The Pickup Bonus Content

Olivia

Valentine’s Day

(After Olivia finds out she’s pregnant)

My eyes flutter open, and for a moment, I’m confused because the sunlight is shining in through the blinds and the condo is quiet. I sit up, ready to go check on Reed, when a bout of nausea hits me, and I make a detour to the bathroom.

Morning sickness. It’s the worst.

I’m kneeling before the toilet when a hand helps lift my hair from my face.

“Nick,” I groan. “You don’t want to be in here. Trust me.”

“Yes, I do.” He chuckles softly. “I wasn’t there with your pregnancy with Reed, and I’ll be damned if I can’t be here every moment possible with this baby.”

My heart swells in my chest, and tears prick my eyes. The last time I did this, Giselle was with me, holding my hair and comforting me. I’ll always be grateful to her, but I’m so happy I was able to find Nick and he’s by my side this time around.

Thankfully, I’m done throwing up, so with Nick’s help, I get up and rinse my mouth out, then brush my teeth.

“Where’s Reed?” I ask.

“In the living room, waiting for us.” Nick leans in and presses a soft kiss to my lips. “Happy Valentine’s Day, Liv.”

Oh shit! I forgot it was Valentine’s Day. I’ve been so focused on getting everything ready for Reed’s christening and our wedding that’s taking place in four months, I completely forgot.

“I’m the worst fiancée ever,” I cry, my emotions getting the better of me.

“Stop,” Nick says with a laugh. “You gave me the greatest Valentine’s Day gift.” He places his hand against my belly. “I love you.”

We walk out to the living room, and I’m shocked to find my little boy sitting on the floor with dozens of balloons and flowers surrounding him, along with a big basket of goodies.

“What is all this?” I choke out.

“Balloons!” Reed shouts, though his version is missing a few consonant sounds.

“I see!” I pick him up and give him a kiss on his cheek. “Happy Valentine’s Day.”

Reed giggles and then wiggles to get down, so I set him back on the floor and he toddles over to the balloons to smack them. When they go flying, he giggles some more.

“Forget his toys,” Nick says. “We just need to keep balloons on hand.” He grabs the basket from on top of the couch. “This is for you.”

I have a seat, and he puts the basket in my lap. There is a ton of candy as well as morning sickness lollipops and a lotion for stretch marks. There’s herbal tea that’s supposed to help with nausea. And then, nestled inside, is a book of some sort.

On the cover is a princess crown and a football with the title: The QB and the Princess. Underneath reads: Nick Shaw

“What is this?” I ask, opening the book up.

“The story of us,” Nick replies, making me do a double take. “I’ve been writing it for a while, but I wanted it to be a surprise. It’ll need to be edited and will need a different title and cover, but I wanted you to read it first.”

He started back at college after he reinjured his arm and retired and will be graduating this semester. He always tells me about his classes and schoolwork, but I’ve seen him working on something else the past several months and figured he would tell me about it once he was ready. I just had no idea he was writing a book!

I flip to the first page of the book.

Nick

Twenty years old

I’ve just gotten back to my dorm, and I’m fucking exhausted. I’m ready to take a hot shower then go see my girlfriend, Samantha …

“Samantha?” I quirk my brow. I already know who she is: Nick’s ex from college. “I thought this was about us.”

“It is.” Nick pulls me into his arms. “But like any good story, I had to start from the beginning.”

“I can’t wait to read it.”

“You’ll be the first,” he says with a shy smile. “I want to make sure you’re good with everything I put. After all, it’s not just my story I’m telling … it’s ours.”

***

“Where are we going?” I ask as Nick drives us out of the city.

“It’s a surprise.”

“Another one? I think the balloons and flowers and an entire novel about us were enough!” I laugh.

“Nothing is enough when it comes to you.” Nick threads our fingers together and lifts our hands to press a kiss to my knuckles. “But this surprise isn’t just for you. It’s for all of us.” He glances back at Reed, who’s babbling at his stuffed animal in the back seat.

The longer Nick drives, the farther away from the city we get until we’re driving through an area that reminds me of Brooklyn, with shops and restaurants on both sides of the road but a little less congested.

“What are we doing?” I ask.

“You’ll see.” Nick grins as he turns onto a side street that’s filled with beautiful homes.

When we pull into the driveway of a two-story home with a for sale sign in the yard, I glance at Nick.

“What is this?”

“I’m hoping our new home.”

“What?” I gasp.

When we talked about moving into a home, I tried to look at houses, but I was too overwhelmed. So, Nick asked me what I wanted, and I told him the most important thing is that we have a yard for Reed to play in. I love the city, but it’s not where I want to raise my kids. I’d like to be close to the city but live somewhere with a slower feel.

“C’mon,” he says, turning off the car and getting out.

He grabs Reed from his car seat, and we walk up the sidewalk to the front door.

Nick types in a code and the door clicks open, exposing the beautiful home. It has an open living room that leads to a state-of-the-art kitchen. A dining room that could easily hold all our family and friends. The master bedroom is massive, and the bathroom has a Jacuzzi tub I can imagine Nick and I relaxing in.

“This could be your office,” I tell him when we walk into the library. “You could write your books in here.”

“I could.” He pulls me into his arms. “And you could work from home too, running the foundation. I also looked and there are several well-known art museums in the area. A highly recommended private school for Reed and any other little ones we’ll have …” He rubs my belly.

“And it’s not far from the city,” I add.

I walk out and head toward the back of the house, where I find a fenced-in yard.

“Dada, down!” Reed says, wiggling to get down.

Nick opens the French door and Reed runs out, straight into the backyard. Because it’s been cold, the grass is brown, but I can still visualize Nick playing catch with Reed back here. Or kicking the ball around. We could even set up a swing set …

“What do you think?” Nick asks as Reed runs around in circles.

“It’s perfect,” I tell him.

“Good.” He leans in and kisses my lips. “Then I’ll let them know we want it.”

And just like that, we’ve found our first home. The place where we’ll create roots.

***

We spend the rest of the day checking out the area and I fall in love. There are plenty of places to shop and eat, without the hustle and bustle of the city.

Women walk their strollers down the sidewalk, talking and laughing as they head to the beautiful park.

We let Reed play for a while and once he’s exhausted, we head home.

Rather than going out to eat, Nick orders in and we have a candlelit dinner with our one-year-old. It might not be as romantic, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Once Reed is in bed for the night, Nick draws me a bubble bath, where I spend the next hour reading the beginning of Nick’s book. I vaguely know everything he went through before we met, but it feels deeper, more emotional when it comes from his thoughts and words.

When he catches Samantha cheating, my heart hurts for him, and when he agrees to the pact with Celeste, I can’t help but laugh at them—but only because I know how it turns out. At least for us. Celeste, on the other hand, is still single, but I’m hoping she’ll open her heart up soon. She deserves to find love.

“How’s it going?” Nick asks, popping his head into the bathroom.

“Good.” I hand him the book so I don’t get it wet. “I’m at the part where we’re about to hook up.” I waggle my brows and Nick laughs. “But I think I’d rather make love to my fiancé tonight than read about it.”

Nick grins and takes my hand to help me out of the tub. “Your wish is my command.”

Once I’m toweled off, rather than getting dressed, I meet him in our room, where he’s lying on the bed in his boxers, looking at his phone.

The moment he sees me, he drops his phone onto the nightstand to give me his full attention.

“I should’ve picked up lingerie,” I say with a laugh.

“For what?” He reaches over and grabs my hand. “So I could rip it off of you?” He pulls me gently onto the bed and rolls me onto my back.

“You look beautiful just like this,” Nick murmurs, kissing me tenderly. He trails fiery kisses along my neck and then over my breasts. He stops just long enough to give my nipples attention and then continues downward until he gets to my belly. I’m not far along, but my belly has already started to swell.

“I can’t believe there’s a baby growing in here,” he whispers, kissing right above my belly button. “I can’t wait to watch you grow. To feel him or her kick. To see the ultrasound.” He glances up at me with glassy eyes. “I hate that I missed all that with Reed.”

“There’s no use dwelling on the past,” I say, running my fingers through his hair. “Every moment led us to right here, right now, and there’s nowhere else I’d want to be.”

Nick nods in agreement and then proceeds to ravish me.

When we’ve both found our release and I’m wrapped up in his arms, he kisses the sensitive spot on my neck and then nuzzles his face into my hair. “Best Valentine’s Day ever.”

“I didn’t even get you anything,” I say with a small laugh.

“I got you. That’s all I need.”

Check out the next book in the Imperfect Love series: Going Deep