Player of Life (Perception Book 4)

by Shandi Boyes

  I rush towards the hotplate and remove the now burnt pancakes from the skillet. Using a tea towel to fan the smoke away in a hope that it won’t trigger the smoke alarm to go off. Not just because I don’t want to wake up Nick, but because the last time the fireman arrived at my apartment to remove my burnt microwave dinner out of the oven, my dad got sent a very hefty bill.

  “Are you serious about him?” Christian questions as his eyes narrow in on the large plate of pancakes I had just prepared.

  I turn to face him before I slowly nod my head. His confused eyes roam over my face, until he eventually offers me a small smile.

  “Lucky guy” he whispers.

  “Yes, I am” informs Nick roughly, startling me as I hadn’t noticed him standing at the entrance of my kitchen.

  Chapter 26

  Nick

  I don’t think my body has ever been so stiff. But I shouldn’t be surprised considering the fact Jenni and I tried positions I didn’t even know existed last night. I lean my arm over her half of the bed wanting to pull her closer to me. It was only when my hands came up empty did I eventually open my eyes and realise that she was no longer in her bed. I cautiously stretch my tired and overused muscles before grabbing my jeans off the floor. I had considered jumping into a quick shower until I noticed a male voice projecting through Jenni’s closed bedroom door.

  I nearly stumbled while yanking on my jeans, eager to find out who needed to visit Jenni so early on a Sunday morning. I quietly open her bedroom door and the first thing I notice is the side profile of Christian sitting on a breakfast stool. As I silently move towards the kitchen, I spot Jenni, who is wearing nothing but my shirt I had worn yesterday. Her long bare legs and seductive ass barely covered in my blue shirt. When she uses the tea towel to fan the smoke that is filtering in the air, a small portion of her butt cheeks peek out the bottom of my shirt. When I notice that Christian tilts his head, trying to get a better look, I clench my fists and my jaw ticks in anger.

  “Are you serious about him?” he questions, causing me to halt charging at him, since I am eager to hear Jenni’s reply.

  She slowly turns around to face him before nodding her head. My heart nearly leaps out of my chest watching her admit to Christian that she has feelings for me.

  “Lucky guy” Christian whispers tormentedly.

  “Yes, I am” I reply, my voice still rough from just waking up.

  Christian’s eyes flick up to look at me and I can see the genuine confusion marred all over his face. When I turn to look at Jenni, she is slowly roaming her eyes seductively over my naked torso.

  “Good morning” she whispers as her eyes return to my face.

  “Morning” I reply while making my way towards her to give her a slow and possessive kiss. Ensuring that Christian fully understands that she is now off the market.

  When I pull away from our kiss, I gently instruct for her to “Go and put some pants on”. I don’t want to go all alpha male on her, but I also don’t want Christian getting any more sneak peaks at the backside that now only belongs to me.

  Jenni shakes her head gently while rolling her eyes, before she ends up walking into her room to place on some pants as I had requested. The instant she is out of the kitchen; I turn my eyes back to Christian.

  “I didn’t touch her as I knew she deserved better than a player” he advises, while moving off the stool and walking into the kitchen. Christian stands a little taller and his eyes narrow as he looks down at me. I would say Christian has maybe two more inches on my height, his build appears similar to mine, but it is hard to tell under his jogging shorts and gym shirt.

  “You didn’t touch her as she wouldn’t let you touch her” I respond confidently. I saw the way Jenni’s cheeks only got a pink hue once I walked into the kitchen. Her body doesn’t react to Christian like it does to me, making me confident I don’t have to worry about her ever running into his arms.

  “If you fuck her over, I’ll hunt you down” he whispers threateningly, making me smirk, since the list of people who are going to hunt me down continues to grow every day.

  The patter of Jenni’s bare feet becomes noticeable in the silence of our standoff. When she walks into the kitchen, she stands between Christian and I, her nervous eyes dart between us both.

  “Is everything okay?” she questions cautiously.

  Christians ends up breaking our intense stare off first. He turns towards Jenni and winks at her before placing a kiss on her cheek, forcing her eyes to dart to mine. I smile at her; I am not worried. She doesn’t even have the slightest bit of pinkness on her skin.

  When Christian left, Jenni and I enjoyed the choc chip pancakes she had prepared in silence. It wasn’t uncomfortable or tense, it just enhanced the connection between us. Every time she would notice my gaze watching her, she would smile and her neck would get a pink hue. I am never going to be able to eat pancakes again without getting a hard on. Syrup never tasted so good, until I licked it off her skin.

  The next few month’s things followed along a similar path between Jenni and I. I travelled to see her as often as my bank balance would allow and tomorrow Jenni is flying home for spring break. I can’t wait to see her again and I plan on spending every waking moment that I am not in the studio recording with her.

  This morning, I wake up eagerly anticipating my day with Jenni. I cheerfully walk into the kitchen and fill a mug full of hot steaming coffee. Dad peers up from his newspaper and looks at me curiously. I give him a quick smirk as I make my way to the fridge to add some milk to my coffee. Suddenly, I am startled when a pair of arms wrap around my waist. My body stiffens and my pulse quickens as I slowly turn around to face the person that has just embraced me from behind.

  “What the fuck are you doing here?” I question angrily.

  “Nicholas” my dad interrupts sternly. My confused eyes flick to my dad before returning back to look at Megan.

  “You’re always so funny” she giggles while slapping me playfully on the chest. I take a step away from her as my eyes turn to my dad.

  “Did you let her in?” I question firmly. My dad looks between Megan and I confused, before he eventually shakes his head.

  “How did you get into my house?” I enquire angrily.

  “You invited me here” she replies happily.

  When my eyes lower down, I realise that she is wearing the shirt I had left in the bathroom last night after I had showered. I can feel my anger starting to boil over, that I grab a hold of Megan’s forearm roughly and drag her back towards my room. Upon entering, I notice her dress, a small handbag and a pair of shoes leaning against a chair in my room. I quickly gather her items before I hastily make my way to the front of my house.

  “You said you love me, you said you wanted to have a baby with me” she cries as I deposit her and her clothing onto the front porch.

  When she mentions the baby, my eyes automatically dart down to her stomach, which is noticeably flat. I then start to wonder what ever happened to the baby she would have given birth to by now?

  She notices my gaze staring at her flat stomach, that she places her hand over her non-existent bump. “Don’t worry darling, daddy is just joking” she whispers, forcing my fearful eyes to turn back up to look at her face.

  “Do you think we will have a little boy or a girl?” she questions excitedly.

  I continue to stare at her completely confused. When she notices me watching her, she smiles brightly while fluttering her eyelashes. The screen door creaks before my dad stands next to me.

  “Is everything okay?” he questions softly, while his confused eyes watch Megan.

  “I think we will have a little girl” she continues, not even acknowledging that my dad has joined our conversation.

  “You need to leave” I inform sternly “and if I ever see you near me again, I’ll call the police” I continue.

  Megan confused and hurt eyes turn to look at me, they slowly roam over my face and she appears to be genuinely surpri
sed by my rejection. I keep my posture firm and nod my head towards her yellow car parked in the driveway, indicating for her to leave. A tear drips down her face before she slumps her shoulders and walks towards her car. I watch her car as she bolts out of the gravel driveway, only slowing down once she reaches the gate.

  Once I am happy that she has left our property, I turn to face my dad.

  “She was in the kitchen when I woke up this morning, she introduced herself as your girlfriend” he informs to my confused gaze.

  “She is not my girlfriend” I reply firmly. “You need to start locking up the house every night” I instruct as I make my way inside to call Isaac.

  My run in this morning with Megan has rattled me enough that I need advice from someone who has handled this type of situation before.

  Chapter 27

  Jenni

  I am home for two weeks of Spring break and had the full intention of getting as much fill of Nick as possible in those two weeks. For the first week I spent my days with Emily, while Nick and his band recorded in the studio and then my nights were spent with Nick. I was loving every minute of my vacation time, until I got hit with the worst stomach bug you could possibly imagine. I’m not able to hold anything down and even the smell of coffee makes me rush to the bathroom.

  Nick sounded disappointed when I called him to cancel our plans for tonight, but he said he understood. I decided to have any early night since I haven’t been able to hold down any nutrients, I’m incredibly tired. I had only been in bed for around an hour when I heard someone tapping on my door.

  “Come in” I instructed groggily.

  Maria walked into the room with a bowl that smelt distinctively like her famous chicken noodle soup. The aroma’s that filled my room made my stomach growl and my mouth water. I gave her a small smile that soon turned into a large grin when I noticed who followed in behind her.

  Nick. He came.

  “Hey, how are you feeling?” he questions once he walked over and knelt down next to my bed. His eyes slowly roaming over my paled face with concern.

  “I’ve been better” I respond truthfully, while trying my hardest not to breathe on him.

  The last thing he needs right now is to become sick. They are still putting the final touches on their album and then they will start doing some press junkets to promote it. He runs the back of his hand down my cheek, before leaning in and placing a kiss on my forehead.

  “You don’t feel hot, but you don’t look too good” he informs as he screws up his nose, forcing me to pout. When he notices my dropped lip, he lowers his mouth down and sucks my lip into his mouth.

  “I don’t want you to get sick” I say, while pulling away from his skilful lips.

  “It will be worth it” he responds while placing another kiss against my lips, allowing me to smell the minty freshness of his breath, which helps to settle my swirling stomach.

  “Scoot” Nick instructs against my lips, before he starts kicking off his shoes and undoing his belt.

  My eyes open wide in shock. Not just because Nick is currently stripping in front of me, but because we are at my parent’s house. Maria had kindly placed the soup on my bedside table and exited my room, but I knew my dad was home as I said goodnight to him in his office just before I came to bed.

  “My dad is here” I advise Nick who is now standing in front of me in nothing but his boxer shorts.

  Even though my stomach is swirling and I am deliriously tired, my eyes can’t help but roam over his body. Perfection, not overly muscly, not skinny, a little hint of his V muscle. Perfection!

  “I know, who do you think let me in?” he questions cheekily. “Now scoot” he instructs again while waggling his eyebrows.

  This time I wiggle over to the other side of my bed and watch as Nick pulls back the comforter and sheets and glides in. He repositions the mountain of pillows I have and I giggle softly when he throws a few of them off onto the floor. Once he has himself comfortable, he motions for me to move closer to him. I scoot across the bed and slide up so that I can lay my head against his bare chest.

  “Have you eaten anything today?” he questions sincerely. He sighs when I shake my head.

  “You have to eat or you will get even sicker” he states before he leans over and grabs the bowl of chicken noodle soup from my bedside table.

  He nudges me with his shoulder, requesting for me to lift my head. When I do, he lowers a spoonful of Maria’s famous chicken noodle soup into my mouth. I moan softly over the delicious flavors engulfing my taste buds, he grins at me, before offering me another spoonful. Our routine continues until I have eaten the whole bowl of chicken noodle soup.

  “Good girl” he praises softly.

  I snuggle back in closer to his chest and listen to the rapid beating of his heart, while he rubs my back in a circular motion. I feel safe and protected. I feel cherished and loved. Just as the words I have been wanting to say to Nick for months prepares to escape my lips, so does the chicken noodle soup.

  I dive over Nick and dart into the bathroom, just making it to the toilet in enough time. My body doesn’t stop heaving until every last drop of the soup is expelled. I groan as I lean my head against my forearm that is resting against the toilet bowl. I really wish Nick didn’t have to see me like this. He walks over to the vanity and wets a cloth before handing it to me. His eyes roaming over my face with concern.

  “Do you feel better?” he questions as he flushes the toilet and turns on the exhaust fan in my bathroom to try and rid the horrible smell of vomit. I nod my head, but continue to lean against my arm, since I feel so tired that I don’t have enough energy to move.

  Nick must notice my exhaustion as he bends down and scoops me into his arms to place me back into bed. This time he throws off nearly every pillow, bar two. Once he lays down, he gently pulls me towards him, spooning himself against my back. My blinking starts to become lengthened as my body starts to relax.

  “I love you Nick” I whisper as my exhaustion finally overcomes me.

  The next morning, I wake up feeling slightly better than the night before. My bed still feels warm from Nick’s body, but I don’t even need to open my eyes to know that he is gone. My body can tell when he is in the vicinity. When I do eventually open my eyes, I snap them back shut.

  “How long have you been sick?” my mom questions sternly.

  I roll over and try to hide my face into the pillow. The last thing I want to deal with is another stern talking to from my mom. I haven’t allowed Nick to tell anyone about our relationship as my mom can’t stand Nick. Actually, I think she hates him.

  “I have a bug” I mumble through my pillow.

  I hear her move closer to me, before she drops something onto my bed. My curious gaze slowly lifts from my pillow and I notice a brown paper pharmacy bag. When my eyes lift to look at my mom, she has her eyes narrowed and is shaking her head angrily. I open the paper bag and when I notice the contents inside my eyes instantly dart back to look at my mom.

  “I’m not pregnant” I inform sternly as my brain starts to calculate the last time I had my period. The swirling of my stomach starts to intensify as my heart rate climbs.

  ****

  I did all three tests my mom had brought and every one of them gave the same result. I am pregnant. Holy shit. When I walked out of the bathroom it only took one look from me for my mom to know the result without a single word escaping my lips.

  “How could you have been so stupid?” she yells angrily as her blue eyes fill with tears.

  “I told you to stay away from him and look what you go and do, he is going to destroy you Jenni”

  I instantly start shaking my head. I love Nick and I know he loves me. I know that he won’t be happy that we are having a baby, but I am sure overtime the idea will grow on him.

  “You have to get rid of it”

  “No” I interrupt “I can’t kill a baby” I continue while looking at my mom mortified. I can’t believe she would even suggest
for me to do such a thing.

  “I won’t let you do this; I won’t let you ruin your life like mine was ruined when I had you” she states venomously, causing a rush of tears to form into my eyes. I have always known I was a mistake, but hearing her say it makes it feel like daggers are being stabbed into my heart.

  “What’s so wrong with your life? You live in a stupidly large house, you have more money than you could ever spend, you ...”

  “What about love, I don’t have that” she interrupts angrily. I freeze and turn to stare at my mom. Her hurt and pain etched all over her face.

  “Daddy loves you” I inform confidently through the tears streaming down my face “and Nick loves me” I continue, forcing my mom to angrily shake her head.