by L. P. Dover
Callie held up the sapphire bracelet I bought her. “Thanks, Lace. It’s gorgeous.”
“You’re welcome.”
I opened up my other gifts, but there wasn’t anything from Maddox. He stared at me and I lifted my brows. “Did you forget about me?”
His grin widened. “Nope. I’m not ready to give you yours yet. I’ll think about giving it to you when we get to the beach house tomorrow.”
I glared at him. “You’re evil.” Once everyone was done with their gifts, they all stared at me. “Okay, we can go upstairs. Just let Maddox open the nursery door.” Maddox took off for the stairs and I burst out laughing. The others raced up after him. “Wait for me!” I shouted.
Dallas and Braeden walked up with me and everyone moved out of the way so I could stand by the door. Maddox’s eyes twinkled and I couldn’t wait for him to see the room. “Dallas and Braeden painted the walls, but I decorated the rest.”
Maddox had his hand on the doorknob, impatience written all over his face. I gave him a nod and he opened it. Everyone piled inside and they all gasped in excitement. The walls were blue to match the Strikers color. Maddox walked over to the wall where I had my ultrasound pictures framed. You could clearly see it was going to be a boy.
With tears of joy, my parents hugged me, followed by everyone else along with their congratulations. They all slipped out of the room, leaving Maddox and me alone. He had yet to look at me. His hands were on the crib rail and his gaze was on the comforter. I’d had it custom made with the Strikers logo and Maddox’s number. I was pretty sure with having a boy he’d follow in his father’s footsteps.
“Maddox?” I whispered.
Turning to me, he pulled me into his arms, his voice thick. “I told you we were having a boy.” His shoulders shook and I held him tight.
“We are. I can just imagine him having your dark hair and blue eyes.”
He leaned back and looked into my eyes. “Let’s just hope he’s responsible like you.”
“Are you happy?” I asked.
His hands clasped my face. “Nothing could make me happier right now. Maybe next time we’ll have a girl. It’ll be fun to threaten all of her boyfriends.”
I giggled. “I can totally see you doing that.”
Pressing his forehead to mine, he kissed me. “Thank you for everything. This Christmas is by far the best yet.”
“It’s not over,” I whispered. “There’s something else I have for you.”
He leaned back. “What?”
I glanced down into the crib. “Look under the comforter.”
Brows furrowed, he pulled back the blanket and found a large envelope. “What’s this?”
“Open it up.”
Inside was a stack of papers, all signed and ready to be sent. He skimmed over the first page and a smile lit up his face. “I didn’t think you’d ever do it. I’ve wanted this from the very beginning.” In his hands, were the documents allowing me to change my name from Lacey Easton to Lacey Ledger.
Taking the papers, I set them down and wrapped my arms around his neck. “Merry Christmas, Maddox.”
His eyes glistened. “Merry Christmas, Mrs. Ledger.” He kissed me and I melted into his arms. “Damn, I love the sound of that. Let’s go tell everyone.”
Giggling, I took his hand. “Gladly.”
Epilogue
Lacey
The beach breeze was cool and crisp, but without the snow from home. Maddox had a few more days of Christmas vacation before he had to get back to the rink, so I took off the extra days from the hospital. I’d missed the beach house. I hadn’t been to it since our tryst in the summer.
Rocking back and forth in the rocking chair and looking out at the water was so peaceful. The steaming cup of hot chocolate and marshmallows made it even better. The baby must’ve loved it, too. Every time he kicked, I smiled. Maddox loved it when he could feel his son moving in my belly.
My phone rang. Callie’s name appeared on the screen. “Hey, girl.”
“Hey. What are you doing?”
“Looking out at the ocean and freezing my ass off. What are you guys up to?”
“Oh, nothing much, just hanging out at home. I wanted to tell you sooner but I didn’t want to take any attention away from you and Maddox yesterday.”
I gasped. “Oh my God. What’s going on?”
She giggled. “Is Maddox around? Dallas and I want to tell you together.”
The door opened and Maddox stepped out, bringing another blanket. He set it over my lap and stepped back when he saw how excited I was. “You okay?”
“Callie, I’m putting you on speaker so Maddox can hear.” He moved his seat over and looked at me like I’d lost my mind.
“Everything okay?”
“Hey, Mad,” Callie announced.
“Sup, brother,” Dallas chimed in.
Brows furrowed, Maddox glanced down at the phone. “Hey, guys. You all right?”
Callie snickered. “We’re perfect. Dallas and I have something we want to tell you two.” A few seconds passed. “We’re having a baby!”
Squealing with excitement, I clapped my hands together. “Holy shit, that’s so awesome. Congratulations.”
A wide grin spread across Maddox’s face. “Baby fever, Dallas. I knew it’d rub off on Callie.”
Dallas snorted. “Got that right. She’s been all over me.”
“Whatever,” Callie snapped playfully. “More like vice versa. Don’t let him fool you, guys. He’s wanted a baby just as much as me.”
I giggled. “Now our kids can grow up together. It’ll be one big, happy family. It’s going to be great.”
“Yes, it is,” Callie added. I couldn’t see her face, but I could tell she was smiling. “Enjoy your time at the beach, you two. Dallas and I have a ton of people to tell. We’ll be on the phone all day.”
“Good luck with that.” I laughed.
“Thanks. I’ll see you when you get back.”
We hung up and I couldn’t stop grinning. “This vacation gets better and better.”
Maddox chuckled. “Even with you freezing your ass off?”
“I was fine,” I said, laughing.
He looked over at me, his brows lifted. “I could see you shivering. It’s cold out here.”
“How did your call go?”
His grin widened. “Just booked another job. As of right now, I’m going to be swamped next year. Ledger Landscape and Design is going to be one hot commodity.”
“It already is. Soon, you’re going to be in home and garden magazines everywhere. When you do decide to retire, you’ll have everything in place.”
“I will,” he murmured. “And maybe we’ll have a bigger family by then, too.”
“You’re already talking about having more kids?” I laughed and shook my head.
A mischievous glint sparkled in his eyes. “What? I want a large family. It’ll be fun making them.”
“You’re too much. But yes, it’ll definitely be fun making them.” The wind picked up and I snuggled further into the blankets. “We still need to come up with a name for our son. Any ideas?”
“Is it bad that I really want him to have my name?”
I chuckled. “No. I think it’s a cute idea. I’ve been calling him Maddox Jr. anyway. Think of the sensation it’ll cause if he plays hockey.”
He gazed off at the horizon. The clouds were gray and they swirled with the wind. “Hopefully, he will. I’ll teach him everything I know. Or who knows, he might follow in your footsteps and become a doctor.”
“I doubt it. If we have a girl, I’ll make sure she takes after me. Then again, she’ll probably want to be like her daddy.”
Maddox beamed. “I can only hope. Callie plays hockey and she turned out great.”
“That she did. And now they’re having a baby as well. Our kids can grow up just like you, Callie, Justin, and their brothers.”
“We had some good times. I hated it when I moved away.”
I grabbed his hand. “I
t all turned out good in the end.”
“That it did. I’m just glad my father got a second chance at life. He and my mom are so happy right now. I’ve never seen him smile so much.”
“Sometimes it takes awhile to realize what you have. For me, it took years. I was stupid.”
He squeezed my hand and kissed it. “You came back to me. That’s all that matters.” He stood and I thought he was going to go inside, but instead, he bent down on his knee. Taking both of my hands, he looked right into my eyes.
“You okay?” I asked.
His thumbs rubbed soothing circles over my knuckles. “I love you, Lacey. I know you don’t want to have a big wedding right now, and that’s fine, but I thought maybe we could renew our vows in seven years. It’ll be our tenth anniversary by then.”
I burst out laughing. “Really? You’re crazy.”
He shrugged. “It’ll be fun. We can do it every ten years if you want. Besides, you deserve a real wedding, even if you don’t think it’s necessary.”
By the look in his eyes, he wasn’t going to back down. As much as I wanted to deny it, I really wanted an actual wedding with family and friends. When my father found out I was married already, he was hurt that he wasn’t able to give me away. I was his baby girl. “Okay,” I gave in. “We can renew our vows for our ten-year anniversary. That way, my father can walk me down the aisle. I’m sure by then we’ll have a daughter and she can be our flower girl.”
His eyes twinkled. “I can’t wait.” Reaching behind his back, he pulled out a long black velvet box. Brows furrowed, I stared at it and he laughed. “It’s your Christmas present.”
“Oh, so now you let me have it?” I teased.
He handed me the box and I opened it, only to gasp in surprise. There was a necklace inside with a diamond heart charm, but beside that charm was an exquisite diamond ring with sapphire side stones.
“Oh, Maddox, it’s gorgeous,” I cried.
He took out the necklace and clasped it around my neck. “The necklace is your Christmas present, but the ring is just because. I told you I wasn’t going to let any wife of mine wear that forty-five-dollar piece of junk we got in Vegas.”
Laughing, I held up my hand. “It’s not like I could wear it anyway. My fingers are swollen.”
“That’s why I put it on the necklace for now,” he said, nodding at the ring dangling against my chest. “Once the baby comes, you’ll be able to wear it. I just wanted you to have it now.”
Wrapping my arms around his neck, I kissed him hard. “I love you so much.”
“I love you, too. Which is why I have something else to tell you.”
Heart racing, I asked, “What is it?” He glanced down at my belly and placed his hands on me. Little Maddox kicked him and he smiled. “Do you think he recognizes my voice?”
“I’m sure he does. You talk to him all the time.”
“I want to be there for him. Every moment is so important.”
“That it is.”
He met my gaze. “That’s why once the play-offs are over, I’m retiring.”
Eyes wide, I gasped. “Retiring from hockey?”
He nodded. “I love it. You know I do, but you and the baby are more important to me. I don’t want to be traveling all the time and missing those special moments with my son. I want to be here…with you and him.”
Tears filled my eyes. “Are you sure that’s what you want? I don’t want you regretting—”
He placed a finger to my lips. “I’m not going to regret it, sunshine. The only thing I will regret is sacrificing time with my family. You’re the only thing I’ll ever need.”
Lips trembling, I kissed his finger and held his hand to my cheek. “Are you sure?”
“I’ve never been more certain about anything in my life. I love you, Lacey. I have from the very beginning.”
“How did I get so lucky?” The tears fell down my cheeks.
Maddox wiped them away and smiled. “You stole my heart. No one’s ever been able to do that.”
Pressing my forehead to his, I breathed him in. “And you stole mine. Just promise me you’ll keep it safe.”
“I promise. Always.”
I want to dedicate this book to all the amazing women out there who took a chance on a misunderstood bad boy. I know I did and there are no regrets. I’m a firm believer that everyone deserves a second chance at love.
Acknowledgments
I want to start out by thanking my readers. Without you, I wouldn’t be able to write.
To Sue Grimshaw—thank you for dealing with my craziness.
To Kim Walker—you’re amazing as always. You keep me sane.
To all of my Dover’s Darlings—thank you for all your love and support.
Lastly, I want to thank my husband and two amazing daughters for putting up with me when I get caught up in my writing binges. Sometimes I forget to cook dinner or wash my hair. They still love me anyway and I’ll always be grateful for it.
BY L. P. DOVER
Second Chances
Catching Summer
Defending Hayden
Intended for Bristol
Breakaway Novels
Hard Stick
Blocked
Playmaker
More Second Chances Novels
Love’s Second Chance
Trusting You
Meant for Me
Fighting for Love
Intercepting Love
Last Chance
Armed & Dangerous Series
No Limit
Roped In
High-Sided
Gloves Off Series
A Fighter’s Desire—Part One
A Fighter’s Desire—Part Two
Tyler’s Undoing
Ryley’s Revenge
Winter Kiss: Ryley and Ash
Paxton’s Promise
Camden’s Redemption
Kyle’s Return
Society X Series
Dark Room
Viewing Room
Play Room
Forever Fae Series
Forever Fae
Betrayals of Spring
Summer of Frost
Reign of Ice
Circle of Justice Series
Trigger
Target
Aim
Royal Shifters Series
Turn of the Moon
Resisting the Moon
A Very Merry Christmas Novel
It Must’ve Been the Mistletoe
Standalone Novel
Love, Lies, and Deception
PHOTO: REGINA WAMBA
L. P. DOVER is the New York Times bestselling author of the Second Chances series, the Forever Fae series, the Gloves Off series, the Armed and Dangerous series, the Society X series, the Royal Shifters series, and a standalone novel, Love, Lies, and Deception. She loves to not only write, but to play tennis, hike in the mountains, go white-water rafting, and sing. A southern belle with a former life in periodontics, L. P. Dover lives in North Carolina with her husband and two beautiful girls.
lpdover.com
Facebook.com/lpdover
Twitter: @LPDover
Read on for an excerpt from
Reed
A Cold Fury Hockey Novel
by Sawyer Bennett
Available from Loveswept
Chapter 1
Reed
“We are so good together, baby,” she pants from underneath me. “The paparazzi got some amazing shots of us tonight, and your silver tie complemented my dress wonderfully.”
A bead of sweat trickles down my temple as I start to drive deeper.
Harder.
Faster.
Anything to get her to stop talking. How in the fuck she can have coherent thoughts when her ankles are resting on my shoulders is beyond me. I sure as hell can’t think straight. Nothing past getting her off so I can tumble after.
“I’m going to Fiji next week,” she tells me in staccato bursts, each word popping out of her m
outh to match my thrusts. “You should come with—”
Fuck this.
I pull out, flip her over, and draw her up to her hands and knees. I drive back in and am rewarded with a long moan in return that seems to go on and on and on.
Finally. Her yammering has given way to the sounds of pleasure, and I can get back in the game.
One hand on her hip, the other on her shoulder to hold her steady, I give it to her hard. She told me that’s what she likes, but fuck if you’d know that by the way she was trying to carry on a conversation.
This position seems to work, and all talk of a trip to Fiji seems to be forgotten. As my breath starts coming out faster and my balls tighten, her moans turn into screams.
Sharp, piercing, eye-watering screams. The type that make me think my ears are bleeding, and I suddenly long for her to start talking again.
I consider for a brief moment slapping my hand over her mouth, but thankfully she lets out one last blood-curdling shriek as she starts to come. Probably more from relief her screams will stop than from anything else, I go ahead and let loose, one last thrust, and I have a lukewarm orgasm at best.
Flopping to the mattress beneath me, I’m boggled when she turns over and says, “Like I was saying, you should come to Fiji with me. I’m doing a swimsuit shoot and…”
She keeps talking but I stop listening. Jesus, when did casual sex get to be so difficult? It makes me wonder if celibacy and the palm of my hand isn’t the better option. I roll off the mattress and pull the condom off. I notice her sit up on the bed, her mouth still moving as words pour out. I stare at her, and I just don’t hear a word.
With a sigh, I head into my bathroom, where I ditch the condom in the toilet and flush. Bracing with my hands on the vanity, I lean forward and take a good, hard look at myself in the mirror.