Page 108 of The Third Baseman

“So you actually got her? Like, you’re dating?”

I could safely agree to the dating question, because we were definitely fucking dating.

“Yes. And yes.”

It took a while for him to close his mouth, then… “How?”

Drew hitched Xander up on his hip with a smirk. “Yeah, Jupe, how? How did you get Marnie? Why did you come to The Lions again?”

Felix and Jasper looked between us, back and forth, and back again – with identical confused expressions.

“Shepherd paid me a visit when he took control of The Lions. I said I’d only join the team if he found Marnie. It was a gamble that paid off.” I shrugged, casually. “It’s taken me a month to convince her we belong together, though.”

“Have you met her yet?” Felix asked as he turned to Drew, who shook his head.

“Nope, but it’s literally all Emerson has talked about for a month. Then your parents turned up…”

I glanced outside just in time to see Emerson go running to the side of the pool as one of the kids fell in, or was pushed. There seemed to be a lot of crying, but Marnie and my mom were still off to the side, deep in conversation.

“Actually, where’s my dad? I should probably go and find them.”

“They don’t care about anything except Marnie, believe me. And your dad is in the pool, where he’s been all morning,” replied Drew, sounding more amused than annoyed.

I looked again. Unless he was under the unicorn, I couldn’t see him. “Okay, well, I should probably head down there. Wish me luck.”

I wasn’t about to add that I’d spent long enough away from Marnie for my liking, and I was beginning to fidget. Me, Jupiter Reeves, fidgety because he’d been separated from his girlfriend…

“I’ll come with you, just in case Emerson needs rescuing,” said the guy who was equally twitchy at being separated from his wife, and I followed him out of the kitchen. “Come on then, spill it.”

“Spill what?”

“You know what.”

I stopped walking and waited for a creepy-as-fuck clown to pass us. “I thought it would take longer to happen because she was so mad and wanted nothing to do with me. I wasn’t entirely convinced I’d even manage to get her back.”

“How did you manage then?”

“My winning personality, how else d’ya think?” I slapped his cheek again, just because I knew it irritated the living shit out of him.

He crossed his arms, both brows raised, and waited for the real explanation.

“I threatened anyone else with a beat-down if they so much as looked in her direction,” I grinned. “Oh, and I forced her to work with me.”

“There it is…”

My voice dropped. “It’s only been a week, but… shit, I dunno. I thought I was in love with her before, but getting her back… I feel like I’m falling so hard I didn’t even realize this kind of love existed. Like the whole world stops when we’re together.”

Drew’s eyes got all watery; because while he might have been one of the meanest wingers in the NHL, he was also a massive cry baby.

“Jeez, pull it together. There are kids here, man. It’s embarrassing that you’re the only one crying.”

He wiped his eyes. “I’m good, just happy for you, Jupe. You deserve it, really. Maybe you’ll smile a bit more now.”

I grinned. “Maybe I will.”

“So are you officially a couple? Do we need to get Ella sized up for a bridesmaid’s dress? Or is it going to be a housewarming present situation?”

I ran my hands through my hair, feeling a little less confident than I had a couple of minutes ago. “Not exactly. She wants to take it slow…”

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