31. Maggie

CHAPTER 31

MAGGIE

As soon as JT texts that he’s here, I rush to the door and open it wide. I’m too excited to be coy or demure or in any way chill.

Jules had a consultation in D.C. this morning, and she’s not home yet. And Uncle Hudson is at the athletic center, as always.

That means I have the house to myself. I planned to spend the afternoon napping or reading or painting my toes while I can still see them, but when I checked my email five minutes ago, my plans changed.

JT jogs up the steps and reaches for me. “Hey,” he says, kissing me.

“I passed!” I say, the words bursting out of me before I can contain them or offer any context.

JT blinks. “You…holy shit, your Financial Math exam?”

I nod. “I just got the email and I had to tell you first. Oh my gosh, this is such a relief. People say the Probability one is even harder, so I have to keep studying, but not today. Today, I can just relax.”

“And celebrate,” he says, kissing me again. “You know what this means, right? ”

“No,” I answer, leading him to the couch and settling onto his lap. His hands rest on my belly. It hasn’t fully popped yet, but I’m not sure how much longer my secret will keep.

“This means, Nugget,” he says to my belly, “that your mama is smart as hell. That she accomplished something pretty freaking awesome. So, we need to celebrate. Maybe see if Coach and Jules want to have dinner? Maybe share some other pretty incredible news?”

He’s right, and I know it. But I also know that my happiness bubble will burst when Uncle Hudson finds out that my life has taken some unexpected turns.

“That’s not the only way we can celebrate,” I say, running my hands over his shirt. We really should come clean soon, so I may as well enjoy the perks of being with JT before my uncle runs him out of town.

JT starts kissing my neck and reaching for the hem of my shirt. I’m about to peel it off when I hear a noise behind me.

I freeze in JT’s arms and look toward the entryway.

My Uncle Hudson is standing there, his body taut with disbelief. Jules stands next to him, taking in the scene before her.

“Does anyone want to tell me what the hell we just walked in on?” My uncle’s voice is low, lethal.

JT and I are both fully clothed, but I’m in his lap, my lips are swollen, and JT’s cheeks are flushed. There’s no doubt about what we were doing. Or what we were on the verge of doing.

“Uncle Hudson,” I start.

“We’re together,” JT says, his voice sure and smooth.

My uncle nearly laughs. “No, you’re not.”

“Coach—”

JT’s protest doesn’t even register.

“You,” Uncle Hudson says, pointing at JT, “have a hockey career. And you,” he says, shifting his focus to me, “have classes to finish and exams to take. Jesus Christ, Margo. What were you thinking?”

He doesn’t need to answer his own question. I’ve heard the lecture before and could probably recite it by now. JT lifts me from his lap and moves to stand behind me, his arms wrapping around me like a blanket.

“We’re together, Coach,” JT repeats. There’s no anger, no indignation. But there’s no hesitation, either, no need for approval.

“Maggie is my girlfriend. I’m her boyfriend. We’ve been sneaking around, hiding it, but we’ve been together since?—”

“Doesn’t matter, Norris. Whatever the hell this is, it ends now.” My uncle’s words are final, his tone direct. He’s a man used to giving orders and having them followed without question.

JT’s voice is just as steady. “It doesn’t end, Coach. Not now, not ever, if I have any say. And sure as hell not for the next eighteen years.”

Uncle Hudson’s jaw drops, and Jules’s eyes widen comically.

If I thought he was angry before, he’s livid now. “The fuck did you just say to me?”

JT’s not backing down. I was afraid of this moment, and with good reason, but he’s holding me tightly, sharing his strength with me when I need it most. His hand rests on the bump that’s just starting to show. “I told you the truth, Coach. That Maggie is my girlfriend. But it’s more than that. She’s my family.”

Uncle Hudson’s attention shift to me. “You’re pregnant?”

The words are a condemnation, a confirmation that I’ve ended up exactly the way he predicted I would. It’s so much bullshit I can’t stand it. It’s like we’re both looking at the sky and I’m calling it blue and he’s screaming that it’s red.

“You can go, Norris,” my uncle says, dismissing his star player like he’s a kid who just got in trouble. “I’ll deal with you later. Margo,” he begins, his focus back on me.

“I’m not going anywhere, Coach. Not unless Maggie asks me to.”

“Maybe I didn’t make myself clear, Norris. Get your hands off my niece and get the hell out of my house. I’ll see you at practice tomorrow.”

JT doesn’t move.

“Did you hear me? This is a family matter.”

“Yeah, loud and clear, Coach. I’m her family. She’s mine.”

He pulls me closer against him, but the chaos is too much. My ears are ringing and suddenly it’s a million degrees in here.

“Stop it, both of you,” Jules commands. “Let Maggie sit before she passes out.”

JT deposits me onto the couch before heading into the kitchen. “I’ll get a cold towel. That helps sometimes,” he says.

Uncle Hudson starts to protest, but Jules cuts him off quickly.

“I’m fine, really,” I say, starting to stand. But then the room spins, so I lean into JT’s embrace and let the cold cloth work its magic.

“How far along?” My uncle asks, his words clipped.

“Our first appointment is next week,” JT says. “We just found out not too long ago, but,” he looks at me and smiles, “our best guess is that Maggie’s almost four months along. The baby should be here in mid-May.”

“Jesus Christ. Did you meet her out in California and fuck on the plane ride here?”

“Hudson!” Jules’s voice cuts through the tension in the room. “Don’t be an ass.”

“I’m the ass?” he questions. “He’s a goddamn sophomore in college, Julia. More talent in his fucking pinky toe than half the collegiate players put together. Everything rests on the next few years for this kid. Do you see that? Do any of you see that? And Margo, my god. You were given everything. Every privilege. Every opportunity and you still ended up exactly where?—"

“Enough,” Jules says. “I’m serious. We’re not getting anywhere.”

Coach sighs in frustration. “Fine, then let’s get somewhere. You said you have a doctor’s appointment. Have you looked into adoption agencies yet?”

“What?” JT can’t hide his anger or surprise.

My uncle doesn’t even notice. He’s in problem-solving mode. “Jules, who’s your friend? The one who makes all the jewelry?”

My aunt furrows her brow. “Kate? Why do you—oh, my god, stop. You cannot arrange a damn adoption, Hudson.”

“JT and I are going to raise our baby, Uncle Hudson,” I say, finding my voice.

But of course, he’s shaking his head before I’m even finished with my sentence. “How the hell are you going to do that? You don’t have a job, Margo, and you can’t access your trust for three more years. And you?” he says, turning his attention back on JT, “You really think you’re going to play house while you claw your way up the ranks of the NHL? Not likely. You’ll be distracted and they’ll eat you alive. You think I’m the bad guy, I know. I’m the asshole. Fine. But you have no clue what the real world is like. Not one clue.” He’s pacing now, and rubbing his temples as though we’re giving him a headache. I don’t feel like his niece right now. I don’t feel like family. I’m just one more crisis to deal with, one more shitstorm to fix.

It’s too much.

“I love JT,” I say before I can hold onto the words and save them for a time when we’re alone. “I love him, and he loves me and our baby. We are a family. You don’t have to like it, Uncle Hudson, but you’re not going to change it.” It’s strange how much lighter I feel right now, as though I’ve taken away anyone else’s ability to make me feel guilty or unworthy.

I chance a glance at JT and see that his smile has never been brighter. Maybe there would have been a better time or place for my declaration of love, or maybe it came at exactly the right time.

My uncle rakes his hands through his hair. “Do you think love is going to be enough? Is it going to pay the bills? Get up in the middle of the night with a screaming baby?”

I can feel the anger and frustration rolling off JT in waves at my uncle’s words.

“We’re done here,” my boyfriend says, taking my hand. “We were done about fifteen minutes ago, and we should have left then.”

My uncle’s voice is cold, almost unrecognizable. “If you leave this house, Margo, don’t bother coming back.”

It’s not even a tough decision. I grab my bag and my coat and follow JT out the door.