Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 85585 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85585 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Taking a live-in nanny job for Laiken Lennox is supposed to be temporary. A fresh start. A safe place to land while I rebuild my life. It’s not supposed to be dangerous.
Laiken is my brother’s teammate.
My new boss.
A guarded NHL goalie and devoted single dad already fighting a custody battle.
I tell myself I can handle the proximity.
The late nights.
The way he looks at me like I’m something worth saving.
But living under his roof blurs every line I swore I wouldn’t cross.
Especially when he starts caring for me in ways no one else ever has.
I’m carrying another man’s baby.
He’s the last person I should fall for.
But the more time we spend together, the more Laiken feels like the one thing I can’t lose.
And when the truth comes out, it could cost me everything.
Promise Me This is a forbidden, slow-burn pro hockey romance featuring a protective single dad, an off-limits nanny, and a secret that could tear them apart. It’s book four in the Chicago Railers series and can be read as a standalone
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
1
Kia
The nausea hits before I’m fully awake.
One second I’m under the covers in my brother’s guest room, staring at the washed-out light seeping around the curtains, and the next my stomach cramps so hard it steals my breath.
“Oh crap,” I whisper, rolling onto my side.
My feet barely find the carpet before I’m rushing into the bathroom. The tile is cold against my bare feet as I drop to my knees, flip the seat up, and—
My body takes over.
The vomiting is harsh and relentless, scraping up everything inside me until I’m shaking. My eyes sting and my throat burns. Even when there’s nothing left, my stomach continues to convulse.
Almost every morning for the past month has started out this way.
If I’m lucky, it’ll pass quickly. Sometimes it drags on for hours, leaving me to feel hollow and wrung out, stranded on the bathroom floor with fear buzzing beneath my skin.
I sag forward, my forehead resting against the cool porcelain as my hair hangs in damp strands along my temples. With my eyes closed, I breathe through my nose, trying to get my body under control.
My guess is that I’m around ten weeks pregnant.
Possibly eleven.
I stopped counting because numbers make it real, and real turns into panic faster than I’m able to manage. A bitter taste coats my tongue as I swallow and blink until the room stops swimming. It’s hard not to feel like the universe is punishing me for being naïve and trusting the wrong man.
The sound of footsteps padding down the hallway outside my room is enough to turn my blood to ice.
Please, please, please don’t let it be my brother.
I’m not ready to tell Oliver yet. I’ve spent weeks rehearsing the conversation in my head, testing different versions of the truth, but none explain how I let this happen. Or how I ignored all the warning signs when I handed my heart over to a guy who didn’t deserve it.
Here’s what I know: words aren’t going to fix this. But a plan will. Unfortunately, I’m still trying to figure that part out. So, until I have something concrete in place, I’m keeping this secret to myself.
The footsteps pause outside the bathroom door.
Shit.
My muscles brace on instinct.
“Kia?” Rina’s voice drifts through the door. A second later, she steps inside. Her expression fills with sympathy when she finds me on the floor. “Oh, honey.”
The relief that crashes over me is enough to make my shoulders sag. I hadn’t realized how tense I’d become until this moment. Rina grabs a clean washcloth from the counter and runs it under the water before crouching beside me. The gentle way she presses it to my forehead has my eyes burning all over again.
Even though we haven’t known each other long, we’ve bonded over our unexpected pregnancies. The shared understanding, unspoken fears, along with the strange mix of joy and terror that comes when you realize your life is about to change whether you’re ready or not.
Only, she has Oliver.
My brother is protective, loyal, and all in when it comes to this woman.
And I have—
I squeeze my eyes shut and shove the thought away before it can finish forming.
I have myself.
That’s it. And for now, it’ll have to be enough.
“Are you okay?” she asks.
I nod, even though it’s a lie.
Her gaze skims over me, taking in everything I’m trying to hide from the tremor in my hands to the sheen of sweat on my forehead. Without comment, she rinses the cloth and wipes the corner of my mouth before folding and pressing it into my palm.
“Was it any worse today?”
I shrug. “Nah. About the same.”
She lowers herself beside me, her back against the cabinet. This isn’t the first time we’ve sat like this. It’s funny. I never thought my brother would settle down. But he fell hard for the Railers’ PR manager. And I can see why. Rina has a way of making me feel less alone in all of this. Her presence has been an unexpected lifeline. One I’m grateful for.
“I should’ve checked on you earlier,” she murmurs.
“It’s not your job to babysit me,” I mutter, swiping my mouth with the back of my hand. My knees ache against the tile. “I’m fine. Really.”
She lifts a brow. “You just threw up like your body’s trying to eject your soul. I’m going to go out on a limb and say you’re not exactly fine.”
A weak laugh slips out.
God, I’m so exhausted.
Exhausted from pretending I can carry all this alone.
And I’m scared.
No. What I am is terrified.
Maybe Collin is right, and I should’ve ended the pregnancy, but the thought never lasted long. How could I do that? How could I choose to get rid of the tiny life already growing inside me?
It doesn’t matter how hard this is going to be or how alone I might feel while facing it. When it comes down to it, there was never a choice to be made. I’m having this baby whether he agrees or not.