Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 77900 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77900 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
“Who do we call first?” she asks as I start the truck to get the heater going.
“Our parents.”
“Okay, let’s call yours first,” she suggests.
Not needing to be told twice. I hit my mom’s contact, and the phone rings out in the cab of the truck.
“Hello?” Mom answers.
“Mom.” My voice cracks.
“Reid? What’s wrong? Is it Bellamy? The baby?”
I clear my throat. “We’re all fine. We just had our ultrasound,” I tell her.
“Oh!” I can hear the excitement in her voice. “Sam! Come here, Reid and Bellamy are on the phone,” she calls out. “We both just got home,” Mom explains. “Okay, he’s here, and you’re on speaker.”
I glance over at Bellamy and nod. “Hi, Paula. Hi, Sam,” she says.
“Hello, sweetheart,” they say at the same time.
“We wanted to call to let you know that you’re getting a granddaughter,” I tell them, feeling emotion well in the back of my throat. My parents congratulate us, and we talk for a few more minutes. “Thank you,” I tell them. “We’re excited, but we have a few more calls to make.”
“Of course,” Mom says. “I’m so happy for both of you,” she says. “Talk soon. We love you.” She barely has the words out before the line goes silent.
“Your mom next?” I ask.
She smiles and nods as she grabs her phone out of her purse, dials her mom, and places the call on speaker.
“Hello, daughter of mine. How are you?” Candice greets.
“It’s a girl!” Bellamy blurts.
“What?” Candice asks, voice cracking. “A granddaughter,” she says lovingly.
“Yes!” Bellamy exclaims.
“I’m so happy for you. Tell Reid I said congratulations.”
“I’m here, Candice,” I speak up.
“You ready to be a girl dad?” she teases.
“You know I’m gonna rock that,” I tell her, laughing.
“No doubt in my mind,” Candice replies.
“You let me know if you need help with the nursery or anything else,” she tells us.
“We will, Mom. Love you.”
“Love you, too,” she says, and ends the call.
“What about your dad?” I ask her.
“I don’t know.” She bites down on her bottom lip.
“We don’t have to tell him.”
“I should, though, right? I mean, that’s the right thing to do?”
“Baby, we can do whatever we want.”
“I guess I’ll call him.” She huffs out a breath of air and dials his number, placing the call on speaker.
“Bellamy? Is everything okay?” Coach Warner answers.
“Yeah. Um, yeah, everything’s fine. I thought you might want to know that we’re having a girl.”
I reach over and place my hand on her thigh, letting her know I’m right here. Supporting her in the only way I know how.
“A girl?” he asks. I can hear the emotion in his voice. “That’s great, Bellamy. You’re feeling okay?” he asks.
“Yeah, I’m doing great.” She glances over at me. “Reid takes great care of me.”
“Good. That’s good.” He clears his throat.
“So, that’s all I wanted to tell you.”
“Thank you for telling me. Can we—” he starts, but she cuts him off.
“Sorry, bad service, I gotta go,” she says, ending the call. “I’m going to hell, aren’t I?” she asks.
“No, you’re not going to hell. It’s going to take time to build that relationship,” I remind her.
“Yeah,” she agrees. “How are we going to tell everyone else?”
I shrug. “Text message?”
My girl smiles. “Sounds good to me. Do you mind if we add Amanda to that?”
“Of course, we’re adding Amanda. She’s your best friend.” Grabbing my phone, I pull up a new message and add the guys, their wives, plus Sloane, Amanda, and Bellamy to the message.
Me: It’s a GIRL!!
Instantly, the replies start rolling in.
Landry: Uncle Landry will buy her a pony. Congrats, my man.
Baker: Congrats, brother.
Knox: Hell, yeah.
Foster: She’s going to have you wrapped around her tiny finger.
Sloane: Congrats, and we all know she’s going to have ALL OF US wrapped around her finger. Just like Camden does now.
Corie: I’m so happy for both of you.
Amanda: I’m glad I didn’t bet Reid it was a boy. Congrats, I’m so excited for both of you.
Rowan: Our family is growing. Congratulations.
Me: Thank you. We’ve got pictures. We’ll show you soon.
Bellamy: Thank you.
I glance over at my girl. She’s smiling down at her phone, and my heart expands in my chest. I was right. Today, we’re definitely on the edge of something irreversible. It’s my love for my girls. Nothing will ever change that. I open my mouth to say the words, but her phone rings.
“It’s Amanda.”
“Answer it.” Leaning over the console, I kiss her temple before putting the truck in Drive and pointing us toward home.
Dropping to the mattress in my hotel room, I sling my arm over my eyes to block out the light and groan. Tonight’s game was brutal, and we walked away with a loss, losing by one point. One single missed field goal, but that’s football. You win some. You lose some. I’ve been lucky enough to be part of a team that wins more than it loses, but those losses hit hard.