Dean (Face-Off 6)

Replacing my fingers with my cock, I rock into her, each of my thrusts matched with her own. I spend the rest of the night making love to her, showing her much she means to me. After a while, I forget about my throbbing headache and the swelling in my face. And sometime in the early morning, we fall asleep in each other’s arms.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Kat

After the last box is packed into the moving van, I let out a sigh of relief. I had no idea packing would be such a pain in the ass. I left Dean’s apartment last week, thinking I could get up and go, only for my dad and brothers to snap me back to reality. The driver tips his hat to my dad and then climbs into the truck to leave.

My dad slides his arm behind my back and hugs me. “Are you ready to go?”

“I think so.”

He laughs and hugs me harder. “Well, I’m not.”

“Dad, I lived in Philly for the last four years.”

“Yeah, but you always came back. My little girl is all grown up.” He sighs. “My baby is having a baby.” Dad shakes his head as if he still can’t believe I have a child forming in my stomach. “I wasn’t always there for you, Kat. Being a parent is hard. I just want you to know that I tried. I did the best that I could.”

I run my fingers down his arm to stop him. “Dad, this didn’t happen because you were a bad parent.”

“Maybe if I were around more,” he whispers. “I should have spent more time with you.”

“The baby has nothing to do with your parenting,” I assure him. “I wasn’t thinking. I don’t think Dean was either. We love each other, Dad. I never expected our friendship to turn into a relationship, but I’m glad it did. Dean will take care of me.”

“I know he will. Dean’s a good kid.”

“Did I ever tell you that you’re the reason we met?”

He laughs. “No. What did I have to do with that?”

“Dean has posters of you on his walls at his house in Florida. He was obsessed with you as a kid. He still loves you. You’re the reason he wanted to be a hockey player.”

I never told my dad about Dean’s fanboy ways because I thought it would embarrass Dean, but I want my dad to know more about the father of my child.

“At least I know he has good taste,” my dad says with a smile.

“Will you come to the hospital when I have the baby?”

“Of course, I will.” His smile is so wide it reaches his blue irises. “I wouldn’t miss the birth of my first grandchild.” A beat passes before he releases his hold on me. “You ready to go back inside? Your brothers want to say their goodbyes.”

My heart aches at the thought of leaving them behind. This is only temporary. We’ve gone through this plenty of times. I’m used to not seeing them. The only difference is that I’m usually the one left behind. This is a good thing. My life can begin when I get to Philly. No more waiting around for people. I’ll have Dean and our baby and hopefully a new internship after I deliver.

I head inside the house with my dad. Austin and Duke are in the living room arguing over which of them will be the godfather of the baby. Theo and Travis are clicking buttons on the gaming remotes in their hands, yelling at each other about getting a wand to advance to the next level. What a bunch of weirdos?

Dad clears his throat to gain their attention.

I shake my head at my older brothers. “Are you guys fighting over who will be the baby’s godfather

?”

“Yeah,” Duke growls. “I think it should be me. I’m the oldest and…” His voice trails off when he looks at my dad.

And I raised you, he wanted to say, but so did Austin. They each had a hand in my upbringing. I know they think this is their fault. I hate that they feel responsible for me getting pregnant.

“Look, guys,” I say. “Can you not fight over this? I’m tired, I don’t feel good, and stress isn’t good for the baby.”

Austin rushes over to my side, his eyes pointed down at my stomach. “Are you okay? Did something happen? You know, I’ve been reading a lot of books, so I can help you with the baby. So, I’ll know what to do.”

“Austin, you already know what to do,” I say with a tiny smile. “You helped raised me.” Turning to face all of them, I say, “All of you did a good job with me. This isn’t your fault. I did something without thinking, and now, I have to deal with the consequences. But I’m not upset about it, okay? I don’t look at this baby as a bad thing. If anything, it’s what I needed to force me to move back to Philly. I wanted to be with Dean anyway. We’re just starting sooner than either of us had expected.”