Second Chances

When Jake had dropped her off at her car the night she told him about Olivia, the two parted ways but not before exchanging current cell phone numbers as well as another tender kiss. Whitney knew that she probably shouldn’t have kissed him, but four years worth of desire made it hard to resist.

For the next three days, anytime anyone looked at either Whitney or Jake their heads were buried in their phones. He was peppering her with questions about her pregnancy and their daughter and she, in turn, asked him to share his own life for the duration of their separation. Very quickly he’d made it very clear that he wasn’t going to let his family know about his knowledge of Olivia, he wanted to establish a relationship that wasn’t tainted by the opinions of his family, specifically his mother.

Though the last thing Whitney wanted was to drive a wedge between Jake and his family, she was relieved to know that she had Jake to herself for awhile, that he would get to know his daughter without any outside feedback. When he’d asked to meet Olivia the night of their home game against the Predators, Whitney had insisted that he take the time to really think about whether he wanted to be a part of their daughter’s, and her life, because he couldn’t change his mind down the road if it all became too much. She had to protect her baby girl and while she knew that Jake would never intentionally hurt her, she’d read about his playboy ways and wanted to make sure that he was certain about taking the steps to grow up and be a father.

In Jake’s mind, there was no other option. He’d gone four years without knowing his daughter and that was four years too long. He knew that he probably wasn’t ready to be a father but he’d be damned if he didn’t at least give it his all. Looking down at the pictures of Olivia that Whitney had sent him he couldn’t help but pick out each feature that was his own as opposed to those that she’d gotten from her mother. He’d heard all about her likes and dislikes from Whitney but he really did want to meet her himself, to teach her to skate like all the other guys did with their kids and just make the most of the fact that he had a second chance to be in her life.

Sitting in his locker after their first win of the season against the Predators he couldn’t help but want to celebrate. His birthday had been yesterday and he’d scored his first goal of the season. A few of the guys were going out and they’d asked if he wanted to join but the only person he wanted to see right now was Whitney. Quickly showering and changing, Jake snuck out of the arena and once he was in his car he dialed her number sitting back against the seat as he listened to it ring.

Across town, Whitney had just gotten a very hyper and very sugared up Olivia to bed when she heard her phone buzzing from the side table next to the couch. They’d watched the Pens game tonight once Whitney finished her articles on the Pitt Football game and she couldn’t help but cheer a little louder when Jake scored his first goal of the season. She was certainly proud of how far he’d come the past four years and though she hadn’t really planned on it, his birthday present was hidden on the floor of her closet.

Racing toward the couch to catch the call before it went to voicemail, Whitney couldn’t help the grin and blush that appeared on her face when she saw his name.

“Well hello, there Mr. Guentzel.” She teased. “That was one hell of a rebound goal.” Hearing that she had watched caused Jake’s ears to turn red and he chuckled lowly before speaking.

“So..I thought about what you said like you asked me to. But I want to be a father to our daughter….and well I want to see where things stand with us too. I know it won’t be easy but if you think I could turn my back on either of you now, you’re wrong.”

If Jake could see her he’d see the tears that had pooled in her eyes and were steadily flowing down her cheeks as he insisted that he was just as in this as she’d been for the past four years.

“Okay…” She whispered, flopping onto the couch, thankful that Stephanie had decided to make the most of her free Saturday night by going out. She loved her roommate but she really didn’t want to share Jake just yet, not when they were still figuring things out.

“Does that mean I can come over? I think you owe me a birthday dessert.” Giggling softly Whitney couldn’t help but think of all the previous birthdays they’d shared and how no matter what they’d always made each other dessert. For her birthdays it was usually instant pudding or something equally as foolproof but he’d always tried and she adored him for that.

“I suppose you could come over for a little while, I just got Miss Olivia to bed though so we’ll have to be quiet. Stephanie gave her way too much sugar while I was watching the Pitt game and writing my articles.” She’d told Jake all about her roommate and her relationship with their daughter so he could certainly imagine her getting the little girl all worked up only to leave her with her mother to deal with.

Sensing he was going to be caught by his teammates if he didn’t leave the garage, Jake got her address and then pulled out of the PPG Paints parking lot. When he arrived he was thankful that their apartment was in a decent part of town and after getting buzzed up, headed inside, climbing the three flights of stairs to apartment 4C.

As soon as she opened the door, Whitney was engulfed in strong arms and a cologne that was certainly far better than what he’d been using in high school.

“Hi..” She murmured, stepping backward when he kissed her once again, their bodies serving as magnets to each other. Once the lock on the door was flipped, Whitney pushed Jake away gently, motioning for him to move to the couch. When she joined him it was with two beers tucked under her arm, his present in one hand while a container of chocolate chip cookies was balanced in the other.

“Here’s your birthday dessert courtesy of our daughter and her insistence that chocolate chip cookies were the perfect birthday treat.” She declared gently setting the present down on the coffee table before handing him the container of cookies as well as one of the two beers. Before she could move to sit next to him on the couch, Jake was tugging her onto his lap and Whitney simply snuggled closer after opening her own beer. The way his thumb was brushing over her thighs as he opened the container of cookies made her sigh softly before yelling at herself that they needed to take things slow.

“Were these really made for me?” Jake asked softly to which Whitney nodded.

“Every year I made you a birthday treat. This year Olivia insisted that whoever mommy was baking for would want chocolate chip cookies.” Jake felt his pulse jump knowing that even when they were apart she’d always done something for his birthday and burying his nose in her neck for a minute he basked in just how lucky he was to have his best friend back and for her to be the one he was bonded to for life through a child.

“You are something else…” He murmured before taking a sip of his beer. She certainly had good taste there as well and he yawned feeling the energy of the day start to leave him.

“Don’t fall asleep before you open your present…” Whitney insisted, quickly sitting up to grab the wrapped box that evidently he’d overlooked. Handing it to Jake she struggled to not bounce in the excitement and anticipation of him opening it.

“You didn’t have to get me anything.” He insisted, though he still tore through the paper at her insistence. On top was a card of course and when he opened it he smiled, inside was a photo of his girls in his jersey and he was pretty sure that he’d never seen anything better.

“I figured that when you were ready for people to know about us you could put it in your locker.” She murmured in explanation.

“It’s perfect.” He assured her pecking her lips quickly before opening the actual box. On top was a watch she thought he’d like since she’d noticed he wasn’t wearing one opening night. Under that was simply a photo album that she’d put together from when she first settled into her pregnancy to just a few days ago. Watching him flip through it she smiled thinking back to all of the memories but there was also a tinge of sadness that he had missed all of these things.

She knew that things probably wouldn’t have worked out between them four years ago, they certainly wouldn’t be where they are now so the time they were apart was a blessing in a way but at the same time it had been a hard four years being on her own and now that he was back in their lives she wasn’t sure just how to deal with it.

“This is the best birthday I’ve had in awhile.” He stated, finishing off his beer and a cookie before setting everything aside and moving to lift Whitney into his arms bridal style. “Which way to the bedroom?” He questioned and caught up in the look on his face Whitney could only point as she fought back a giggle against his chest.

Once he’d set her down he quickly stripped to his boxers and Whitney certainly tried not to stare as she herself moved to unmake the bed and get comfortable. Slipping out into the hall while he used her bathroom, Whitney peeked in on Olivia and finding her sound asleep moved back to bed, flipping lights off as she went. Back in her room, Jake was leaning against the headboard and sliding in next to him Whitney snuggled back into his side.

Feeling his fingers tangle in her hair as he whispered about how much he missed her, missed moments like this, Whitney was instantly lulled to sleep, faster than she could remember any other time in the past four years. When Jake realized that she was out, he simply placed a kiss on her temple, whispered that he loves her and settled down to sleep himself. Tomorrow he’d meet their daughter and while he was nervous, he knew that he was definitely ready.