Under Fire: A Florida Glaze Hockey Romance, page 16
“But…?”
“But I feel a little like I haven’t accomplished much of anything.”
Lacy’s lips twist to the side and her nose crinkles, like she’s uncomfortable saying those words out loud.
“I think the obvious is you’ve successfully kept a child, well, two kids, alive. That’s a pretty big accomplishment.”
“I know. That’s why I didn’t want to say anything. I don’t want to diminish the fact that I’ve been raising Sutton. She’s absolutely the best thing that has ever happened to me.”
Pushing my own bowl away, I wipe my mouth with my napkin. “Lacy, it’s okay to have dreams and goals outside of her.”
“I know that.”
“Do you? Because it seems like you’re mincing your words a bit.”
She shrugs one shoulder and I know I’ve nailed it.
“Look, I’m not going to downplay how hard you’ve worked the last few years, and you shouldn’t either. I don’t know many women who could have done what you did. If there was a degree in pulling yourself up by your bootstraps, you’d have a Master’s by now. Bachelor’s at the very least.”
“I think it’s more like a Doctorate, but whatever,” she grumbles playfully.
“I stand corrected. So go get your next degree. There’s nothing stopping you. Certainly not me.”
“You really think I should go for it? It wouldn’t bother you if Sutton was in daycare?”
Just then one of the kids hollers from the living room. Kody has Sutton pinned to the floor, but before either of us can step in and pull him off, Sutton pulls her legs up to her chest, anchors her feet on Kody’s midsection and pushes. He goes flying, lands with a thud, then stands up and laughs before running to tackle her again.
“Maybe a little socialization outside of each other would be good for them, hey?”
“I’ll be registering for classes today,” Lacy deadpans, a blank look on her face as she watches the kids repeat their move over and over.
“Oh, and one more thing.”
Lacy’s eyes find mine and I cringe, knowing this news might go over like a lead weight. Taking a deep breath, I prepare for her to tackle me next.
“My mother is coming for Christmas.”
Lacy’s eyes widen, and she shrieks, “What?!”
“I couldn’t stop her. She’s ready to meet the kids and said the holidays are the perfect time. Not that I’ll be here the whole time since I have that road trip…” I tack on under my breath.
Lacy’s head falls back and I admit, it’s a much milder reaction than I expected. She takes a second or two before righting herself. “I guess I’ll register for classes and then start researching how to be the perfect hostess.”
“You have like three weeks to get ready.”
She shoots me a glare.
“I promise, it’s going to be a fun Christmas with my mom here.”
Just then, the tinsel ball from the tree goes flying across the table.
Looks like the fun has already begun.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
LACY
Ever since Tucker came into our lives, he’s been trying to get us to go to a hockey game. Live. In the arena.
I’ve resisted because they’re usually late games and the kids don’t do well with missing their bedtime. But today’s game has an early start time, so it won’t push their routine by too much.
Also, and I would never admit this to Tucker, I’m curious to see what he does. Yes, we watch all the games on television, but I wondered if it would feel different to be near the ice with him. To see things from this vantage point.
I was right. Not only is hockey way hotter in person, there’s something about being in the cold, smelling the ice that made it come alive in a way it doesn’t from my couch.
And there was something really sexy about Tucker knowing where we were sitting and making it a point to tap the glass with his stick and smile at the kids every once in a while. The sweetness of the gesture, the acknowledgement that we belong to him, it all made me feel more than I expected.
But I can’t kid myself. Tucker always makes me feel more than I expect. He has from the beginning.
Before I found out I was pregnant, I couldn’t stop my fixation over our night together all those years ago, wondering and wishing I would see him again at some point. When I found out I was pregnant, that fixation turned to anger and rage.
In hindsight, I’m not sure I was mad at Tucker as much as I was mad at the situation and he was the easiest target. My strength to get through it wasn’t because I felt all that strong as much as it was me holding my emotions ramrod straight so I didn’t collapse under the weight of all the pressure. But in my dreams, when my subconscious came out to play, Tucker was there and the anger wasn’t. Just replays of the hottest night of my life and an overwhelming desire to see him again.
Funny how life plays out sometimes. Now we’re still waiting to see him again, only this time, I know he’s on his way.
“Are you sure you’re okay watching Kody for a little longer?”
I roll my eyes. I’ve lost count of how many times Ellie has asked me this question tonight.
“Yes, Ellie. It’s fine. You know as well as I do that there’s no difference in having an extra kid except they bug each other instead of me.”
I glance up at the sign above us making sure we’re still walking the right way. Ellie is holding one kid’s hand, I’m holding the other kid’s hand, and the kids are holding onto each other as well. I’m sure we’re blocking traffic behind us, but I don’t care. I’m more concerned with making sure we don’t all get lost from each other.
“I know,” Ellie all but whines. “I just feel like you’ve been watching him more lately. I feel guilty.”
“If you were going to work, you’d be fine. You feel guilty because you have a date, not because I’m watching him.”
“Maybe a little.”
I stop and turn to her, pulling us all in closer so people can get by easier. “Stop with the mom guilt. You haven’t had any adult fun in I don’t know how long. You deserve one night to see if this guy you’ve met is actually nice. He could be amazing. Or he could be a douchebag, but at least you get some free drinks out of it. So go. Have fun. And leave the guilt at the door.”
She wrinkles her nose as the internal battle wages one. “You’re sure? Really sure?”
“If you ask me that again, I’m changing my mind and giving you both kids while I go out.”
“Never mind,” she says quickly. “I’ll get over myself.”
“That’s what I thought,” I say with a nod. “We need to leave you here. This is our turn.”
Ellie peers around me. “That’s the tunnel down there?”
“I’m guessing by the beefy security guard stopping people from going that way.”
Ellie bats her eyes. “Wonder what that security guard is up to tonight. He’s kind of delicious, isn’t he?”
I shake my head. Leave it to Ellie to have a backup plan in case her actual date goes south.
“Down girl. He’s working. Now get out of here before traffic gets any worse and it cuts into your downtime.”
There are hugs all around as we say our goodbyes. Kody starts to get a little resistant to his mom leaving, but when I remind him we’re going to find Tucker, he quickly changes his tune. He seems to forget her completely once I flash our security passes at the guard and we make our way down to the spot where Tucker told me he’d meet us. I assume this is where we’re supposed to be considering other people are waiting against the walls near a door that says “locker room” above it in blazing letters.
A few dozen people with badges like mine mill about, chatting mostly with each other. There are a few straggling reporters as well. I wonder why certain reporters get inside the locker room and these don’t.
I don’t have time to think about it for long before the locker room door opens and the man we’ve been waiting for saunters out. I do a double take at the sight of him in a suit. I’ve never seen him dressed up like this before. Granted, I’ve never come to a game before and normally it’s late enough when he gets home, so we’re already in bed.
He’s stopped by a reporter before he sees us. He’s probably answer questions about what went wrong on the ice tonight, which gives me a chance to take him in without him noticing.
I can’t stop from giving him the once over as the fabric stretches over his body, giving just a hint of exactly how strong and powerful he is. When he runs his fingers through his floppy hair, I’m almost surprised the sleeve of his jacket doesn’t rip right open.
And then he turns and sees me. The polite smile he’s pasted on while explaining tonight’s loss changes to a deep, genuine grin. If we weren’t in this tunnel right now with people around and the kids hovering, I might jump straight into his arms and suck his tongue right off.
He glances down at the kids and that’s all the encouragement they need to run to him and jump in his arms before I can stop them. Tucker just scoops them up and nuzzles into them, making them giggle.
The reporter, a dark-haired beauty who looks like she could have stepped out of the pages of Maxim magazine, looks confused. “Who do we have here?”
Without skipping a beat, Tucker says, “These are my kids.”
“Your… You have kids?” From the way her eyes keep moving back and forth, it’s clear she’s trying to decide if this is information she already knew, or if she just stumbled across a new story.
Tucker doesn’t notice her confusion, the kids holding his total focus. “Yep. And it’s almost their bedtime so if you’ll excuse me, we have to get home.”
Tucker hands Kody to me and puts his arm over my shoulder, guiding me forward. “Let’s go.” The seriousness of his tone leaves no room for argument, but as the reporter continues to follow us, calling out even more questions, I understand why.
“How old are your kids, Tucker?”
He doesn’t answer. I glance up at him and he gives his head a slight shake, silently telling me not to respond. That doesn’t stop the barrage of questions, though.
“Are they twins? How have you kept them a secret for so long? Ma’am.” The microphone is suddenly in my face. I hug Kody closer to me, holding his head to my chest and keeping my own head down as we walk. “Ma’am, are you their mother? How long have you and Tucker been together?”
As we reach the exit, two security guards join us from out of nowhere. They don’t stop the reporter but at least they flank us as we make our way to Tucker’s Cayenne.
We make quick work of buckling the kids in their car seats and finally we’re in the safety of the vehicle. I admit, I thought Tucker springing for a Porsche was extravagant, but this sucker is so tight, the noise from outside ceases immediately when the door shuts, even though I can see the reporter’s mouth still moving.
As soon as the security guards get her a safe enough distance away, we’re gone.
“What was that?” I ask, a tremor from the adrenaline rushing through my body.
Tucker looks to the left before taking a right out of the parking garage. “That was us being found out.”
Leaning back against the headrest, I pinch the bridge of my nose. “That was intense. Does that always happen?”
“Nah.” He checks his blind spot before hitting the highway. I don’t understand his nonchalance. “I’ve only seen that happen after the Stanley Cup or if there is some big scandal happening. I guess we’re the scandal.”
“Does that mean we’re going to need to beef up security? Are reporters going to start following us?”
I hate the idea of having the kids’ pictures being taken and plastered all over the internet for anyone to see. And the idea of having security guards following us everywhere seems so stifling. I know we agreed to try this living arrangement, but this isn’t what we signed up for.
Tucker reaches over and grabs my hand, like he can sense my unease. I clasp tightly onto his fingers. “If we have to hire someone temporarily we will, but really Lacy, I think that was all of it. This isn’t really a scandal. That reporter just realized she stumbled on a story no one else has. I’m sure my publicist will be calling tonight to see what we want our official comment to be so she can run her story and that’ll be the end of it.”
That sounds too easy. “Are you sure?”
“Almost positive.” His emphasis on almost isn’t missed by me. “This isn’t Hollywood. The level of care about this sort of thing is way less than if I was an A-lister.”
He does have a point. All the tabloid magazines and entertainment shows focus on the creative type of celebrities. I almost never see pictures of athletes unless they’re dating an actor or musician. That makes me feel better, if still a little curious.
“What is your statement gonna be?”
He glances at me quickly with a smile before turning back to the road. “That depends on how honest you want me to be.”
I think on it for a second before coming to the realization that we have nothing to hide. Sutton is his daughter and I’m her mom. Tucker and I get along and we’re living in the same house. Sure, some of my old co-workers may wonder how the hell this happened since all they know is I quit my job after coming into some money, so I can imagine what kinds of questions Ellie will have to field tomorrow. Honestly, I don’t really care about their opinion anyway. It’s not like we were close.
The only people I would wonder about is my family. I hope the news means they would reach out, maybe apologize for how they cut us out of their lives. Then again, I don’t want people suddenly sniffing around now that money is involved. Still, it would be nice to know the news would eventually get back to my mother. I don’t know if she feels guilty or worries, but maybe it would ease some of her fears knowing we’re okay.
“How about we just say that your three-year-old daughter, and our good friend came with us to the game tonight. We can pretend like it was never a thing, they just missed it somehow. Will that work?”
The soft smile on Tucker’s face doesn’t just indicate he’s in agreement. It also does something to my insides.
The Tucker I had a one-night stand with was funny and charming and truly an athlete in bed. The Tucker I’ve come to know is always laughing and going above and beyond to provide for his family. This Tucker, the Tucker who puts his arm around me to stay close when we’re bombarded by a reporter, who cares about my opinion and feelings when determining how to navigate unusual situations, this Tucker has me pressing my thighs together trying to hold back my now raging libido. There is nothing hotter than a man who treats a girl with respect and distinction.
I’m not opposed to having a one-night stand with him, it’s been way too long since I’ve scratched that itch, but I need to be careful around Tucker. My heart is already too involved with this situation. I can’t have it broken. I’m not sure I could survive him leaving us. Even more so, I don’t want Sutton to have to try.
“I think that’s the perfect response,” Tucker finally says. “Short. Sweet. To the point. And giving no indication that our situation is unusual in any way.”
“Because there’s nothing unusual about having twins that aren’t twins and two single women living on your property four years after meeting one of them for the first time and making a baby.”
He snorts a laugh at the truly ridiculous situation we’re in.
“Tucker?” Sutton’s sweet little voice calls out from the backseat, interrupting our conversation.
“Yes, honey.”
“Are you my daddy?”
My whole body freezes, except for my heart which has started to race. Why would she ask this question? Is it because of what Tucker said in the tunnel? Is it because of our conversation now? Have I said too much? How do I explain this hard truth? And how do I explain what a one-night stand is?
I feel pressure on my hand and look down to see Tucker squeezing it again. Glancing up at him, he mouths, “Relax.” That elicits a glare from me which only makes him chuckle.
“One step at a time,” he whispers. “No details. Just basic answers.”
I blow out a breath and nod, knowing we can’t just avoid her questions. She has a right to know who her dad is. I just hope she doesn’t wonder why he hasn’t been around.
“I am your daddy, Sutton. You okay with that?” Tucker asks, lifting his chin so he can see her in the rearview mirror.
“Yeah! You’re a good daddy!” she yells.
“Are you my daddy, too?” Kody interjects excitedly. I look at Tucker again and see an expression that probably mirrors my own. We have to be truthful, but this might break sweet Kody’s heart and neither one of us wants that.
“I wish I was, buddy,” Tucker says gently. “But I’m not.”
“You’re…you’re not my daddy?”
My hands cover my face as my heart breaks for the little boy I consider my bonus child. I can’t imagine how he must feel suddenly realizing his best friend has a daddy and he doesn’t. Before, neither of them did so they didn’t know what they were missing. That’s all changed in an instant.
Tucker continues to speak gently, trying to smooth over the sting. “I’m not. But we’re still family, right?”
Kody says nothing, only sniffles.
“Like…let me think.” Tucker takes a second to pull his thoughts together and I know he’s trying to figure out how to soften the blow. “Kody, who is sitting next to me?”
Another sniffle. “Lacy.”
“Is she your mommy?”
Sutton giggles and Kody gets a little sass when he says, “No. My mommy went to some mommy time.”
“Right. And is Lacy your sister?”
This time Kody giggles, too. “She’s too big to be my sister. Sutton is my sister.”
Tucker’s eyebrows raise and he takes a quick glance at me.
“Let that one go, Hayes,” I mutter. “One soft blow at a time.”
“But do you love Lacy?”
“Yeah!” both kids yell simultaneously, and I breathe a sigh of relief, figuring out Tucker’s strategy.
