Page 192 of Hat Trick
“God. Not this again,” I groan.
“Is this an ongoing debate?” Lexi asks.
“For years now. No one can make up their damn mind.” I wrap my arm around her and stare at the camera Maverick positioned on the fireplace. Lexi rests her head on my shoulder, and I smile. “It’s funny to hear their reasoning.”
“Can everyone see the camera? Cool, let me press this nifty little button here and… perfect. It’s counting down,” Maverick says. “Man. Technology is amazing.”
“Ethan. Stop flipping off Grant,” Madeline warns.
“Liam, can youpleasesmile?” Hudson asks. “You’re freaking me out, and we don’t need to feed into that conspiracy theory that’s floating around about you being a contract killer.”
“How about instead of arguing…” Maverick reaches into his pocket and unfolds a piece of paper, handing it off to Emmy. “Everyone sayGuess what? We’re going to be aunts and uncles to the coolest baby girl in the whole fucking world who will be here by Christmas!”
I can’t hear myself think. Someone screams. A lamp goes flying off the side table, and Grant climbs onto Connor’s back so he can get a better look at the sonogram photos. There’s pushing and shoving and Maverick lifts Emmy up and spins her around.
“Surprise,” Emmy says, her cheeks as red as her hair. “Baby Hartwell-Miller is on her way. It was impossible to keep a secret from you all, but we wanted to be sure things were looking good before we put it out in the open.”
Lexi pulls away from me and crashes into her best friend with a hug. I grab Maverick and yank him toward me in a fierce embrace.
“Congratulations, Mavvy,” I say, and his shoulders shake with laugher. “I’m so happy for you.”
“It’s unbelievable, isn’t it? Me? Adad?I’m going to have two beautiful girls in my house, and I’m the luckiest fucker in the world.” He pats my chest and looks at me. “I’m so glad you’re here to be a part of it, man.”
“Me too.” I nod, and he laughs again, tears on his cheeks.
“That night in the hospital waiting room after your accident was the worst night of my life. When we go back for Baby H’s birth, it’s going to be the greatest night of my life. And you’re going to be by my side.”
“Fuck, dude.” I pull off my glasses and rub my eyes. “I’m going to be the best uncle that girl has ever seen. I’ll work my ass off to take the top spot.”
“It’s going to be a tough competition. I weirdly think Ethan might be the underdog.”
We exchange another hug, and after a celebratory toast, Lexi sidles up next to me.
“Wow. How exciting.” She fans her face and grins. “More babies to spoil. I love being an aunt.”
“The best part is we can hand them back whenever we want.” I sit back down and pat the spot next to me. Lexi smiles and joins me, taking a sip of water after another wave of tears roll down her face. “Those two are going to be the best parents.”
“Tell us the story about Baby Girl Hartwell!” Grant calls out.
“Baby Girl Hartwell-Miller,” Maverick corrects, and Emmy taps her cheek.
“You know what? Baby Girl Hartwell sounds way better,” she teases, and the man is such a sap, he puts his head on her shoulder and buries his face in her hair, not bothering to argue.
“Well, G-Money, when a man loves a woman—” Ethan starts, and Hudson slaps a hand over his mouth.
“I’m so happy for you, Em,” Piper says, and Liam keeps handing her napkins to wipe her eyes. “I know you’ve been trying forsolong.”
“Are you going to play next season?” Grant asks, bouncing on the balls of his feet. “How are you feeling? Do you have any morning sickness?”
“I feel great. I played in our playoff series, but I’m taking next season off.” Emmy glances up at Maverick. “Mav is undecided about what he wants to do. He has four more years on his contract, but he said he’d be fine retiring tomorrow.”
“Retiring?” Ethan almost yells. “Seriously?”
“We’ll see.” Maverick shrugs and rubs his hand up and down Emmy’s arm. “We all love this sport, but when you see what else is out there…” He trails off and smiles. “I don’t know. Being home every night with my girls sounds like a dream. I think I’ll know when the time is right.”
The sonogram photos get passed around again, and when they reach, Lexi, she sighs.
“I can’t believe that’s a baby. With parents like hers, she’s going to have unbelievable genes,” she says.
