Page 63 of Learn the Play
I nod. “I love the life we’re building, Reid. I love this baby, and I don’t want to be angry anymore—these cards, the letters, the invitations to work and social events. I was young and blinded by what I thought I knew, and too damn stubborn to listen to reason, and my dad, he didn’t want my mom to push me,” I explain. “So many years I’ve lost with him.”
“That’s a lot to take in. I’m sorry I’m not there.”
“You are here, Reid. I’m in our bed. In the home we share.” I want to tell him that I’ve fallen in love with him, but I can’t do that over the phone. Besides, I’m wrung out emotionally. I need some more time to process all of this.
“What do you need?” he asks.
Just like that, instant support. This man, he’s never stopped showing up for me. Even when he’s thousands of miles away, he proves that he’s in this with me.
“Just time,” I tell him. “It’s a lot to take in, but I feel lighter in a way I haven’t in years. A lot of that is because of you.”
“Me?”
“You never gave up on us. You knew what you wanted, and you showed me how it feels to be the first choice. Despite your hectic career.”
“You and the baby are first always, Bell.” His eyes soften. “Are you okay there on your own? Want me to hop on a flight tonight?”
“I’m fine. Just working through my emotions.”
“I wish I were there to hold you.”
“Tomorrow.”
“You know it, Dream Girl. Try to get some rest. Call me if you need me. I don’t care what time it is.”
“I’m okay,” I promise. “Congrats on the win, number twenty.” I smile.
“Thanks, babe. Please try to get some rest.”
“I will. Safe flight.”
“Always, beautiful.” He blows me a kiss as he always does, and when the line goes dead, I miss him.
Chapter Seventeen
Reid
My palms are slick with sweat, and my chest aches from the rapid thud of my heart. Today’s the day. We’re mere minutes away from the ultrasound tech walking through the door, and we’ll see our baby on the screen for the very first time—tiny limbs, fluttering heartbeat, the soft curve of life just beginning. We also hope to be able to find out the gender. Are we having a little boy or a little girl to love, to raise, to build our world around?
It feels like we’re standing on the edge of something vast and irreversible. A single moment, quietly enormous, is about to change everything. Up until today, I’ve seen our baby growing, the proof in Bellamy’s rounding belly. I know he or she is in there, but seeing them, knowing we’re only halfway there, that we still have months until we get to hold our sweet baby in our arms, is a delicious torture.
“How are you doing, Momma?” I ask Bellamy, pulling myself out of my thoughts. I wipe my hands on my sweats and offer one to her. She takes it without hesitation. She sits in a gown onthe exam table. We’ve already seen the doctor, and everything is measuring great. Now, we wait for the ultrasound tech to come and show us our baby.
“I’m excited.” Bellamy smiles up at me. “You?”
“Same. A little nervous,” I admit.
“Me, too.” She nods. “You sure you want to know the gender?” she asks.
“Yeah, I mean, unless you changed your mind?”
“No. I want to know. We can pick out a name and a nursery.”
“In our new house.” I grin. We’ve looked at several houses, and finally, one close to Knox and Landry came on the market, and it’s everything we both wanted. We put in an offer for the full asking price and closed a couple of weeks ago. We get the keys this weekend to start moving in, which works out great, since we have a Thursday night game this week. It’s away, but I’ll be home Friday, and the guys are coming to help me start moving things over. Life is moving at a rapid pace, but I wouldn’t change it.
“Yes,” she says, her smile bright, and those big brown eyes of hers, so full of excitement, could bring a man to his knees.
“Knock, knock,” a female voice says as she enters the room. “Hi, I’m Tina. I’m going to be performing your ultrasound today.”
