Page 32 of Twin Babies for my Pucking Defenders (Chicago Icebreakers #2)

Chapter Thirty-Two

Jade

I crunch down on another ice chip, letting the cold burst against my teeth as I watch Nate move around the kitchen. He’s chopping veggies with the kind of focus he usually saves for game day. It’s soothing in a weird way, watching him do something so simple when my brain is running a mile a minute.

“You think this is a good idea?” I ask, the words tumbling out before I can stop them. My mouth feels too dry and I pop another ice chip between my lips to keep myself from overthinking.

Nate glances over at me, still working with that knife like it’s nothing. He’s so damn calm, and it pisses me off a little bit that he never seems to worry about anything the way I do. “Breathe, Jade. It’ll be fine.”

“Fine?” I chew down on the ice harder than I mean to. “I don’t know, Nate. What if…”

“What if what?” he interrupts, turning to face me, hands braced against the counter. “Carter and Axel aren’t idiots. They’ll handle it. Just give them time.”

I shake my head, biting into another chip. “I’m not sure this was the best plan.”

He raises an eyebrow, and I feel heat rise to my face. Nate has this fucking ability to read me. He watches me crunch another ice chip like it’s the only thing holding my shit together.

“Is this…a craving thing?” His voice is soft but teasing, a small smile tugging at his lips.

I blush, shrugging, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of an answer.

“Maybe,” I say, feeling the ice chip melt in my mouth.

Nate closes the space between us in two steps, his hand cupping my chin as he leans down to kiss me softly. The warmth of his lips is a big contrast to the cold from the ice, and it catches me off guard.

“You’re freezing,” he murmurs against my lips, chuckling as he pulls back.

I laugh too, trying to shake off the nerves. “Yeah, no shit. I’ve been sucking on ice chips.”

He brushes a thumb over my bottom lip, his eyes locked on mine. “Look, Jade. All three of us have fucked you.” His tone is blunt, no sugarcoating. “They’ll have their own opinions, and want to say their peace. You just have to give them a minute, okay?”

I swallow, nodding, and drop the ice cup on the counter before picking up my phone. “Okay.”

It takes everything in me to write out the text. My fingers hover over the keyboard longer than they should.

Me: Hey, I need to talk to you both. I’m at Nate’s place. Please come by.

My thumb hovers over the send button. Fuck it. I hit send and drop my phone, feeling my pulse quicken.

“That’s it. That’s all you need to do,” Nate says, leaning back on the counter like this is no big deal.

I stare at him, annoyed at how calm he is. “What if they freak out? What if they don’t…I don’t know…what if they don’t take it well?”

Before he can answer, my phone buzzes. I snatch it up.

Axel: We’ll be there in five.

Axel’s message is as blunt as he is. Of course, he’s already on the way.

“Five fucking minutes?” I blurt, starting to pace the room, my bare feet making soft thuds against the hardwood. “How the fuck are they already on the way?”

Nate comes up behind me, wraps an arm around my waist, and presses a kiss to the back of my neck. “Calm down, baby,” he murmurs, the deep rumble of his voice grounding me just a little.

“I’m trying,” I mutter, leaning back against him.

He turns me around, cupping my face in his big hands, his thumbs brushing my cheeks. “You’re gonna be fine. They’re not monsters. Just give them the news and let them deal with it. You’re stronger than you think, Jade.”

I let out a shaky breath, nodding as his lips meet mine again, warm and firm, the kiss deeper this time, like he’s trying to transfer some of his calm into me.

We’re still locked in that kiss when the knock comes. My stomach flips, and I pull away from Nate, my nerves kicking in all over again. “Shit, they’re here.”

Nate smiles, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. “Time to face the music.”

I glance toward the door, and suddenly the room feels too small, too hot, too everything. My hands are trembling, and Nate catches them, squeezing softly. “Hey, look at me.”

I do, and he leans down to kiss my forehead. “You’ve got this. I’m right here with you.”

“Yeah, until one of them punches you,” I mutter, half-joking, half-serious.

He grins, shaking his head. “I’ll take the hit. Besides, I am the coach. Whoever punches me gets punched right back.”

I walk to the door, my hand hovering over the handle for a second too long. I glance back at Nate, who’s standing there, watching me, his face calm, reassuring. I pull the door open, and there they are—Axel and Carter, both of them looking tense as hell. Axel has his arms crossed over his chest like he had been ready to break down the door if it wasn’t opened fast enough.

“What’s going on?” Axel asks, his voice gruff. There’s clearly no time for pleasantries.

Carter looks at me, his expression softer, more worried than angry. “Jade, is everything okay?”

I step aside, letting them in. My heart’s racing, and I can’t fucking think straight, but I have to do this. I close the door behind them, and suddenly the room feels even smaller, like all the air’s been sucked out of it.

Nate moves beside me, putting his hand on the small of my back, grounding me again. “We’ve got something to tell you guys,” he says, his voice steady, calm. God, I wish I could steal some of that calm right now.

Axel’s eyes narrow as he glances between us. “What is it?”

I take a deep breath, forcing the words out before I lose my nerve. “I’m pregnant.”

There’s a beat of silence, like the world just stopped spinning for a second.

“What?” Axel’s voice is low, dangerous, like he’s not sure he heard me right.

“I’m pregnant,” I repeat, my voice steadier this time. “And…it’s one of yours.”

Carter blinks, looking like I just slapped him across the face. “You…you don’t know whose it is?”

I shake my head. “No. It could be any of you. I.”

Another beat of silence hangs between us. Axel’s fists clench at his sides, and for a second, I think he’s going to punch something—or someone. But then he lets out a long breath, running a hand through his hair. “Fuck.”

Carter is quieter, his eyes searching mine like he’s trying to figure out how the hell this happened. “How far along are you?”

“At least three weeks,” I say, shifting uncomfortably under their gazes. “I didn’t…I didn’t know at first, but then the nausea started, and…” I trail off, biting my lip.

Nate squeezes my hand, stepping in. “We just went to the doctors office to confirm it.”

Axel’s eyes flick to Nate, then back to me. “So…what’s the plan? You expecting just one of us to step up and play dad?”

“I don’t expect anything,” I say quickly. “I just… I thought you deserved to know.”

“Damn right we deserve to know,” Axel mutters, pacing now. “Fuck, Jade. This is a fucking mess.”

Carter steps forward, his voice soft but firm. “We’ll figure this out. We have to. We’re all in this together, right?”

I nod, grateful for his calm, his steadiness. “Yeah. We’ll figure it out.”

Axel stops pacing, his jaw clenched tight. “This doesn’t change anything between us, you know that, right?”

I flinch, the words hitting harder than I expected. “I know,” I say, but I’m not sure if I know anything.

He sighs, running both hands through his hair this time, looking more tired than angry. “I’m not mad, Jade. Just…fuck. I need a minute.”

Nate steps forward, his hand still on my back, keeping me steady. “Take all the time you need, man. We’re not going anywhere.”

Axel gives a short nod before heading toward the door, Carter following him quietly. They leave without another word, the door closing softly behind them.

And just like that, the room is quiet again, the weight of what just happened settling heavily between me and Nate.

“That went well,” Nate says drily, pulling me into his arms.

“Could’ve been worse.”

Nate sets the table, and I’m watching him move around the kitchen like it’s nothing, like everything’s normal. But it’s not normal. Nothing is normal anymore. Not since...well, everything.

I crunch down on another ice chip, feeling the cold burst in my mouth, desperate for something to focus on other than the nerves racing through me.

“You wanna watch something?” Nate asks, glancing over his shoulder, his eyes soft but with that teasing glint that always makes my stomach flip.

I shift on the stool, watching the muscles in his back move under his shirt as he works. “Maybe a documentary? Something mindless.”

He chuckles under his breath. “You and your damn documentaries.”

“Hey, they’re interesting,” I fire back, throwing another ice chip into my mouth. “I like learning random shit. Just be grateful I’m not suggesting a true crime podcast.”

He turns, wiping his hands on a towel, his gaze locking onto mine. “You gotta breathe, Jade. Everything’s gonna be fine.”

“I don’t know if it’s gonna be fine, Nate,” I mutter, pushing the ice chips around in my cup, feeling the cold condensation drip onto my fingers. “Carter and Axel...what if…” I don’t even know how to finish that sentence. What if they freak out? What if this all blows up in my face?

Nate walks over, standing right in front of me, his eyes serious now. “They’re not idiots. They’ll come around. You just gotta let them process it, all right?”

I look up at him, biting the inside of my cheek. “You think so?”

“Yeah,” he says, leaning in and brushing his lips against mine, a soft kiss that turns into something more. He pulls back slightly, his breath warm on my lips. “You’re so fucking cold.”

I laugh, pushing lightly at his chest. “It’s the ice chips, dumbass.”

“Yeah, sure,” he murmurs, kissing me again, deeper this time. For a second, everything else melts away — the nerves, the anxiety and the uncertainty. It’s just me and Nate.

But then I pull back, reality crashing in again. “Do you really think they’ll come around to this? To us?”

He cups my face, his thumb brushing over my cheek, and there’s that intensity in his eyes that always makes me weak. “If they’ve got half a brain between the two of ‘em, they know you’re worth the fucking wait, Jade.”

I smirk despite myself, rolling my eyes. “Of course you think that.”

“Damn right I do,” he says, grinning, but then his expression softens, and he leans his forehead against mine. “I want you, Jade. No matter how fucked up or complicated this shit gets with Axel and Carter, I’m not going anywhere. We’ll figure it out, okay?”

I nod, swallowing hard, my heart...doing something. Not pounding. Fuck that. Just...something. It’s too much to process right now, so I just lean into him, wrapping my arms around his waist and holding on tight.

We stand like that for a minute, just breathing, just existing. And for a second, I almost believe everything’s going to be okay.

Almost.