Off the Field: Bad Boy Sports Romance (27 page)

“Mrs. Cary?” a nurse asked.

I looked up. “Not yet, but soon.”

“Excuse me?”

“We’re not officially married yet, but we’re engaged.”

“Oh, I see. He’s awake. You can see him for a few minutes if you want.”

She led me to his room. He looked pale and much older than I remembered him.

“Hey, you,” I said softly as I stood next to his bed.

“Hey, Nikki. I made it.”

I smiled, emotions welling up, as I reached out and took his hand in mind.

“I’m so happy. How do you feel?”

“Like they just cut off one of my testicles,” he said with a faint smile.

“He needs to rest, but I thought you might want to see him,” the nurse said from the door.

“I’ll see you soon.”

Out in the hallway, the nurse smiled at me. “He’s still pretty out of it, but he loves you a lot. He couldn’t stop talking about you.”

“Thank you,” I said, unsure of what else to say. “When is he going to be released?”

“Tomorrow most likely.”

“Thanks again.”

I raised a hand to wave then turned and walked back to the waiting room, wondering if I should wait it out or go home for a while. After only a few seconds, I decided to go back to the mansion to try to get some sleep. If I managed to rest, I could be at my best when he got released. He had enough money to pay for hundreds of people to wait on him hand and foot, but I was his wife.

A Town Car drove me back to the mansion. Before bed, I stripped out of all my clothes and drew a bath. The tub was ginormous and made out of marble. Whenever I soaked in warm, sudsy water in it, all my stress was washed away. While the water level rose, I lit a few candles throughout the room, which was bigger than my entire apartment had been back in Cleveland.

Memories of Tremont, the mechanic, and Thurston all came back to me as I soaked in the water, but in every instance, they were overpowered by thoughts of Steven, the man I truly loved. His getting cancer just before our marriage had frightened me, but he was going to make it through the ordeal a much stronger man. I looked forward to spending the rest of my life with him.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

A week after his surgery, Steven looked peaceful as he laid in bed next to me. We were both sitting, propped up by pillows behind our backs. The operation had changed him somehow. It was really imperceptible at first, but as I spent hours upon hours with him, I realized he was a slightly different man than the one I’d agreed to marry. He was better.

“I love you, Steven. You know that, right?”

He turned to me and smiled. “Of course I do. And I love you too.”

“I know I probably say it too much, but it’s true.”

“I believe you.”

“Your friends all think I’m just marrying you for your money, don’t they?”

“Honestly, some of them probably do, but I know the truth.”

“Do you, though?” I stared into his eyes, searching for his soul, his inner thoughts.

He nodded. “The cancer really changed my perspective on life. I now realize how important it is to spend as much time with you and the rest of our family as I can.”

I sighed as he gently placed his hand on my stomach, which was no longer hiding my pregnancy. We had to hurry if we wanted to get married before the baby was born, which was important to me.

“Do you think I’m going to make a good mother?”

“Yes, I do. I’ve seen you change over the years, Nikki. In good ways. You’re a strong and powerful woman who’s smart, sexy and sweet.”

“Stop…” I said in a teasing voice.

“I’m serious. I even understand why you took off and went and had some adventures. They made you even stronger, I think. You’ve changed my life in a lot of ways.”

“Like how?”

“Well, making me realize my family is important, for one. I can’t stand all the hours I missed with my children because I thought work was more important.”

“They’re fine. I don’t think you were trying to hurt them.”

“All I can say is that I’m looking forward to retirement and enjoying the rest of my days with you and them. All three of them.”

He leaned over and kissed me on the lips. Part of me wanted him so bad, but the pregnancy hormones and general uncomfortableness shot those ideas down. Steven understood and hadn’t pressured me at all. I was sure being in his forties had something to do with his lack of sex drive sometimes, but I didn’t care. Just resting in the same bed with him was nice.

“You want to watch a movie, Mr. I’m Retired Now?”

“Yeah.”

I flipped through the On Demand titles. We decided on The Big Lebowski, which he’d never seen before. I wasn’t much older than the movie myself. Still, it was one of my all-time favorites. The wedding and giving birth were coming up, but I was able to push thoughts of them aside and just lounge in bed with the man I loved. It was spectacular.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

The night before our wedding ceremony, I finally called Maryanne, half hoping she didn’t answer.

“Hello? Nikki? Is that you?”

“Yes, it’s me. I’ve been mad at you.”

“I kinda guessed. You just left without saying anything…”

“We were about to do something that I would have regretted.”

“I understand.”

“Do you? Really?”

“Yes, Nikki, I do. I’ve missed you a lot. We’ve been friends forever.”

“It seems like that sometimes. The thing is, my life is changing. I’m growing up, and I’m happy with that. In fact, I’m ecstatic. I can’t have anyone crazy in my life anymore.”

“Like I said, I understand. Really. I’m sorry about the bartender guy. It was just that we were drinking, and I hadn’t seen you in a while, and…”

“We can talk about it later. I just called to see if you can make it to the wedding tomorrow.”

“It didn’t happen already?”

“We had to postpone again because of something that came up. We can talk about it later maybe. Anyway, I just wanted to see if you would come. We’re not going to have a lot of people.”

“I’m there, bitch.”

I smiled. She was the only person who could make the B-word sound like a term of endearment.

“I’ve missed you too, you know.”

“I bet, Ms. I’m Marrying a Billionaire.”

I sighed. “Don’t tease, okay? I’m really in love with him.”

“I know. You’ve been in his life for years now. Maybe I’m just jealous.”

“You’ll find someone, Maryanne. I’m sure of it.”

“Who knows what will happen. I’m happy with my life.”

“Well, I have to go. Come over in the morning, so you can help me get ready.”

“You got it. Thanks for calling me. It means a lot.”

“We’ll talk soon. Bye, Maryanne.”

After I disconnected the call, a weight was lifted from my shoulders. I should’ve called her a lot sooner, I thought as I headed downstairs to spend the rest of the evening with my family. With each day that passed, referring to George, Anne and Steven as my fam became more natural. It was weird in a way, but I was ready to enjoy the rest of my life.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

“You look beautiful,” Maryanne said as she stood next to me in front of the full length mirror.

“I’m so fat.”

“Nonsense. You’re absolutely radiant. Most brides would kill for that extra glow.”

I smiled even though she was lying to me. The baby was still weeks away from being born into the world, but a minute didn’t go by that I wasn’t thinking about him or her. Steven and I both agreed we didn’t want to know the baby’s gender before the birth. With all the money we would ever need for dozens of generations, it was the small surprises and mysteries that gave us the most pleasure.

“I can’t believe you guys aren’t going on a honeymoon.”

“Are you kidding? The rest of my life is going to be one long honeymoon.”

Maryanne walked over to a table and grabbed a mimosa. “You think so?”

“I don’t know. We’re going to fight and everything, I imagine, but if you take money out of the picture, there’s a lot less to fight about.”

“What if he…” She stopped mid=sentence.

“What if he what?”

“I was going to say cheated. I’m sorry. We still haven’t talked about him and me.”

“Oh, I’ve talked about it with him, but no, the day of my wedding probably isn’t the best time to talk about it.”

“I did try to stop myself.”

“I know. I’m just so nervous.”

“Well, stop. You’re here. This man loves you.”

“He does. And I love him. Sounds so silly to say it so often, but it’s true. He’s taught me so much about life and about myself.”

“And he knocked you up,” Maryanne said, pointing to my stomach.

I smiled. “And he gave me a baby, too. Remind me again why I invited you to my wedding.”

“Hardy-har-har. Very funny. I can’t believe you’re going to make me wear this ridiculous dress.”

“Will you put it on, please? It’s almost time.”

“I suppose. You damn brides going on and on about how it’s your special day,” she said as she went into an adjoining room to change.

“Just wait until you get married,” I yelled.

“Never happen!”

I laughed. Joy overwhelmed me. It wasn’t the dream wedding I’d imagined as a young girl – it was going to be even better. Steven was the reason I thought our marriage would last a long time. As a business leader, he had a strength that made many men cower. The thought of all that power protecting and loving me for the rest of my life meant the world to me.

As a child, I could have never imagined what it was like to be an adult in the modern world. The Information Age was awash with too much information. It was easy to drown. Somehow, I’d been lucky enough to land a babysitting job with one of the richest men on the planet. And over the years, we’d fallen in love with each other. It all sounded too much like a Lifetime movie to me sometimes.

“How do I look?” Maryanne asked.

I turned around. As soon as I saw her in the awful green dress, I smiled. “Looks great.” I stifled a giggle.

“You wanted it to look bad, didn’t you?”

“It’s not that bad,” I said, my cheeks hurting because I was smiling so much.

She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. This day will end. And since you’re not going on a honeymoon, we’re going to have to sit down and have a long talk.”

“We will.” I walked over and put my hands on her arms. “Thanks for being my friend. We’ve been through a lot together, and even though you’re crazy through and through, I know you’d never intentionally hurt me.”

We hugged each other tightly for a second. Outside, music played. The ceremony was absolutely amazing. My first – and hopefully my only – wedding went wonderfully. I was the happiest woman in the whole wide world.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

“When is this baby going to come out of me?” I screamed. “I’m so ready!”

The baby, four days late, was stubborn, and it was driving me nuts. I was so over having a baby inside me. All I wanted was my body back. Was that so much to ask?

“There’s something we could do,” Steven said in what I called his attorney voice.

I looked over at him as he sat next to be on our bed. “What?”

“Sex. I know it sounds crazy, but I’ve researched it and talked to the doctor…”

“You want to fuck me? Like this? I’m sweaty, fat, and gross. Do you have some BBW or pregnancy fetish you’ve never told me about before?”

“What? No!” His eyes opened wide as if the idea was a shock to him. “You were saying you wanted to induce labor, and I was merely…”

“Settle down,” I interrupted. “My hormones have me crazy. If you think you could get it up with me like this, I guess we could try. I’m down for anything if it kicks this baby into gear.” I looked down at my rotund stomach. “I love you, baby, but you gotta go.”

At first, the mood and our moves were mechanical. I didn’t feel like getting up to take off the robe I had on, but I opened it. My breasts were huge, the biggest they’d ever been in my life. Yet whatever happened to my body would be worth it when my baby was born into the world. I reached over and snaked my hand into his robe. His cock was already half hard.

“Damn, Steven. I guess you do have a thing for pregnant chicks,” I teased as I tugged him.

“Not all of them. Just you.”

I looked down at his marvelous cock, not caring it would be the last one I would see in my life. To be honest, they were all pretty nasty when you thought about it. And yet I loved touching Steven’s prick because it gave him pleasure. It was a tool to please him and be pleased by him. Whether it was the hormones rushing through my body or something else, I’d been thinking deep thoughts for weeks.

“How should we do this?” he asked as he hardened in my hand.

“Good question. I don’t want to move, but I don’t think you can get around this huge stomach of mine.”