Page 116 of Unexpected Forever
But before he can raise his camera to take our picture, security guards magically appear and haul him away.
Nate’s face is murderous. “Fucking paps,” he mutters under his breath.
With a tight smile, he takes my hand and waves to the other reporters as we head into the stadium.
Once inside, he stops and faces me, anxiety etched on his face. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. He just surprised me.” I cup his cheek. “Forget about him. This is a huge night for you. Don’t let all that nonsense ruin it.”
He takes my hand and kisses the center of my palm, his gaze holding mine. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
Warmth spreads through my chest and I grin. “No place else I’d rather be.”
We walk down a long hallway that’s quiet and dim, taking us farther into the belly of the large building.
“I feel like I’m sneaking around and shouldn’t be here,” I say, trailing behind him and looking around as we walk through a deserted lobby of sorts.
One wall has a large display cabinet with several trophies the team has won over the years and framed team pictures. Next to those is a wall of retired players. I stop short when I see a familiar face staring at me, with his trademark grin, framed on the wall.
I walk over to it, studying Nate’s face. He’s younger in the picture, but the strong jaw, hazel-green eyes, and smile that makes my ovaries explode is the same. He’s wearing a cap, obscuring his thick, dark hair.
I lay my hands on my belly, absently rubbing it, and tilt my head. Will our baby have my blue eyes or Nate’s hazel eyes? Will it have those high cheekbones Nate was blessed with? Will it have my nose?
“They haven’t updated pictures in a while. It’s from my best year, probably about four or five years ago.” Nate walks up behind me and puts his hands on my shoulders.
“I was just standing here wondering…oh!” A distinct movement under my hand makes me spin around and take Nate’s hands, placing them on my belly. “Feel that?”
He watches my eyes for a moment and then a grin slowly spreads across his face. “Yeah. It amazes me every time.”
My heart pounds in my chest when he drops to his knees and lifts the jersey up over my bump and kisses the center of it. “Hey baby. I love you. Get ready for some excitement, but go easy on your mama, okay? She wants to see the game.”
He glances up at me with a cocky smile before dropping another kiss and lowering my shirt. As he stands up, he kisses my parted lips and takes my hand. “Come on, babe. We gotta go.”
For the next hour, we’re surrounded by people, being escorted from place to place.
There are journalists, including one fromSports Illustratedwho’s covering the game. Nate appears comfortable with the guy, which makes me feel better.
Still, I’m nervous about being thrust into the spotlight being on the arm of a superstar, legendary baseball player.
He wraps up his conversation and puts a hand on the small of my back. “Come on, I want you to meet some people.”
He leads me over to a small group of people, including two players I recognize.
And a stunning woman whose face lights up when she sees us heading their direction.
My steps falter and my breath hitches as we get closer, and my stomach burns with jealousy. But I do my best to push it aside. It’s Nate’s night and there’s no way in hell I’m going to make him or myself look bad.
“Take it easy, Firefly,” Nate says in my ear. “I told you before. There’s only one woman for me, and she’s wearing my jersey over that baby belly I love.”
The way he knows me is a bit unnerving.
Before I can gather my thoughts, we reach the group, who greets Nate with hellos, shoulder slaps, and hugs.
He turns to me and takes my hand, bringing me into his side. “Guys, this is Charley.”
No doubt about it, I’m intimidated by the four pairs of eyes looking at me. But I’ve never been one to back down from a challenge.
They also must be four of the best looking people I’ve ever seen.
