As if those were the words Mom needed to hear, she said, “This house has felt empty for too long since Lucas started college. A grandchild would inject life back into these walls.”
Kaylee breezed in. “So, is everyone cool? Can we group hug then finish eating? I would like to taste that pumpkin pie.”
Laughter filled the room.
As we huddled for a group hug, I was bursting with love and joy. I was building a family, something I thought was more of a pipe dream than football, and I had the most amazing woman, who would be the mother of our child, at my side to share it all with.
This wasn’t just our happy ending. It was our new beginning. Imperfect, messy, and a little scary—but I wouldn’t want it any other way.
Epilogue
Mazzie
One year later
* * *
Sixty thousand fans roared as the San Antonio Stallions kicked off, the sound rattling through my chest as I held our son, Connor. He was strapped to me in a baby carrier and dressed in his daddy’s team colors—silver and black—and he was wearing headphones to knock out the noise level.
“Look, Connor, there’s your daddy on the sidelines,” I said even though he couldn’t hear me. “This is his first game as a starter.”
I couldn’t be more excited for Lucas. As a rookie, he hadn’t gotten much playing time, but one of the team’s starting wide receivers had gotten injured in the last game.
“I am so nervous for him,” said Priscilla, who was sitting to my right.
Lucas’s mom had been supportive and by my side since we told her I was pregnant. I always believed I could handle anything on my own, including a baby. I was so wrong. Without Lucas’s mom, I would be pulling my hair out because of the feedings, the diapers, and baths. She’d invited me to move in with her after the baby was born to help me while Lucas was away for football. I hesitated at first because I didn’t want to leave Kaylee. But my sister was well taken care of by the Armstrongs and happy in her home environment. I didn’t want to disrupt that. I also didn’t want Kaylee to be burdened with baby duty like I had been when my mom had Kaylee.
Regardless, Priscilla was adamant that I concentrate on school and graduate. Thankfully, after Lucas signed a contract, our financial worries were off the table. I still worked at the country club. I needed to contribute, but I also needed to save as much as I could for medical school. Once I graduated, I wouldn’t have the luxury of my dad’s money. He hadn’t been pleased when I told him I was pregnant, but I didn’t care since he’d never really been part of my life.
“It’s second down,” Kaylee, who was sitting to my left, said excitedly.
My sister knew football inside and out. Since watching Lucas’s homecoming game, she’d been hooked.
The team huddled, the quarterback calling the play, and I couldn’t help but think of Lucas’s best friend, Ryker, now playing for the Portland Pioneers. The two of them had dreamed of the moment they’d both be playing in the NFL. While they were stoked for each other, it stung that they weren’t on the same team. Maybe one day.
I watched the play as the quarterback threw the ball. The crowd jumped to their feet as number 23—Lucas—caught the ball.
“Go, Lucas!” Kaylee shouted.
Goose bumps crawled up my arms as we cheered him on until he got tackled on the ten-yard line.
I sat back down, kissing my son on the head. “Your daddy almost scored.”
Kaylee giggled. “You know he can’t hear you, but he is smiling.”
Connor seemed to always have a smile on his face, but this one was nothing like his smile when he laid eyes on Lucas. Oh my. My heart skipped beats whenever Lucas was holding his son.
The teams were in position.
“Come on, Lucas,” I said to myself, bouncing Connor.
The Stallions’ quarterback had the ball. Fans were chomping at the bit for that first touchdown of the game. Lucas’s mom was holding her hands, prayer style.
I glued my gaze to number 23. It was hard to believe that one year ago to the day, we’d fallen into the pool at his party by accident, and since then, we’d gone through bumps and bruises, but I would do it all over again to be exactly where I was—holding our son as we watched his father live his dream.
The stadium lights brightened as dusk colored the late-September sky in orange and gold hues. It felt like all the fans in the entire stadium were holding their breath through stops and starts and a time-out. I wasn’t sure I would last the entire game with Connor in my arms. I shifted my position, adjusting him slightly. At thirteen weeks, he was a healthy fifteen pounds and growing. Lucas and I joked that Connor would follow in Daddy’s footsteps, maybe not as a wide receiver but possibly a linebacker.
Kaylee looked at her phone then showed it to me. “Look.”
