Lilah snickers. “Please. For as long as I can remember, Evelyn has been at odds with that man.” She pauses, then adds with a shrug and a wink in my direction, “But stranger things have happened, like our bestie over here swearing she’d never fall for a hockey player. Especially one named Oliver Van Doren.”
Isn’t that the truth.
We keep speculating, caught somewhere between amusement and curiosity about what the next few months might bring.
Sloane lifts her mug. “To caffeine, cookies, and the women who make my life better.”
Lilah raises hers. “And to the men who somehow manage to keep up.”
Easy laughter fills the bakery again.
Outside, the day keeps moving. But in here, it feels like the world has slowed down enough to remind me what happiness really looks like.
It’s not the big wins or loud moments; it’s this.
The people you love.
The laughter that lingers.
And the quiet certainty that, for the moment, everyone’s exactly where they’re meant to be.
52
Oliver
Laiken’s penthouse is a few miles down the road from mine, with views that are just as stunning. Inside, the air vibrates with banter, laughter, and the steady clink of poker chips.
As much as I enjoy a night out with the guys, I’m already itching to get back home to Rina.
Steele leans back in his chair with a grin. “You’ve been checking your phone every five minutes since you got here. What’s going on? The Big O can’t survive two hours without his woman?”
I flip him off and rake a pile of chips toward me. “Sure, I can. But Rina’s a hell of a lot prettier to look at than you asshats.”
Knox barks out a laugh. “The man is so whipped he can’t even be bothered to deny it.”
“Not whipped,” I shoot back. “Just finally got the woman of my dreams exactly where I want her. Let me enjoy the moment.”
That earns me a chorus of groans.
Jax slaps his cards down before throwing his head back with mock disgust. “I give it three months before she has you wearing matching pajamas.”
“Already got ’em,” I say easily. “Red buffalo plaid. You’ll get to see them on the Christmas card.”
The table erupts. River shakes his head, Steele nearly spits out his beer, and Jax pretends to gag, knocking over half his stack of chips.
Laiken exhales a grunt before tossing his cards in. “Christ, can we get through one hand before O decides he needs to FaceTime Rina again?”
With a grin, I half-rise from my seat. “Actually, now that you mention it, I probably should check in on her… and Little O.”
The room goes dead quiet.
Steele’s grin drops. “Wait… what?”
“Rina’s pregnant,” I announce.
Knox’s chair scrapes back. “Holy shit.”
Jax just stares. “The Big O… made a baby?”
