Page 107 of Her Football Star Ex

I wasn’t supposed to be able to get pregnant. It just wasn’t in the cards for me. And yet, by some kind of miraculous force, it had happened.

And now Vincent just needed to finish those interviews on the field so he could find out that not only had he just won the Super Bowl, but he was going to have a big surprise coming this summer that would keep him much busier than he ever expected to be during retirement.

Yes, the best quarterback in the league who had won Player of the Year three years in a row was ending his football career on a high note at age thirty-five and retiring so he could spend more time with his family.

Because family was more important than anything to that wonderful man.

“Oh! Look! They’re coming,” one of the other teammate’s wives said, getting to her feet.

And a moment later, the guys, who I’m sure were both exhausted and exhilarated after the hard-won game, came trickling inside the family room with huge smiles on their faces.

Cole came in and his gaze immediately found Arianna who had jumped up the moment he came through the door and ran to give him a big hug.

Yeah, Cole wasn’t only scoring in the end zone, he’d finally gotten out of the friend zone, too.

A few other guys came in and were immediately greeted by their loved ones.

I stood and blew out a breath as I tried to see over the heads of the big, tall guys coming through the doors.

He had to be coming here with them, right?

He wouldn’t make me wait even longer, would he?

But I didn’t have to wait much longer because a big ball of nerves filled my stomach when I saw the top of Vincent’s head appear in the doorway.

“Daddy!” Evelyn squealed when she saw him glance around the room. And he must have heard her over the crowd because a second later, his gaze zeroed in on us.

He pushed his way through the crowd of families and football players, the smile on his face growing wider and wider the closer he got to us.

“You did it!” Evelyn said, throwing her arms around his neck as he swooped our four-year-old up into his arms.

“We did.” He kissed her on the cheek.

Jaxon went up to his dad’s side next and gave him the loving yet slightly awkward hug of an eight-year-old boy. “Good job, Dad,” he said. “That was a cool game.”

Vincent mussed Jaxon’s blond hair with his hand. “Thanks, buddy.”

He put Evelyn back on the floor and turned to me with open arms. “And now for the woman I’ve been dying to see all day.”

I smiled and went into his embrace, hugging him tight. “That was an amazing game,” I said, kissing his cheek before resting my head against his chest. “What a way to end your career.”

He squeezed me. “What a great way to start the next chapter of my life.”

“Speaking of next chapters…” I said, taking the perfect segue that he’d given me. “Can you kids come here and show your dad your new jerseys?”

Vincent pursed his lips together as our kids stood side by side facing him.

“Those are some nice jerseys,” he said. But from the dip of his dark eyebrows and the confused look on his face, I could tell he was wondering what was so special about them that required attention.

So I said to the kids, “Okay, now how about you show him the back.”

The kids both turned around so their backs were to their dad. And above the number seventeen, where the last name Lake would typically be, were the words “big brother” on Jaxon’s jersey and the words “big sister” on Evelyn’s.

I watched Vincent for his reaction and knew the moment he realized what we were trying to tell him because he immediately started blinking back tears and the biggest look of shock came on his face.

“You’re pregnant?” He stared at me, his voice quiet with awe. “We—” He gave his head a shake and sighed. “We’re going to have a baby?”

“We are.” I smiled and nodded, tears finding their way back into my own eyes. “I’m twelve weeks along. I’m due the middle of August.”

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