“Chicken,” he mocks.
“Asshole.”
Another hour passes and Sophie finally comes out with a big smile on her face. “He’s here! Come on, Mads. Lennon wants you to meet him.”
“Is he cleaned up?” I stand, walking toward her.
She rolls her eyes and grabs my elbow. “Stop being a coward. He’s adorable either way.”
Giggling, I follow her while Liam waits. As soon as I see Lennon and Hunter, I beam and rush over.
“Oh my gosh, he’s so cute!” I say softly, leaning down and rubbing his little cheek. “You did good, sis.”
“Excuse me?” Hunter interrupts. “I participated too.”
I turn and give him a bemused smile, then pat his cheek. “Well done, Daddy. Your sperm contribution helped create an adorable baby.”
Lennon snorts. “Babe, I think she was talking about the giving birth part,” she tells him as I take pictures of her cradling the baby and Hunter standing next to her.
“Well, she did nearly squeeze off my hand,” Hunter complains, then smiles at Lennon. “Which is nothing compared to your pain, I’m sure.”
Lennon shakes her head at him, making me laugh.
“So does this little guy have a name?” I ask as Sophie stands on the other side, admiring our nephew.
“Sure does,” Hunter says proudly. “Aaron Christopher.”
“Oh, I love that,” Sophie says. “Dad’s gonna appreciate you keeping his name in the family.”
“Me too. How’d you think of Aaron?” I ask.
Lennon groans, sighing deeply. “Well, since I named Alison after my favorite singer, I told him he could choose this baby’s name. So…he picked it after his favorite quarterback.”
“You named my nephew after a football player?” I gasp.
“Damn straight! Aaron Rodgers.”
“Oh, I like him,” Sophie says. “He’s a hottie.”
“It wasn’t because of his looks,” Hunter replies. “But if my kid loves football as much as I do, then he’ll appreciate his namesake. If not, we’ll never tell him.”
Lennon chuckles. “Regardless, I think it suits him.” She looks down at Aaron and smiles.
“I do too,” I say. “Can I hold him now?”
Lennon is brought to her recovery room shortly after I hold him, and Hunter invites Liam to meet the newest member of their boys’ club. Mason arrives after work, and soon, the six of us are gazing in awe at the new baby.
“Is Sophie still bringing Alison up tonight?” I ask before leaving. “I want to take more pictures but with the four of you.”
“No, but Mrs. Locke’s bringing her first thing tomorrow morning after their sleepover. I can’t wait to see her reaction,” Lennon says.
I look over at Liam and bite my lip. “Maybe if I can hitch a ride, I can skip my morning class and be here to visit.”
“Hitch a ride, huh?” Lennon arches a brow.
“If my very nice roommate would help me out…” I linger, waiting for Liam’s reaction. “Roomie?” I stick out my lower lip, pleading with my eyes.
“Your begging skills are pathetic,” he retorts, and I fantasize about being in front of him on my knees. I try to push the thoughts away.
“You really want to talk about begging right now?” I narrow my eyes at him, wondering if he’ll call my bluff or not. The night of my birthday, I nearly begged him to kiss me, and it’s all it took for him to finally break.
His gaze finds mine, my expression unwavering. “Nope.” He stands, then shakes his head. “We’ll be here.”
I smile victoriously as Sophie and Lennon give me the same look. They don’t know our history, and I don’t plan on telling them anytime soon. They’ll most likely want to murder or lecture me and then lock me in my room forever. Still treating me like their ten-year-old little sister who needs to stay a virgin forever.
Sophie drives us home, and while I’m in my room, getting my bag packed for school tomorrow, she comes in and shuts the door.
“Hey,” I say, stuffing my dance clothes and shoes inside. Then I move around the room, grabbing snacks and more school shit because I have to study tomorrow. “What’s up?”
“So I don’t know what’s going on with you and Liam, but I need to tell you something.” She takes a seat on the bed, crossing her legs.
I furrow my brows, looking over at her in confusion. “You know there’s nothing going on. He treats me like an annoying kid sister he can’t get away from.”
Sophie shrugs, pursing her lips. “Well, you two have grown closer since you’ve moved in, so I’m wondering if you’ve noticed his weird behavior over the past couple of months?”
“Liam is always weird,” I counter, shaking my bag to make everything fit. “Every time he comes back from traveling for a job, he seems a bit off, but I figured it was how he decompressed after dealing with fugitives.”
“Sometimes, I guess…but I’ve lived here for a while, and his work never seemed to really affect him other than being tired. Recently, he’s been more moody and snappy. The other day, Mason and I were kissing in the kitchen, and he stalked in. Normally, he’d tease us, but he whipped open the fridge door, and it slammed into me. I pushed it closed and glared at him, and he looked like he wanted to murder me.”