Page 143 of Even Exchange

The thought of her needing to rely on rides from friends throughout the duration of her pregnancy puts a pit in my stomach.What if she needs something and I’m not around?

I place my hand on her lower back. “Like I said before, we’re doing this together, okay? It’sourbaby, and Iwantto be there with you.”

She blushes. “Okay.”

The motion sensor for the front door cam chimes, and a few seconds later, it swings open, Elijah and Sophia letting themselves inside. I sincerely love having a place that feels like home to everyone. My eyes wander back to Charlotte. I hope it feels that way for her too.

“Hey, Mom and Dad,” Sophia says, pulling my attention to her, a photo frame settled in her arms.

“Thanks for inviting us to dinner,” Elijah says, trailing behind. “Sorry Theo spilled the beans,” Elijah says to me. “He overheard me and Soph talking.”

“It’s okay,” I say and mean it.

“We’re here for y’all,” Elijah says, looking between us. “Seriously.”

“We also brought a little congratulatory gift,” Sophia adds, setting the frame on the counter and spinning it to face us. A hand-sketched drawing of two koalas holding a baby koala is perfectly centered in the frame. Charlotte’s face brightens, and she hugs Sophia tight. “It’s beautiful, Soph.”

“Thank you,” I say, a grateful smile on my face. “It’ll look perfect in Gabriella’s room.”

“Gabriella?” Sophia repeats. “You already picked a name?”

“No,” Charlotte says, staring me down. “We most certainly did not.”

“Okay, but you have to admit it’s a cute name,” I say to Charlotte, tugging her to me.

“Fine.” Charlotte playfully rolls her eyes. “I suppose it wouldn’t be terrible to have her named after her father. NoahGabriel.”She stands on her tiptoes, pressing a soft kiss to my lips, and everything just feels right.

“Smells good in here,” Elijah says, glancing around the kitchen.

“Thanks.” Charlotte grins proudly as a timer goes off. She heads to the oven, pulls out a tray, and turns around with a pan of—shit. It’s salmon. The vilest fish to exist. Eating it should be a crime.

The mother of your child worked hard on this meal. Don’t be a dick.

She sets it on a potholder on the counter, and I put my hand on her back. “Looks great, baby.”

“What are you eating?” Elijah asks me, and I shoot him a glare. He’s well-aware of my hatred for the fish. The guys were banned from cooking it in the Baller Pad.

“The salmon, obviously,” Charlotte says, eyes bouncing between us. “It was on his meal plan.”

I glance to the fridge where it’s pinned with a magnet. Guess I should’ve blacked out the ones I didn’t like. “Yeah, I’m loo?—”

“Noah hates salmon,” Elijah cuts me off.

“Anderson,” I snap in full captain tone, and his eyes widen.

Charlotte’s confused gaze connects with mine. “You do?” My mouth opens and closes. Say something, Caruso. Anything.

“Oh my god, you hate it!” She throws her head back, groaning. “Noah, I’m the mother of your child, for god’s sake! I should know if you hate something as basic as salmon.”

“Really, it’s fine,” I say.

Elijah’s eyes connect with mine in a silent apology, and I flick him off.

“What else don’t you like?” Charlotte folds her arms across her chest.

“Just salmon.”

“Noah Gabriel,” she says my name like a curse.Why am I so turned on right now?

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