“Don’t touch my wife,” Bennett growls and Colt shoots his hands up in surrender.
“I was just checking in. How’s the baby watch going?” Colt asks me.
“Checking in on what?” Gemma asks him, humor lacing her tone.
“On my fave little mama and our new babe. When do you guys find out what you’re having?”
“We already know. Everyone else will find out whenourbaby decides to make an appearance. Now, please don’t ever reference my wife as your favorite little mama again. And it’smybaby. Well, ours. Scarlett and I are the ones who made the baby.”
“Thanks for the health lesson, Cap. Not sure we’ve gone over baby making much in anatomy and physiology yet.”
Bennett shoots me a pleading look. “For fuck’s sake, Red, I think I’m gonna kill him.”
“Murder trials are long and if you miss the birth of our first born I’ll wind up in prison for killing you. Now, play nice.” I turn to face Colt. “Don’t touch an overheated pregnant woman without her consent or you might lose a hand you’re fond of. Colt, be a dear and help Bennett grab the rest of Gemma’s things from the car.”
Bennett pulls me in and places a chaste kiss on my forehead. “God, I love you, baby girl,” he whispers for only me to hear.
“Love you too, Daddy,” I whisper back and a low grunt rumbles through his chest. I shoo them out of the suite so I can have a quick chat with my sister.
“Gemma, can you shoot me straight?”
“Always.” She hesitates, “Well, I lied. That color of sundress does make you look a bit washed out, but I figured that’s because you’ve been so careful with your sun exposure during your pregnancy. And there probably isn’t too much that fits you right now. So I lied. I’m sorry.”
I bring my hand to my forehead, feigning annoyance. “Not what I was referring to, but good to know. I meant about Colton. Are you two . . .”
When she continues to stare back at me blankly, I decide to just come out with it.
“Are you two sexually active?”
A loud thud followed by the sound of a box dropping on the plank floors is all I hear before an “Oh fuck!”
Slowly turning around, I find a wide-eyed Nathan Connelly staring back at me. He shifts his weight side to side sheepishly, likely from secondhand embarrassment.
“Sorry, ma’am,” Connelly says.
“Ma’am?” I question. “Nathan, you ma’am your elders, not someone who is only old enough to be your big sister.”
“Sorry, Scar. And sorry, Gems. I’ll just put this in Eva’s room,” he says and scurries into the room on the left.
“So?”
“Scar! You can’t just ask me that. And like I’ve told you a million times now, Colton and I arejust friends. He’s like an older brother to me,” Gemma whisper-hisses.
“Okay. And if that were to change—if feelings were to develop—you’d tell me right? I just want you to be safe after everything that’s happened. Just because you’re at college now doesn’t mean I’ll worry any less.”
“You’ve got my Dexcom notifications, along with about a half dozen other people. Eva gets them too, so I’m good.”
“I get them too, Scar. And I’m actually taking a few hybrid classes this fall part-time, so if Gemma ever needs anything or a ride back home to visit, I can help,” Nathan cuts in when he comes back out from Eva’s room.
“That’s so kind of you, Nathan,” I say just as Gemma says, “That’s completely unnecessary. And since when do you get my Dexcom notifications?”
“I’ve gotten them for the last two years. Bennett gave them to me the night of your hospitalization when I found you at the rink.” Nathan shrugs as if it’s no big deal, but looking over at Gemma and the figurative steam blowing from her ears, I’m going to guess that’s anything but the case.
“You what?!” She’s seething mad, and Nathan is clearly wiser than his brother because he has the wherewithal to step back. “Are you trying to tell me that for the past two years you’ve been, what—monitoringme? I’m not your problem, Nathaniel Connelly.”
“It’s just Nathan, and you know that. And I wasn’t monitoring you, I was keeping an eye out for my little sister’s best friend. Who just so happens to be the sister of my team’s owner. Who also happens to be one of the most stubborn people alive.”
“Can you just cut the shit, Nathan? Why didn’t you tell me? Oh my god—” she cuts off and gasps. “No. It wasn’t why you . . . Tell me you didn’t . . .” Gemma stutters to a stop.
