by Gabrielle G.
“I know you will,” she says, nuzzling her nose in the crook of my neck.
“We’ll have the wedding at the farm, we’ll be surrounded by my family and yours and only the people we love. I’m sure my mother will insist you look like a hippie bride. She’ll have you in a flowy dress with your blonde hair down in big curls and a flower crown on top of your head, but you’ll be beautiful, nonetheless.
“Or my mother will put her foot down and insist we get married at the church and then might allow us to have the reception at the farm…”
“And your dad will marry us… that’s terrifying.” I kiss the top of her head. I can’t not touch her tonight.
“That’s what you get for wanting to marry the pastor’s daughter.” She chuckles, and it pierces my heart like cupid’s arrow. I keep falling in love with this girl.
“Tell me more about our life together,” she adds in a sleepy voice.
“We’ll have three children. Two boys and a girl. I would like the girl in the middle.” Her hand grips my shirt.
“I already have their names in my head…” she whispers.
“Yeah?” I feel her nod against my chest.
“Want to share?”
“No, it will jinx it.” I pinch her slightly.
“Come on, Sweets, it’s me. You know you can tell me anything.”
“I discussed baby names with your mom last time I was there.” She continues telling me about names and how she wants to name our hypothetical children, but I can’t listen because images of Alane being pregnant are invading my brain. Babies means sex. Pregnant means bigger tits. As much as we’re spending a sweet and romantic moment, I’m hard, and I need to calm down. “Wouldn’t that be great?” Alane asks full of hope.
“Yes, amazing.” I close my eyes, trying to picture her friend Patricia, so my boner goes down. It does.
“Where would we live?”
“Next to the farm? Or wherever your professional career takes us. We’ll have to time those kids right, so it doesn’t ruin your chance for an Olympic medal. Or you’ll wait until you retire. I mean, we can have children in our thirties, I don’t mind.”
“I would like to live close to your family and have Luke nearby. I hope he finds a great guy to love.”
“I think he’s hooking up with Chris,” I say only for her to hear as if it’s a dirty secret. I’m not ashamed my brother and best friend are gay. I’m just trying to understand what they are to each other. Especially because I know Chris also has sex with girls.
“I knew they spent a lot of time together, but…”
“I almost walked in on them behind the barn last week. I was shoveling fertilizer when I heard two guys moaning and grunting. Thank God, I recognized their laugh, so I walked away before burning my retinas.” She swats at my arm.
“Come on… I’m sure it was hot.”
“Maybe for you, but really, seeing my brother with my best friend, no thanks.”
“Well, I hope they are as happy as I am.”
“That’s sweet of you. By the way, you can’t tell Patricia.”
“And break her heart because her brother went where she never could… of course not.”
“I think she moved on and is trying to get me now.”
Alane scoffs. “You’re ridiculous. Soon you’re going to tell me she wants to be with Barnabas.” She laughs. “She’s not that desperate to be part of your family, you know. She’s pretty active and has a lot of guys running after her.”
“Believe me, we know. If Chris is not around in the locker room, that’s all we hear about. As for Barn, he loves you too much to ever fall in love with someone else.”
“He’s so cute… I hope our son is as cute as he is.”
“Maybe less rambunctious? He can also be extremely mean to Sal…”
“Sal is not as innocent as she seems, Aaron.”
“I know…” I kiss the top of her head again.
“So, two sons, a daughter, can we have a dog as well? I always wanted one, but my parents always said no.”
“Whatever you want, Sweets.”
“We’ll call him Garfield. He needs to be orange though.”
“An orange dog called Garfield. You got it. I’ll find a way to make that dream come true. I’ll marry you as soon as I can.”
“Is that an official proposal?”
“No, it’s a promise, Sweets, one day, I’ll marry you.”
Epilogue - Alane
“Welcome to the first annual Gritt Hockey Tournament.” Ridge screams in the megaphone.
“Dad!” Barn screams back “We already told you it’s a game. We can’t have a tournament with only two teams!”
“It’s a game for the moment, Barnabas Topher. Think further, and one day, they’ll be more of you, and you’ll each have your family, and it can be a tournament. Well, except for Dex and Luke, they’ll be referees by then as they don’t want children…”
“Bella…” Dex scolds Aaron’s mom for what she just said.
“Sorry, Son, I know, no baby talk, I promise.”
“Can I start my announcement again?” Ridge screams.
“Yes!” We all answer back.
“Welcome to the first annual Gritt Hockey Tournament. As we all skate, well, more or less” all eyes turn to poor Adam, “and as we’re all family, well, more or less” now we all turn to Chris, “no violence of any kind will be tolerated. You also need to have at least one woman on your team.”
“Are you implying girls don’t skate as well as boys, Coach?” I tease Ridge.
“Yeah, Grandpa, what do you mean?” Hailey shouts, crossing her arms.
“Stop busting my balls, ladies! Now, please, line up for this year’s captains to make their team.” Everybody lines up except for Aaron and me.
“Ready, Gritt?”
“Bring it on, Smith!”
“As the oldest player on the ice, I will flip the coin. Aaron being a gentleman decided to let Alane choose Heads or Tails.”
“She’s going to choose head,” Luke shouts behind me.
“Of course she’ll choose head.” Aaron laughs. Adam, Lawson, and Hailey grunt their disapproval at their innuendos.
“Tails, for now, head for later,” I say, winking at Aaron. Ridge flips the coin up in the air, and, of course, it falls on Heads.
“Yeah!” Aaron says raising his fist in the air.
“You want to play like that, Gritt?”
“You know I love you, Smith, but there is no love on the ice…”
I skate around him, slightly pushing him.
“Shit, Mom, I didn’t know you could be so competitive.” Adam laughs behind me.
“Aaron, you can pick first,” Ridge says.
“Chris,” he calls, his hand ready for a high five his buddy has in the air.
“Ridge,” I scream.
“Dex,” Aaron calls.
“Luke,” I yell.
“Barn.”
“Sal.”
“Law.”
“Hailey.”
“Mom,” Aaron calls Bella, leaving Adam the last player to be picked.
“Oh, come on, Aaron. If I get Adam, you need to give me Chris or Dex. He’s a huge handicap on a team.”
“Well, thanks, Mom,” Adam pouts.
“No, Sweets, I don’t have to give you shit. It’s your fault our son didn’t know how to play hockey until I came into his life.” I love hearing him call Adam “our son”. Since I came back to Spring Falls, Adam spends most of his free time with us, and even if it was a little rocky at the beginning, the five of us together found a great dynamic.
“Seriously? He can barely stand on skates. You’re a shit teacher…”
“No trash talking, Smith!” Ridge shouts from behind me. Aaron seems too pleased with himself. I need to win and wipe that smirk off his face
“Who’s in your net?” he asks smugly. I look at my team, and Sal raises her stick.
“You go, sister!” I shout at her. “I guess you’re
taking the net, Gritt? And your buddy is your captain?” Chris and Aaron nod. “So predictable,” I scoff.
“Because you being captain is not predictable, Captain,” Aaron sneers back at me.
“I’m going to kick your ass, Aar… You might even orgasm from it!” I reply, getting a high five from Luke for my come back.
“Take your positions,” Ridge screams for all to hear. He drops the puck between Chris and I, and quickly skates back in defense. We play six on six. Aaron and Salomé are goalies. Ridge and Adam are my defensemen, Lawson and Bella are Aaron’s, and our offense is composed of Luke, Hal and myself in the center facing Dex, Chris, and Barn. Our skates swoosh and our sticks battle for thirty minutes. Adam falls only a few times, the stick helping him with his balance. Goals enter left and right. I love scoring against Aaron. Every time, Luke, Hal, Ridge, and I do a little dance while Adam stays put, afraid to fall. And every time Aaron swears. Sal is a wonderful goalie, but Chris, Dex, and Barn are a powerhouse that nothing can stop.
It’s four-three for Aaron’s team, and when I feel Luke coming from behind, I pass him the puck for him to take a shot at the net. It’s a beautiful shot, clean and precise but unfortunately, Aaron stops it and sends the puck directly back into play. Awkwardly for him, he makes a mistake and slides it my way behind the blue line. Nobody is in front of me, and I don’t think twice, seeing clearly where I need to shoot to score, I raise my arms and go for a slap shot, the puck flying towards Aaron in a straight trajectory.
“Noooooo,” the whole family screams behind me. Keeping my head in the game, I skate as fast as possible toward Aaron in case of a rebound, not seeing any of my teammates moving fast enough. Aaron stretches to the corner and throws his whole body on the puck. “What the fuck, Al!” he screams, tossing his gloves on the ice.
“Why are you stopping the game?” I hit my stick on the ice. “Come on, play!”
“I told you she wouldn’t see it.” Luke laughs from the sidelines.
“Why are you not playing?” I turn around dumbfounded by my team.
“After forty, you can’t see if something is square or round,” Ridge’s voice beams in the silent rink. I look at them, irritated by their contented smiles and loving expressions.
“Sweets.” Aaron laughs, “You just took a slapshot with your engagement ring.” I turn toward him, raising my eyebrows to my hairline, to see him on one knee, a crushed box in his hand. Opening it slowly, he releases a breath when he peeks inside.
“She didn’t destroy it!” he screams to the sidelines.
“Are you? What is this?” I tear up.
“Alane, it’s on this rink exactly thirty years ago that I fell in love with you. You were lying down on the bench, raised on your elbows with your head tilted back, your hair falling like a golden waterfall. After being impressed by your talent, I was mesmerized by your beauty. That day I knew you would be my wife. Alane Nora Smith, will you marry me?” I look at the destroyed box in his hand to see a round ice blue sapphire ring on a rose gold band. I can’t take my eyes off it.
“So, the game was rigged?” Aaron shakes his head. “But they all knew.” He nods. “Are we going to continue playing after this?” He nods again. Extending my hand for him to get up, I skate to him and kiss him softly. “Of course, Aaron Jax Gritt. I’ll be lucky to have you as my husband.”
“And when we get home, there is an orange dog named Garfield waiting for you…”
“We’re getting a dog?” Lawson and Hailey scream behind us at the same time I hear Adam say, “Aaron’s middle name is Jax? Shit, I love my Mom.”
Kissing Aaron quickly, I remove my glove to shove the diamond ring on my finger before I turn around to face the family. Bringing my fingers to my mouth, I whistle loudly.
“Back to your positions, peeps, and let’s play. I’m not going to allow my fiancé to win!
Head in the game, Gritts, head in the game!”
THE END.
Pre-order Forsaken, book 2 in the Gritt Family Series now on Amazon.
Join my Facebook Group: Get Twisted with Gab for news and shenanigans
Merci, etc.
I wrote this story in three weeks. Aaron and Alane were naturals, and they were talking to me so fast, I didn’t have much to do. Then I tried to think about Barnabas and Salomé, and they were much more complicated to write. You would think the broodiest of the siblings would be the hardest to write. He wasn’t… He was direct, to the point and knew what he wanted.
And how fun it was to see Luke young! If you haven’t read Often & Suddenly yet, do it. Luke is just the best, and Dex… Shit, I already miss him, but if you’ve read all of my books, you know Dex is never far…
For this book, I particularly want to thank my husband and Jen. From “Can you lose your aim when you ejaculate on a woman?” to “Does the proposal make sense?”I consulted them more than usual.
Thank you, Shaun, Pam, Tracy, Darlene, and Athena for all the work ensuring that the manuscript was spotless, and of course, my Twistees, always supporting and advising me.
But most of all, an enormous thank you to Cleo for listening when I was lost and for giving Heartbroken the most beautiful cover when I didn’t know what I wanted… (Do I ever?). C, thank O and L for me… Their help and input are more than appreciated. Always.
If you wonder how Alane got pregnant, it’s called a splash pregnancy, and women who suffer from vaginism use this method to get pregnant. The things I learn while writing books. Google it.
Next in the Gritt Series, Forsaken. We travel to New York for a brother’s best friend romance like no other. Salomé and Chris might finally get a chance to be happy. Might… Please don’t hate me…
But first Trouble, the second book in the Darling Devils, and his love story with Naomi. 2020 is going to be a hell of a ride!
As usual, bear with me, the road is long and bumpy, but we’ll get there together;
Live long with the Force, Hakuna Namaste!
—
Join my Facebook Group: Get Twisted with Gab for news and shenanigans
Also by Gabrielle G.
ANGELS AND SUNSHINE SERIES
(LA Stories)
Always & Only (Hollywood romance)
Never & Forever (Enemies to lovers)
Often & Suddenly (M/M)
THE GRITT FAMILY STORIES
Heartbroken
Forsaken - A brother’s best friend story like no other – 2020 Pre-order now.
Untamed - A single mom, a town Casanova and a little girl dreaming of a daddy. - 2021
DARLING DEVILS
Darling - A rockstar romance with swoons, laughter and heartbreaking truths.
Trouble - A friends-to-lovers romance to the beat of the Darling Devils – May 2020 – Pre-order now
Sweet - 2020
Follow me on Amazon to keep up to date with my latest release.
About the Author
Gabrielle G will do anything for a hot cup of tea, still celebrates her half birthdays and feels everyone has an inner temptuous voice.
Born in France and having lived in Switzerland, Gabrielle currently resides in Montreal with her husband, three devilish children and an extremely moody cat.
After spending years contemplating a career in writing, she finally jumped off the deep end and took the plunge into the literary world. Writing consumed her and she independently published her work.
Gabrielle's style is fiercely raw and driven by pure emotion. Her love stories leave you out of breath, yearning for more, while at the same time wiping away tears.
Join Get Twisted with Gab for exclusive content and shenanigans and shop for merch on TeePublic
lter: grayscale(100%); -o-filter: grayscale(100%); -ms-filter: grayscale(100%); filter: grayscale(100%); " class="sharethis-inline-share-buttons">share