Page 32 of Pucks and Likes

Me: Thanks.

I bite my lip harder.

Me: I’m with my sisters, and I wanted to tell them about the baby. Are you okay with that?

Bubbles come up and then disappear. They appear and once more disappear before, finally, his text pops up.

Alex: Do you want me there with you?

Me: It’s okay. I’m sure they’re gonna give me shit for lying to them for six months. I’ll save you from that.

Alex: If you wait, I can be there with you.

Me: No, it’s okay. As long as you are okay with my telling them.

Alex: I am.

Me: Have you told your mom yet?

Alex: No. We have more to discuss.

His text is six words long, and I feel each one like a puck to the gut. Breathless, I quickly type back.

Me: Oh yeah. Okay, cool. I guess I’ll see you in a bit. Enjoy your ice time.

Alex: Thanks, and thanks for asking, Elliot.

His words pull at my heart as I lower my phone to find Austen watching me. I bring in my brows. “What?”

She eyes me. “Are you crying?”

At that, all my sisters’ gazes fall to me, even Ciaran’s. Shit, Coleson and Dimitri are now leaning over the wall to look at me. Great.

I swallow hard, waving her off. “I’m not.”

“Who were you talking to?” Austen demands. “Did they make you cry?”

“I’ll stab them,” Clara adds.

“And I’ll carry the body to the woods,” Louisa offers.

“I know where the bears are,” Eliza promises. “No one will find him.”

I snort at that and shake my head. “Why do y’all just assume it’s a guy? It’s not that. I have allergies.”

“No, you don’t,” Clara says, giving me a look. “What’s wrong?”

Seven sets of eyes hold me hostage, and I squirm under their examination. It’s crazy, but now I wish Alex were here. His big presence would have given me a buffer. Plus, his eyes always make me feel better. And that little smirk. Those dirty words of his.

I bite the inside of my cheek and wring my fingers. “I need to tell you guys something, and I know you won’t be too happy with me.”

Clara scoots in close, wrapping her arms around my bicep. “El, we love you. What’s wrong?”

Austen leans in, pressing her hand on my ankle. “Are you okay?”

I nod quickly and swallow once more past the emotion in my throat. I move my gaze between my sisters, ignoring my brothers-in-law, and then I say, “I’m pregnant.” I wait for someone to squeal, to scream, or even smack me, but that doesn’t come. My sisters all watch me, giving no reaction whatsoever. Under their scrutiny, I feel like an alien on display. When no one says anything, I add, “With a baby. I’m six months pregnant with a baby.”

I see Coleson grin as Dimitri scoffs. Ciaran moves to put his hand on Louisa’s thigh, and her eyes burn into mine. I lick my lips as she says, “We know that, but we want to know why you haven’t told us until now.”

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