Page 32 of Pucking With My Head (Pucking Pregnant #4)

Beth

T hings were going shockingly well.

Joey and I had decided to go out for ice cream after school because it was Thursday, the start of the long weekend, and she deserved a treat. She had been working so hard on her spelling and even got a perfect score on the last test.

“The teacher was surprised I could spell grateful ,” Joey said as we lined up to pick out our flavors.

“You’ve been working so hard. I’m not at all surprised! Now, what flavor would you like?”

Joey looked at the display case, biting her lip. I resisted the urge to chuckle because I knew the look on her face all too well. It was indecision.

“Do I only get one?” she asked sweetly.

Normally, I would have held my ground and said yes, but considering I was trying to choose between three different flavors, I couldn’t exactly tell her she could only have one.

“You can pick two today, but only because you aced your test.”

Joey’s face lit up, and she jumped up and down happily, reaching for my hand as she did so. “Thank you, Bethany! I want chocolate chips and strawberry shortcake.”

I nodded, unable to keep the smile off my face. “Those are some good choices! I’m going to get chocolate and raspberry swirl with hot fudge sauce. Do you want sprinkles on yours?”

“Of course!” Joey nodded seriously.

Ice cream toppings were a very serious topic.

Joey ordered her ice cream, shyly thanking the nice beta lady who was helping us, as I paid for our treats.

By the time we sat down, the server had already brought the ice cream over.

I had chosen one of the fancier ice cream parlors that had table service, but Joey and I had wanted to look at the display ice cream to pick our flavors.

“So, when do you and Daddy J leave?” Joey asked, diving headfirst into the dessert, taking a gigantic bite and humming gleefully.

“Tomorrow morning,” I said. “Daddy J will be going to the game in Nebraska, and I’ll go on the same plane as him before going to see my family.”

When I had expressed that I probably would have to see my family sometime soon, Jensen explained that he had a game in Nebraska coming up. Even though he would be busy working, I knew that having him in the same city as me would help me cope with my family.

So he had booked us tickets on the same flight out.

“Daddy G said we can watch all the princess movies, and Daddy C told me he would take me to the trampoline park.”

“That sounds like a fun weekend! Why the frown?” I asked.

“Do you think Daddy C will mind if I want to go to the trampoline park next weekend? Because then you’ll be here, and you can come with us.”

My heart melted at her sweet words. This child was impossibly thoughtful and kind—her fathers had struck gold with her.

“How about you go with Daddy C this weekend, and all of us can go next weekend? Twice the fun! Only if you’ve finished your homework, though…”

Joey grinned. “I can do that!”

Taking a bite of my ice cream, I thoughtfully hummed to myself.

Could I even go to a trampoline park while pregnant?

I was so early in my pregnancy that my stomach was still completely flat, but I didn’t know what the risks were.

I’m sure if there was any cause for concern, Jensen would stop me, but I didn’t want to get Joey’s hopes up for nothing.

With Joey thoroughly distracted by her dessert, I pulled out my phone and shot a quick text in the group chat.

Beth:

Jensen, can I go to a trampoline park in my condition? I don’t want to get Joey’s hopes up!

His reply came almost immediately.

Jensen:

No summersaults, but you can go for a light bounce.

Gideon:

Are you sure?

Jensen:

I’m the one with a medical degree, so suck it.

Cullen:

Also, if jumping around is a bad idea, what we did in my office the other day would most certainly need to be banned…

I put my phone screen down on the table for a moment while I tried to gain some composure. I didn’t want Joey to see me blushing like a schoolgirl and ask what was happening. Once I was sure I had my face under control, I resumed texting.

Bethany:

Don’t worry, Gideon. I’ll be safe. Now I’m putting my phone down and filling your child with sugar so she’ll be a nightmare for you this weekend.

Gideon:

Looking forward to it.

Despite the upheaval of our lives, we were falling into a routine that seemed to be working. I was looking after Joey and managing to keep up with all my schoolwork, on top of staying at the pack house most days and spending time with three particularly good-looking alphas.

“You all packed?” Jensen asked as he met me in the entryway.

I nodded. “I don’t need much.” There weren’t a lot of things that I needed at my family’s house, so all I took with me was a carry-on bag with a few changes of clothing. “It’s only a weekend.”

Jensen nodded, lifting the carry-on out of my hand. “I’ll get these in the car.”

“Bethany!” Joey called as she bounded down the stairs, wrapping her arms around me. “I’ll miss you,” she said, smiling sweetly up at me.

“Well, good thing I’ll be back before you know it! When Daddy C picks you up from school on Monday, I will be here waiting for you.”

Joey nodded excitedly. “And Daddy G is going to be here all weekend with me! Though he doesn’t let me have cookies as much as you do…”

“Bethany’s just too nice for her own good,” a warm, grumbly voice said as Gideon appeared in the kitchen doorway a few feet away.

Unable to resist, I stuck my tongue out at him. “We girls have to stick together.”

He smirked, stalking forward, pausing for a moment to look at Joey. “If you’ve said your goodbyes to Bethany, you can have one cookie. Okay?”

Joey perked up. “Thank you!” she squealed, hugging me again. “Bye, Bethany!” Then she scrambled out of the hallway into the kitchen.

Jensen chuckled. “You’re going soft, old man.”

“No, I just wanted to do this,” he said, closing the space between us as his hands lightly grabbed my neck, trapping me between the wall and his body, as his lips crashed down on mine.

Hungry and delicious. He tasted like the coffee he was so fond of, which I also happened to enjoy greatly.

A simple touch from his lips had my body igniting. Instinctively, I molded my body to his. My hands fisted in his shirt as he kept total control, exploring every inch of my mouth, turning me into a needy puddle of goo.

“A cookie seems like a good trade-off for that.” Jensen chuckled as Gideon pulled back, straightening his shirt, a small smile on his face, acting like he hadn’t just made my head go all fuzzy with his sexy alpha man powers.

“I…uhh…” I struggled to find the words, still reeling from the kiss.

“You’d better get going, or you’ll miss your plane.” He smirked as Jensen ushered me out the door.

“You’re kidding me!” I hissed as Jensen led us to our seats.

When we had arrived at the airport, Jensen had taken over, guiding our way, checking us in. I had just followed him, drinking my iced coffee—decaf, of course—and daydreaming.

It was kind of amazing. Usually, airports were chaotic, between dealing with the logistics and dodging the crowds. With Jensen, I didn’t have to even think about what was going on around me; I simply followed him.

I trusted him enough to go with the flow, knowing he wouldn’t lead me astray.

Well, that was until we walked onto the plane, and instead of turning left, toward the economy seats, he headed straight for first class.

“What?” He blinked at me innocently. “These are our seats!” He gestured to the large, comfy seats with a mind-boggling amount of legroom for a plane.

“Jensen, we should be sitting back there.” I jerked my finger in the direction of economy seating, and he just grinned.

“You’re pregnant, and I wanted you to be comfortable. Sit.” He pushed me toward the large, plush seat.

“This is ridiculous,” I grumbled. “It’s a three-hour flight!

” I didn’t need a fancy, first-class seat for a three-hour flight.

That was a level of extravagance that felt bizarre to me.

Then again, I had never actually flown first class anywhere.

I was a student, so economy seating was my tried and true.

“But what if you want to nap? These seats turn into a bed…”

“You’re incorrigible.”

Jensen beamed. “But you like me anyway. Plus, I always travel at least business when I’m flying for the Chargers. There was no way in hell I was going to sit up here and let you sit in economy like a peasant.”

He was supposed to be traveling with the team but had opted to travel with me instead.

I took my seat, shaking my head. Even I had to admit it was comfortable. We buckled in and stowed our bags, and within ten minutes, we were preparing for takeoff.

Several times in the first hour, the flight attendant offered me and Jensen champagne, which I sadly had to turn down—a tragedy, really, because when would I have access to free bubbly again?

“This is fancy,” I hummed, leaning back and taking a sip of my soda.

“Get used to it.” Jensen grinned as he flicked through some work files.

I raised a brow at him. “I won’t be getting used to it, because next time I fly to see my family, I will be sitting in coach, like everyone else.”

Jensen snorted. “We’ll see about that.”

Fidgeting in my seat, I gazed out the window at the clouds. Despite the comfortable nature of the seats, I was antsy.

“You smell strong…” Jensen chuckled.

I glowered at him. “Shit. I’ll put some perfume on. It’s not my fault Gideon got me worked up before we left the house.”

It was true; I had been a little worked up ever since that kiss. The pregnancy hormones meant I was raring to go after the smallest touch. It was cruel, really.

Jensen’s grin only widened. “Well, there’s a simple solution to that.”

I cocked my head to the side. “And what is that?”

“The bathrooms here are also very fancy and large…”

Did he mean…?

Judging by the hungry and mischievous look in his eye, he very much did.