Taking a deep breath, she smiled and looked up at Cam. “It’s lovely to finally meet you.”
“And you.” Logan had warned her that Cam was a man of few words. Though he was lauded on the football field, he was much shyer than his twin, according to Logan.
“Did you fly in today?” she asked him.
“Yesterday. Then I’m back home on Saturday to be ready for a game on Sunday.”
“You must travel a lot,” she said.
“Yeah. But it’s all good.” He smiled at her. “How are you doing? My brother giving you any problems?”
“He’s behaving,” she told him, starting to relax. Of all his family, it was Cam she’d been worried about meeting most. Maybe because he was the closest to Logan. “And he’s been treating me well. Sending me pastries every day, which means I’ll be the size of a house by the time the baby arrives.”
Cam laughed, his eyes crinkling. The sound of it was exactly like Logan’s. “He always tries to feed me up, too.”
“Nobody needs to try that,” Logan pointed out. “You eat constantly.”
“I use up a lot of calories.” Cam shrugged. “Are you two gonna find out the sex of the baby?”
Courtney’s eyes met Logan’s. “I don’t…”
“It’s up to Courtney.”
They laughed when they both spoke at the same time. “I guess that’s something we need to discuss,” she said, their gazes meeting again.
She’d never met anybody who made her feel so calm, yet so on edge at the same time. Like a sting followed by a kiss. He pressed his fingers into her hip, pulling her closer, and all she wanted to do was to melt into him.
Except he wasn’t hers to melt into. Damn, this was confusing.
“Either way, I’ll make sure you get some Boston Bobcats branded baby clothes.” Cam grinned. “Gotta train them young.”
“What if they support a different team?” she asked, her voice full of innocence.
Cam’s mouth dropped open, making Logan laugh uproariously.
“I can see why you like her,” Cam said softly. “She’s got balls.”
The next two hours passed in a blur. She met Becca, and Maddie’s family, as well as tiptoeing upstairs with Gray to peek in on his sleeping sons. There was music, singing, and a whole lot of conversation and teasing. It felt almost like watching a Christmas special on television. She felt part of it and not part of it at the same time.
No wonder she felt so exhausted. By ten o’clock she was sitting on the corner of the sofa, Maddie and Van on one side, Becca on the other. Becca had put a Christmas movie on. A black-and-white James Stewart was on the oversized screen, splashing into the water beneath the dark bridge he’d been leaning on.
“You okay?” Logan asked, leaning over the back of the sofa to whisper in her ear. All night, he’d been checking in with her, putting his hand softly on her waist, pulling her close to make sure she was happy. She’d be lying to herself if she didn’t admit she liked it.
It was so easy to pretend this life could be hers.
“I’m good.” She gave him a sleepy smile.
“You look tired. You want me to take you home?”
“You can’t take her away now,” Becca said, smiling at Courtney. “You only just introduced her.”
“It’s okay,” Courtney said, nodding. “Maybe we’ll leave in half an hour or so.”
“In that case, let’s have some popcorn,” Maddie said, standing and stretching her arms. “Gotta feed that baby.”
“Sounds good to me.” Courtney grinned, trying not to react when Logan pressed his lips against her cheek and kissed her softly.
Yeah. She could get used to this life. If only it was hers to have.
Logan leaned on the breakfast bar, the sleeves of his dark blue shirt rolled up, a beer resting in his left hand. The vantage point gave him a perfect view of Courtney. She was on the sofa, her legs curled up beneath her, a hand resting on the gentle swell of her stomach. Next to her, Maddie and Van were sharing a bowl of popcorn. On the other, Becca was holding the bowl she’d been sharing with Courtney, though since the mother of his child had fallen asleep, Becca was eating what remained of the popcorn alone.
“I like her,” Cam said, following Logan’s gaze. “So much better than most of the women you date.”
“In that she exists?” Gray said, grinning. It was a running joke that Logan had no time for women.
“I mean it.” Cam took a mouthful of beer, swallowing before he continued. “When you told me she was pregnant I worried she was some kind of gold digger. That she got pregnant on purpose.”
“That’s exactly what she feared. That you’d all think that.”
“Yeah, well I don’t think that now.” Cam shrugged.
“Maddie likes her,” Gray said. “And she’s a good judge of character. Van and Becca, too. If they thought there was something sketchy, they wouldn’t be sitting with her like that.”
Logan looked over at Courtney again. Her head had lolled to the side. He really needed to take her home, but the thought of it made his chest ache. Because then he’d come back here to celebrate Christmas instead of being with her.
“So what’s going on between you two?” Cam asked, his voice casual.
“What do you mean?” Logan frowned.
“Are you two in a serious relationship? You gonna make it official? I can’t quite figure out what’s happening here.”
Logan sighed, tracing his finger around the mist on his bottle. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “I like her. But there’s no future for us. She’s got a life here, and I’ve got a life in Boston. It couldn’t work between us long term.” And it felt like a kick in the gut to say it. When he was with her, Boston felt like
