care of us, but what does that even mean?

Financially? Physically? Emotionally? I still feel like Jonesy's being forced into this, but he's a big boy.

If he wants out, he'll have to do it. Because Scott wants him in.

And how will that work for the boys? Will that make things weird in the locker room?

Two of his players living with him? Will he be accused of favoritism?

Can they separate their work relationship from their personal ones? I haven't been able to do that.

I'm already deep in my thought spiral when I look up and an involuntary squeak erupts out of me.

The older woman in the kitchen whips her head to look at me, takes in my disheveled appearance, before smiling widely .

She's thicker around the middle, with curly grey hair secured fashionably on her head. She looks just like everyone's image of a grandmother.

I jump as a large hand snakes around my waist, and Scott places a chaste kiss on my cheek before stepping past me into the kitchen.

"Morning, darling. Morning, Martha."

Oh GOD. Am I doing the walk of shame? I look down at my bare legs. At least the goods are hidden by Ben's shirt which ends at my midthigh.

I'm about to backpedal back to Ben's bedroom before Martha hurries towards me, gushing.

"Oh my, Mr. Ward!" She takes my face in her hands and studies me. "You brought a woman home! And she's gorgeous!"

What on God's green earth is going on here? Am I being punked? Who the fuck is this woman?

Scott simply pours himself a coffee and leans his hip against the counter, chuckling to himself. He must see the obvious panic in my face.

"Martha, this is Lacey, my girlfriend. She moved in last night."

Martha practically vibrates with excitement as her smile widens even more.

"Lacey, Martha's my house manager, but she's more like a second mother. And she's been nagging me for most of my adult life about getting married and give her pseudo-grand babies."

Martha finally releases me and heads back into the kitchen.

"What can I get you, darling? Coffee? Orange juice? Oh! I should make French toast, or eggs benedict?" Martha spins in tight circles as she gets distracted by different ideas .

I'm still stunned, standing there and simply staring. Of course he would have a house manager. Or a cleaner? Or a chef? Why wouldn't he? And why hadn't I considered these things already?

Scott takes pity on me and walks up to me, holding my face in his hands like Martha just had.

"Breathe, darling. Just breathe."

"Is... it okay that I'm here?" I don't know why that's the first thing out of my mouth.

"I wouldn't have asked you and the boys to move in if it wasn't." He looks over his shoulder at the older woman fondly.

"Martha's just excited. With all the travel I didn't have a chance to fill her in on our new living arrangements.

That's all. She's going to be more than thrilled with having more people to take care of.

" He kisses me tenderly, sweetly, without any heat.

I swear I hear Martha sigh in the background and my cheeks heat.

"Now. What do you want for breakfast?"

"Coffee first."

His brows drop and he growls at me. He heard my OB the same way I did. "Take my coffee from me and I'll cut you," I growl right back.

He lets out a deep, husky laugh before releasing my face and ushering me to the island stool with a large, warm hand on my back.

"One cup," he insists, pulling down a mug.

"One large cup," I insist back.

While Martha's head's stuck in the refrigerator, Scott leans across the island and whispers to me. "Should we wait to tell her about the pregnancy?"

I nod. I'm fairly overwhelmed that Scott so casually forgot to mention his house manager, and what that means about moving in with him.

I'm painfully uncomfortable with the idea of someone else cooking and cleaning after me.

A rock sits in my stomach and not for the first time do I wonder if I've made a mistake.

But I'm away from my sister and safe. Protected here. No one knows where I've moved except the people in this house. And if Scott trusts her, I think I can too. I'll have to work on my other discomforts later.

He slides my coffee over to me and I take that first, delicious sip. Scott comes over behind me and wraps his thick arms around my waist gently.

"But what about the others?" I ask, tilting my head back to look at him. Will she be upset that I moved in with two other men?

Scott simply chuckles, the vibrations of if tickling my back through his chest.

"Oh, and we've got two more roommates, Martha."

Martha shimmies in place and lets out an excited squeak.

Scott, sitting on the stool next to me, lays his hand on my bare thigh. "Martha's been nagging me for years that I'm too alone. That having a family would be good for me. She even tried to set me up on a few dates."

I rest my hand overtop of his. Martha's humming happily to herself, leaning into the fridge to gather ingredients so I take the opportunity and whisper to Scott "Should we hire more help?

Going from one to four, and eventually six, is a lot for one person.

" I know I'm not one to ask. I can't afford to hire another person. Scott nods thoughtfully.

"I'll ask her after she's gotten over her initial shock."

I smile and sip my coffee.

We drink our coffee in comfortable silence.

My mind's still spinning with things we need to discuss when Garrett and Ben come out into the kitchen, too.

Both of them are wearing only grey sweatpants.

In fact, so is Scott. And all the bare chests and barely concealed outlines of cocks have me shooting to my feet.

"Family meeting. Now!" I bark out, flustered, before stomping into the living room.

I stand, hands on my hips, and tap my foot impatiently. Ben and Garrett seem confused, if not a little worried, but Scott's got a shit-eating grin on his face. He knows why I'm flustered.

"First rule," I say, holding up a finger. "No walking around like this!" I say, waving my hand at all their naked muscles and low slung sweats.

"Having trouble concentrating, darling?"

I let out a little huff of annoyance. "Shirts, and and... something!" I fluster.

The boys file out of the living room, but as he passes me, Ben stops and tugs on his shirt. The one that I'm wearing.

"Same goes for you, pretty girl," he growls in my ear. My cheeks heat again and I slip into my room and rummage through my boxes until I find a suitable sweatshirt and sleep shorts.

A few minutes later the boys join me again with shirts and sweats or athletic pants.

Honestly? It's not much better. Scott's white undershirt hugs his biceps tightly and spreads across his broad shoulder.

Jonesy's wearing a large band T with the sleeves ripped off and even Ben's wearing college hoodie, zipped open enough to see a good expanse of chest.

I place my cool fingers to my cheeks to try to cool them down, but it doesn't work. Scott's smirking, clearly enjoying my dilemma.

Fuck, this is going to be hard .

I sit on the coffee table, facing the couch, and consider where to start.

"So what is this?" I blurt out, anxiety eating me through to my core. I hate uncertainty, I hate change, I hate feeling out of control. And whatever this is just seems crazy.

There's a beat of silence while three sets of eyes consider me.

Scott leans forwards, elbows braced on his knees.

"I don't know if I speak for the other two, but you've moved in.

You're having my babies, and I want a real chance at a relationship with you, and everything that means.

Date nights, movie nights, sex..." His voice dropped low and sexy on that last word, sending a bolt of lust through me.

That night in the hotel with him was one of the hottest of my life. More of that? Oh my God, yes.

"And while we're dating, I'll be close enough to take care of you and everything you need during your pregnancy. To be a good partner for you."

He jams a thumb at Ben and Garrett. "And I'm pretty sure the same goes for these two. I have enough rooms in my house for each of us to have our own space, and as long as we have honest communication, I can't see how this isn't the best scenario for all of us."

I look to Ben and Garrett who both nod in agreement.

Garrett's twisting his fingers together, clearly nervous about something.

"What is it, Garrett?"

He looks at Scott and Ben, a light blush staining his cheeks. I'm not used to seeing shy Jonesy. "Do you want to talk about it in private?"

He looks almost ashamed. But he bites his lip and nods. I rise and stand between his knees, holding my hand out for him. I know how out of his comfort zone he is with this entire situation. Anything I can do to make him more comfortable, I will. I'm grateful he's here and willing to try.

He takes my hand and follows me to his bedroom. I shut the door behind us and wait. He paces a little, before sitting on the bed and looking at his hands.

"I..." he starts, before stopping again. He lets out a long sigh. "I've never done this before. I've never cared about what anyone's thought of me before. But I care...and I know I'm going to screw this up."

I sit on the bed beside him and rest my head on his shoulder. "I've never done this either. Ben and I were together for awhile, but it was never anything official. It couldn't be. And I've never lived with a boyfriend. I'm sure I'll screw up, too."

He shakes his head. Either he doesn't believe me, or he doesn't believe himself. "That's not what I mean."

I raise my head and look at him again. "Then tell me what you mean."

"I...I want to have sex with you again...I..." he swallows. "I don't like how the only time we've been together was an angry fuck in an elevator..."

I sense there's more, so I wait. "But I don't know how to do this. How to...have boyfriend/girlfriend sex."

His vulnerability makes me smile. He cares. And he's not used to caring.

I slip my hand into one of his, threading our fingers together and loving how much larger his hand is than mine. "How about we figure it out together? When the time is right, we'll figure it out together."

He nods, but bites his bottom lip. "Can...can I kiss you? "

My smile widens. "You're my boyfriend, aren't you?"

And with that he gives me a kiss sweeter than anything I ever expected from Jonesy.

Because he's not being Jonesy. He's being Garrett, my boyfriend.