Unexpected Romance (13 page)

She
jumped back. Was that a contraction? She pressed a hand to her belly.

"What?"
he asked, coming to sit beside her. He looked freaked out and she
expected him to run.

"I
don't know. You kissed me and my belly tightened."

"Is
it still hard?"

She
pushed it gently. "No, it's gone soft again."

"That's
good. Should I call Nicole or your doctor?"

"I
haven't seen a doctor yet. Nic gave me her doctor's name. I planned
to call on Monday, of course."

He
nodded. "Maybe, we'll see if the feeling comes back and if it
does, we'll call someone." He sat beside her.

"Yeah."

He
caressed her face again and she felt a flutter in her stomach. "Maybe
we should talk about something less stressful." He put his arm
around her shoulder and she naturally leaned into him. As if they
hadn't spent four months apart. She rested one hand on her belly to
stay alert for more tightness.

“
You
don’t need to decide sleeping arrangements right now," he
suggested. "Sit here with me. Relax."

She
nodded, letting her eyes close. "Maybe a little nap."

Chris
held Tonya while she napped. When her breathing became even, he laid
her head into his lap. He eased his phone out of his pocket. He
scrolled through his contacts until he found Camille’s number.
He pressed dial and waited while it rang.

"Hey
little brother, what's up? I thought you had practice today or
something hockeyish."

"There
have been complications."

"I
guess you went to see her."

He'd
told Camille about Tonya. He told Camille after he signed his
contract, that he would avoid Tonya altogether. He didn’t even
mention her name to Corey, before the coach burst into the dressing
room in a rage. Tonya wanted nothing to do with him at the time and
he thought the sex had somehow exaggerated his feelings.

"She
came to me." He rubbed a hand over his forehead. "She's
sleeping on me at the moment, so I'm trying to be quiet."

"That's
good. She wasn't a bitch like you thought."

"She's
scared. As am I." He took a deep breath. "You have to keep
this to yourself, one-hundred percent."

"All
right, all right. I won't even tell Steven. Okay, I'll probably tell
him."

"I'm
serious. She's pregnant."

Camille
squealed. "Yours, I assume or we wouldn't be talking about it."

"Yeah.
I'll tell you the whole story another time. It's been one hell of a
day."

"Sounds
like it. Are you sure it's yours?"

That
pissed him off. "Yes, of course." He looked at Tonya,
innocent and fearless in sleep. "Yes. Damn it." He was sure
right? Lesser women would pin it on someone else. But this was his
Tonya. He hoped he wasn't letting his feelings for her cloud his
judgement.

"All
right, I know you love this girl. I worry about you. I know you've
had your share of women, but you are innocent when it comes to actual
relationships, Chris."

"I
can hold my own. I can see a fake and a user. Tony is not that."
He stroked her hair, wishing he could carry her to bed and wake her
with kisses. She'd give in so easy. He couldn't do that to her. He
wanted her to come to him.

"So
what are you thinking?"

"I
don't know yet. I think I have her persuaded to move in with me here.
To try to see if we can make something work." Something out of
nothing, except his feelings. She obviously didn't feel as strongly
as he did. If he had some time, maybe he could make her feel the
same. Or maybe, his feelings could be enough.

"Be
careful," she said.

"I
called for a reason. Other than this. I kissed her earlier and her
stomach suddenly got all tight."

"Just
once?"

"I
think so. She fell asleep after that." He wound his hand down to
her belly, it felt soft and only vaguely distended. He would have to
start reading about pregnancy. He had no idea the logistics of the
whole process. He'd been around when Camille had had her kids. But
he'd been a teen boy. The details eluded him except the growing belly
which somehow turned into a baby.

"Was
there pain?"

"I
don't think so."

"Sounds
like Braxton-Hicks contractions."

"Contractions?
Like giving birth contractions?"

"No,
no. These are practice ones. They happen all the time, most women
don't noticed until later. I guess it was probably the stress of the
situation that made them more intense. If she has them regularly, get
her to lay down and see if they stop. If they don't stop or they hurt
like hell, go right to the hospital."

"Okay."
He felt cold with fear at the idea of Tonya in pain, or her losing
the baby. "I should go before she wakes. Not a word to anyone.
I'll tell the parentals and everyone else soon, once I know what's
going on."

"Okay,
please keep me informed. I'm going to worry about you. And as soon as
you say I can, I'm coming out to meet his woman myself."

He
smiled down at Tonya. "You'll like her Camille. Give me a chance
to get her used to the idea of me. Never mind an entirely army of
people."

"Just
me. And probably Mom."

"I'll
talk to you in a few days. Think happy thoughts." She used to
tell him that when he was sad about their parents.

"You
think happy thoughts, too."

He
ended the call and put his phone on the sofa beside him.

He
eased his hands under her body and picked her up. Nothing to her. He
thought she might have even lost weight over the summer. Maybe she
felt a little more for him than he thought, if she was having trouble
eating. He'd have to see if he could talk to Nicole about the summer
months.

Nicole
was the only person he trusted to be straight with him about Tonya.
She wanted Tonya's happiness. But unlike Corey, she would be a little
sympathetic toward Chris.

He
turned the television on, but kept the volume low. He stroked her
hair and arms, unable to keep from touching her.

His
legs were nearly falling asleep when she stirred. She looked up at
him with a smile. He searched her eyes. She sat up, scooting her ass
on his lap. She wrapped her arms around him. Her lips and chest
pushed against him.

Finding
no reason to protest, he caressed her face. He kissed her deeply, his
tongue exploring familiar territory. He'd missed this. He'd missed
her. He hadn't let himself think about it. He had to stop before he
had her on his new sofa. She wasn't ready for that.

He
wasn't ready for that. One step at a time. He managed to disengage
their mouths. He laid his head on her shoulder. "I don't feel
trapped at all." He raised his eyes to look at her.

She
was clearly still sleepy. She blinked in confusion, her brows
knitting together. She rubbed her eye with one hand. "Excuse
me?"

"You
said earlier you feel like you had trapped me. I don't feel trapped."
He'd never felt so elated in his life. If she were willing, he'd
marry her tomorrow. The day after that his family would demand he get
a psych evaluation.

Her
long lashes went up and down, covering and revealing the depths of
her brown eyes. "Oh."

He
stood, with her in his arms. He thought for a moment about taking her
to bed. Instead, he put her feet on the floor. "I don't know
about you, but I need to eat."

She
nodded. "Yeah."

Food,
then the rest of their lives.

Corey
wanted to punch a hole in the wall.

He
was supposed to protect Tonya, instead, he'd let her get knocked up
by some jackass hockey dude. This kid was exactly the guy he was at
twenty-four. Selfish, arrogant and definitely not marriage material.

Instead
of punching something, anything, he smiled at Chris and Tonya.

They
were all having a meal together, before Tonya moved the rest of her
things out of his house. And into Corey's nightmare.

Nicole
rubbed his thigh under the table. "You're clenching your fork
like you might stab someone with it," she whispered.

"I'm
thinking about it," he replied.

Her
words from this morning haunted him. "We can't control this one.
We have to support her while it plays out. We have no idea if it will
be good or bad.

Now
she squeezed his leg to remind him to be supportive.

"So
you got the two bedroom?" he said, brightly.

"Yeah,
lucky us, someone moved out early. It wasn't even hard to get all my
stuff moved. A case of beer and a couple guys from the team.

Corey
relaxed a little. "I thought you and Tony…"

"He
wouldn't let me do anything. I hardly managed to pack my stuff from
my room," Tonya said, nudging Chris.

"That's…
good."

"I
forgot, I talked to Mom yesterday. She says hi."

"And?"

"I
told her everything. She isn't exactly thrilled I'm pregnant, or that
I'm moving in with this guy she hasn't met. When she gets here,
she'll approve." She smiled at Chris.

Corey
glowered, which got him another let squeeze, with a touch of nails.

Their
mother's only concern was Chris's wealth. Not that she was petty,
she'd never been left financially secure by a man in her life. That
her kids and grandchildren would be secure, was her best knowledge.
That Corey helped support her did help her be a little more positive.

"How's
school?" Nicole asked.

"It's
okay." She'd gone too far to drop out. She told him earlier that
she hadn't decided if she'd go back to school after the baby was
born. She'd take at least six months off before deciding. "At
least the first trimester exhaustion and illness has worn off."
She took a drink of her juice.

After
they ate and cleared dishes, Chris went to load the rest of the boxes
in his car.

Corey
stood with Tonya on the front step. "One of you will have to get
a bigger car," he said.

"Yeah,
we'll probably trade my car in at the very least. His car is decent
on gas for getting to and from the arena."

"If
you need to come back, you are welcome anytime. If he's mistreating
you or whatever."

"I
don't take shit from anyone. You know that."

"Right.
If you need money let me know."

"I
have some savings. Plus, Chris will help." She looked at Chris
as he put a box in the tiny trunk of his car. "We should have
brought mine." Corey's truck was filled with the furniture he'd
insisted on giving her.

Chris
smiled at her and stuck his tongue out.

"You
never know what people are like in private."

"They
are better. You don't need to worry about Chris. He's a good guy."
She didn't look entirely confident in that. She still had doubts.

Nicole
was right, there was nothing anyone could do, but give support.

"We're
going to miss you around here."

"I'll
miss you guys too. But I'm only ten minutes down the road. I can come
every day for breakfast if you want."

"We
both can," Chris said with a shit-eating grin.

Corey
started to clench his fist until Nicole grabbed his hand. He looked
at his sister. "Maybe not every day."

Tonya
smiled at him. "I know, you guys love me. I love you all, too."

Corey
looked at his wife. He was far from reassured, but Nicole was right.
There was nothing he could do but support her for now.

Tonya
stared at Chris. Corey and Nicole had left a few minutes before. Holy
shit, she was living with a guy. A hot guy. One she barely knew. The
father of her unborn child. Someone she was now completely dependent
on. Except her car, her meager savings and her clothing, she had
nothing.

He
reclined on the sofa, flipping through the channels at an alarming
rate. He looked unaffected by the change in their life.

They
still hadn't settled on the sleeping arrangement.

Or
much of anything else.

He'd
play hockey. She'd go to school this semester. And then what would
she do? If school was done in December, that left her slightly more
than three months until the baby was due. She'd worked since she was
fourteen, so the idea of being a housewife was alien to her.

Chris
alluded to her staying home for at least the first year of their
child's life. She supposed after that she'd have to find a job and
her own place to live, or at least pay part of the rent.

Unless
he was sent back to the minors. Or was traded. Those were very real
possibilities. It was unusual to play a whole career in one place.
Except for her brother she wasn't particularly attached to Calgary.
Nor did she miss home.