"Are you finally admitting you've been banging behind our backs?"
I coughed at Hendrix's blunt question.
"How did you know that?" Maverick eyed his friend.
"Oh, come on. There's no other reason you would go from wanting nothing to do with her to suddenly being the only one allowed near her."
Maverick looked at me. "Well, it's a little more complicated than that."
Everyone in the room eyed us curiously. Waiting for us to reveal the sudden mystery. I couldn't take it any longer, so I blurted the news out with no fanfare. "We're having a baby."
No one spoke. It was clear as day that we left them speechless.
"Surprise." I gave little jazz hands to emphasise my point.
"This isn't a joke?" Easton asked.
Maverick pulled me into his side. "Nope, not a joke."
"When did this happen?" That came from Owen.
"How did this happen?" That ridiculous question came from Hendrix.
"I'm pretty sure we all know how it happened." I snickered.
"Well, yes, I realize the act it took for it to happen," Hendrix huffed. "But like how?"
"Remember when I stormed out after discovering who B. Feather was?"
Everyone nodded.
"Well, I headed straight for Jo's house to confront her since we had been sneaking around ever since I came to town. One thing led to another, and well, here we are."
"I'd say." Hendrix laughed. "Hell, man. Congrats!"
A huge smile took over Maverick’s face. "Thanks. We're really excited."
All of his friends––one by one––came over to pat Maverick on the back and to hug me. They all offered congratulations, and by the end, my smile was just as big as Maverick's.
"So this is why you've been so insistent it had to be you here." Nolen looked between the two of us.
"Yup. And why I freaked out when she got into the accident." Maverick looked down at me like I was the most precious thing in the world as his hand hovered over my belly.
"I'm guessing the baby's okay since you're telling us." Aaron looked at where Maverick's hand lay on my stomach.
"Yes." I nodded my head. "We were able to hear the heartbeat and see the baby at the hospital."
"That's awesome. Congrats again, man. I never thought I would see this day." Aaron looked genuinely happy for us.
"Me neither." Maverick laughed. "To be honest, I would've bet against it a million times over, but here we are."
"If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask. We want to help in any way we can." Easton was really the only one here with a kid, but even he didn't come into Lucien's life until he was a teenager. Aaron was set to adopt two kids here soon, but that hadn't gone through yet.
We hung out for a little while after that before the guys finally decided they had their own women to get back to.
The door was barely closed before Maverick was wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me so my back was against his chest. "Come here, you. I've got plans for you."
"Oh, really?" I tilted my head to the side to give him better access to my neck. "What kind of plans?"
