Eden turned and glanced back at Lily. The occasional streetlight illuminated her sweet face through the window. “She’s amazing, Beckett.”
“Thanks, I agree. She means everything to me.”
“And your family…” She pulled her gaze off Lily and looked at Beckett’s profile as he drove. “I can see why you turned out so great.”
“I wasn’t always great. In fact, I was an egotistical ass my first few years on the Rough Riders. Immature with lots of money and everyone telling me what hot shit I was. I was a little prick, and too busy to see my family much, which made it even worse because they’re the ones who keep me grounded.” He shot a grin her way. “And speaking of my family, they loved you, just like I said they would.”
“They’re so sweet.” She reached out and stroked his cheek with the backs of her fingers. “I’m sure they love all the girls you bring to meet them.”
He covered her hand with his and brought her fingers to his lips for a kiss. “Baby, you’re the first woman I’ve brought home since I learned to drive in high school.”
“What?” Her heart made a funny skip. “Why?”
They started over the bridge, and the moonlight on the Potomac reflected into the car, illuminating Beckett’s handsome face.
He shrugged. “I was too busy with hockey in high school to have a girlfriend. Was drafted into the NHL before my twentieth birthday. Was wild for years. And this job, it makes relationships hard. Hard to find and hard to keep. I never wanted to go through the headaches I’d seen other guys go through.”
“Like what?”
“Fighting, affairs, separations, divorces, child custody battles, though I got sucked into that last one anyway. The stress of the job, the ups and downs of the season, the job insecurity, the constant travel and the moods that come with it all, they’re rough on everyone. Don’t get me wrong, there’s no better job in the world for me, and it has its perks—the money, the fame, the sheer fun of playing hockey. But honestly, the rest of it sucks. And it especially sucks for the families of the players.”
Eden was thinking about all that when Beckett passed the Metro station. “Beckett—”
“I’m telling you, she’s not going to wake up.”
“If she does, I’m leaving.”
He shot a fiery grin at her and lowered his voice. “Can’t wait to get you naked.”
19
Beckett carried Lily into her room and laid her on her pink satin bedspread under her pink tulle swag canopy.
“Oh my God.” Eden’s whisper came from the doorway, where she stood looking around the room.
Beckett had to admit, it was even a little much for him some days, and he’d had lots of time to get used to it.
“Yeah.” He turned toward a dresser and pulled a nightgown—Lily’s favorite pink one with sparkles all down the front—from the bottom drawer. “I let Sarah and my mom decorate. That’s the last time I give them free rein with my credit card when they’re buying for Lily.”
At the bed, he knelt on the floor and pulled Lily’s shoes off, then dragged her pants down and eased her arms from her jacket and T-shirt. Once her nightgown was on, he pulled down the covers, then picked her up and gently laid her head on her pillow, then tucked her soft blanket next to her and pulled the covers over her.
He straightened and stared down at her. Lily filled his heart in so many ways. He couldn’t imagine living without her. If Kim pushed, he was going to unleash the wrath of his wealth on her.
Eden moved to the foot of her bed. “I can’t believe how hard she sleeps. Won’t she have to go to the bathroom?”
He shook his head. “All the girls stop getting drinks at eight p.m. She was wetting the bed almost every night when I got her. Stopped right about the same time she stopped crying every night.”
Eden stroked a hand up his back and leaned into him. She pressed her head to his biceps. “You’re such a great dad. She’s so lucky to have you.”
Warmth gathered in his heart. He turned and slipped his arms around her. “You couldn’t give me any bigger compliment. Not even if it was about hockey.” He walked her backward toward the door, whispering, “Unless it’s how well I make love to you.”
He used one hand to close Lily’s door at his back. Then he leaned down, tightened his arms, and lifted Eden off her feet. She wrapped her legs around his hips and her arms around his neck.
“Are you sure?” she asked, still whispering. “I really don’t mind going home. We can find another time—”
He kissed her again, showing her exactly how sure he was. And Eden opened to him, sank into the kiss, and moaned. Beckett lit up like a struck match. She was so raw. So vulnerable, yet so strong. A complex contradiction in so many ways. And right now, she wanted him. Knowing that want had grown so intense he’d become a need shot a hot thrill through his veins.
She slipped her hands down his shirt and worked on the buttons. He closed his bedroom door, and instead of laying her on the bed right there, he walked her to the side where the windows cast quiet lights of the night across the room. He released her enough to let her slide down his body until her feet touched the floor, then pulled her sweater over her head, followed by the camisole underneath. Kissing a path from her ear to her shoulder, he unclasped her bra and let it fall off her arms. Moonlight spilled over her beautiful face, her full breasts, her flat belly.