by G. K. Brady
The compliment, along with the heat in his eyes, flushed her cheeks with fire. She pulled into her drive and shut off the engine. Running a finger along her jaw, he chuckled. “I love this shade of pink on you, Goldilocks.”
Locked inside her house, she gave him a moment to gawk at her revamped hallway before she tugged him into her bedroom and peeled off his clothes. He eagerly returned the favor. The sweetness in rediscovering one another had her heart on the verge of bursting, and she lost herself in their slow, torrid lovemaking.
Hours later, she lay curled against his body, walking her fingers lightly over his solid chest while his hand caressed her arm.
“There’s something that has me a little worried,” she began.
He craned his head and peered at her. “What’s that?”
“After we stopped seeing each other, you played a lot better, and I’m just wondering if that means hanky-panky’s off-limits during the season?”
“Hell no!” he laughed. “I’ll give up hockey first.” He kissed her head. “Seriously, I have off nights, like all players do. It happens. As for hanky-panky, we’ll pace ourselves. If you can keep your hands off me, that is.”
She smacked his very hard chest. “I can if you can.”
“That,” he laughed, “may be the tougher challenge.”
They made love again, and as she snuggled against him afterward, she drifted and dreamed, bobbing contentedly among the clouds while “At Last” played in her head. Jack appeared, a quick flash where he waved and gave her a thumbs-up before he drove away in a sky-blue convertible.
Epilogue
Seven months later
Gage piled into the sleigh and spread a thick layer of blankets over Lily, who cuddled Daisy on her lap. He wrapped them both up in his arms, silvery moonlight setting the snow aglow as the snowcat lurched their contraption forward.
“Everyone nice and cozy?”
Daisy giggled. “My nose is cold.”
“Of course it is.” He shucked his glove and placed his hand over her frosty sniffer, getting another giggle out of her.
“You’ve had the giggles all night, baby girl,” Lily declared as she gave her a little squeeze.
The all-star break was nearly over, and they were finishing up in grand style. Gage had been voted to go, but the coaches had kept him out to rest a banged-up shoulder. While he loved being selected by the fans, not going gave him a rare run of days to relax with his girls before the grueling end-of-season push toward playoffs.
Stanley Cup, here I come.
They’d seen the colorful ice castles in Dillon, explored Breckenridge, and were riding back to their retreat after dinner at Beano’s Cabin. Their days in the mountains had been pure perfection. As a matter of fact, his life was pure perfection—except for one detail, which he planned to correct shortly. And that plan had his stomach gurgling. Maybe he should’ve stuck with soup for dinner.
Lily leaned her head against his chest. “We’re gonna miss you when you go to the Bay Area.”
The very last of his break would be spent in California catching up with family, seeing that they had everything they needed. He rested his cheek against Lily’s soft beanie. “It’s only a few nights. You could still come with me.”
She raised her eyes to his. “Your mom wants you to herself this time.”
“Grandma would love to see you again. I just don’t know if she’d recognize you. I don’t know if she’ll recognize me.” A band tightened around his heart. He hoped like hell his visit would fall on one of her good days. They were becoming a rarity.
“I’m sure your mom will be relieved.”
“Hey, she’s warming up. It’s a cold thaw, but she’s getting there,” he chuckled. Even if it was by slow degrees, his mom was softening. She loved Daisy, and while she wasn’t head over heels for Lily—yet—she was making the effort. One day, she’d “move on” and get over the fact Jessica would never become her daughter-in-law. As for Jess, he’d heard from Sarah that she was seeing someone, and he was happy for her.
“Yeah, I guess she is,” Lily sighed, bringing him back to the present and what awaited when they reached the house. “I’m really glad you’ll get to see them, especially your grandma. I just like having you around.”
He gave her a quick kiss. “I like being around.”
Daisy tilted her head back and grinned at them both. “You guys are mushy.”
He wiggled his eyebrows and gently turned her face away. “Then stop watching.” This earned him another giggle.
At their vacation rental, he took off their coats and hats, and the girls settled in front of the fireplace while he uncorked a bottle of Dom Perignon he’d stashed. He tapped his shirt pocket, opened a sparkling cider for Daisy, and filled champagne flutes.
Lily craned her head. “What’s the bubbly for, Professor?”
“To toast the end of a perfect trip and the beginning of … uh, a perfect year.”
Her eyebrows bounced. “One that includes a Cup win?”
“Among other things. Hey, if I win the Cup, I can hire you to sing at my party.”
“I’ll always sing for you.” She gave him a smile that had his nervous stomach beating a tattoo.
“I’m counting on it.”
He handed out the bubbles, slid beside his girls, and clinked their glasses.
Daisy turned bright eyes on him. “Are you gonna play that song for Mom now?”
Lily’s eyebrows scrunched. “What song?”
Setting down his champagne, he cleared his throat. “I’ve been practicing a song by Train.”
Daisy began bouncing on the couch.
Showtime.
He picked up his acoustic guitar. “Daisy’s gonna help me with this one. Ready, princess?” She bobbed her head, excitement gleaming in her eyes.
Lily’s features reflected her growing bewilderment.
Heart thumping like the wheels of a freight train, he pulled in a few steadying breaths, and with a nod to Daisy, he began playing “Marry Me.” After the first reedy notes, his plucking grew more sure and his voice stronger, and when he reached the chorus, Daisy’s angelic voice blended with his.
Lily gasped and covered her mouth. Her wide eyes darted between Daisy and him, pooling with tears as the words inside him filled the room with the sweet serenade. Relief washed over him at the sight of Lily’s quivering smile.
That’s a good sign. Go with the flow.
When the song was over, tears streamed down Lily’s cheeks. He set aside the guitar and stuffed his fingers in his shirt pocket, but his hand shook so much he couldn’t grasp his prize.
“Daisy,” he croaked, “help me out, kiddo.”
She sprang from her seat, dipped nimble fingers into his pocket, and plucked out a diamond solitaire she triumphantly offered to her mother.
“Uh, I think I’m supposed to do that, princess.”
Two pairs of wide eyes locked on him, and they all began laughing—thank fuck!—diffusing some of the tension in his body. Daisy handed him the ring with a broad smile and an encouraging pat, and he extended it to Lily. “Lily Everett, I promise to do my best to wear out the words ‘I love you.’ Will you promise to sing to me for the rest of our lives and do me the honor of—”
“Yes!” She launched herself into his arms, covering his face and neck with kisses.
“I like how you say yes,” he laughed.
His fingers still held the ring, and Daisy took it from him while he encircled her mother in his arms and kissed her so she had no doubt how much he loved her. My future wife.
They broke apart, and Daisy wormed between them with the ring. “I helped pick out the ring, Momma! Do you like it?”
“Let’s have her put it on first, princess.” Gage took it from Daisy and slid it onto Lily’s finger. “Well?” He held his breath.
Fresh tears sprang to her eyes. “I love it. I love you!” And she was back in his arms, Daisy squished between them.
It was perfect.
/> And only grew more perfect when, an hour later, Daisy was in bed, and they stood in his room looking out the window at the clear, moonlit sky. When they traveled, he always booked extra space to give Lily her own room for appearance’s sake. Thank God that was coming to an end.
“How soon do you want to get married?” he asked as he began unbuttoning his cuffs.
“I don’t know. After you win the Cup?” She moved away and plopped down on the edge of his huge-ass bed.
“Hmm … three-and-a-half more months. Okay, but can we at least live under the same roof? I’m tired of waking up without you in my bed.” He took a few steps toward her.
She sent him a wicked wink. “You do get to wake up with me.”
He snorted. “Yeah, when we’re super sneaky or get that rare night together. Sometimes I think it’s just another one-night stand with you.”
“The first one worked out pretty well, I’d say.”
“You’ll get no argument from me on that.”
“I think living together can be arranged, Professor. But which house should we live in?”
He liked the sound of “we.” “I don’t care which house. I’ll live wherever you want, as long as you and Daisy are there.”
She tapped her finger against her temple. “Ooh, I can just picture the posts now. I’ll have to spend some time planning it out so I maximize the splash factor for you.”
“Oh hell no! We’re not making a PR event out of this.” He gave her what he thought was a goofy grin.
“Well, I’ll have to do something so all your crazed female fans know you’re taken and to back the hell off. By the way, whatever happened when Kathryn Tappen interviewed you during the playoffs?”
“Kathryn who?”
“Ooh, good answer, Professor! Seriously, did you get to talk to her personally?”
“Didn’t want to, especially when my ideal woman was in Denver. Have I told you I love when you go all cavewoman?” he laughed. “Seriously, Lil, there are only two female fans I care about. And speaking of them …” He sat beside her and took her hand in his. “I’ve been giving this a lot of thought … what would you think of me adopting Daisy? And, maybe later this year, we could work on making a baby sister or brother for her? She’s gonna be an awesome big sister.”
Lily’s free hand covered her heart, fresh tears pooling in her eyes.
Flustered, he stroked her upper arms. Maybe he shouldn’t have sprung the idea on her so soon. “Ah, shit. All I seem to be doing is making you cry tonight.”
“No,” she choked out. “They’re the good tears. I promise.” She cupped his face and laid a gentle kiss on his lips. “I love the idea of you adopting her, and I love the idea of making a family with you.” Her eyes mined his with a look so tender his breath hitched. “I adore you, Gage Nelson. I shudder every time I think I almost let you get away.”
He pulled her hand from his face and kissed her soft palm. “I wasn’t going anywhere. I would have let you stew until you came to your senses, then come right back to you. Remember what I said about setting my sights on something?”
She nodded, her bouncy curls catching firelight. “I do.”
“Practicing our vows already?”
Soft giggles escaped her. “Speaking of vows, what would you think of my taking your name?”
“Lily Nelson? Hell yeah! Would you keep ‘Everett’ as Daisy’s last name?”
“I’ll leave it up to her, but I think ‘Daisy Everett Nelson’ sounds nice. And maybe she’ll call you something besides ‘Coach’ or ‘Gage’?”
“Yeah. ‘Dad’ sounds way better to me. And easier for her to say.” Warmth settled in his chest.
Lily stood and sauntered to the fireplace on the opposite side of the bedroom.
“You’re not going to your own room yet, are you?” he asked. “I was hoping …”
“Hoping …?”
“For a little cuddle time?” He waggled his eyebrows. She shot him a sultry look over her shoulder, then slowly unzipped her jeans and shimmied out of them, giving him an ass wiggle that shot a bolt through him, firing every nerve ending. She was sporting a lacy black thong he’d never seen before, and it brought his shirt unbuttoning to a dead stop and his cock to full attention.
She turned and, just as languidly, pulled her sweater over her head, giving him an eyeful of her curves gilded in the firelight’s glow.
Fuck yeah!
She wore a matching bra of sheer black lace that left little for him to imagine—except taking it off of her. His cock was now begging to be set free.
Licking his lips, he swallowed hard and crooked his finger at her. “Lock the door and get your sweet little ass over here.”
“Bossy. You’re throwing your caveman weight around again.” She tilted her head provocatively and struck her sassy pose, letting his eyes roam all over her. He just hoped his heart wouldn’t seize.
“Come here, Goldilocks, and I’ll show you caveman.”
She took deliberate steps to the door, locked it, then turned and smirked. “What’s in it for me?”
“Why don’t you come over here and find out?” He patted the bed.
A devilish grin spread over her face, but she didn’t budge.
“Chicken,” he taunted.
“I’ll show you chicken, caveman.” She sprinted at him, closing the distance in the flutter of an eyelash. He barely had time to brace his arms and catch her before she crashed down on him. They tangled together like two people at the end of a game of Twister. Which was fine by him.
She covered his mouth with hers, her tongue dancing over his. While her mouth kept his busy, her fingers nimbly undid the rest of his buttons and tugged his shirt off—also fine by him.
“What are you trying to tell me, beautiful?”
She straddled him, pinning him on his back.
“You’ve been owning it on the ice, Professor. Now let’s see you own it in the bedroom.”
“Do your worst, your ladyship.”
She unzipped his pants and worked him free. “Only my best for you.”
His eyes rolled back in his head while his hands ran over her silky skin. God, he hoped he’d die like this.
But not tonight.
THE END
Acknowledgements
First and foremost, the readers who have encouraged me throughout this process. This book wouldn’t be possible without you.
To my beta readers and the Marbles, thank you for your time, your honest feedback, and your suggestions. I especially loved the “Gage wouldn’t say that!” comments that made the story better.
To lovely Jenny Q, my editor, who spent a Friday afternoon brainstorming with me—and I do mean storm!—to make Gage’s story what it is. Without you, it would have been vanilla.
Persnickety, always, for your impeccable i-dotting and t-crossing. Somehow you’re able to see the minutiae and clean it up elegantly. Thank you for that talent and for making me look better.
And always, to my husband, Tim, who has labeled himself an author’s widower. Thank you for talking through plot ideas with me, for framing my book covers for my birthday surprise, for making me dinners … in short, for being Gage. I love you.
Let’s Connect!
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Other Books
In The Playmakers Series:
Book One - Taming Beckett
Book Two - Third Man In
Coming Fall 2020: Book Four in The P
laymakers Series, The Winning Score, is Quinn Hadley and Sarah Nelson’s story. If you’re interested in reading an ARC, or want to receive updates about its release, sign up for my mailing list here: https://www.griffin-brady.com/contact/ or email me at [email protected]
About the author
Since childhood, all sorts of stories and characters have lived in G.K. Brady’s imagination, elbowing one another for attention, so she’s thrilled (as are they) to be giving them their voice on the written page.
A writer of contemporary romance, she loves telling tales of the less-than-perfect hero or heroine who transforms with each turn of a page.
G.K. is a wife and the proud mom of three grown sons. She currently resides in Colorado with her very patient husband.