“Eli.” Her eyes meet mine. “He’s been joking this whole time.”
Wait . . . what?
Big Pecs holds his hands up still, looking more startled than anything. “Penny asked me to give you a hard time, said you were feeling inferior about your chest compared to mine. I thought it was funny, so I went along with it.”
She . . . uh . . . she what?
I glance down at her, and she winces. “Sorry.” She attempts to smile. “Got . . . you.”
I sit in my seat, nostrils flared, and turn toward her. “I hate you.”
She chuckles. “No, you don’t.”
“Right now. I do.”
She wraps her hand behind my neck and brings me to her, where she presses a gentle kiss to my lips. “You don’t hate me,” she whispers.
I groan and kiss her one more time before saying, “No . . . I don’t.”
When we part, Big Pecs holds his hand out to me, and reluctantly, I give it a shake. “Sorry, but it was all her idea. For the record, huge fan, man. Sorry about the loss. I was really hoping you guys could bring The Cup home this year.”
Still salty toward the man, I say, “Yeah, well, next year maybe.”
He nods and then clasps his hands together. “And I guess congratulations are in order. You’re having a boy.” He turns on the monitor and circles a portion of the baby. “Right here, clear as day, he’s spread-eagled showing off his manhood.”
And just like that, the anger and irritation drain away. An odd sense of pride surges through me as I look closely while Penny says, “Just like his father.”
I chuckle as she loops her arm around mine.
Big Pecs prints out a few pictures and then lets us clean Penny up in private. She reaches for the wet towel, but I stop her and take the cloth in hand. “You, ma’am, are in so much fucking trouble.”
She lets out a long thread of chuckles. “I’m sorry, but things have been so weird and up and down. I haven’t pranked you in a bit. I really wanted to lighten things up between us.”
“Lighten things up? Penny, I almost checked your doctor into the wall.”
She covers her mouth and chuckles some more. “I think I saw steam come out of your ears, but I’ll say this, it was really hot seeing you stand up for me like that.” Her hand falls to my cheek, only for her thumb to pass over my bottom lip. “Really freaking sexy, Eli.”
I wiggle my eyebrows at her. “Turned on, are ya?”
She nods her head. “Very.”
“Good, I’ll be sure to take the long way home so you don’t have any relief anytime soon. Serves you right for putting me through that shit.”
“Where’s your sense of humor?”
“Something you should know. Don’t fuck with the things I care about, and I care about you, Penny.”
Her eyes soften, and she wets her lips before saying, “And you care about our son.”
My heart warms immediately, and all the irritation falls to the wayside as the word “son” starts to sink in.
“Holy shit,” I say, gripping her hand. “We’re having a boy, Penny.”
“I know.” She smiles, and it’s the most beautiful, genuine smile I’ve ever seen. “We’re having a little boy, Eli.”
I bring my forehead to hers, where I rest it and press a gentle kiss to her lips. “The little guy is going to be like me, I know it. He’s going to be such a troublemaker.”
“No.” She gently shakes her head. “He’s going to be kind-hearted, funny, and handsome . . . just like his father.”
