by Chloe Morgan
EPILOGUE
ALISON
Eight Months Later
“You know, you’ve got a hell of a short game,” I said.
“Wow, another compliment on my minigolf skills. I believe, Professor Blake, you’re finally softening up to me,” Keith said, grinning.
I watched him putt the ball into the hole, and I groaned. Holy shit, Keith was two ticks away from whipping my ass. I was struggling just to keep up with the man! I mean, did he play the damn sport every weekend? Because I would have never paired him up with being a minigolf master. Yet, here he was, three strokes ahead of me. And every time I caught up, he always sank a hole in one to help him keep his position.
I actually think he was holding back on me.
“Didn’t think your weekend on Catalina Island would result in something like this, huh?” Keith asked, chuckling.
“I didn't think any minigolf trip with you anywhere would result in something like this,” I said.
“Yeah, well. I played a lot as a kid. Helped me to get out all my frustrations.”
“You mean the frustrations that came from getting your ass whooped all the time?”
“Among other things. I mean, there was this shrew of a girl who had just the nastiest streak about her.”
“I resent that,” I said flatly.
Keith chuckled as I putted my ball into the hole. I was officially four strokes behind now, and we were on the last three holes. I had to do something desperate in order to turn the tide in my direction. Otherwise, Keith might finally have his first victory over me.
I mean, other than stealing my heart out from underneath my feet.
The past eight months had been very fun. Full of life events I had never once given thought to, until I fell in love with Keith. After two months of being together, he helped me break my lease at the apartment complex so I could move in with him. And six months in? He proposed at his annual New Year’s Eve party. It was one of the most romantic things alive. When the ball dropped and the clock struck midnight, I looked around for him so I could lay a massive kiss right on his lips.
And instead, I found him down on one knee, with a great big smile on his face.
My eyes gravitated over to my diamond ring as it shimmered in the sunlight we were afforded for our weekend together.
Some things never changed, though. We still competed like crazy every Friday night at his game night. We tried to out-cook one another in the kitchen and out-bake one another with fundraising competitions on campus. But even so, I couldn’t remember a time in my life where I’d felt so content.
But I wouldn’t feel that way if I lost this damn minigolf game.
“Ready to get your ass whooped?” Kevin asked, grinning.
I watched him sink a hole in one, and I knew I had to resort to another kind of tactic. I stepped up to the hole and managed to sink a hole in one as well, keeping the score close.
But when we moved onto the penultimate hole, I unbuttoned the top couple buttons of my blouse.
“Getting hot?” Keith asked, grinning.
I fluffed my hair out and ran my hand over my chest.
“Where is that breeze from a moment ago?” I asked.
“Uh-huh. Not going to work this time. I don’t think public sex is my thing,” he said cheekily.
He sank the putt in three shots, and I knew I’d have to turn to a nuclear option on the last hole in order to stand a chance.
I watched as Keith lined up his shot. If he sank a hole in one on this last one, I was done for. I’d never be able to catch up, or even tie the damn game. He needed three swings on this hole to give me a chance, so I readied myself and stuffed down my nerves.
He pulsed his putter once. Twice. Three times. And when he pulled it back to hit the ball…
“I’m pregnant,” I blurted out.
He hit the ball so hard it bounced off the little white wall around the green and flew into the water. I watched it plunk into the makeshift river, sinking to the bottom as the rushing water trickled along down the stream. I heard Keith’s putter drop, and my eyes whipped back over to him, watching his jaw drop open.
“Don’t you dare tell me you’re just joking. Because if you aren’t, that’s low. Even for you,” Keith said.
I reached into my back pocket and pulled out the ultrasound picture. The one I had taken two weeks before our trip. It was only meant to be a routine checkup. Especially after getting over a sinus infection I caught. And that doctor’s appointment spiraled into the most fearful and most exciting discovery of my life.
I handed it over to Keith as his eyes watered with tears.
“You’re pregnant,” he whispered.
“We’re pregnant,” I said.
“Holy shit, we’re pregnant!”
His arms flew around me, and he picked me up off my feet. I laughed out loud as he spun me around, then dropped me down into his arms. My feet barely touched the ground as he let out a whoop and a holler, one of many I’d heard during the multiple sporting events I attended with him on campus. He slid his hand into my hair and kissed me, without a care in the world as to the fact that he’d just desperately lost the minigolf game.
Then again, I didn't really care about my win, either.
A first, for me.
“Oh, my god. You’re pregnant,” he whispered.
I nuzzled my nose against his as his hand fell to my stomach.
“I am. We are. But that’s also a two-stroke penalty for losing your ball,” I said, giggling.
My eyes fluttered open and I found him playfully glaring at me.
“You tricked me,” he said, chuckling.
I shrugged. “The timing of my announcement might have been deliberate, yes.”
He laughed as he pulled me in for another kiss, dipping me down as our tongues intertwined.
“I love you so much, Alison,” he murmured.
Our lips parted as he raised me up, steadying me on my feet.
“I love you, too, Keith. So very much.”
I settled my hand over his on my stomach, gazing deeply into his eyes.
“We’re going to have a baby,” he said, laughing.
“Are you ready for something like this?” I asked.
He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear before kissing my forehead.
“With you at my side, I’m ready for anything,” he said.
And as he wrapped his arm around me to pull me close, the last of the minigolf game was forgotten about.
The End
Want More?
Check out Finding Real Love!
Get your copy HERE!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Chloe is a hometown girl from Tennessee who loves a great short romance, drinking coffee most of the day, and hanging out with family. When she's not writing, she can be found playing the piano or surfing Facebook!
Having been a reader all her life, she's hoping that you'll find yourself lost to time, laughing and falling in love all over again with her books.
Website - Facebook
Romance Rivals
Copyright © 2019 by Chloe Morgan.
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
The novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and plot are all either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons – living or dead – is purely coincidental.
Editor: Sandra Depukat
Cover Designer: Ryn Katryn Digital Art
Table of Contents
Title Page
Contents
Description
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Epilogue
Want More?
About the Author
Copyright