Peace settles over me knowing the ugly part is over. There are no more secrets, no more hiding. Now all I need to do is focus on my daughter and ensure her safe arrival. Then after that, I can plan my comeback.
And this time when I compete, it’ll be for me and the girl I’m carrying, no one else.
Not my mom. Not my brother. Not even Quentin.
This is for me and all the girls out there who are athletes, to show them to never back down when a man tries to hold you back.
And more importantly, to always be your own biggest fan and motivator.
While it is nice to have someone be proud of you and cheer you on, there’s nothing wrong with doing it for yourself too.
“You okay?” Quentin breaks my inner thoughts, his voice grounding me.
“Yeah, I am, actually. Everything’s worked out in a weird way.”
“What do you mean?” he presses as he massages my thigh.
I let out a soft moan before saying, “You know when I first learned I was pregnant, I was terrified. I was trying to figure out howto get back on the team, and learning I was pregnant threw a huge wrench in my plans because it meant I’d be out for longer than I’d like. But it was the perfect plot twist. Without her, I don’t know if I would’ve grown as much as I have. She’s not even here and she’s already changed me so much.”
“She’s exactly what we needed even though neither of us knew it,” he says, moving his hand from my thigh to my belly, rubbing it gently.
Our baby kicks excitedly, making both of us smile in awe at the feeling of life inside of me. It still blows my mind every now and then that we actually made a tiny human.
“God, Clara was right,” I groan, throwing my arm over my eyes.
Quentin chuckles beside me. “About what?”
I lift my arm onto my forehead so that I can look at him as I say, “When I first told her and Kaya that I was pregnant, she said that this was the universe’s way of bringing us together, that it was meant to be. It sounded like romance novel bullshit at the time, but I think it’s true.”
“Youthink?” Quentin’s eyebrows rise in question.
“The jury’s still out…” I tease, and Quentin responds by tickling my neck.
“You know I’m ticklish,” I say, nearly out of breath as laughter booms out of me. We’re both laughing as I make the weirdest noises as he tickles me, but I don’t tell him to stop because for some reason, I’m enjoying it.
Until I feel my bladder on the verge of exploding. There’s no time, though, and before I can stop it, I pee myself. I’ve read that it could happen in my pregnancy books, but this is the first time it’s happened.
“Holy fuck,” I shout, completely mortified and unable to look at him. I attempt to get up as fast as I can, but with my belly it’s a bit harder.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” he asks, standing with me.
“I…uhm, I peed myself,” I nearly mumble.
“All good. Go clean yourself up and I’ll clean the couch,” he assures me, kissing my forehead. “And after that, I’ll order you some diapers.”
A loud cackle leaves my lips, erasing my embarrassment.
And this is one of the many reasons why I love him.
Chapter 53
Quentin
4 months later - January
These last four months have been nothing short of amazing.
After the World Series ended, I officially announced my retirement from baseball. I didn’t know how freeing it would be until it actually happened.
