Page 60 of Who’s Playing You (In The Nick of Time #1)

NICK SOBA

“ B aby?” I said into the quiet room where we were laying together in bed, me feeding Scottie ice cream after our latest marathon sexathon.

“Hmm?” she replied lazily and totally spent.

“How would you feel if we did get pregnant?” I hedged.

The spoon she was sucking on stilled in her mouth. “What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I said. How would it make you feel if in a few weeks it turns out you’re pregnant?”

It’s as if the shock of the question had her take in a sharp intake of breath.

“I-I don’t know. I feel like we’re still so new, but after everything you said to me earlier and how we both feel…

I don’t know. I truly do feel you and I are in really deep and that we’re on the same page with so much. But I worry that…”

“Worry about what?” I felt defensive. There should never be any buts between us.

“I’m much older than you - like, I should be the one talking marriage and babies. Shit, I was for a long time,” she said as she handed me the ice cream container and sat up. I placed the container on the nightstand while she reached for my discarded T-shirt that was on the floor.

After covering her beautiful body with it, effectively hiding it from me much to my dismay, she sat cross-legged at the foot of the bed and faced me.

I sat up against the headboard and didn’t bother covering my exposed cock with the sheet.

She’d seen it every day for weeks, and it belonged to her anyway.

“And?” I queried back.

“ And … Nick, you’re 23! I can’t help that but some part of me feels like I would be…

I don’t know, trapping you.” To which I just scoffed.

“Come on, I’m serious. I know that I’m not the one who’s brought up marriage let alone having kids, I’m fully aware that you have led every one of those conversations, but Nicholas… We’ve only been together for like…”

“I know how long we’ve been together, Scottie,” I said more gently. “But, once you know, you just know. Don’t you feel this - us - deep in your heart and soul?”

She closed her eyes and chewed her lip again. On a quiet exhale she admitted, “I do.”

I quickly jumped in, “Then what’s the problem?”

“I don’t want you to resent me in two months or two years, if your feelings change.

I don’t want you getting so wrapped up in what we have now and for us to be careless, only for you to feel trapped in something you weren’t fully ready for when we get down the road some. And a child is very permanent.”

“I would never.”

“That’s easy to say now,” she began.

“I’m dead serious. You heard what my family said, and what I happily admitted: I have wanted you, this , for years!

Honey, you are my end game. You are the equivalent of winning the Super Bowl.

And shit, I’d marry you today if you wanted, Scottie.

I don’t think you realize that you in fact have all the control.

If you were to say yes, I’d take you to the courthouse right now.

If you were to say yes, I’d work day and night to make a baby with you.

I quite literally want everything with you. For forever.”

A lone tear streaked down her face as she let out a sob.

I quickly moved across the bed and wrapped her in my arms. “Aww, honey, don’t cry. I’m sorry, okay, if…”

“Thank you,” she breathed into my chest, which had me shutting the hell up and holding her tighter. “Thank you for loving me. For wanting me. I’m realizing that despite our quick timeline, how much I love you too. And I want all of that with you too,” she admitted.

I couldn’t help the incredible smile that graced my face as I kissed the new tears from her cheek. “You’re serious right now? Oh, baby. You’re making me the happiest man alive!”

She laughed through her tears and kissed my lips. “It’s you who makes me happy. You make me feel seen and alive. If this is what forever looks like, I want it every day - forever.”

“Done!” I quickly said, which had her laughing more.

I kissed her this time, and deepened the kiss.

When we broke apart and I leaned my forehead against hers, I brought us back to how this conversation had started, “So you’d be okay with us having a baby?

Like, if what we just did in the kitchen and here on the bed an hour ago, if you find out in a couple weeks that it was the start of our family, you’d be happy? ”

“Nicholas, I can’t imagine being any more happy than I am right now. But if God or the Universe or whatever you believe in were to grace us with a child, I think my heart might explode with love and gratitude.”

I snaked my arm around her lower back, pulling her down on the bed underneath me while catching her lips with mine. She let out a cute little scream followed by a giggle that did funny things to my heart.

“In that case…” I drawled out, “They say practice makes perfect. So then why don’t we continue practicing making babies?”

That had her throwing her head back on a laugh, allowing me to kiss down her exposed neck.

“That’s cheesy AF,” she said on another giggle.

“It might be, but you know I’m right,” I said as I fisted my ready-cock and led it to her needy entrance, because I’d continue to make it my mission in life not only to love this woman with every fiber of my being, but to make beautiful babies with her.

Trickie Nickies

The Love Machine:

I think I’m in over my head

What’d you do this time?

The Holy One:

I told you I’m too far away to bail you out.

The Love Machine:

Valentina has me all wound up.

Like she tied you up?

The Love Machine:

Fuck you Diva. This isn’t the time or place. This is serious.

The Holy One:

Translation: she left him with one untied hand to either text or jerk off. Dealer’s choice.

100% that’s what’s happening right now.

The Holy One:

He probably couldn’t seal the deal so she’s teaching him a lesson. You need to remember that you need to take the BLUE pills.

The Love Machine:

You know goddamn well that I can seal any-fucking deal! I don’t need ANY help!

I mean, you used to. But look at you now - all tied up.

The Love Machine:

STFU. This is different.

The Holy One:

Different how? Like she’s got three nipples different or something?

The Love Machine:

….

The Holy One:

…. What?

Alright, alright, calm down. He says it’s “serious” and “different”. Let’s give him the floor.

The Love Machine:

Thank you. And yes - it is serious. She’s what’s different. I’ve never met anyone like her. She’s got me all messed up.

The Holy One:

So you’re no longer slaying pussy? Or staying sassy?

Slaying. Eating. Fucking. Any of those work.

The Love Machine:

Fuck you guys. But also… yes. She’s immune to my mojo.

Ahhh. There’s the real crux of this issue.

The Holy One:

Bingo! Winner, winner, chicken dinner. He’s in a drought. His dick and mojo are broken. It was bound to happen.

The Love Machine:

Whatever. I see you two aren’t any help. Assholes.

The Love Machine:

Speaking of eating and fucking pussy, I see Scottie let you up for air Diva.

Careful.

The Holy One:

Yeah Loving, be real careful - he gets suuuuuper touchy around the blonde bombshell he’s trying to fit with a ball and chain. You shoulda seen him at our game, he was almost foaming at the mouth when I hugged her. The guy’s possessed.

Me: I think you mean obsessed.

The Holy One:

Nah. I mean PO-sessed. You’re like in some alternate Universe ever since you managed to brain wash her into dating you. You told her yet about your grand plans of tying her down to you forever?

If you’re referring to us growing our family, then yes. I’m happy to announce that Scottie is fully on board with us having kids. And asap.

The Holy One:

I called it, he’s given her Stockholm Syndrome.

The Love Machine:

KidSSSSS? Like multiple? Eww. They whine and just like eat and shit.

First off to you, Papas.

Second, yes, kids, you jackass. And I certainly don’t need any EXPERT advice from the likes of you when it comes to children.

You’re the last person I’d come to for that advice - you’d definitely be my first choice for STD advice though.

No offense. Children are a gift, and I hope one day - probably way in the future - that you’ll experience what I’m talking about.

The Holy One:

The sex must be incredible - tell us it is.

….

The Love Machine:

Oh come on! Don’t leave us hanging. Going bare all the time?! That must be the best part of it all. You know Papas and I have never experienced that - gotta wrap the big guy up! We don’t need any “oopsies”. So we gotta live vicariously through you now, tell us all the things about riding bareback.

The Holy One:

You know he’s right.

I have no point of comparison. I’ve only ever had Scottie bare.

The Holy One:

Yeah, but like before her.

The Love Machine:

Hey, Papas - let’s just leave it there.

And with that the two of them went on about the upcoming games this week, Papas asking us about injuries on our teams again - which was starting to nag me. Why did he keep asking us about injuries, or rumors from the locker rooms? It was just bizarre.

But I was thankful for Loving ending the sex conversation the way he had, because I’d almost slipped. Although, I had an inkling that Loving knew my truth.

If not fully knowing, he suspected.

He had to, especially after all the time that he and I spent together not just on and off the field, or around campus or when we lived together, but after all the time that we spent going to the sex club in Arkansas and back home in Philly.

Our favorite in Philly was called Landow’s - oh the fun we had there.

There were ample rumors that floated around about us, about our sexual proclivities. None of them were substantiated or confirmed though. Everyone who went to the clubs that we went to signed NDAs. But you know how people are, they still talk.

But Nic was the one person who saw all parts of me - or almost. As I said, he couldn’t confirm his suspicions but he knew enough to know my truths. Or think he knew. Which is also why he cut the conversation where he did, allowing me to keep my secrets if I so wished.

This is why he was one of my best friends.

A best friend that I’d stabbed in the back. The thought of that had me scratching at my tattoo on the inside of my bicep. The same one each of them had.

Three arrows, one singular line, all pointed in the same direction.