Hayden Cross is a man made for dreams, not reality.

He's so goddamn charming, so unbelievably polite and good-hearted, and most of all, he's full of passion and love. Sometimes it really feels like this can't be real. I mean, if anyone told me two years ago that I'd be weak in the knees because the world's most charming quarterback keeps kissing the ever-living hell out of me, I would've sent them straight to the hospital, knowing that person needed immediate help.

But would you look at that? Here I am. Six months pregnant with this very man's child.

And God, I could not be any happier. Hayden just fulfills me—he's the piece I was missing my entire life, and the thought of us raising our child together...it just sends tears to my eyes.

But as much as I enjoy this dream, watching my man play on the field, being the spectacular quarterback he is, I know reality will catch up. It always does.

It's like I predicted it; I see the name HASS, the bright yellow burning in my brain when suddenly, Hayden flies to the ground. It all happens so quickly, I'm unable to follow everything going on. I only see Hayden on the ground with Hass on top of him, who just leans back and then suddenly smashes his head right onto Hayden's.

"No!" I scream, but then time speeds up even more. The next thing I see is Kilian pulling Hass off Hayden, his fist connecting with the man's face within seconds.

But my eyes are only on Hayden, on the paramedics now working on him before he's carried away on a stretcher. Just like that, the love of my life disappears in front of my eyes, and I can feel how it shatters my heart.

A numbness runs through my veins—the image of Hayden on that stretcher makes it hard to breathe. This man is my oxygen. I need him to survive.

"Mimi, take a deep breath. He's okay. He has to be. He's too stubborn to leave you alone. You know how possessive he is." Jasmine tries to lighten the mood, and I'm really thankful for that. But I can't bring myself to smile. It's like I can't feel my body anymore.

The only thing that's keeping me grounded is our little peanut kicking in my belly.

***

"Mimi, look at me." Jas takes my hands, her fierce eyes pleading with me to stay strong. "You need to get your momma-bear panties on now. You need to stay sane for your man and your baby, okay? We both know you're strong enough to get through this, and I need you to show that now."

I so badly want to tell her that I can't, that I can't imagine what life would be like if there was something wrong with him, if he was in a coma... So many options run through my brain, all worst-case scenarios playing out like a movie inside my head.

But I stop myself. Because Jas is right. I'll need to stay strong, if not for my sake then for my baby's, because it doesn't deserve the stress. I can't risk that.

"You're right. Let's go." We get out of the car and rush into the hospital; Dad managed to figure out where they took Hayden, and we immediately rushed over.

One of the nurses shoots us a weird look as we enter the emergency room, and Jas waves her hand in front of the poor woman's face. "We're looking for Hayden Cross. Can you tell us where he is?"

The nurse looks us over, judging us with every second her eyes land on us. "I'm sorry, but I can't give you any personal information about said patient unless you're related or married."

"She's pregnant with his child—isn't that connection enough?"

The disbelief is visible in the nurse's face, her eyes just for a second glancing down the hallway, where two security guards are standing in front of a door. "Unfortunately not. He's a VIP, ma'am. There are different rules at work here."

But I don't even listen to the nurse anymore. I'm already walking past her and toward that door with the security guards in front of them.

Fuck me, they're big and scary.

"Can I help you, ma'am?" one of them asks, raising an eyebrow in amusement.

I really don't like the way he's looking at me, and I guess that's enough to get my hormones to speak up. "Yes, you can move out of my way," I say, mustering up as much confidence as I can find.

"I'm afraid I can't do that, miss. Not unless you're a direct relative to Mr. Cross and have identification to prove that."

"Well, my child is a direct relative to him. Is that enough proof?" I'm starting to get extremely irritated now, same as peanut, who's seemingly kicking their way out of my belly.

The man's eyebrows shoot up and he studies me intently, a smirk playing on his lips when he retorts, "Yeah, sure. Of course, you're pregnant with his kid."

I'm going to kill this man. "Didn't your mother teach you not to make fun of a pregnant woman?" I ask through gritted teeth.

"Uh, that's not—"

"You'd better open this fucking door," I interrupt, tapping my index finger onto his chest, "or I swear to God I'll make sure Mr. Cross gets you fired for stressing his heavily pregnant girlfriend to the point where she punches you in the face. Do you understand?"

I don't even care anymore that I'm screaming half the hospital down by now. My hormones have me on high alert.

"Miss, you need to calm down."

I hear a commotion from inside the room which lets the panic rise within me. I take another step toward the large guy in front of me, now having to tilt my head to look up at him. "And I need you to move your fucking gigantic ass, do you understand?"

"I'd listen to her. She may not look like it, but she throws a mean punch." Jas suddenly supports me from behind.

"I can confirm that," Dad chimes in as well, but the security guard just shakes his head.

"That may be the case, but I can't—"

But then the door opens, a kind-looking doctor standing right in the door frame. "Are you Miss Lyne?" he asks.

"Yes, that's me."

"Okay, you can come in. The others need to stay outside for now, please. My patient needs rest, and this definitely isn't giving that to him."

Shit. Now I feel horrible. God, what if something happened to him because I let my hormones get the better of me? "Of course, sorry," I ramble, but the doctor leads me into the room without another word.

My heart is pounding so rapidly in my chest, I feel like I might faint with every step that I take. I have no idea what to expect.

But then I see him, and I swear it's taking everything within me not to break down in an instant. He has a giant bruise on his face, spreading from his temple over to his eyes and nose.

"Hey, peanut," he whispers with a weak smile, and that's all it takes. I can't hold back the tears anymore, relief flushing over me in waves as I bury my face in my hands. "Baby, come here, please..."

I don't know how I do it, but my feet carry me toward him, and within seconds his arm is on my waist before he pulls me into his chest, his heartbeat thundering against my ear when I cry onto his dirty football jersey. "Hey, hey...I'm okay."

But I can't even say anything, his hands stroking my back and hair while I take deep breaths, trying to calm my racing heart. I can't stress too much now.

"Doctor, could you just give us a minute, please?" Hayden asks, and even though I don't hear a response, the click of the door indicates the doctor's departure. Hayden scoots over in his bed, tugging at my shirt to help me up. I climb into the bed, his arms circling around me as I inhale his scent. "I'm here, peanut. I'm okay, I promise."

I look up at him, finally meeting his beautiful eyes, and even though the bruise that's forming around them pains my heart, I'm just so glad to see he's okay. "What did the doctor say?"

He sighs. "It's a concussion. He said I was lucky—apparently that fucking asshole doesn't even know how to headbutt someone."

"I'm going to kill him," I mutter, and Hayden brushes his thumb over my cheek, wiping away the stray tears that just can't seem to stop.

"We'll take care of that when I'm out of here."

I'd argue with him, but I can only nod as I look at him, trying to memorize every little thing about this man. And it seems like he knows what I need, knows what's going on in my head, his thumb tipping up my chin before he brushes his lips against my own. There's a gentleness to this kiss that takes my breath away, and it's like we're in our own space suddenly. A space that survives with our love, with our two souls finding each other, again and again. "I love you so much," I whisper when he leans back, his forehead resting against mine.

"I love you too. So fucking much," he whispers. "Even if it seems like I need new security guards." He raises an eyebrow at me, his green irises dancing with amusement.

"Yeah." I giggle. "Sorry. But they were getting on my nerves." It bothers me they didn't let me in here, solely because we aren't married. Why would that matter? We belong together, married or not.

"You really threatened to punch him, huh?"

"I mean," I correct, "I threatened you'd get him fired for making me punch him."

Shaking his head with a laugh, he asks, "Why didn't they let you in? I only heard half of that."

"Well..." I hesitate at first, not wanting to make a big deal and force this on him. But I know I can't lie to him, either, so I sigh as I explain, "You're a celebrity and all, and they just... They said we'd have to be married. It seems like carrying your baby isn't proof enough that I belong to you."

There's this expression on his face, an expression I cannot read, but I feel him tensing beneath me before he jerks up, his eyes determined and full of fire as he calls out, "Sam!"

Not even a minute later, my dad and Jas walk into the room. "Wait, they can just walk in?" I ask, utterly confused now.

Hayden smirks. "I told the doctor to clear them with security."

"Oh. Okay. That makes sense."

He presses a kiss to my temple before turning toward my dad, who has this stern expression on his face when he studies Hayden, probably taking in his injuries. "Sam, are you still up for that thing I told you about?"

Dad still studies him for a minute, seemingly looking for something until he smiles. "Of course, son."

"Great. Jas, we all good?" Hayden now turns to Jasmine, who just grins and claps her hands.

"Oh, hell yeah! I can't wait."

"Perfect."

"Wait." I interrupt their weird exchange. "What the hell is happening?"

But Hayden just grins at me, that wide-ass grin that always makes my heart tumble. "Wait and see, peanut. Wait and see."