So if there was somebody new in the picture, maybe Dana would be happier. “He sent her roses to the studio,” Jessie informed me. “Isn’t that sweet? And definitely not a friend-type thing to do!”
“I guess we’ll know for sure if he bakes her some cookies,” I teased.
Walking through to the dining room where I’d set the table for dinner, I gave a small hum. “Are you deprived of roses? Do I need to send you flowers?” I had never actually sent Jessie flowers at work, but I had bought her some for the house. Maybe that didn’t count the same way since other people didn’t get to see her being romanced.
“It’s nice, though,” I added when Jessie swatted my arm playfully. “Dana, I mean. She deserves someone who will send her flowers. The same way you deserve someone who will make you your favorite food,” I informed her nodding at the things I’d prepared.
She beamed, helping herself to a taste straight from the pan, licking the sauce off her finger, and giving a satisfied sigh. “This is better than roses,” she said softly. “Roses are a good gesture when you don’t know someone very well yet. It shows that you’re thinking about them in a romantic way but it’s only temporary, so if they don’t really like roses they don’t have to keep them forever.”
When Jessie explained it like that, it actually made sense!
“But you’ve always known me well enough to do things that are especially for me! Besides, I still have those pink tulips you bought me when I moved in pressed in one of my scrapbooks.”
I grinned at that. It was nice, the way we had made a whole set of new memories. Our friendship was still there, under everything, but now there were also so many more layers.
Reaching for Jessie’s hand, I gave it a squeeze, before pulling her in closer against me so I could kiss her, too. “That’s because you’re low-key the most romantic person I know,” I teased.
It was kind of true. Jessie was more romantic than I had really known as her best friend, but she wasn’t so romantic that it felt like I had to constantly work towards something. We had a nice sort of calm between us and I was sure that came from having been best friends for so long.
“Anyway, maybe we should have Dana and her new boyfriend over for dinner or something? If the two of you have an evening free with the dance practice, or even after Christmas?”
Jessie smiled, leaning against my arm as she hopped up into the seat at my counter. It made me frown slightly. The last time I could remember Jessie needing help onto a stool was when her leg had still been recovering. Now that it was strong again, and she was able to dance as well as she ever had, there was no reason for her to lean on me. Not that I minded, but I wondered if she was more tired than I’d realized. Dancing the lead was a lot of work!
“I think after Christmas would be good,” Jessie agreed, reminding me that we’d been talking about Dana. “That gives them time to spend with just the two of them, you know? Meeting your girlfriend’s friends for the first time is a lot of pressure. Or so I’m told.” Jessie and I had known each other’s friends before we ever got together as a couple.
She tilted her head, twisting towards me so she could lean against my shoulder. “Besides, I think we’ll have something else occupying our minds this Christmas.”
“We already talked about this, we’re definitely not allowed to get a new dog,” I reminded her. It was somewhat of a joke. Jessie was much better than me at resisting just adopting dogs until they ate us out of home. We had discussed a small little dog but even that had been deemed probably too much.
From behind us, Damson barked and I gave Jessie a grin. “I think he would also prefer we not get more dogs,” I laughed. While our dogs weren’t very jealous, giving attention to everyone could still sometimes be a bit challenging.
Jessie’s lips twitched like she was trying not to laugh, her eyes sparkling at me as a dimple deepened at one corner of her mouth.
“Not a new dog,” she promised, “but… how would you feel about a different new addition to the family?”
“Wha--”
I didn’t even manage to finish the word before what Jessie was implying struck me.
A new addition to the family.
“Are you serious?!” I exclaimed, my eyes widening. From the way Jessie grinned at me, I was pretty certain she wasn’t about to suggest we get a cat. “Oh my God! Are you really?” I asked, my arms going out to hug Jessie, her legs wrapping around my waist when I picked her up in my excitement.
Her breath ghosted across my ear as she giggled, the sound making me feel warm all the way through. “Yes, really, I took the test this morning!” She pulled back a little, enough that I could see the way her whole face had lit up.
“You’re going to be such an amazing dad,” she said softly and, wow, the word hit me right in the center of my chest. I was going to be a dad. Not just to dogs, but to a real human baby!
A baby that was currently growing in Jessie. My arms softened around her, cradling her more carefully.
“And you’re going to be an amazing mom,” I told her easily, before shaking my head. “Fuck! A baby!” And then my eyes widened. “I probably shouldn’t swear.” Thankfully the baby inside Jessie was too small to understand me swearing yet. I could learn to stop by the time he or she was born.
This was... such a great Christmas present.
I told Jessie as much, making her laugh. “My parents are going to be thrilled,” I smiled. “Everyone will be thrilled! The team! I have to tell the team! When can we start telling everyone? It’s too early yet?” I knew that there was some ‘acceptable’ timeframe, so I wouldn’t rush to text everyone just yet.
“Can we tell the dogs?” I asked conspiratorially.
Jessie laughed, letting me put her back down on her seat. I kept my arm around her, not wanting to give up the contact just yet. I gazed down, trying to work out if she looked any different than she had that morning.
But she’d been pregnant this morning, too. We just hadn’t known about it!
She hummed, looking down at the dogs around my feet. “Do you think we can trust them not to tell?” she asked, laughter in her eyes.
That was an important question and I glanced over my shoulder at where Damson was still watching us. “I think we could risk it,” I decided. “I mean, they do deserve to know about their human sibling.” I had no idea how the dogs would react to a baby, but I assumed they would be excited about yet another human.
Having Jessie move in had been very exciting for the dogs, so I was sure they’d feel the same about a baby.
“We’re going to have a real human baby!” I informed Jessie. Then, I frowned. “How are we going to decide if they should learn hockey or dancing? Can they do both?”
Jessie laughed, leaning in to press a kiss against my lips. She did hesitate, then, giving my question some serious thought. I appreciated that about Jessie. I always gave her questions thought, and I liked that she’d learned to do the same for me.
“They can do both,” she decided, “until they’re old enough to tell us they prefer one or the other. Or something else.” It was hard to imagine that our child wouldn’t love either hockey or dancing. But then, my hockey obsession certainly hadn’t come from either of my parents, so we would have to be open to the possibility.
With a smile, Jessie helped herself to a forkful of the pasta I’d made for her. “Maybe we’ll have a little ice dancer,” she suggested. “That kind of combines both our hobbies.”
“So like an ice skater?” I asked with a thoughtful hum. “I suppose that’s okay.” Then, I gave Jessie a grin. It was definitely too early to decide exactly what our very freshly baked baby would do, but the fact that we could talk about it was exciting.
“You’re a great best friend,” I proclaimed. “You make me very happy every day.” And Jessie really did. Her being my best friend had been pretty amazing: knowing each other since we were ten, sharing a birthday.
But her being so much more than my best friend was even m
ore amazing. Whatever I had worried about was long gone now and instead all I had was this utter feeling of content.
Jessie was my best friend.
Jessie was going to be the mom to my baby.
Jessie was my everything and I couldn’t possibly ask for more.
Other books by Camellia Tate
Salt Lake Pumas Series
Gloves Dropped
El Sterling ruined my life once. I’m not giving her a chance to do it a second time.
I’ve made mistakes.
Mistakes that I’ve learned from.
I’ve come a long way to make it as captain of the Salt Lake Pumas.
So of course, that’s when she comes back.
The girl who ruined my life twelve years ago.
But not again.
I’m a changed man. I’ve worked hard for this.
My head knows I need to ignore the woman El has become.
My body’s much more easily swayed.
The fire in her eyes burns through my cool-headed defenses.
No one told me that giving in to the sparks between us might make me change all over again.
A 68k standalone, enemies-to-lovers hockey romance!
Body Checked
Falling for a man who thinks romance is pointless is the stupidest thing I’ve done this year!
Everything happens for a reason.
The universe wouldn’t bring a smart, sexy NHL player like Will Green into my life if we weren’t supposed to connect.
Romance is more than just flowers and candy.
I’ll prove it to him.
Except, Will doesn’t do relationships.
Married to his NHL career, he told me that romance is a ‘waste of time’!
That should be the end of it.
But destiny keeps bringing us together.
Even our dogs have formed a bond.
It has to mean something, and I will put my heart on the line to figure out what.
A 66k standalone hockey romance with a guaranteed happily ever after!
Penalty Counted
They say you should never fall in love with a bad boy. But what do you do when a bad boy falls in love with you?
I love to party.
Irresponsible, reckless and wild.
As a quickly rising star in the NHL, I can be whatever I want to be.
Meeting Morgan Acton changes all of that.
She is the bad girl to match my bad boy.
Our lust is instant, burning fast and strong.
But it’s what comes after that stands the chance of ruining everything.
I shouldn’t fall in love with her.
She's too intense to resist.
Her body calls to me and her recklessness makes me want to take that leap.
I might be a bad boy, but everything I know will be tested by her.
And I cannot wait.
A 69k standalone bad boy hockey romance with a twist!
Home Matched
Better to have loved and lost than never loved at all. Isn’t that what they say? Why does nobody have advice for what happens when the love you lost walks right back into your life?
I was in love, once.
We were too young, too uncertain.
My NHL career wasn’t compatible with her law school ambitions.
Promising to marry Helena Worth was the best decision I ever made.
And watching her walk away?
The biggest disappointment of my life.
Ten long years later, my brother is marrying Helena’s best friend.
A whole summer in our small town brings long lost feelings crashing over me.
Falling back in love with my first girlfriend is a dangerous game.
My love of hockey ruled my heart once.
Putting my career first again might break hers completely.
This summer will test everything I know.
About love.
About home.
And about myself.
A 65k standalone second chance summer hockey romance!
Madison Howlers Series
Game Plan
Sometimes, knowing the name of your soulmate is more trouble than it’s worth. That’s how Connor Lewis feels when photographs of his soulmark get published.
The hockey fans go crazy. Every Ashley in the Madison area is wild to convince Connor that she’s the one. All Connor wants to do is focus on his game.
Ashley Walton isn’t looking for a soulmate. She wants a relationship based on something real.
That makes her perfect for what Connor has planned. He asks if she’ll pretend to be his girlfriend, on the understanding that it’s just until the media frenzy dies down.
They expect it to be a few months, at most. Ashley’s really more interested in learning from the Howlers’ PR team than she is in Connor.
At least at first.
Everything about their ‘relationship’ is a show staged for the press. Except, Connor spends every waking moment with Ashley on the brain. Finding out she wants to move miles away for her dream job hits him like a body-slam into the boards.
The closer they get, the more Connor is willing to risk to keep Ashley at his side. Falling in love wasn’t in their game plan, so Connor takes matters into his own hands...
Best Shot
Finding your soulmate is supposed to be easy! Especially when everyone carries their soulmate’s name written on their skin.
Best friends Thea and Doe would never fall out over a man. Doe’s soulmark reads ‘Blake’ and Thea’s is ‘Frederick’, so the possibility has never crossed their minds.
Enter Blake Ashbury. Thea is first to meet the gorgeous hockey player. As soon as she finds out his name, she gives playing matchmaker her best shot. She should be over the moon to introduce Doe to her soulmate. It doesn’t matter that Thea is the one who loves Blake’s jokes, or that his touch feels like fire and electricity. Blake isn’t meant to be with her, so Thea will back off.
At least, that’s the plan.
Blake never expected meeting his soulmate to be so complicated. Doe is sweet. She’s everything Blake thought he wanted in a girlfriend. He can’t understand why it’s Thea who makes his pulse race!
Thea and Blake aren't meant to be together, so why is it so hard to keep the chemistry between them down? The longer they spend together, the harder it becomes to remember that they need to keep their distance!
Empty Net
A tiny portion of the population have empty space where the name of their soulmark should be.
Ryan Newell believes that hockey is his one true love. Knowing he doesn’t have a soulmate, he gives his heart to the Madison Howlers. It’s only his body that he gives away freely.
A little too freely. A scandalous picture lands him in hot water with the team’s PR. To fix his rep, they send him off to fundraise for a local charity.
That’s where he meets Naomi Stone. Being blind since birth, Naomi has never seen the name that’s written on her skin. All she knows is that Ryan makes her pulse race and her skin tingle in ways she’s never felt before.
As things heat up between them, Ryan starts to feel like he’s in over his head. Having a girlfriend isn’t something you can train for. Knowing that he can’t be Naomi’s soulmate is a thought that Ryan can’t escape.
Finding love is hard enough without knowing you are no one’s destiny.
Goal Line
When your dad owns an NHL team, you meet a lot of hockey players.
Annie’s daddy made her promise she’d never date one of the Green Bay Mammoths. That suited her just fine. Her interest was in their skills on the ice, not off.
But Devon Oakley changes everything.
Ever since she discovered the name of her soulmate, Annie has been waiting to meet him. And Devon’s just as dedicated to his soulmark match as he is to his team.
But there’s always a catch. Devon doesn’t play for Green Bay. He’s the goalie for their greatest rivals!
; Annie has to know: is true love bigger than ice hockey loyalty?
There’s only one way to find out...
Final Score
Finding a soulmate is different for everyone. Lev and I met at the side of the road and became friends over a common language. Then I had to tell him that I couldn't see him anymore.
Maria Rawlins is the best friend anyone could ask for.
Funny. Passionate. Twice shy.
Under her insistence that she doesn’t need a man is a yearning for the kind of meant-to-be connection that her mom and sister have both found. She wants a Russian soulmate who loves life as much as she does.
A man who’ll make time to be with her, who’ll see her as his equal.
She doesn’t notice Lev settling into the empty space in her heart. Not until there’s no way to stop it.
Friend Locked (Salt Lake Pumas) Page 20