The Way We Score: A small-town, accidental pregnancy, sports romance. (The Bradford Boys)

I’m sitting in the lobby of the Pirates stadium waiting for Garrett to finish showering when my phone goes off.

Chewing my lip while I watch the floating gray dots, I think about all that happened today. Maddy is adorable with her Georgia twang and baby boy, and I imagine we’d be good friends if I lived here. Not that I’m planning to move or anything.

Holding Paxton as he chewed on his fist and tangled his baby fingers in my hair over and over, I thought about the possibilities—and decided I needed to get a grip on my fairytale dreams.

Then I nearly outed myself over the pregnancy fatigue. I swear, I’ve never been more tired in my life. I could lie down right here and sleep the rest of the day on this couch.

No one seemed to notice my slip, but it’s time. I have to talk to Garrett.

I wonder what she’d do about a real pregnancy. She’d go bananas.

Squinting at my phone, I’m suspicious this is indeed another trick, but I hesitate. I think about the prospect of being in Newhope for eight weeks with so much in the air. So much is unresolved.

Exhaling a swear under my breath, I curse the day I taught her how to share her location with me. Of course, I had to share mine with her, but that was before my life turned into a Tilt-a-Whirl.

“Everything okay?” Garrett’s voice draws my attention, and it takes me a minute to catch my breath and blink away the swoon when I see him.

His dark hair is damp and messy, and he’s wearing faded jeans that hug his ass exactly right. A gray T-shirt stretches over his broad chest, and the navy bomber jacket he’s wearing makes his blue eyes glow.

I’m lit from within, and I think about pregnancy hormones and all the other things I’ve heard they do to you, like horniness.

“Henny Lane thinks she’s pregnant.” I hold up my phone, and his brow lowers.

“What?” Laughter dances in his eyes, and I want to be like we always were.

I want to skip around and hop onto his back, hugging our bodies close together as I wrap my legs around his waist. I want to whisper in his ear things we only share with each other.

Instead, I swallow that down. “Mom says she’s brooding.”

“How does that work?” He holds out a hand, and I take it, letting him pull me to my feet.

“She thinks her eggs are the real deal, and she won’t let Mom touch her or them.”

“What’s your mom going to do?”

“Play along?” I shrug, slipping my hand into the crook of his arm. “I told her to get a chick, but she’s worried the entire flock will get broody. Apparently six chickens is enough.”

“I thought eight was enough.”

Snorting, I shake my head, and he holds the door. A black SUV waits to take us wherever we want to go. I’ve never had a car service, but I’m not complaining. I don’t feel like walking all the way back to his apartment right now.

“How do you feel about hamburgers for lunch?” He touches my arm as I climb into the vehicle. “I know a place that has the best burgers in town. Or wings if you prefer.”

“Sounds good to me. I’m starving.”

A short ride later, we’re in the middle of Blondie’s, a sports bar filled with bar games and televisions blasting every variety of sport available. Garrett leads me to a high-top close to a couple of pool tables.

Sliding onto the stool, I nod at them. “Want to play a round?”

“Nah, I’ve been banned.” He calmly lays it out there, picking up the menu.

“Banned!” My voice goes high. “What the hell?”

“Logan let it slip my family owns a restaurant that’s also a pool hall, and now I can’t play without being accused of hustling the clientele.”

Ducking my head, I cover my mouth with my hand. “We hustled them all the time.”

“I know.” His eyes dance as they meet mine. “It was so easy!” We say it at the same time, and he leans closer. “Especially for you. No one ever believed someone like you could be so good at pool.”

“They had no idea we spent every rainy day perfecting our game.”

“Hey.” His expression turns suddenly serious. “I wanted to apologize for what I said at the stadium. In front of Maddy.”

“What?” My brow furrows, and I can’t think of a thing…

“About how holding a baby looked good on you. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad or pick at an old wound. I know infertility is a painful thing, and I’m really sorry.”

“Oh…” A weight drops in my stomach, and I reach out to take his hand. “No, Garrett, you don’t have to apologize.”

Looking around the room, I know this isn’t the right place to tell him. I consider suggesting we go back to his place when a petite waitress in denim shorts and a black tee skips up to the table, right into a hug with him.

“Garrett!” she cries, and I don’t like the way she’s holding his arms and smiling up at him one bit. “I haven’t seen you in ages. Where have you been?”

She gives him a little shove, and my throat gets hot when I watch her blinking up at him expectantly like they’re old friends. Or something more? Jealousy has never been my thing, but wow. Do pregnancy hormones also make you want to strangle flirty waitresses?

“Wendy, hey.” Garrett seems to sense the change in my mood and takes a step closer to me. “How’s that new husband treating you?”

Okay, new husband makes me feel slightly less stabby.

“He’s great.” She blinks down, blushing a little.

Now I’m feeling a lot less stabby.

Then she turns and smiles at me. “And who is this? Did you finally settle down?”

“I’m Olivia, but everybody calls me Liv.” I extend my hand.

“I’m Wendy!” She gives me an enthusiastic shake. “It’s nice to meet you, Liv. You must have a lot of patience to be with this guy. He’s a character.”

“Tell me about it.” I decide she’s okay. “We’ve known each other since we were kids.”

“Ladies, I have to stop you right there.” He holds up his hands. “My one goal is to keep you all happy, and what I know right now, is Liv needs a classic Angus burger. Stat.”

Wendy nods, putting her hands on her hips. “My kind of girl. And what will you have, big guy?”

“Bring me some wings.”

“Drinks?”

“Yuengling for me, and Liv?”

“I’ll just have a Liquid Death. Sparkling.”

“And put the game on,” Garrett calls as she walks away.

She waves over her head as she goes to the bar. We’ve just turned to face each other when the television nearest us changes to football.

“Talk about the star treatment.” I lean closer, and he reaches for my hand.

“Something else I wanted to say…” Warmth infuses his tone, and I look down to where his large hand engulfs mine. “I’m sorry I didn’t call after our weekend. You left in such a hurry, I thought maybe I’d made things weird.”

Emotion clogs my throat, and I turn my hand so I can thread our fingers.

Blinking fast, I lift my eyes to his, and when they meet earnest blue, it squeezes my stomach. “You didn’t…”

It’s not all I want to say, but Wendy’s back with our burgers, wings, and drinks. Releasing our hands, we sit back on our stools. My hamburger is massive, although besides being exhausted (and apparently a little horny), I’m also ravenous.

We spend the next hour eating and watching the game. Wendy makes sure we have everything we need, and I’m impressed by how many customers he greets as we have our lunch.

“You really are a celebrity.” I lean forward, shouting over the noise. “Everybody knows you.”

“Logan and I started coming here when we moved into the city. It’s close to our building.”

Nodding, I glance around the somewhat basic bar. It’s filled with a mix of guys in T-shirts, caps, and jeans as well as a few couples and even some men in button-downs and khakis.

It has a good vibe, and I can’t help thinking it’s just like Garrett to find a place in Manhattan that has the same feel as his restaurant back home.

The football game is still going strong when he surprises me. Standing, he waves to Wendy for the check and walks around to where I’m sitting.

“You don’t want to finish the game?”

“Do you?”

Shaking my head, I look down with a laugh. “Not really.”

Wendy walks up with the check, arching an eyebrow. “First time I’ve seen you leave before the game ended.”

“Seen one game, you’ve seen them all.”

My eyebrows rise in disbelief, and I exchange a look with Wendy.

She leans into my ear. “This is more than childhood friendship.”

Pressing my lips together, I take Garrett’s extended hand. I don’t think he heard her, but my chest is still hot. He helps me off the stool, and Wendy stands back with her arms crossed watching us in a way I wish she’d stop.

“Have a good weekend.” He gives her a wave and continues holding my hand as he leads me out to the SUV waiting at the curb.

A few guys shout at him when we step out onto the sidewalk, and he waves. I look around and notice we’re close to the park. “Want to walk back?”

“Whatever you want.” He taps on the window and signals the driver.

Then we stroll the long block, past the Museum of Natural History, until we’re at Central Park West. My hand is in the crook of his arm, and I lean into his side as I watch my feet on the uneven bricks that form the hundred-year-old sidewalk.

We’re surrounded by people walking or sitting on benches and talking or playing with kids or walking dogs. The city is buzzing with activity, but it feels like we’re the only two people on Earth somehow.

We round Columbus Circle, residences turn into businesses, and soon we’re walking past Rockefeller Center, then Radio City Music Hall. We continue a few blocks more until we’re at his building.

He speaks to the doorman, and I wait as he enters the elevator code. Stepping inside, he turns his back to the wall, smiling down at me as he holds out his hand. “You okay?”

Nodding, I look down at my shoes. “Good thing I wore these boots. That walk was longer than I expected.”

“It always is here.” He smiles, and I put my hand in his.

His fingers close around it, and my heart beats faster. I think about what Wendy said, about this being more than a childhood friendship, and in a way it is. Our affection has never faded, but so much has changed. We’ve grown up, and we’re both so far apart now.

The elevator dings, and we step out, across the small landing, and I wait as he enters the code for his door. It opens, and I follow him inside.

He closes the door, and I continue into the living room, going to the wall of windows and looking down at the crowded sidewalks below. Shadows grow longer, and the seasons are changing, evening comes early, and the air is crisp.

Warmth is at my back, and he’s standing behind me looking out as well. My skin prickles with the sensation of his closeness, and my chest tightens.

“What now, Liv?” His voice is quiet, and I turn to face him.

“Now I need to tell you why I’m here.” My voice is quiet, and he nods like he’s been waiting for this.

“Would you like a drink or something?”

“No.” My chest gets tight, and I don’t know why I’m suddenly afraid. “But you might want one in a minute.”

His brow furrows, and I swallow the knot in my throat.

I didn’t rehearse this, and I try to decide the right way to introduce what I’m about to say.

He shifts on his feet, and I’m pretty sure the tension in the air can’t get any tighter.

Inhaling deeply, I exhale slowly, then simply say it. “I’m pregnant.”

The room goes silent.

I never noticed before, but he has an analog clock somewhere in this apartment. Its tick… tick… tick is the only sound, and I have to be hallucinating. New York City is never silent.

Finally he speaks. “That’s… great. Congratulations?”

His tone is confused, not happy at all, and my eyes shoot to his face. It’s a mixture of frustration and possibly something else. Regret?

My stomach hurts, and I’m trying to breathe normally. “That’s it? Congratulations?”

“I don’t know what else to say, Liv.” He shrugs, starting to turn. “Did you decide to do IVF or something?”

The anger building in my chest breaks, and I lift my hands to my forehead. “No…” Exhaling heavily, I squeeze my eyes shut. “It’s not… It’s yours. Ours. It happened after the wedding. I got pregnant when we… did it.”

Silence again, except for the unbelievably loud clock and its ticking hands of fate.

“But you said…” He starts and stops.

Crossing my arms, I walk away from the windows into the living room. “The doctor said we couldn’t get pregnant, and I guess I interpreted that to mean I couldn’t get pregnant. I mean, if you think about it, we never had a scare after all the times in high school⁠—”

“You were on birth control in high school.”

“Yeah, but birth control can fail.” My voice is quiet, and I finally build up the nerve to meet his eyes. “I thought I was broken.”

“You’ve never been broken, Liv. You’re perfect.” A smile teases at the corners of his mouth, and he takes a step closer. Then he stops, seeming to think twice about it. He swallows, sliding his hand over his mouth. “What do you want to do?”noveldrama

Pain trickles through my chest, but I won’t allow myself to cry.

Diverting my eyes, I take another step away from him. “I’ve thought about it a lot. You’ve got your career here, and I’m… there.” I have to catch my shaky breath before I can continue. “It’s very early. If you do the math, I can’t be more than eight weeks along. It’s not too late to…”

It’s a heavy weight on my chest, a pain in my stomach. My eyes flicker to where he hasn’t moved, and my insides twist.

This silence. This oppressive silence presses down on me so hard.

“We don’t have to do this if you’d rather I didn’t.” His forehead tenses the slightest amount, and I can’t say it.

“Is that what you want?” It’s a low question, tight like his jaw is clenched.

After last night and this morning and today, I don’t understand why he’s standing there so controlled. It’s not how I expected him to respond. I’ve known Garrett all my life, and he showed more emotion when I told him about Mom’s delusional chicken.

All the fears I’ve had about doing this alone, my impulsive decision to come here, because I was sure of all the men who’ve ever been in my life, he was different.

I believed he would always have my back.

Breath I didn’t know I was holding gulps in my chest, and a hot tear hits my cheek. Pushing it away fast, I lift my chin, finding the strength I know I have.

“No.” My voice is thick, and I clear it. “I want this baby very much, only⁠—”

“Fuck me, Liv.” The words come out in a rush, and before I can register what’s happening, I’m scooped up in Garrett’s arms. “I’m pretty sure my heart stopped.”

His face is in my hair, and my knees collapse. It doesn’t matter. He holds me up, tight against his chest, and a muffled sob escapes my throat. I reach up to put my arms around his shoulders and hold on for a moment, until I get my bearings again.

“Garrett.” More tears fall onto my cheeks. I can’t stop them. “Why did you do that?”

“What?” He lifts his head, frowning, and I push against his arms.

He releases me, and I take a step back, swiping away the tears and trying to get control. “You stood there like I was giving you the weather report. You didn’t even react.”

He takes another step forward, and now his eyes are shining. He cups my face in both hands, looking down at me like I’m something precious. My stomach twists, and another tear pops out.

“You have no idea how hard that was for me.” Shaking his head, I think I see moisture hiding in his blue eyes. “But I’m trying to change, Liv. I’m trying not to make it all about me.”

“Well, you picked a fine time to change!” My voice is pouty, and he chuckles, pulling me into his chest again for a hug.

“Damn, Liv. You’re having my baby.”

My head is on his shoulder, and I nod slowly. Rotating me carefully, he moves a hand around my waist. His palm spreads over my stomach, and he softly speaks the word Mine.

It’s pure amazement, and at last, I feel calm.