Page 41 of The Decoy

Silence stretches over the room.

The word family hangs in the air, but I’m not one to mince words. I didn’t say ‘the baby’ or ‘this situation.’ I said, my family.

Next to me, I hear Ellis take a deep breath. Her hands tighten around her glass, her eyes fixed on mine with an intensity that sends a surge straight to my gut.

Charles looks at me for a long moment, the lines in his forehead finally relaxing. He raises his tumbler, taking a sip. “Well spoken, Brody.”

“Yes, I think we can all feel reassured that Ellis and our grandson are in good hands,” Molly chimes in smoothly, a smile spreading across her face. “So Ellis, I’d like for both of you to spend the weekend with us at the house so we can start planning the nursery design.”

“Mom, let’s just finish our dinner first before we make plans for decorating,” Ellis laughs, her voice more relaxed now.

I like seeing her here with her family. And even though her mom may have embarrassed her tonight, I think Molly Renwick is hysterical.

I want to marry this girl.

The thought smacks me in the chest like a shock, but also like an absolute truth settling in my bones. Is this crazy to feel this way? Maybe. Probably. But it just feels right.

An hour later, after endless rounds of laughter, we’re back in my truck.

The first stop is Ellis’s place to pick up Oshie. The second we walk in, the pup comes bounding down the hall, her tail whipping like a helicopter blade, and she makes a beeline for me.

“Traitor,” Ellis mutters affectionately, watching Oshie try to jump into my arms. “I feed you expensive food, and you throw yourself at the first guy you see.”

“Aww, don’t be mad. She has good taste,” I chuckle as I rub Oshie behind her long floppy ears. “In reality, she probably just smells Buck on me.”

“Yeah, yeah. Let me grab a few things, then we can go,” she says, walking down the hallway to what I assume is her bedroom.

“I’ll be here waiting.”

The drive to my house is quiet but comfortable. The night air is freezing outside, but inside the cab, we’re warm. Even Oshie’s so comfortable she fell asleep in the back.

Ellis rests her head against the leather headrest, her hand lying flat in the middle console between us. I slide my right hand over hers, lacing our fingers together, my thumb gently tracing the smooth skin of her wrist.

When we pull into my driveway, Oshie pops up from the backseat.

“Come on, Osh,” I call, opening the back door. When I open the door to the house, Buck is waiting. The two dogs immediately start to play and forget we’re even here.

I carry both Ellis and Oshie’s belongings into the house and toss her fleece bed in the corner with Buck’s, even though I know they’ll likely just end up sleeping on the couch.

Ellis kicks her shoes off and walks into the family room.

“I’ll be right back. I just need to grab my duffel bag from the truck, but make yourself at home.”

“Okay, thanks.” She smiles at me before sitting down on the couch. “Can we start a fire when you come back inside?”

“You got it. Be right back.” I wink at her before turning and walking back outside.

When I come back in, I make my way over to the fireplace and set my bag on the ground by the couch where Ellis is sitting.

“So what does clean out your locker day entail? You just shove all your uniforms and gear into your bag and bring it home?”

“I usually toss most of my gear depending on if it’s in good enough shape to frame. Or if I have a lucky pair of gloves or cleats, I’ll try to keep things that have some kind of value to me. We get so much clothing throughout the season, so I like to keep some of it for working out, but I usually donate most of my stuff to Presley’s foundation. The Grants are generous with us, so we do get to keep jerseys without paying for them, and we can keep one helmet. I take a few jerseys to give to my mom and sister. The rest I sign and donate.”

“So other than like deodorant and stuff like that, everything pretty much gets recycled or used in some way?”

“Yep.” I finish building the fire and light it up.

She stands and walks over to me and wraps her arms around my waist from behind, pulling me into her body, which is cute considering our size difference, and rests her cheek against my back.