Page 173 of Slapshot Bride

“Easton,” her familiar soft voice sails into my ears.

She’s here. She’s really here.

I don’t wait another second. I close the distance. I wrap my arms around her and lift her into the air, carrying her into the house.

The moment the door shuts behind us, I drop her, but I never release her. I hold her firmly, pressed flush against me like she’ll disappear at any second if I let her go.

I press my nose to her hair and inhale greedily, needing all of her.

I don’t know why she’s here, and I don’t want to know. All I want is her. To keep her here.

“Riley… sweetheart,” I murmur against her hair.

Her arms are firmly wrapped around me, and that gives me some semblance of hope.

My heart is palpitating wildly, and I know she feels it. It’s the only sound around us. And I don’t give a damn how vulnerable it makes me look.

I have my woman here. In my arms. That’s all that matters at this moment.

“Easton…” Her voice comes out muffled.

“Yeah, baby…”

I finally pull away to look into her eyes. Those deep green eyes I’ve missed so much.

“I know everything,” she says, and for some reason, my heart drops. I don’t know what to expect next.

“I found out about Maya before you released the confession. I already know you were being blackmailed the entire time I lived here…” Her eyes are filling. She sniffles to hold the tears.

“And I know you went to Mason. That you went to my brother, told him the truth, asked for his blessing, and he told you to wait, and you listened, because of course it’s what you’d do. Anything, as long as it makes me comfortable.” She smiles through the tears.

I don’t know if it’s good or bad. So I open my mouth to explain, but she shakes her head. My mouth closes.

“The night I left... I didn't want to.” She shakes her head. “God, Easton, I would never leave you. Never.”

She draws in a shaky breath. “Preston… he was here. He came, two hours before you were supposed to be home. He knew you’d be away at that time. I returned from the gig, ready to welcome you home, and he was here.”

She glances at the sofa. “On the sofa. He’d bought the video from Maya. She sold it to him, and he came here and played it for me. Told me that if I didn’t walk out the door with him right then, he’d release it while you were still on the ice in Detroit.”

My legs weaken, and it’s as if my ears are ringing.

Sudden rage hits me in the chest. My face must have changed because the expression on her face changes to worry. She grabs my arm as if she’s scared I’ll do something crazy.

“I went with him. I couldn’t tell you, because if you knew, you’d have gone after him, and he’d have posted it anyway.”

Her voice breaks. “I couldn’t be the reason your whole life ended. So I left the note. I called it fake. I’m so sorry, Easton. I’m sorry I didn’t trust you with it. I’m sorry I decided for you.”

I can’t speak. Everything I built my whole grief on for three weeks, all of it just dissolved, and I’m standing here too stunned to speak.

“There’s one more thing.” She swallows, and her hand goes to the strap of her bag before she pulls out a folded piece of paper.

Something about the way she’s holding it makes my stomach tighten.

I wait.

“I...” Her breath catches. “I-I’m pregnant.”

For a second, the words don’t make sense. I frown at her, waiting for my brain to catch up, and then it does all at once.