Shot Caller (A Bad Boy's Baby Novel) (22 page)

“Shut
up, man! This is Maddox Walcott we’re talking about!”
his friend protests.

“I’m
just sayin’, bro,”
the
short guy shrugs, “Anything could happen.”

My
nerves start to fray as Maddox sets the ball down before him, taking stock of
the situation at hand. The crowd is losing its collective shit as the Sentinel
keeper paces in the net, getting ready to intercept the ball.

“Come
on, baby…”
I
whisper to myself, wrapping my arms around my waist. “You can do it.”

The
clock starts ticking again as play resumes. It’s now or never. With as much
powerful grace as ever, Maddox takes off toward the ball, cocking back his leg
to kick it in. The keeper leaps in the direction Maddox is aiming, putting his
all into the save. But at the last second, Mad stutter-steps, pivoting just a
hair. He’s faked the goalie out. As the Sentinel keeper goes flying through the
air, Mad sends the ball flying toward the opposite corner of the net. It sails
in a crisp, clean arc and lands squarely in the goal.

My
voice rises with twenty thousand others as Maddox puts the goal away. The
entire supporters section is up on its feet, jumping and cheering with all its
might. I’m right there with them, ecstatic for our team, for my favorite Mad
Man. I watch with immeasurable pride as Mad punches the air triumphantly,
taking in the entire stadium of roaring fans. But as his teammates come
sprinting toward him across the pitch, Maddox moves in the other direction,
racing toward the ball nestled in the Sentinel’s goal.

“What’s
he doing?!”
he
stocky guy in front of me yells.

“No
idea!”
his
friend replies, as Maddox grabs hold of the ball.

My
body goes stock still as Maddox turns my way. There’s no way he can know that
I’m up here, nestled among the most fervid Empire supporters. And yet, it’s
toward me that he looks as he stretches out his fresh jersey and shoves the
ball up under his top. The bulge that the ball creates under his shirt can only
mean one thing in footballing tradition. And as Mad sticks his thumb firmly in
his grinning mouth, the entire stadium takes his meaning all at once.

“Holy
shit, man!”
the
tall kid hollers, shaking his companion by the shoulders, “You know what that
means?!”

“Mad
Man’s having a kid!”
the
shorter guy bellows, raising his fists in the air.

“Dude,
do you think it’s with that trainer?”

“Probably,
bro! Didn’t you see them sucking face after Mad Man went down…?”

But
I don’t hear another word that the soccer bros utter. My mind is numb with joy
as I watch Maddox Walcott claim our baby as his own. This simple, silly gesture
means that he wants in. That he wants to be a part of this baby’s life—a part
of
my
life. He’s not going to bail and leave me to raise this kid on my
own. He’s going to be my partner. My teammate.

I should have known
, I think to
myself, happy tears streaming down my face as the Empire bury Maddox in an
ecstatic huddle. Maddox may be a devil-may-care, rule-breaking loose cannon,
but he’s the best teammate anyone could ever ask for. There was a time in my
life when an unexpected pregnancy would have felt like a burden, something
terrifying and unthinkable. But now, knowing that Maddox is here to support me,
I just feel…lucky.

And
as I lay my hands across the stomach, watching as Maddox kicks his game into
high gear, I know that I’m not the only lucky one in this picture.

“That’s
your dad down there,”
I
mutter, hoping that my baby can hear, “He’s a handful, but you’re gonna love
him…”

Just
like I do.

Epilogue

Poppy

October, 2016

Five months later…

The
crisp autumn air feels wonderful against my warm skin as I stand in the doorway
of the second story balcony. I’ve opened the french doors wide to let a little
sea breeze into our expansive new home. After months of living in a casino
hotel and a borrowed bungalow, Maddox and I finally took the leap and bought
ourselves an actual home. We’ve moved south along the New Jersey coast a bit to
Sea Isle City. Atlantic City didn’t exactly scream “new baby”
to either of us. But on a
clear day, you can still see the towering hotels and casinos reaching up over
the horizon a ways north.

To
be honest, I don’t mind the distance a bit.

I
raise my mug of steaming chamomile tea to my lips, blowing gently across the
surface to cool down the soothing brew. If you’d told me a year ago that I’d be
able to give up booze and caffeine all in one go, I would have called you a
damned fool. But then again, I did have the best motivation in the world to
kiss my vices goodbye. I let my hand drift down to my belly, proudly showing at
six months. This little bump of mine has changed everything.

“Hello?”
I hear my favorite voice
call out as the front door opens.

“Up
here,”
I
call back, “Did you get the stuff?”

“Like
I’d dare not to,”
Mad
replies, bounding up the stairs.

I
turn to see Maddox appear in the master bedroom doorway, bearing three bags of
Milano cookies.

“My
hero,”
I
laugh, leaning against the doorway.

“Yeah,
yeah…”
he
grins back, making his way toward me, “Tell me something I don’t know, preggo.”

These
past five months haven’t exactly been a cake walk for Mad and me. My pregnancy
has been a media sensation, to say nothing of the dramatic scene on the pitch
after Mad’s head injury during the Sentinel’s game. No matter how many times we
ask the press to respect our privacy during the pregnancy, they are, as Mad
would say, persistent little buggers. Moving out of Atlantic City has improved
things a bit, though. And having a partner who’s not afraid to throw some
punches if need be definitely helps.

“Did
you get to work with the new trainer today?”
I ask Mad, happily accepting his bounty of
baked goods.

“I
did,”
he
replies, “And I’m happy to report that he doesn’t seem like a total fucking
idiot like the last one.”

Barry
O’Leary was forced to resign soon after the debacle at the Sentinel’s game.
Chris Glover made the call himself, despite their close relationship. O’Leary
was so blinded by his backwards values that he almost let serious harm come to
Maddox that day. And to be honest, his mixed-up priorities were putting players
in jeopardy all season. The Empire hired a new head trainer, formerly of the
BPL. Hopefully things go a little better this time around.

“Speakin’
of our esteemed
colleagues,”
Mad
goes on, his eyes gleaming wickedly, “Ours have a bit of a surprise for you.”

“What
kind
of surprise?”
I
ask.

“I’m
not supposed to tell you,”
Mad
teases, “Just get dressed, and follow my lead.”

“Ohh
no you don’t,”
I
reply, wrapping my arms around his waist. “Spill, Walcott. What have they got
planned? And what does it have to do with me?”

“Can’t
very well say no to a pregnant lady. Who knows what you’re capable of with all
the hormones ragin’
around
in there,”
Maddox
grins, “If you must know, the guys want to throw us a bloody baby shower.”

I
stare at Maddox for a long moment, waiting for the “just kidding”
moment. But he’s dead
serious. A loud, raucous laugh rips out of me as I lay my forehead against his
chest, shoulders shaking with hilarity.

“They…They
want to…What?!”
I
crow, tears of laughter rising in my eyes.

“It
was Barlow’s idea, the fuckin’
softie,”
Maddox laughs, holding me
by the hips so that I don’t topple over because of this laugh riot.

“I
just…I just keep picturing them all playing ‘pin the tail on the pregnant lady’
or whatever it is you do
at baby showers,”
I
sigh, finally getting a hold of myself.

“I’m
sure they’ll be playing FIFA if anything, if it makes you feel any better,”
he assures me, “But
there’s only one way to find out. Go on, get dressed!”

Mad
spins me around toward my walk-in closet here in the master bedroom. I make my
way across the room, shrugging off my shawl and letting it fall on the king
sized bed. I can feel his eyes on me as I lift my cotton teddy over my head,
turning to face him in just my panties. When I was younger, part of me always
worried about what living in a pregnant body for nine months would do to my
self-esteem. We don’t exactly live in a society that’s very fond of curves,
after all. But standing here in front of Maddox, belly and breasts proudly
swollen with six months of pregnancy, I’ve never felt more confident. More
beautiful.

“Christ,”
Maddox murmurs, drinking
in the sight of me from across the room, “Do you have any idea how sexy you are
right now?”

“You
know something?”
I
smile, running a hand through my newly longer and voluminous hair, “I
do
.”

“Good,”
Mad grins, striding
toward me as he shucks off his t-shirt and lets it fall to the floor, “But I
still want to
show
you how much you turn me on…”

“I
thought we had to get ready for the baby shower,”
I tease, whipping open his belt
buckle the second he comes within range.

“We
will,”
he
tells me, stepping out of his jeans and briefs, “But first…”

I
take his staggering cock in my hands as he tugs down my cotton panties. A low,
satisfied groan rises from his firm lips as I work my hands along the length of
him. Slowly, I sit back on the bed and lower myself before him, laying on my
back as I plant my feet on the edge of the bed. Maddox runs his hands along my
body, savoring every inch of me as I let the tip of his cock brush against my
eager sex.

Once
upon a time, I would have thought that pregnant sex would be uncomfortable, or
awkward in some way. And don’t get me wrong, Mad and I certainly had to dial
back the rougher aspects of what goes down in our bedroom. But honestly? I
wouldn’t trade anything for the feeling of connection blazing between us now.
Mad meets my eyes as he presses into me, letting me feel every inch of his
glorious cock as I lay before him on our bed.

“God,
I love you…”
he
breathes, pushing back against my knees as he thrusts into me with deliciously
slow strokes.

“I
love you too, baby,”
I
gasp, my back arching as a sweet shot of pleasure radiates through my body.

It’s
not the first time we’ve dropping the “L word”
to each other, though god knows it
took long enough for both our stubborn selves to get there. All through the
first few weeks of our relationship, I tried to hold love at bay. The only
thing loving someone has gotten me in the past was a bruised and broken heart.

I
couldn’t have known that morning I first ran into Maddox on the boardwalk after
so many years that he wasn’t going to hurt me, too. I was so afraid of being
vulnerable to another man that I never stopped to think of all the good that
might come from loving a man like him. From a man like him loving me. I never
could have guessed how strong, and supported, and sexy I would come to feel,
being with him.

But
hell if I don’t know now.

I
close my eyes as the pounding pleasure swells in my core, ready to spill out
through my entire body. Mad lowers himself to his forearms above me, close to
the edge as he drives into me. I hook my ankles behind his back, drawing him
even deeper as we race toward climax together. My eyes flutter open as I careen
toward the cliff’s edge, locking with Maddox’s gleaming gray gaze.

Slipping
his strong hand behind my head, Mad pulls me into a deep, searing kiss as he
thrusts hard into my trembling body. Warm sensation bursts through me as we
come together, riding the wave of pleasure as it sweeps us up into pure bliss.
I clutch onto Mad’s broad back, burying my face against his shoulder as I cry
out in pleasure.

Spent,
we fall onto our sides on the bed, facing each other as our breathing
eventually evens out. The sound of waves crashing against the beach beyond our
window is a soothing lullaby as we lay there together, rendered speechless by
what we’ve just shared.

“Well,”
Mad says at last, “At least
we’ll be good and relaxed for this shower, right?”

“I
think I need a pre-shower shower,”
I laugh, rising onto my forearm, “Care to
join me?”

“Not
unless you’re looking for a round two,”
he growls, running his hand along my
hourglass side.

“What
makes you think I’m not?”
I
smile back, leaning forward to kiss along his neck.

“Jesus,
I love how horny being pregnant makes you,”
he groans, pulling me close.

“Well,
we’ve only got three more months,”
I remind him, tugging him toward the
shower, “Better make the most of them.”

THE END

Thank you for reading! Please take a moment to leave your honest
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