His Runaway Goal: Book Two in the Game Winner Series

by Nicole, Angela

I nod. “Let’s go home.”

  Chris

  Two months later…

  “I can’t believe you’re a married man,” I say to Leo as we clink our beer bottles.

  “I can’t believe Sophia is all mine, man. Had I not fallen over that kid at soccer camp, I wouldn’t have fractured my ankle and ended up in the ER. The minute I heard her voice as she helped that little kid with a broken arm, I knew I wanted her to be mine.”

  I watch Brenda and Sophia giggle as they dance. My woman is getting more beautiful by the day. Her belly is growing and fuck if I don’t love that kid already.

  She is stunning in her dress. Her long blonde hair is pulled back and I can’t help but stare at her neck. Thinking about getting her home and kissing my way from her lips, down her neck, to my favorite place is making this afternoon go by slowly.

  Leo turns and leans against the bar. “So, how have things been since she moved in?” he asks as he nods toward Brenda.

  “They’re getting better every day. It wasn’t easy at first, with me being on the road with the games. Once in a while, her insecurities would creep up, but those times are few and far between now. And when they do happen, she blames it on the hormones.”

  “She loves you, man. Brenda looks at you the same way Sophia looks at me. I don’t know if I could’ve been as patient as you. She certainly has been through a lot of shit.”

  She sure has. Ricky signed his parental rights over and she hasn’t spoken to her father since our trip to Vegas. But every day, she moves closer to happiness and for that, I’m grateful.

  “Catch you later, man,” I tell Leo before I make my way to the dance floor. I’ve spent too much time away from my girl today.

  Luckily for me, a slow song comes on because I can’t fast dance for shit.

  “Ladies,” I say as I greet Sophia and Brenda.

  Sophia claps me on the shoulder. “She’s all yours.”

  Brenda smiles as I take her into my arms. “God, you are the sexiest woman I’ve ever seen,” I tell her as I move my hand to her baby bump.

  “I feel like a whale.”

  “Whales aren’t sexy, babe, and you are sexy,” I admonish while I move her around the floor. “Are you ready for your doctor’s appointment tomorrow?”

  Brenda and I are going to find out the baby’s gender tomorrow. I’m nervous and excited at the same time. I’m sure she is too.

  “Yes, I can’t wait. I don’t care if it’s a boy or a girl, as long as he or she isn’t ten pounds when I give birth.” She laughs.

  We both do.

  I know she’s afraid of what’s to come, but I know together, we can get through anything.

  * * *

  Brenda is grasping my hand so tightly, I’m afraid she’s going to break it.

  “I’m nervous, Chris.”

  She’s been a wreck since she woke up this morning. But once we walked through the door at the doctor’s office, her anxiety jumped tenfold.

  I rub her thumb with mine. “Everything will be fine. The baby is growing and you haven’t been sick in a month.”

  “I know, but I have this feeling something isn’t right.”

  “Look at me, sweetheart,” I tell her as I move her face to mine. “Everything is perfect. You are perfect and so is your baby. This is exciting, finding out if you’re having a boy or a girl. Don’t get yourself into a weird place about it.”

  Just as she’s about to answer, the nurse comes out and calls her name.

  Here we go.

  Brenda

  My nerves are freaking shot to shit. I don’t know why I have this feeling that something is off, but I do.

  Chris has been great at trying to keep me calm, but now that we’re the exam room. I’m about to lose my mind.

  “Thank you for coming with me, Chris.”

  He’s holding my hand as I sit on the exam table waiting for the doctor.

  “Brenda, please don’t thank me. It’s never a question about where I want to be. This is my place, right next to you.”

  Blowing out a breath, I take the leap I’ve been afraid to take.

  “I love you, Chris. I always have.”

  He smiles so big, his eyes smile too. It warms my heart.

  “I’ve waited to hear those words from you since the night we met.” Chris bends down and kisses my forehead. “It was worth the wait. I love you too.”

  I feel the tears welling up in my eyes as there’s a knock on the door.

  “Good morning, Brenda,” Dr. Givens says as she moves to the mobile chair in front of me.

  “Morning.”

  “I’m Dr. Givens,” she says as she extends her hand to Chris.

  “I’m the boyfriend,” Chris says to her while looking at me.

  It makes my heart melt when he says that.

  Dr. Given clears her throat, grabbing my attention. “Brenda, I see you missed your last appointment. How have you been feeling?”

  It’s true. I was supposed to be here three weeks ago, but I was so busy with Sophia’s wedding plans, I was too late to get here on time so I rescheduled.

  “Uh, I was detained with a friend and lost track of time. I rescheduled as soon as I could, and this was the first appointment I could get. But I’ve been feeling pretty good for the last few weeks.”

  Chris doesn’t look happy about me missing the appointment. I won’t lie, I feel guilty about it too. Perhaps that’s why I’m so nervous today.

  “Well, I’m glad to hear that. I know you were pretty stunned when you got the news of your pregnancy. So why don’t we ease some of the nervousness I can see on your face and get a look at your son or daughter. I assume you want to know the gender today if we can see.”

  I look at Chris. “Yes, we want to know,” he tells her.

  “Okay, let’s see what the baby has to show us. But I’ll warn you, it may be still early to tell.”

  Dr. Givens gets the ultrasound ready. “Let’s hear the heartbeat first.”

  I can’t believe what I’m seeing. I can see my baby. Chris makes a guttural sound and I know he’s trying to hold back his emotions.

  A few seconds later, the fast beat of my baby’s heart can be heard. And it’s if the dam I’ve held onto breaks. I’m in a full-on sob when Chris kisses my forehead.

  “Your baby has a nice, strong heartbeat, Brenda.”

  “It’s the best sound ever,” Chris says.

  “It is,” I whisper back.

  “You ready to find out the gender?” Dr. Givens asks with a smile.

  My hand goes over my mouth and I nod. Dr. Givens moves the probe around a little bit more, then grins. “Congratulations, Brenda. I bet she’s going to be just as pretty as you are.”

  “A girl?” I choke out.

  “Yes, you’re having a baby girl.”

  Chris brushes the hair from my forehead as he clears his throat. He’s just as emotional as I am.

  A calmness overtakes me. This baby is truly a gift from God.

  “Brenda”—Dr. Givens glances over at me—“I think I need to move your due date up.”

  “Okay,” I say, thinking she going to tell me a few days, or a week, at the most. Frankly, I didn’t ever do that math. I just knew when I had sex with Ricky and when my last period was. The clinic calculated the date.

  “The baby is measuring at twenty-two weeks, not fifteen weeks. I have to move your due date up by seven weeks.”

  I sit up quickly.

  “Wait, that can’t be right. I had my period,” I say as I look at Chris. He looks just as confused as I am.

  Dr. Givens turns to me. “What was your bleeding like, Brenda? Was it normal?”

  Shaking my head, I remember thinking it lasted only two days and it was very light.

  When I tell the doctor about this, she just smiles.

  “What’s wrong, Dr. Givens?” Chris asks.

  “Nothing’s wrong. I think what Brenda experienced was called implantation bleeding. That was the embryo implanting into the uterus.�
��

  “Brenda?” Chris asks, and I know what he’s thinking.

  “So, you’re telling me I was already pregnant when I had what I thought was my period?”

  She nods her head. “Yes, that wasn’t your period. That was your embryo finding its home.”

  This baby doesn’t belong to Ricky. This is Chris’s daughter.

  He and I exchange confused looks.

  “Doctor, can you give us a minute?” Chris asks with a shaky voice.

  “Sure,” she says as she exits the room.

  Chris helps me off the table and pulls me into his arms. The sobs coming from me are uncontrollable. I’m having a baby with the man I love, the man who loves me.

  “Brenda, look at me.”

  Pulling my tear-filled face away from his chest, Chris holds my face in his hands.

  “Tell me, baby. Please tell me what I’ve prayed for has come true. This little girl is mine, isn’t she?”

  I nod frantically because I can’t speak. After every terrible thing that’s happened in my life, this is truly a miracle.

  Chris breaks down in my arms. At this moment, my heart is so full.

  We both cry tears of happiness for what seems like forever.

  “I love you so much, Brenda. I promise to love our daughter with everything that I am,” he says as he leans his forehead against mine.

  “I love you too, so much.”

  My hand goes to my belly. “We’re both so lucky to have you, Chris.”

  He starts to say something but the doctor knocks on the door. “Everything okay in here?” she asks as she pops her head in.

  Chris moves his hand over mine resting on our daughter. “Everything is perfect.”

  With a nod, the doctor comes back in. Chris holds my hand, and neither of us can remove the smiles from our faces.

  “Brenda, I’ve recalculated your due date. If your daughter is on time, you’ll have a Valentine’s baby.”

  Chris rubs my shoulder. I look back at him and he winks.

  “Do we need to do anything else, doc?” he asks. I know he’s just as anxious to get home as I am.

  “Nope, I’ve set up some other routine tests that all pregnant women go through. I wasn’t planning on these for another few weeks but with the new due date, I’d like to get them done as soon as possible.”

  “We’ll make sure to get them all completed quickly,” Chris answers for me before I can get a word out.

  “Congratulations again,” Dr. Givens says as she hands me papers.

  The car ride home is quiet. I think we’re both too stunned to speak. But once we’re in Chris’s place, he breaks down.

  Sitting on his sofa with his face in hands, he lets out what I assume is all the frustration he’s had over the last several months.

  Suddenly, I feel the weight of my bad decisions and how they’ve affected Chris. Sleeping with Ricky and Chris so close together wasn’t smart. But I hadn’t planned on falling in love with Chris; or anyone, for that matter.

  “I’m sorry,” I say as I stand in front of a very emotional Chris.

  Raising his face from his hands, Chris gives me a questioning look.

  “I’m sorry I put you in a position to question whether or not this baby was yours. I’m sorry I thought it was Ricky’s and all along, it was yours.”

  “Stop!” Chris shouts as he puts his hand up.

  He wipes the wetness from his cheeks, making my heart plummet.

  “You will never apologize for living your life, Brenda. You were always honest with me and I knew what I was doing. What I didn’t know was that I’d fall in love with you.”

  I swallow the lump in my throat as Chris moves to stand in front of me. “I love you more than I ever thought possible. You’re giving me such a gift with our daughter. All that other stuff with you and Ricky doesn’t matter to me anymore. You and the baby are my life, Brenda. Everything else is just noise.”

  He kisses me gently as I melt against him. Then, he scoops me up and heads to his room…our room.

  He places me on the bed, and my mouth waters as he takes his shirt off. He throws it to the side and stands before me.

  I recognize the look on his face. I haven’t seen it in a while but I know what’s coming. And anticipating it has me wet already.

  “I’m going to make love to you, Brenda. And then I’m going to fuck you the way I know you like to be fucked. Then you and I are going to tell the world this baby is mine, including Ricky.”

  He stalks toward me and my body reacts with such awareness. With his every step, my pulse quickens deep inside me.

  When Chris crashes his lips to mine, I’m done. All the tension and stress of this baby being Ricky’s is gone. If I thought my heart and soul was open to Chris before, I was wrong because this feels different.

  It’s perfect.

  Chris

  I made love to Brenda all night. But as soon as the morning light came in the window, I found myself circling her belly with my fingers.

  I try to feel my daughter growing inside the woman I love. Brenda’s blue eyes flutter open from my touch. She looks just as content as I feel. My heart is so full.

  “Good morning, Daddy,” she says with a gorgeous smile.

  “Good morning, sexy mama.”

  Brenda giggles as she leans up on her forearm, looking down at me. “I’m so happy, Chris. I mean, I was happy once I calmed down about being pregnant, but when Dr. Givens told my due date was seven weeks off”—she looks down at the pillow—“the weight of everything just went away.”

  I pull Brenda in close to me and kiss her head. “I fell in love with this baby when I thought she was Ricky’s. I didn’t know I could fall even more. Brenda, I want everyone to know this baby is mine. I want her to have my last name.”

  I hold in my breath for a moment. “I want us all to have the same last name.”

  Sitting up, I pull Brenda so she’s facing me. I can see the anticipation on her face.

  I clear my throat and start to speak but she doesn’t let me get the question out.

  “Yes, I’ll marry you,” she yells, throwing herself into my arms. We both fall back onto the bed, laughing. “I mean if that’s what you were going to ask me?”

  “Yeah, babe, that’s what I was going to ask you. I want to be your husband and a father to our little girl. I love you so fucking much.”

  “I love you too, Chris, more than I ever thought I could love someone.”

  The End of Book Two

  Sneak Peek

  Enjoy a sneak peek at Through Rosie-Colored Glasses, Book Three in the Game Winner Series coming Valentine’s Day 2020.

  * * *

  Von

  I can’t believe today’s the day I’m going to marry Mia. If anyone had told me this sweet woman would want to be with a moody guy like me, I would’ve laughed. But since the day I asked her out our junior year of high school, we’ve been inseparable.

  Now, one week after we both graduated from the University of Florida, we’re going to spend the rest of our lives together.

  Her parents aren’t thrilled of course. After all, I won’t be making much money playing soccer. At least not until I can get a chance to go pro, but my job at a local hardware store and Mia’s job at the bank will be enough for now.

  The wedding isn’t for another two hours. I’m finishing up my vows…Mia wanted us to write our own. I’m okay with it because I can tell her how much she means to me, how I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to make her happy, how I wish for a lifetime of love filled with a big family.

  I tap my pen on the desk in my bedroom while I wonder what Mia’s vows will say. I’m sure whatever she says will be from her heart just like mine. And in just a few hours, our life as husband and wife will begin.

  I’m the luckiest guy.

  * * *

  Chapter One

  Von

  Twenty-One Years later…

  To say that I’ve been an asshole in the last two years is an und
erstatement. I know I have, but when your wife is killed in an automobile accident, and you carry a lot of guilt, being an asshole seems reasonable.

  Mia, my wife of twenty-one years, died on an icy road while she was home visiting her parents back in Upstate New York. I wasn’t with her when it happened. Instead, I was on the road with my soccer team the Clearwater Rebels.

  Guilt.

  The guilt I feel for not being with her is only matched by the guilt of not putting her first in our relationship. Perhaps had I done that, Mia wouldn’t have had an affair. Fuck! I rub my hand over my face.

  I didn’t know about the affair until after Mia died-a year after she died as a matter of fact. Once I got the courage to go through her things in her home office, I found letters Mia and her lover, Jake had written to each other. I was gutted all over again. This time by the sting of betrayal. And so the drinking began. I’m trying to stop but sometimes the pain is too much to take.

  My team, God love em, they try and make my life as normal as possible. But until they’ve experienced what I have, they don’t know the pain I’m in. I hope to hell they never do.

  Looking around, I see the happy party-goers. It’s Chris and Brenda’s wedding, and that asshole asked me to be a groomsman. I don’t know what the hell he was thinking. I’m a cranky old man who doesn’t have much faith in love. Of course, I wouldn’t let him done though, so I said yes.

  I need to fake a migraine or something so I’m not stuck late into the night with a bunch of lovestruck people. It’s been two hours of love songs, guests clanking their glasses demanding kisses from the bride and groom.

  Memories of my wedding come back. They’re unwelcomed. I want to bury them deep in the ground with Mia.

  “I’ll have a double shot of Jameson’s please,” I ask the twenty-something bartender. I’m not even sure he’s old enough to drink himself.