Final Score: Part One (Game On #5) (2 page)

Chapter Two – I Almost Feel Guilty

I truly hadn’t realised how badly Radleigh and I had needed some time to ourselves, and when we arrived at his parents’ house in the morning, I felt revived and refreshed. I wasn’t even tired since we’d had the chance for a lie-in, and my relaxation time wasn’t over just yet. Radleigh would be taking care of Jessica while I went out to lunch and then wedding dress shopping with Freya and Bree.

Maybe Radleigh was right. Maybe we should allow ourselves a child-free night now and again. I just hated the idea of palming our daughter off on other people just so we could have some time alone. Becoming a parent came with responsibilities; this was one of the main reasons I didn’t get a job after Jessica was born. I knew Radleigh had had a childhood of either being left with his grandparents, a sitter, or being taken on the road with his dad. I wanted Jessica to have more stability right from the start. To not think that constant travelling and limited time with her parents was normal. I wanted her to know who we were, and more than that, I didn’t want to miss out on anything with her. I had the greatest of respect for working parents, because really, they had twice the work to deal with. But I didn’t want that. I wanted all my focus to be on my daughter.

“Good morning!” Deanna McCoy greeted us brightly as she ushered us inside.

As always, Radleigh’s mum was smartly dressed, her blonde hair pinned back in an elegant bun even though she was doing nothing more than hanging out at home. I smiled as we entered the grand hallway, which was much like our own. I could hear Jessica’s giggles coming from the living room and my heart leapt at the sound.

“Morning,” I said, giving Deanna hug. “How’s my girl doing?”

“She’s great.” As she released me, Radleigh leaned down to hug her too.

“Thanks for taking care of her last night,” I said as we followed the sound of laughter towards the living room. Radleigh rested his hand on my shoulder and I looked around to smile at him. His grin made me want to leave Jessica for another couple of hours and take Radleigh home again, but “grown-up time” was over for a while.

“It was our pleasure,” Deanna said. “Did you two have a good evening?”

Radleigh’s hands slid from my shoulders down my arms then he circled his arms around my waist from behind, making me smile again. “We did. Dinner was great and… dessert was even better.”

My cheeks burned and I shoved my elbow sharply into Radleigh’s ribs, though I couldn’t help laughing. “Too much information.”

Deanna chuckled, and as we entered the living room, my heart leapt again and my embarrassment vanished. Mitch McCoy was laying on his back on the huge shaggy rug on the floor, holding Jessica at arm’s length in the air before slowly lowering her down then lifting her back up. He laughed at her giggles of glee, and a feeling of warmth swept through me at how incredibly fortunate I was to have such a strong family around me.

“Looks like Mommy and Daddy are here!” Mitch lowered Jessica down again then carefully sat up and faced us. Jessica’s ice blue eyes lit up further as she saw Radleigh and me, and she stretched her arms out towards us.

“Hi, beautiful.” I lifted Jessica into my arms and kissed the top of her head as she snuggled into me. I closed my eyes, relishing the moment. As I opened them again, I smiled down at my father-in-law-to-be then back to Jessica. “Have you been a good girl?”

“She has,” Mitch confirmed, standing up. He leaned in to kiss me, then Jessica, on the cheek. “Did you two have fun?”

“Oh, they had fun,” Deanna said. “Apparently dessert was particularly good.” She winked at me and I felt myself blushing again.

Mitch let out a hearty laugh. “That’s my boy!”

Shaking my head, I lightly pressed my forehead against Jessica’s. “Boys, eh?”

She wrinkled her nose up at me, almost as if she understood, and Deanna and I burst out laughing at her expression.

“Enough with the dirty talk,” Radleigh said. “You’re corrupting my daughter.”

Frankly, with us as her parents, she’s probably half way there already.
I kept that thought firmly inside my own head, but snorted out a small laugh. I planned to make damn sure Jessica didn’t make nearly as many mistakes as Radleigh and I did… but that time was a long way away.

Plus, Radleigh had already made it clear she wouldn’t be allowed to date until she was thirty. At least.

I handed Jessica to him and she beamed; such a Daddy’s girl. Radleigh pressed the tip of his nose lightly against hers then kissed her cheek. “Missed you.”

Jessica put her little arms around his neck and I smiled.

Yup. This was my life.

Since Jessica’s arrival, everything was different. Parenthood was a strange and wonderful thing; a thing that could have made or broken Radleigh and me. My pregnancy happened so fast we’d barely figured out who we were as a couple, or whether we really could settle into a real, functional relationship after the dysfunction that plagued our every move when we first met. Nothing about our relationship had been conventional right from the start, but throwing a baby into the mix was something neither of us had imagined. Maybe it shouldn’t have been so easy, but from the second Jessica was placed in my arms, it suddenly felt like something I’d been missing had returned to me. Or maybe not returned, but certainly gifted. Jessica was the best gift ever. Family life had sort of fallen into place, and while there was every possibility that the addition of a baby – not to mention planning a wedding – would put extra strain on our relationship, Radleigh and I had become closer than ever. We’d fallen into a perfect stride, and I knew immediately that I’d made the right decision when I moved back to L.A. He and I would never be the couple who had sickly pet names for each other, but we
would
be the couple who always kept the fire in our relationship. We could still fight like enemies, but we made up like best friends. Our fights weren’t about point-scoring anymore. They weren’t petty. But what we’d learned to do was cool off and talk things through. It’s a basic, obvious thing to do after an argument, but in the past, when we’d gotten so angry we could barely see straight, that logical step hadn’t occurred to us. That was how we’d got into such a mess. Now that mess was over. We’d gotten past it to somewhere better. We were a family, and I couldn’t wait until we made it official in the summer.

“Leah?”

Radleigh’s voice shook me from my thoughts and I looked up at him. “Sorry. What did you say?”

He smiled. “I said we should leave soon or you’ll be late.”

Glancing down at my watch, I nodded. Our lie-in and then the traffic-filled journey to his parents’ house had taken up quite a bit of time, and I only had forty-five minutes to get back across town to meet Freya and Bree. “Wow, you’re right. We should get moving.” I turned to Deanna and Mitch. “Sorry to run away so fast. Thank you so much for babysitting.”

“Anytime,” Deanna said, smiling. “Will I see you during the week for coffee?”

I nodded firmly. “Absolutely. Probably tomorrow if you’re free?”

“I am. And I’ll pick up some pastries for us too.”

I grinned. “Sounds like a plan.”

After saying a quick goodbye and grabbing Jessica’s things, we bundled everything into the car and headed into the city. I felt bad for rushing out so fast, but in truth, Deanna and Mitch were quite used to us running in and out at speed. There were a lot of times when collecting Jessica that we didn’t have the luxury of staying to chat because there was always somewhere else one of us had to be. Deanna and I would make up for it the next day.

She had been a Godsend for Radleigh and me. Not only were she and Mitch happy to take care of Jessica, she was fantastic company too. Often when Radleigh was at work, Deanna would come over, or we’d go out to lunch, or shopping, or for coffee. With Freya and Bree both working now, sometimes the days got a little mundane and doing things with Deanna gave me a break from that. Plus, she had a wicked sense of humour, and she and Mitch had taken me in as if I were their own daughter.

Radleigh dropped me off at a restaurant in the city and I had about five minutes to spare, which I spent kissing him goodbye. I was sad to leave after having such a brilliant night with him, and only just getting Jessica back, but I had a girly lunch planned, and then… shopping.

A shiver of joy rippled through me as I walked into the restaurant because wedding planning was the other thing that was taking up my time – and I loved it. With four months to go, we still had plenty to do and this lunch date with my girls was going to be spent discussing colours for bridesmaids’ dresses and then hitting the bridal shops for my own dress. The anticipation was killing me.

Bree and Freya were already waiting for me at a table by the window. Freya poured a glass of white wine from the bottle on the table, while Bree held a tall glass of water between her hands, eyeing the wine bottle enviously. I chuckled at her expression.

“Hang in there, babe. You’ve got a long way to go yet.”

Bree turned to me, giving me a slightly pained smile. “It’s going to kill me.”

She stood, still clutching her glass, showing off her slightly swollen stomach as she moved to the chair right beside the window so I could sit down beside her. I smiled at Freya across the table and she grinned back at me. She looked incredible with her blonde hair hanging over her shoulders, and the pale blue dress she wore clung to her slim figure perfectly. Her eyes sparkled in a way they hadn’t in a long time.

“I almost feel bad.” She raised her glass to her lips.

I couldn’t hold in my laugh, but I reached over and squeezed Bree’s hand. “It’ll all be worth it when you hold your baby in your arms. I promise.”

With an eye roll, Bree smiled. “Yeah. I know.”

Bree’s pregnancy was almost as unexpected as mine had been. She and Jude had only decided to try for a baby last winter, with the thought that it might take a while. They were in no major rush, but Jude’s sperm had other ideas, and Bree was pregnant within a few months. After a brief rough patch, Bree and Jude were happier than ever.

Freya hadn’t had it so easy. In fact, since Will died, almost everything had been a struggle for her. She’d finally gotten her anxiety under control, and work was no longer as torturous as it had been. Her life had certainly got easier since Tommy Salinger had transferred to Green Bay. His opinions about Freya’s relationship with Miguel had rippled through the Warriors and, while he wasn’t the only one who took a poor view of it, he was the only one who made a big deal out of it. I understood why people thought it odd and perhaps disrespectful for Freya to get involved with Will’s best friend, but the reality wasn’t so black and white. People treated them as though they’d both forgotten about Will, but the truth was, they’d needed each other. They’d needed to grieve and heal together. Was it unorthodox? Sure. Was it wrong? No. Strange as it seemed, there was something right between them. Something more than just two people leaning on each other. Nine months on, they were still taking things slowly but the way they looked at each other told me they worked.

Once we’d ordered our food, Bree reached down into her bag and pulled out a folder. Freya and I exchanged a grin as Bree placed the pristine white binder on the table and opened it up. She smiled as she caught our expressions. “Don’t mock me.” She giggled. “You know you love my wedding file.”

“I don’t think I’d recognise you without it these days,” I teased, and gave her a gentle prod in the side.

“You can joke, but you’d be lost without this bad boy!” Bree stroked her hand lovingly across the pages.

“She’s right,” Freya said, placing her glass on the table. “Your entire wedding is within those pages.”

“I know, and I’m extremely grateful. But damn…” I laughed. “I’m not used to Bree being this organised!”

“I did this for my own wedding,” Bree said. “It was super helpful to keep everything together, and also… I love weddings!”

She wasn’t kidding. The second she found out Radleigh had proposed to me, she’d put together this binder of wedding stuff which included everything from choices of venue to menu ideas to bridal magazine cuttings to wedding favour ideas and floral display suggestions. And that was just a taster. The folder was crammed. Thankfully, she wasn’t a stubborn wedding planner, and she happily switched out her own ideas for mine as we went along. Not that much needed changing. She knew me well and had exquisite taste.

“Alright,” I said, leaning closer to Bree’s magic book. “What have you got for us today?”

She beamed at me before flicking through the pages to a section I hadn’t seen before. Well, I’d seen the section, but I hadn’t seen her latest collection. The bridesmaids’ dresses. The first page showed some long, floaty dresses in pastel colours.

“Okay.” Bree slapped her hand over the page. “I had all kinds of ideas when we first got started, but then I messed up by getting pregnant so fast, and now I’m going to look like an elephant on Leah’s wedding day. So, I guess my first question is, does anybody mind if I make the first suggestion on a style choice?”

“Not at all,” Freya said. “We all need to feel comfortable as well as look good. What did you have in mind?”

“I was thinking maybe knee-length, or at least something with a loose skirt to hide as much of my baby bump as possible. I know I can’t be selfish because there are a lot of us, but I don’t want to ruin Leah’s wedding photos by being enormous!”