The Game of Love: (BWWM Romance) (12 page)

“You could say that.” He tugged open the car door and Arielle narrowed her eyes.

“Austin, you know something.”

“Arielle—”

“Did you already know she was pregnant?”

“No.” He slid onto the seat and pushed the key into the ignition. “But my sole reason for going over there is because she’s pregnant and taking care of her sick mother. Doesn’t that sound like someone who needs a friend?”

Arielle pushed the door closed. “Hell, even pregnant and married sounds like someone that needs a friend. I sure did. But promise me that you won’t ride in there like a knight in shining armor, say you’ll be there for her, and then fall back on that promise. If you do, I’ll fly all the way out to Texas and kick your ass.”

He grinned. “You’ll upset millions of Texans counting on a championship ring this year.”

She motioned with her hands. “Bring ‘em on.”

As he pulled out of the yard, Arielle couldn’t help but wonder what it was that her little brother was up to. She’d heard from their mother that he and
Sommer had spent a considerable amount of time together when he was home, but even though everyone had kept their fingers crossed, it didn’t appear that a romance had blossomed. They’d only evened out their rivalry, one that dated back to even before they both could remember, and had built a solid friendship. Arielle, however, refused to give up on the hope that Austin would find someone to suit him just like she’d found Justin, regardless of what kinds of myths their father had tried to embed into his head. She hoped that her marriage to Justin had shown him, if even in the slightest, what love truly looked like.

*****

Sommer was lugging a black trash bag to the dumpster behind the café when Austin pulled into an empty spot at the entrance. All the lights had been turned off and the doors locked, which meant that tossing out the trash was the last thing she would have done before hopping into her car and heading home. Although he knew that he could have just met her there, he wanted to catch her when she was completely alone.

He scanned her body as she walked, zeroing in on her stomach. So far, what he knew about her pregnancy had come from Arielle’s mouth, so there was still a small voice in the back of his head telling him that she’d been mistaken and that
Sommer truly wasn’t pregnant. However, when she tossed the bag into the receptacle, turned around, lifted her shirt, and looked down at her stomach, all of his doubts disappeared. Her lips moved as she said a few smiling words to her belly and seeing her in such a tender moment only made him love her more.

He emerged from the car and, taking a deep breath, prepared himself for her to ask what he was doing back so soon, or stubbornly ignore him because he’d stopped by to see her against her wishes. Instead, he realized that she was racing towards him. He moved forward and lifted her into his arms while she tightly wrapped her arms around his neck. They held onto each other for several heartbeats until Austin’s brain finally accepted that she was really in his arms,
and then he let her back down to her feet.

“You’re back,” she said, nearly breathless. “I didn’t expect you to come back.”

He tugged her into his body. “I missed you, Sommer. Of course I’d come back.”

“I missed you too.” She laid her head against his chest. “Did you come back to see Arielle’s twins?”

He pressed a kiss against her lips and then led her towards the car. “Partly. I want to talk to you. Do you have time to go out to Flatwoods?”

She nodded and they hopped in the car, reaching the park less than two miles away from the café in under five minutes. Walking to a picnic bench in the middle of the grassy clearing, Austin pulled
Sommer into his lap and for a moment, they sat in silence, both realizing that life, at that moment, couldn’t have been anymore perfect.

“The twins are beautiful,” he finally spoke. “And so small. It’s been such a long time since I’ve held a newborn that I forgot how weightless they can be.”

He felt her stiffen at the word “newborn.”

“It’s been a while since I’ve even been around a baby, too,” she added. “They’ll come popping out next spring though. Stella’s always busy in March and April.”

A pair of headlights filtered through the leaves of a massive willow oak that the town had fought to preserve years ago when developers had come in to redesign the park. At first, the mayor had been on board with tearing it down, claiming that a more open space would be a better attraction for town residents, but nearly everyone in the town signed a petition stating otherwise. In the end, the tree stayed and he was ousted from office the next election season.

“You can stop by Ma’s and see the twins,” Austin suggested. “I talked to Arielle when she was in the hospital and she told me that she missed you.”

She found his eyes. “How did my name come up?”

“She told me that she ran into you.”

“Did she say where?”

“Yes.”

She stood and put a few feet of distance between them, biting her nails as she paced in the grass. “What else did she tell you?”

“She told me something else that she thinks, but isn’t sure about. That’s the other reason that I’m here.”

Instinctively, her hands went to her stomach and just as quickly, she dropped them to her sides.

“
Sommer,” he began, “Arielle told me that you’re pregnant.”

She clenched her fists, held them tight for a second, and then released them with a breath. Tears filled her eyes and he walked towards her, only for her to take a few steps out of his reach.

“Is it true?” he asked.

She released another breath. “Yes. It’s true. I’m nine-weeks pregnant.”

He took a step closer and again she backed away.

“Is that why you’re here?”
she asked. “To find out who the father is?”

Austin narrowed his brows. “No. I know who the father is. I just wanted to hear it from you that you’re pregnant with our child.”

Her surprise brought on the tears, and she finally let him get close enough to thumb the moisture away from her cheeks.

“I was so afraid that you’d be upset,” she confessed. “That you would think I was trying to trap you for your money.”

He bellowed out a laugh. “Sommer, if you were trying to trap me, I gave you all the ammunition you needed that weekend. But no, I’m not upset. I’m…there are no words to describe how I feel, so ‘happy’ will have to do.”

More tears streamed down her cheeks, but he could tell that these were tears of happiness. Although he had no tears of his own, his heart swelled with elation. Years ago, when
Sommer was just an unrequited crush, he’d never expected that they would be standing in the middle of a park discussing the child that they were going to have together. Even when he used to envision them together back then, the real world would always infiltrate and dismantle their happiness. But that had just been in his imagination. His father was gone and he had the world at his fingertips. Everything would be perfect for Sommer and their baby. He was going to make sure of it.

He reached out and placed a hand against her stomach. “This is so crazy,
Sommer. We’re having a baby.”

“I know.” She grinned. “I can’t believe it either.”

“Does your mother know?”

“Before I even told her. And Austin, I don’t know how she knew. She even knows that it’s your baby.”

His eyes widened. “How do mothers know these things?”

“I don’t know,” she answered with a shrug. “Does Ms. Emma know?”

He spun her around and pulled her back into his chest before returning his hand to her stomach. “Not yet, but we’ll tell her on our own time. Now, you come to Texas with me.”

Sommer
tried to release herself from his grasp, just like he knew she would, but he held her firmly against his chest. One day, she would realize how serious he’d been when he told her that he would never let her run away from him.

“Mom somewhat suggested the same thing,” she revealed. “She said that she’s moving in with Uncle Reese and Marcie, but I can’t leave her here like this. Not when she’s so sick. If I left now, I wouldn’t be any different than my Dad.”

Austin turned her to face him. “Your father left with another woman without ever intending to come back. That’s not the case here. We’re starting a family, and I want to be there for the entire pregnancy. From the morning sickness, to the crankiness and foot massages. I want to see you swell up.”

She playfully elbowed him in the stomach.

“Okay then. Let me rephrase. I want to see how your body changes as he grows inside of you.”

“Much better,” she replied. “He?”

“Yes, we’re having a boy.”

She burst out laughing. “And I love how serious your face was when you said that.”

“It’s because I know. Fathers know.”

He’d assumed calling himself a “father” would feel unusual, but the word fit right into place.

“Uh huh, fathers know,” she teased, looping an arm behind his neck and bringing him in for a kiss.

“So, yes to Texas?”

“Let me think about it, Austin. I’ll need to talk to Mom about it too. I don’t think she was thinking straight when she suggested that I move in with you.”

He nodded, scooped her up into his arms, and headed for the rental car. “Well, we only have the weekend, so how about we go talk to Ms. Caroline right now?”

“Austin…”

“That sounds like a yes to me.” He set her back on her feet when they reached the passenger door. “I really meant what I said back there about missing you. Even if you weren’t pregnant, I wasn’t sure how much longer it would be before I said
eff her plans
and came right back to see this face.”

He waited for the eye roll but she caught him off-guard by smiling. “You and those corny lines, Austin Riley.”

He stole a quick peck. “Austin Riley Sr.”

Pulling open the door,
Sommer slid inside the car. “Austin Riley Sr.?”

“Yep. You have a problem with that?”

When he took the seat across from her, she reached over and ran her fingers over his scruffy cheek. “I have lots of problems with that. First of all, I liked the name Solomon Grundy Riley if it’s a boy, and Blanche Rose Dorothy Sophia Riley if it’s a girl.”

He tossed back his head and laughed so delightedly that
Sommer couldn’t help but break out into laughter herself.

“Damn, I’ve missed you,” he told her. “I don’t care what your mother says, your beautiful butt is flying back to Texas with me. And, as soon as we get there, I’m going to do things to you.”

Sommer clapped her hands in delight. “Oh, what kinds of things?”

“Filthy things. Dastardly things. And I’m just letting you know now that some of them might be illegal in some states.”

She laughed again and he sped off in the direction of Cherry Avenue, ready to use whatever charm he’d had left to persuade Sommer’s mother to convince her to come to Texas with him. Even if she agreed to a short stay, he’d try his damndest to get her to fall in love with him and eventually agree to stay forever.

As they drove up to the house,
Sommer spotted a silver, luxury convertible in the driveway and immediately knew who was inside.

“Who does your mother know that drives a Bentley convertible?” Austin asked, parking on the curb. Although he also had a few expensive models of his own back in Texas, anyone who drove a Bentley into Yearwood was only trying to be a big fish in a small pond.

“It’s Kyle,” she replied. “I’ve never seen this car before, but whenever you see six-figure cars rolling around Yearwood, it’s usually him.”

Sommer
led the way to the front door and sucked in a breath before walking inside. Kyle was sitting in the loveseat across from her mother and when he looked up and saw her, he flashed her a grin. However, when Austin appeared, the grin was replaced by a brief scowl which Austin caught before it disappeared.

“My goodness, Austin, I didn’t expect to see you again so soon,” Caroline greeted. She attempted to stand, but Austin took a seat next to her in the sofa instead, wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and placed a kiss against her cheek at which she blushed.

“It’s like every time you leave and come back, you’re even more handsome,” she said with a squeeze. “Kyle and I were just talking about that.”

Austin’s eyes fell on Kyle. “You were talking about how handsome I am?”

“You know what she meant,” Kyle snapped. “We were talking about you finally coming home after a decade and how, all of a sudden, you and Sommer are the best of friends.”

Sommer
sat on the sofa arm. “Kyle, I was hoping that I could have some time to talk to my mother in private.”

He shook his head. “You’re not going to get rid of me just yet. Where are the two of you coming from?”

Austin began to respond, but Sommer cut him off.

“Austin brought me home after work.”

Kyle glanced at his watch. “Didn’t you close up at seven? It’s over an hour later. What were you doing all that time? The café’s barely ten minutes from here.”