Page 47 of The Home Game

“He better not be,” Charlie said tartly, sashaying down the hallway with a smile. “A girl has to get her career established before she lets her man knock her up.”

Matty laughed. “I think you’re doing pretty well. I still don’t know how you got all this done with all of the other projects you have lined up.”

“Mmm, thankfully Jonah and Felix were flexible about the dates of their project.”

“Oh, right,” Matty said. “You’re redoing the place they bought from Jonah’s grandma, right?”

“Ehh,” Charlie said. “Not doing a ton, to be honest. Lim Cho’s designs are so perfect I hardly have to tweak anything. Gah, I can’t even believe I get to touch the work of an architect like that. He was incredible.”

Charlie must have spotted the blank, vaguely confused look on Antoni’s face because he smiled. “You’re feeling a little lost, aren’t you?”

Antoni nodded. “Yeah.”

“Do you know who Jonah and Felix are?”

“Yes,” Antoni said, although it was only because earlier, he’d hidden in the bathroom and pulled up a team roster online and hurriedly tried to memorize it so he didn’t accidentally call someone the wrong name.

“Well, Jonah’s grandfather, Lim Cho-eun, designed some stunning homes in the Toronto area. Jonah and Felix just bought one of them off Jonah’s grandma and are having me do some work on the primary bedroom.”

“Oh, very cool,” Antoni said. “And thank you for everything you did for me and the kids. I’m overwhelmed. I … don’t even know what to say.”

“Aww, you like the rooms?” Charlie beamed. “That makes me so happy.”

“Everything I’ve seen so far has been incredible,” Antoni said. “Honestly, I’m amazed at what you did in such a short time.”

Charlie smiled, reaching out to squeeze his arm. “Just glad I could help. When Matty told us what the kids had been through … well, what you’ve all been through, the entire team wanted to help.”

“But none of you even know me,” Antoni pointed out, still bewildered by the whole thing. “You don’t know any of us.”

“I feel like I do a little bit,” Charlie said with a shrug. “From what Matty said about you all.”

“Huh.” Antoni peeked into the nursery to see Matty walking with Reese in his arms, pointing out things in the room.

Oh dear God. If that man got any more attractive, Antoni was doomed.

“Talk about baby fever,” Charlie said under his breath. “Someone needs to get that man some children.”

Antoni laughed. “We’ll see how he feels after living with all five of us for a while.”

Charlie laughed, eyes sparkling with amusement. “Mmm. We’ll see.”

“Look, look!” Antoni felt a tug on his arm and he glanced down at River. “My room. Come see.”

“Of course,” Antoni said taking her hand. “I’d love to see your room.”

He’d peeked into the room across the hall from Reese’s earlier but he hadn’t looked closely.

It was as perfect as Reese’s.

Three walls were painted a soft, creamy off-white but the fourth was a deep blue dotted with gold stars and a crescent moon. The wooden bed was arranged on that wall and it had a canopy in the shape of an outline of a house. A little fence ringed three sides of it and it was made up with cozy sheets and blankets in blues and whites and pinks.

There was a puffy cloud pillow that River made a beeline for and a big soft rug with blue and pink splotches that reminded Antoni of painted brushstrokes. A comfortable chair and footstool sat near a low bookshelf and Antoni could picture reading to River there at night before tucking her in to sleep under the glow of the string lights draped along the canopy.

Antoni suddenly remembered the random questions he’d gotten from Matty recently. Or, maybe not so random. At the time, he’d just thought Matty was trying to get to know him and the kids but maybe it had been more than that.

Maybe he’d been gathering info to help Charlie make their rooms perfect.

Antoni’s eyes felt suspiciously damp as he listened intently as River talked—in her halting but excited speech—about the room. Her eyes shone and she looked so happy.

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