My Hockey Alpha novel Chapter 324

“Luke toid you?” I managed.

Jessica nodded, her arms folded across her chest. “I can’t believe you’d tell him before us.”

“Yeah,” Lori continued. “You’re lucky we love you, or we’d never forgive you.”

I had to stifle a laugh. “Alright, alright,” I said, stepping out of the way and letting them into the kitchen, where Jessica immediately got to work making a cup of coffee like she owned the place. “So the secret’s out already.”

“Just for us,” Lori assured me, settling onto a stool at the counter. “Don’t worry. Luke only told us because —”

“Because Lori threatened to peel his human skin off,” Jessica interjected. There was a slight smirk on her face as she turned back around, steaming coffee cup in hand. Something told me that it wasn’t just Lori who had made the threats. Some paragraphs are incomplete if you are not reading this novel on Jobnib.com. Visit Jobnib.com to read the complete chapters for free.”So, what are you going to do?” Lori asked, breaking the silence.

I looked down at my hands and took a deep breath before answering. “For now, I’m taking it one day at a time. I haven’t told Enzo yet; I’m waiting for him to get home.” Lori and Jessica exchanged glances. “Don’t you think he’s going to be upset that you waited?” Jessica asked cautiously.

I nodded, my fingers tracing the floral pattern on the cushion beside me. “He will be, but he’ll understand. I want to tell himface-to-face.”

“And what about the baby?” Lori asked. “Are you keeping it?”

Lori’s question sent a pang through my chest. “Truthfully,” I said, “I don’t know. I wouldn’t be averse to keeping it. But I’m just not sure.”

“Well, I certainly wouldn’t be averse to a little niece or nephew running around,” Jessica said, “but if you do keep it, what about his new job? He could be gone for six month stretches or more at a time.”

Jessica said the words almost as though she suspected that I hadn’t thought of that, but just as soon as she uttered them, the expression on her face told me that she regretted them.

“Look, it’s not like I’ve had too much of a chance to think about it,” I said softly. “But.…. I don’t know. I could handle the pregnancy on my own, so long as Enzo could still follow his dreams, you know?”

Lori’s eyes widened, dis belief painting her features. “You can’t be serious, Nina. You’re going to medical school. I repeat: medical school. You need to worry about yourself just as much as Enzo. When are you gonna finally drop that lone wolf complex of yours?”

I met her gaze. She was right, but my resolve still lingered. “I could handle it,” I said. “And besides, I have you guys, and my family, and I have Enzo, even if it’s from a distance.”

“But what if something goes wrong, Nina?” Jessica interjected.

“Luke mentioned the complications. If something happened,you’d be all alone here in this house in the middle of freaking nowhere,

My heart clenched at her words. I opened my mouth to speak, but no words would come. Truthfully, I didn’t even know what to say.

Lori sighed, her hands coming to rest on my shoulders. “We just worry about you, Nina. We don’t want you taking on more than you can handle, that’s all.”

I reached up, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze. “I know you do. And I appreciate it, I really do. But this is something Enzo and I have to navigate together, even if we’re miles apart.”

The room fell silent for a while. Finally, Jessica broke the hush. ” Well, whatever you decide, know that we’re here for you. No matter what.”

I felt my eyes water, touched by the sincerity of her words. ”

Thank you,” I said softly. “That means more to me than you’ll ever know.”

Jessica grinned, raising her coffee cup. “Don’t sweat it. Now, here comes the real question: should 1 go by Aunt Jessica, or Auntie Jess?”

Nina

The airport was like a blur of faces —tired, eager, impatient. But there was only one I cared about, one that my eyes searched for relentlessly as I stood by the front door, waiting.

It was Sunday evening, and Enzo was set to be here at any minute now. Truthfully, I had gotten so impatient waiting at home that I showed up at the airport half an hour ago, as if it would somehow make him land faster.

But I was past the point in our relationship of being scared to seem too eager or clingy, because I knew that Enzo was probably pacing the airplane like a caged animal, too.

When 1 finally caught sight of Enzo’s tall, muscular form walking through the arrivals gate, pulling his suitcase behind him, my heart leapt as though we hadn’t seen each other in months.

“Enzo!”

I pushed through the crowd, running up to him. The world seemed to fade away as his arms enveloped me, drawing me into the sanctuary of his embrace.

He chuckled and lifted me, twirling me around once before gently setting me back down and pressing a kiss to the top of my head. I breathed in deeply, the familiar scent of him grounding me instantly.

“I missed you,” he whispered into my hair.

“Me too,” I replied, my voice muffled against the fabric of his coat. “So much.”

And yet, as I looked at him, his face illuminated with the soft glow from the table lamp, my heart ached in a way I couldn’t even begin to describe.

He was so incredibly happy, his dreams slowly taking shape in front of him, and I was terrified that the news I had to share would throw a wrench into the life that was finally coming to fruition.

Enzo was practically bursting with ideas and projects for the future — a future that, whether he knew it or not, was on the verge of changing if I dropped this bomb on him. Did I even want to tell him now? Or would it be best to keep it to myself, to go through with my original plan for the abortion, no matter how much it hurt?

As though sensing my inner turmoil, Enzo’s eyes met mine with a tinge of concern. “You okay, Nina? You look far away.”

“Yeah,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. “I’m good.”

“You sure?”

I nodded, forcing a gentle smile as I reached over to give his hand a squeeze. “I’m sure.”

The glow of the bedside lamp cast soft golden beams on to the sheets, onto Enzo’s skin, into the depths of his warm brown eyes. The world beyond this room seemed inconsequential, like everything could wait for us.

“I love you…”

Enzo moved above me, my legs wrapped around him as though he would somehow disappear. The sheets barely covered us, allowing the dim lamplight and the glow of the moon to illuminate our bodies. I shivered as he ran his lips along my breasts, moaning against that full sensation of him being inside of me.

As I gently raked my fingernails across his back, I thought to myself that I needed this, to be intimate with him, even though we had only been apart for a couple of days.

But suddenly, as Enzo thrust in just a little too deep, a cramp overwhelmed me.

I winced, pulling away abruptly.

“Nina? What’s wrong?” His eyes met mine, concern overcoming the previous warmth of his face.

I opened my mouth to speak but hesitated, my eyes dropping to where our hands were entwined on the bed sheet. I had planned to tell him tomorrow, to sit him down and unwrap this tangled news with care. Part of me had even planned not to tell him at all, to go against my better judgment and deal with this in secret.

But now, looking into his eyes, waiting to tell him just seemed Like another layer of deceit.

“I have news, Enzo,” I finally said, sitting up with a sigh. “I was going to wait until tomorrow to tell you, but I might as well tell you now.”