Epilogue
The party on Saturday was held at the Nova Eastern University, and it was for the sports alumni and all the players that were associated with the University and the training center. It was a huge event, arranged in one of the University’s great halls.
When the six friends arrived–Jacob and Kina, Brian and Sadie, and Hanson and Lacey–they were blown away.
“Did Lauren do all of this?” Kina asked Sadie.
Sadie nodded. “She was involved in almost all the planning. She’s so efficient. And I must say, the place looks fantastic.”
The room was decorated in the teal colors of the Florida Sharks, with white table cloths and tables of six. The meal for the evening was a buffet with assorted dishes to choose from, and modern music played in the background.
Everyone walked around, looking fancy. It was a semi-formal event, and everyone had made an effort.
Even Kina had managed to find something that worked with her pregnant belly, and she looked radiant on Jacob’s arm.
The friends all sat down.
“How are you doing with the baby?” Lacey asked Kina. They sat next to each other.
“I still have four months left, and I’m already wishing it was over,” Kina said, laughing. “It’s not so bad. Obviously, you know how it is. But I know it’s just going to get worse, and after Nate, I didn’t miss the swollen ankles and bloated feeling at all.”
Lacey nodded.
“Do you miss being pregnant?” Kina asked.
Lacey took a sip of her water. “To be honest? I don’t. I know women are supposed to get broody after they’ve had their first, but I just don’t feel it. Hanson wants another child, and we’ll try, but I don’t look forward to it at all.”
Kina put her hand on her friend’s arm.
“It will be fine. Do you remember how beautiful it was to know that there was life inside of you? Once it happens, you’ll feel it.”
Lacey shrugged. She didn’t know how to explain to Kina her fears about having another child, about having children in the first place. Kina was so comfortable with having children, with being a mother. And Sadie hadn’t walked that road yet. Lacey felt like she was completely alone with her fears.
Lacey turned to Sadie, who sat on her other side.
“How about you?” Lacey asked Sadie. “Are you and Brian planning on having kids?”
Sadie shrugged. “We haven’t really talked about it.”
After the fights about their careers, Sadie and Brian were just happy to be together. They hadn’t spoken about starting a family, not yet. Maybe they should have. When Sadie glanced at Brian, he smiled at her. She was glad that she had chosen to stay in Miami with her team instead of taking the job in Kentucky. Seeing the three men together, she realized how close they were to their friends and how important it was to have a support network like this.
Especially with how things were going to change for them soon.
“On the note of having babies,” Kina said, speaking up. She glanced at Jacob, smiling. “We have an announcement to make.”
Everyone fell quiet.
“We’re having another boy.”
Everyone congratulated Kina and Jacob.
“Having two boys is so much easier than having a girl,” Brian said.
“Why?” Sadie asked
He grinned. “Because with a boy, you only have to worry about one dick. With a girl, you have to worry about every dick in the world.”
Everyone laughed, but Sadie got a sinking feeling in her stomach. She suddenly felt like crying.
“Excuse me,” she said and got up, fleeing to the ladies’ room.
“What was that?” Lacey asked Kina. They both looked at Brian who shrugged, looking worried.
“We’ve got this,” Kina said, getting up. Lacey got up, too, and they followed Sadie to the bathroom.
When they found her, she was locked in a stall, crying.
“Are you okay, honey?” Kina asked. “What’s wrong? I’m supposed to be the emotional one, what with being pregnant.”
“That’s just the thing,” Sadie said. “I’m pregnant.”
Kina and Lacey looked at each other, surprised. Sadie opened the stall door and came out, her makeup a little smudged from crying. Lacey hugged her friend before helping her fix her eyeliner by running her thumb beneath her lower lashes.
“But that’s great news,” Kina said. “Why are you crying?”
Sadie took a deep breath and let it out with a shudder. “I only found out today. I took a pregnancy test when I was late. I’m terrified.”
“Oh, don’t be,” Lacey said. “You want kids with Brian, don’t you?”
Wanting to have children made it all so much easier, Lacey thought, but she didn’t say it out loud.
Sadie nodded, but she was still crying. “Brian and I never talked about it. We probably should have, but we didn’t. I don’t know if he’ll be happy about it. We’ve both been so focused on our careers, and I’m nervous it will mess that up for us.”
Kina shook her head. “I can tell you now, he will be thrilled for you. He’s an amazing man, and he’ll make a great father. And you’ll make a great mother. And you have all your family and friends rooting for you.”
Sadie nodded and wiped her tears. “It was just a shock, that’s all,” she said.
“I know what that’s like, trust me,” Lacey said.
The door to the ladies’ room opened and Lauren appeared.
“The men told me you guys were hiding out in here.” She was smiling, but when she looked at Sadie, her face fell. “What’s wrong? Did you guys not fix it?”
“No, we did,” Sadie said. “I’m pregnant.”
Her tears started rolling again. Lauren tried to look sympathetic, but she couldn’t help it. She stepped closer to Sadie and hugged her.
“I would be lying if I told you that wasn’t great news,” she said. “I’m so happy for you!”
“You think it’s great news?” Sadie asked Lauren. Her best friend was always supportive, but she was always honest.”
Lauren smiled. “Of course. God, babies everywhere. It makes me feel like I need to get myself a man now, too!”
The women laughed. After a while, they returned to the table. When Sadie sat down, Brian took her hand, turning all his attention on her.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
Sadie nodded. “This might not be the best time to tell you,” she said.
“Tell me anyway,” he said. He wanted to know what was up with his wife. She was his world, and after their fight and her staying somewhere else, he was more aware of how blessed he was with her than ever.
She took a deep breath.
“I’m pregnant,” she said.
Brian blinked at her for a moment while the news sank in. Then, he grabbed her and kissed her.
“Did you hear that?” he asked the rest of the table. “Sadie is pregnant!”
The only two that didn’t know were Jacob and Hanson, but everyone cheered, and Sadie laughed, blushing. She really did have the best friends, and judging by the way Brian was talking animatedly, never letting go of her hand, she knew she had been a fool to doubt if he would be happy about the news. He was an amazing husband, and now, they were going to be a family.
And suddenly, she couldn’t wait.
Lacey watched her friends and their husbands. They were both radiant with their pregnancies, and both men were so taken with their women, it was beautiful. She remembered when Hanson had been like that with her. And the feeling that she’d never felt before, the baby fever that she’d believed she would never get, crept up on her.
She reached for Hanson, putting her hand on his thigh and squeezing.
“Someone’s in a mood,” he said, leaning in and whispering in her ear.
“In the mood to have a baby,” Lacey said.
Hanson blinked at her. “Really?”
Lacey smiled and nodded. “Everyone around me is pregnant. I want to have another baby. I want them all to grow up together and be friends the way we are. With so many babies and pregnant women around, I’m getting baby fever. I want to do this with you.”
Hanson grinned before he pulled Lacey to him and kissed her.
“Have I told you how much I love you?” he asked her.
“Only once a day,” Lacey said, laughing.
“Then I haven’t told you nearly enough.”
He kissed her again.
The three couples were beautiful together, smiling and laughing and in love. No matter what came their way, Lacey knew they would get through it. Kina and Sadie were talking about being pregnant, and the men were joking about trading beer bottles for milk bottles. It felt to her like they all went through the same things at the same time–whether it was fights or pregnancies–and because of it, they could be there for each other in a way no one else could.
It made her happy to have a group like this, and proud to be a football wife.
Sure, it was horrible when the men were away playing games on the road, and none of the women could go with them to spend time with the men. Yes, it was a hard life, never knowing if your man would be injured in the next game.
But while the men were gone, doing what they loved, Lacey, Kina and Sadie were home waiting for them. They had each other, through thick and thin, and they would for a long time to come. Lacey had a glimpse into the future, their children being into sports as well, the six of them–seven with Lauren, perhaps eight if she started dating–more of a family than just friends.
And it was beautiful. They each had amazing relationships with children and husbands that loved them, and they had a great group of friends that were there for each other, no matter what.
Could life be any better?
Thank you for reading!
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Don’t Come Around Here: A Bad Boy Next Door Romance
Copyright © 2018 by Juliana Conners and Eva Luxe; All Rights Reserved.
Published by Press.
Chapter 1
Carly
Six years ago
No one was home. It was one of those rare moments where Brad and I were totally alone, and we could do whatever we wanted to do.
Which, right now, was making out. His tongue was in my mouth, his hand was on my ass, and I was getting hot for him. I was always hot for him, but this was different. This time, we were alone, and I loved him more than I thought I could ever love anyone.
“How long will your mom be out?” I asked through our kisses.
“Long enough,” Brad said, and my stomach twisted into the good kind of knots, as I thought about where we were headed and what we would do.
We had done it once before. We’d had sex, but it hadn’t been the way I’d thought it would be. It had been awkward and uncomfortable. But it had made us stronger, and this time, I knew what to expect. I knew what he would feel like and how I would respond. This time, it would be magic.
Brad reached for the hem of my shirt and worked it slowly up my body. I was glad I’d put on the pink bra. It pushed my boobs up perfectly.
“God, you’re so hot, Carly,” Brad mumbled against my lips. “You’re my gorgeous princess.”
I smiled through our kisses. Brad paused to pull off his shirt as well before he lay down next to me and pushed the length of his body against mine. I could feel his hard cock up against me, and I shivered.
I would never get used to the feel of his arousal for me. It was such a thrill, a new world that had opened up to me. And Brad was the boy I wanted to share it all with.
Graduation was around the corner, and school would be over. We would go to college together. Our futures were pointed in the same direction. We hadn’t spoken about more than going to college together, but that was enough for me for now.
Brad’s hand slid down my thigh, and when he brought it back up, palm on my bare skin, he was under my skirt. My breath hitched in my throat when he put his hands on my ass again, fingers going farther between my legs than I’d expected.
“You have no idea how much I want you,” he said.
I nodded. “I think I have an idea.”
I ran my hand down his body, cupping his erection through his jeans.
Brad smiled at me with that cocky grin that I loved so much. It was different than the smile he flashed everyone else as one of the popular guys at school, the hot football player that everyone wanted. This smile was just for me.
I put my hand on his cheek and studied his face. I dreamed about this face, the golden flecks in his green eyes that danced when he laughed, the triangle of freckles just below his right eye, his nose, straight as an arrow. The way his blond hair was always perfectly messy. And his lips, perfect for kissing; not too thick and not too thin. Just right.
“Do you know how much I love you?” Brad asked. “You know this isn’t just about sex, right?”
“I know,” I said, and I meant it.
Everyone thought Brad was this playboy, the guy who pulled girls left, right, and center. When I’d met him, when I’d been a victim to his charms, I’d thought the same. This boy was trouble, everyone said.
But I knew the real Brad. I knew how kind and sensitive he could be. I knew sides of him that he would never show anyone else. I knew that he only acted big so that people didn’t mess with him.
And I knew that the girls wanted to date him because he was a bad ass, but I was dating him because he was the opposite— a total softie— at least with me. He liked Oreo frosting but threw away the cookie part.
He read forbidden books and liked going to parties full of strangers because then he didn’t have to worry about interacting with people one on one. He always said people thought he was an extrovert but it’s because he was good at putting on a fake face and performing in front of crowds.
When it came time to have an actual conversation with just one person, he turned shy— except with me. He’d rather stay home reading a book, although no one who saw him acting like a hero on the football field or like the life of the party on a Friday night would have believed that. That’s okay, though. Everything I knew and loved about him was everything no one else knew about him.
“I can’t wait to get out of here with you,” Brad said.
“As soon as we can, we’re out of here,” I agreed.
I wanted to get away from this town, too— with him. Laramie, Wyoming was too small for our dreams.
“And then we can finally be together the way we were meant to be,” Brad said.
Everything about our relationship was a secret. Not because we couldn’t be together in front of all our friends, but because my dad was a grade-A asshole. He refused to let me date. I wasn’t even allowed to attend parties where there were boys.
That didn’t stop me from lying about it, sneaking out, and doing what I wanted, anyway. But it made it harder to be with Brad. My dad had said I wasn’t allowed to date until I graduated. Not from high school, but from college. There was no talking to him about it.
So, Brad and I had been keeping it under wraps. Only my closest friends knew. And he had barely told anyone because all the guys on his team have such big mouths. The fewer people that knew, the harder it was for our secret to come out.
The last thing I needed was for my dad to do something stupid, like forbidding me from ever seeing anyone again, grounding me for life, or worse: homeschooling me. He’d threatened it before for less major infractions, and I wouldn’t put it past him. It was like my dad had sat down and made a list of all the things that would ruin my life, and he was sticking to them religiously.
“I want an ocean view, somewhere, as long as I’m next to you, I don’t care,” Brad sang our song off tune, and I smiled. That was exactly how I felt. And I loved his voice even if he wasn’t the world’s best singer.
Brad kissed me again.
“I’ll fight for you,” Brad said. “No matter what happens. You’re my girl, Carly.”
I smiled, wrapping my arms around his neck.
“Now, where were we?” he asked with a naughty grin, and my stomach twisted up in those pleasant knots again, thinking of how it would feel for us to have sex again. To have it be amazing this time. Brad pulled me against him and ground his hips, giving me a tease of what was to come.
The doorbell rang. Just one ring, then another. Whoever was outside was serious about it. The doorbell rang long and incessantly.
“What the fuck?” Brad asked and rolled onto his back.
“Who is that?”
“Beats me. But the cars are gone. If we pretend we’re not here, they’ll go away.”
We lay in silence. My heart pounded in my chest. Someone was out there, desperately looking for someone inside, and we were acting like we weren’t home. I told myself not to be scared, but I cuddled up to Brad, anyway.
“Open this door. I know you’re in there!” someone shouted from outside.
My blood ran cold.
“Brad, that’s—”
The door crashed open. We could hear it. We were both frozen as footsteps stomped through the house. Brad’s door flew open, and my dad charged into the room, rage, pure and raw, on his face.
Fuck.