Page 69 of The Golden Goalie

A few minutes later, Amber is snug in my truck; and my heart feels like it’s going to burst. Taking a chance, I reach for her hand. She lets me hold hers, and I sigh in contentment. “You really are good,” she says, causing me to laugh. “What?”

I squeeze her hand. “You don’t have to sound so surprised.”

“I just don’t remember you being that good before.”

“Amber,” I say with a groan. “You are going to be good for my pride.”

“I’m not trying to be anything.”

“I know.” We make the twenty-minute drive to our favorite hang-out place after a win. The parking lot is already packed, but we manage to find a spot. “It’s going to be crazy in there tonight. You good?”

“If this is you trying to get out of feeding me, it’s not going to work.”

“Never. You seem to be eating better,” I comment.

She nods. “I am. I’m not exactly sure which of all the remedies that you gave me is the one that’s working, or maybe it’s all of them combined. But I can finally eat again.”

“Good. Then let’s go feed you.”

We head inside, and I keep a hand on her back. It’s as busy as I thought it would be, but we weave through the restaurant until we get to the large room at the back that they save for us after home games. It's loud and crazy with all my teammates and their extras. I lean down to Amber’s ear, so she can hear me. “Is this too crazy for you?” She shakes her head and walks over to where Brielle is waving at us.

“Hey Guys, you made it.”

I hold Amber’s chair for her and settle into the one next to her. It's a tight squeeze with all of us around this high-top table, but it gives me an excuse to be close to Amber. I'm not complaining. “So Amber,” Sebastian says, leaning forward to be heard. “What did you think of our boy here tonight?”

Amber gives me an assessing look. “He did okay.”

I grin and shake my head as my teammates bust my chops over her answer. We order enough food to feed a neighborhood, and I eat my weight in wings. I find myself looking over at Amber so many times. Her eyes are bright, and she’s been laughing almost all night. It’s a really good look on her. Only when I catch her yawn for the third time in just a few minutes do I lean towards her. “You look tired. Are you ready to get going?”

She turns to me, and she’s right there. We’re so close, but I don’t pull away. I watch her face for any sign that my nearness is bothering her. When I don’t see any, I stay right where I am. “Only if you want to. I don’t want to take you away from all this.”

“I’m ready if you are. I’m tired.”

She nods and immediately starts cleaning up. “Hey Guys, we’re going to head out.” We make the rounds and start making our way across the restaurant. I again put my hand on her back; the restaurant is packed. When we get close to the exit, she stops suddenly and I nearly bowl into her. I reach out my other hand to steady her. “You good?”

She turns to face me. “I’m just trying to decide if I should go pee before we leave.”

I frown. “Didn’t you just go?” I remember her leaving with Brielle and Stephanie from the table only like twenty minutes ago.

She puts her hands on her hips. “You did not just ask the pregnant woman if she really had to pee, did you?”

I put my hands up in surrender. “You’re right. My bad.”

“This little girl sits right on my bladder. Would you like to have something sitting right on your bladder all the time, making you feel like you always have to pee?”

Her eyes flash at me, and I have to bite my lip so I don’t grin. “No, that does not sound appealing. Got it. Don’t ask the pregnant woman again if she really has to pee.”

“Thank you. Because the answer will be yes, Rico. It will always be yes.”

This time the smile sneaks out. “Good to know.”

“Ugh. I’m heading back to the bathroom.”

“I’ll walk with you,” I offer, but she waves me off.

“I’m pregnant, not an invalid.”

I nod. “Got it.” I watch her go with a small smile in place. Mental note:Amber gets cranky when she’s tired or overstimulated.

---