A Different Christmas (University Park #5) (6 page)

“It was a joint effort. Everyone brought something.” Mom placed serving spoons in each tray and my mouth watered.

“It looks divine and smells good.” I grabbed the carving knife and fork as everyone sat around the table, ready to cut my first turkey. Just as I was about to insert the blade, I stopped. “Hey, shouldn’t we say grace first?”

“Oh, yeah.” Mimi reached for my hand and I set the knife and fork back on the table. “We can’t forget to thank the good Lord for our meal.”

I waited for everyone to join hands and then motioned for Mimi to lead the prayer. Lexi clasped hands with me and smiled. It was a great feeling being with her on this joyous occasion. Our twins were due in a few weeks, I was doing what I loved for a living, and I had my family and friends to celebrate with us in our first home — things couldn’t get much better than this.

Chapter 4

Lexi

“Too bad you have practice today. I was hoping to finish Christmas shopping.” I watched Raven slip on his workout clothes as I lay in bed. One thing was certain: I’d never tire of watching him dress and undress. I giggled internally, thinking of the first time I saw him without a shirt. He was a fine piece of art back then, but now…
wow
. He had more ripples and dips in his stomach than before. His shoulders were broader and his legs were bigger. And his butt. Damn. I could squeeze it all night long.

“Sorry, baby.” He leaned forward and kissed me on the forehead. “I have a game to prepare for.”

With his body hovering over mine, I took in his massive size. I couldn’t wait to have the twins so I could press my body to his. Having a stomach as big as an exercise ball made it damn hard to enjoy sex. And sex with Raven was something I couldn’t get enough of — even pregnant.

“I know. I was thinking we could take Luke and Delaney to the French Quarter for dinner.”

He brushed my hair away from my face, appraising me pensively. “That sounds like a good idea. I should be done by five.”

I smiled. “Okay.”

“Ask Delaney and Cassie to go shopping with you. If not, I’m sure my mom will.”

I shifted between his arms. “I’ll ask them.”

“You still haven’t told me what you want for Christmas.”

With a slight shrug, I said, “You haven’t told me either.”

“You know what I want.” He traced the dove pendant on my neck — the one he gave me last Christmas.

“I know.” I looked away, feeling slightly guilty for not agreeing to marry him. I reminded myself I had nothing to be guilty about. When we got back together, I made it very clear he had a lot of proving to do. And he was doing everything to prove his worthiness of being my husband.

He’d bought us a house, filled it with fine furnishings, and purchased an SUV for our growing family. Not to mention, he’d been working hard to secure a spot on the team. Raven had not let me down — at least, not yet. Deep down, I still worried about him being faithful and since I couldn’t travel with him, my mind continued to wonder. I knew I couldn’t string him along forever, but I wasn’t ready to say yes.

I realigned our gazes. “Just give me a little more time, please?”

“Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere.” He smiled. “There’s something I need to tell you.” He sat on the edge of the bed and took a deep breath. The curve of his shoulders intensified and all traces of happiness left.

My heart did a double beat and I swallowed hard. Anytime he had to tell me something serious, I had to refrain from panicking. “Okay.”

“Don’t worry, I didn’t do anything wrong,” he said with a calm, soothing voice that settled my frazzled nerves. “I just want to make you aware of something.”

I let out a heavy breath and braced myself, regardless. With Raven, I could never be too certain. “What is it?” I positioned myself upright in bed, ready for the blow.

He appraised me for a few seconds before he spoke. “You know I’d never do anything to hurt you, right?”

I blinked a few times, making sure I was awake. Was he serious? After all he put me through? “Um, I—”

“Sorry, wrong choice of words.” He shook his head and exhaled. “I guess what I’m trying to say is…I know I hurt you in the past and I’m doing
everything
to make it up to you. I love you, Lexi. More than you know.” He latched on to my hands.

“Then what is it?”

“After last Sunday’s game, two of the guys took me to their hotel room,” he paused momentarily, “for a party.”

“A party?” My heart didn’t slow down. This didn’t sound good.

“Yeah. The team wanted to celebrate my success since I helped them win the game.”

I listened intently, praying nothing bad had happened. “And?”

“And they said a few a words, praising me for how well I did on the field and told me I was exactly what the team needed.”

“That’s awesome, babe. Really, it is.” I had to make it a point to congratulate him on a job well done, but hearing this made me want to know what else happened.

“Thanks.” He gave me a slight smile. “It was a great feeling and it feels good to know they’ve accepted me into their clique.” The sparkle in his eyes disappeared and his eyes drooped. “At least…I hope they did.”

“Why wouldn’t they?” I searched his face for the truth and when his eyes met mine, I sensed there was more to this story. “Tell me exactly what happened.”

“I drank two beers, stayed for a while, and left.”

“Raven,” I leaned forward, gripping his hands tighter, “anything else happen?”

“No.” He threw his hands up in defense. “I swear. But they did bring a group of women into the room.”

“What?” My heart dropped into the pit of my stomach and my blood filled with an anger I hadn’t felt in several months.

“I promise you, nothing happened.” He made a cross over his heart. “They did flirt with me, but I let them know you were the only one who belonged in my trap. No one else. I made it very clear to them.” His voice rattled and I prayed he was telling me the truth. “I thanked the team for their hospitality and left.”

“You left?” I eyed him suspiciously. I wanted to believe him. Trust he was being one-hundred percent honest with me, but knowing what he’d done on New Year’s Eve had me less inclined to do so.

“Yes. I finished my second beer, tossed the empty bottle, and told them goodnight.” His shoulders relaxed as if a big weight had been lifted.

“And the women didn’t follow you to your room?”

His faced twisted in disgust. “No. Absolutely not.”

“You’re telling me the truth?”

“Yes, baby. In fact, Terrance apologized Monday for bringing those women. Swore it wouldn’t happen again.”

I wanted to believe him, not question whether he was lying or covering up something, but Raven made it damn hard. He had left too many scars on my heart — scars that reminded me what he was capable of doing. I searched deep inside myself and there, in the pocket of my heart, underneath all those markings, was the feeling I’d been searching for. The feeling that told me he was being honest. That he was trying his damnedest to prove he could love me and honor me at the same time. I sensed no falsehood or excuses for covering up relationship-breaking actions. I at least had to give him the benefit of the doubt.

“Thank you for telling me.” I released a gentle smile.

“So, you believe me?” He gathered me in his arms.

I hesitated for a moment, squashing the voices that told me I was a fool for trusting him. “I’m trying, Raven. Really, I am.”

He rested his forehead against mine. “Please don’t stop. I’m working hard to walk a straight line. A line that leads us directly to the altar.”

“Good, because that’s where I want us to be.” I pressed a soft kiss to his lips and said a silent prayer he wouldn’t fail me again.

***

Raven

“Come on, Raven. Go deep.” The offensive coordinator yelled, pushing me to test my throwing arm. My shoulder ached and I prayed it wasn’t going to give me problems come Sunday. The old college injury loved to resurface at the most inopportune times.

I gave him a nod and called the play. Devon passed me the ball and I dropped back, hurdling it sixty-eight yards to Terrance. He jumped, but missed the catch. This long-bomb play was one I could nail in college, but for some reason, I was having trouble today.

“Again.” Coach Randy blew his whistle and motioned for one of the coaching staff to toss me another ball. We repeated the play several times and each time, I pushed myself harder and harder, trying not to overthrow the ball. I sensed the frustration with some of the players, but they stuck with me until I had the play down. Coach Randy blew the whistle one more time. “Alright. Let’s call it a day, guys.”

“Thanks, man.” I turned toward Devon as we cleared the practice field.

“No problem, man. We’re counting on you,” he said with a heavy breath.

The comment made me stop dead in my tracks. We had one more day to practice our plays before Sunday’s game.

Damn. Why did this week have to be Thanksgiving?

I needed one more practice day. It sucked we didn’t get a full practice day on Monday and had lost a full day on Thursday. I was still too green and needed all the extra time I could get. The team was counting on me. Lexi was counting on me. The twins were counting on me. I couldn’t let them down. We had to win Sunday’s game and it was my responsibility to get them there.

“Hey, Terrance.” I got his attention before he pulled his helmet off.

“You did good.” He knocked fists with me.

“Thanks, man. I’m just concerned about a few of the plays.” I shook my head while gripping my sides.

“You want to practice some of the throws?” Despite his offer, his face had another message: tired and ready for a hot shower. I couldn’t blame him; so was I.

“Yeah, I’d like to. Do you mind staying for a while?”

“No, man. Not at all.” Terrance motioned to one of the other receivers. Richon Fontenot was a free agent like me and he played at PHU his freshman year before transferring to Oklahoma. “Raven wants to practice a little longer. Can you stay?”

“Sure.” He slammed his helmet against his hand. “Let’s do this.”

“I appreciate it, Richon.”

“Don’t worry about it.” We gripped hands for a manly shake and headed toward the forty-yard line. I glanced at the clock on the scoreboard and saw it was fifteen after five. Lexi was going to be pissed after I promised we’d take Luke and Delaney to eat at the French Quarter. My phone was in my locker, so I had no way to call her. I hoped she’d understand.

We practiced a few different plays until I felt comfortable. It helped us learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and I was quickly able to pick up on what I needed to do to make the plays successful. What I liked about these guys was their determination to win. Not once did they complain when I asked them to do it again. After an hour, we finally called it quits.

“Thanks, guys. I appreciate it.”

“Don’t worry about it. We want to win Sunday’s game just like you do.” Terrace shot me a grin as we headed to the locker room.

“I can do it again tomorrow if you want,” Richon offered, as he removed his helmet.

“I might take you up on that.” I bumped my helmet against his.

Before hitting the shower, I grabbed my phone. I had a missed call and two text messages from Lexi.

Lexi: Just checking to see when you’re coming home. I’m starving and ready to eat. Luke and Delaney are ready, too. I love you and hope everything is okay. Call me, please.

Forty minutes later, I had another text.

Lexi: We’re going to head to the FQ. Call me when you get done.

By the lack of words in her message, I could tell she was pissed. I dialed her number, not bothering to text back. I didn’t want her to think I was cheating on her or hiding something. Especially after I told her about the party at the hotel. She indicated she trusted me, but I heard the concern in her voice. I couldn’t blame her after everything I’d put her through.

The phone rang a few times before she answered.

“Hello?”

“Hey, baby. I just finished practice.”

Background noise filtered through the phone, but it didn’t cover the sigh she released. “What happened? I thought you said you’d be done by five.”

“We finished around five-fifteen, but I stayed to practice a few plays with some of the guys.”

“You could’ve text me to let me know.” Frustration rang loudly and I cringed, knowing I’d screwed up.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t have my phone—”

“Why didn’t you have your phone?”

“Because I was on the field, practicing.” I placed my hand against my locker, trying desperately not to ram my fist into it.

“Can’t you take it with you? What if I was going into labor? How am I supposed to get a hold of you? You promised you be here for me, Raven.”

She had a point. With only a few weeks left, I had to be ready at all times. “You’re right, and I’m sorry. If I have to stay late, I’ll make sure you have a way to get in touch with me.”