Page 13 of On Thin Ice

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“How’s my little niece doing?” Ethan said, leaning over to talk to my belly the following night.

“She’s already got you wrapped around her little finger, and she’s not even born yet,” his wife, Penny, said.

Ethan looked over his shoulder to glare at her. “Hush. It’s my job to spoil her. And to kick any person’s ass if they come near her.”

I rolled my eyes. “You done?” I tried to act annoyed, but I loved that he’d been so supportive since day one. Of course, he’d tried to get me to tell him who the father was, but he’d grudgingly accepted that I wasn’t ready to share that. He’d been nothing but a great big brother and doting expectant uncle since.

“I’m never done talking to my little princess,” he said, standing up to give me a hug. “How was your trip? Run into any of the guys? I think some of them are back in Denver already. I should’ve reached out to Fishy or Flower.”

It didn’t escape my notice that he hadn’t mentioned Dom. Reason four million and one why I wasn’t going to tell him who had knocked me up.

“It was fun, learned a lot, blah, blah, blah. Numbers and spreadsheets are awesome. Now I’m hungry.” I ushered them toward the front door. We were having dinner at Lanzi’s, my favorite restaurant, and they’d swung by to pick me up. My mouth was already watering for Rose Lanzi’s spinach and ricotta ravioli.

“Can’t let my niece go hungry. Let’s go,” Ethan said, shutting my door behind us.

During the quick drive to Lanzi’s, Penny asked for more details about the conference. She was an accountant, and her love of numbers and data almost rivaled mine. Ethan typically zoned us out once we got started.

The smells enveloped me like a hug, as did Rose Lanzi, when we walked through the door.

“Ally, honey. Oh, just look at you. Glowing. Beautifully glowing. Let’s get you some garlic knots,” Rose said, guiding us toward a large table in the back. A few of Ethan’s teammates and their partners were already seated.

“You look beautiful. How are you feeling?” Sophia Lanzi asked as I took the seat across from her and her boyfriend, Eric Finnegan. Finn was a defenseman for the team, and Sophia’s parents ran Lanzi’s with her aunt Rose.

“Thank you. Tired, but good.” I settled my napkin on my lap.

“’Bout time you got here,” Darcy teased next to me. Jake was on the other side of her, their fingers linked in Darcy’s lap.

“We’re not that late, but it’s Ethan’s fault. He was having a long conversation with my belly,” I muttered.

Jake barked out a laugh. “Man, just hand over your bank account to that little girl. She’s going to control you from day one. Hell, she already does.”

“Shut up, dick,” Ethan said, flicking Jake in the back of the head. “My niece gets whatever she wants, and I feel zero shame or embarrassment about it.”

“Damn right. We’re all going to spoil Little Harty’s baby. I already got her a Bastian jersey ready to go because I’m clearly going to be her favorite player,” said Max “Baz” Bastian, epic prankster. His girlfriend, Gabi, rolled her eyes at his antics. It was a common occurrence.

“She’s getting a Harty jersey, and don’t any of you assholes think she’s wearing your numbers. I’m her real uncle, remember,” Ethan boasted.

“Only by DNA,” Baz fired back.

“While this fighting is all lovely, what apps are we getting?” I asked, grabbing a garlic knot from the bowl Darcy set in front of me. Warmth filled my chest as I took my first bite of the pillowy, garlicky goodness and glanced around the table. My little girl had everything she needed right here. And in less than four months, she was going to be in my arms, and I was going to let everyone spoil the shit out of her. She would never want for anything. Especially not from her stupid sperm donor.

Darcy leaned in and whispered, “You really okay?”

I ignored the tears pricking my eyes. “Yep. Never better.”

“Good. Now, do you want to split arancini balls with me or get your own order?”

“Obviously, my own. I’m eating for two, remember,” I fired back, a smile on my face.

I was so lucky, and so was this little peanut fluttering in my belly.

DOM

I was a fucking wreck. It’d been five days since Ally had dropped her bomb on me, and I had yet to fully process it.

Or call her.

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