Free Romance: Sports Romance: ON SIDE (Secret Baby Pregnancy Football Romance) (Contemporary New Adult Fiction) by Raven Monet Page B

”
    “Sure,” Micah said, standing up and walking over to his brother.
    Normally, Micah might launch into a lecture on how to hold her, how to keep her head steady, but they'd worked through all that the last time. He'd given Deacon a lesson on how to properly hold a baby, and it seemed as if the tough guy had actually taken notes. Deacon smiled down at her and her eyes fluttered open as she was passed from one man to the next. She smiled, briefly, but it very well could have been gas. Not that we'd tell Deacon that because he was beaming with joy.
    “She smiled at me,” he said.
    “She loves her uncle Deacon,” I said softly.
    Deacon kissed Ava's forehead before passing the baby back to Micah.
    “Ready to go?” Deacon asked me, his voice choked up ever so slightly.
    “Yeah, just give me a second, okay?”
    He nodded. I turned to Micah, kissing Ava on the head. “I love you, sweet baby girl. Mama will be back in the morning.”
    “You don't have to leave, if you don't want to,” Deacon said from behind us.
    I stopped and locked eyes with Micah. Did he just – ? Did Deacon just offer to let me out of my end of the deal? I waited to see what Micah might say, thinking he'd leap at the chance not to share me. But Micah stroked my cheek, kissing me, before saying, “It's up to Lucy. I'm more than happy to let her have a night with you if that's what makes her happy, brother.”
    “Thank you,” I mouthed to Micah, leaning into the softness of his touch. “I love you.”
    “I love you too, baby,” he said, kissing the tip of my nose. “I love you too.”

 
    Owned & Claimed: Ava
     
     
     
    By Em Covax

Chapter One
    AVA
     
    Sidling into the booth, hiding away in the far corner of the bar, I sat back watched everyone quietly. The bartender eyed me from behind the bar, but only because he was checking me out. Probably not because he knew who I was. I didn't order a drink, which might have looked suspicious if not for the fact that I was a lone female sitting in a bar. It made it look like I was waiting for someone – or better yet, looking for someone.
    And in a way, I was.
    No one in this town knew me – or at least they didn't think they did. A bunch of different people had seen me since I'd gotten back but nobody realized who I was. I'd been born in this God forsaken town a long time ago, but my family had moved me away. Thankfully so. But now, my family was dead. Wiped out. Well, except for one person – and that one person was supposed to be coming in this cheap dive bar tonight.
    I had no doubts that when he saw me that he'd recognize me. Though he hadn't come to the funeral and we hadn't seen one another since before my parents died, I just knew he'd know me on sight. Just as I would know him on sight. There's no way I wouldn't be able to recognize him, considering the fact that he looked exactly like my father. They were twins, after all.
    Raised voices and a raucous noise pulled my attention to the door. Several men inside stood up, their posture tense, almost as if they expected trouble. In walked my uncle, standing tall and proud, and beside him were his brothers. My parents kept me sheltered from my uncle's more private life, and even he didn't talk about it very much around me.
    But I knew. I knew who he was and what he did. I wasn't blind, nor was I stupid. I knew what those tattoos meant and I heard the gossip around town every time he came for a visit. Nobody ever said my uncle was a good man, but what others thought of me or of him really didn't matter much. All I knew was that he'd always loved and cared for me, just as he'd loved and cared for my parents.
    I was slightly surprised when I saw him. His long, black hair had more silver in it than the last time I'd seen him. His dark eyes were dimmer and were now surrounded by crow's feet. He'd lived a rough life already, it was written all over his body. And I was pretty sure the last few months had probably been even harder on him.
    His dark