4 & Counting Read online

  4 & Counting

  The Assassins Series

  By Toni Aleo

  TONI ALEO is the author of the Nashville Assassins series: Taking Shots, Trying to Score, Empty Net, and Blue Lines. When not rooting for her beloved Nashville Predators, she’s probably going to her husband’s and son’s hockey games and her daughter’s dance competitions, taking pictures, scrapbooking, or reading the latest romance novel. She lives in the Nashville area with her husband, two children, and a bulldog.

  Even though her feet were killing her, Elli Adler refused to wear anything but heels when she walked through the halls of the Assassins Headquarters. Her momma always said that if you want to be beautiful you got to be able to stand the pain that comes with it, and her bright yellow Jimmy Choos were proving just that. Her husband said she looked great and was adamant her black maternity dress was not too tight. Even though Shea was the love of her life, she didn’t believe him. There wasn’t a thing in her closet that fit right now except for a ratty T-shirt and sweats, and coming to work wearing those would be totally unacceptable. Thank God it wouldn’t be much longer. She knew, in her heart, that her boys were coming any day now.

  Elli’s C-section wasn’t planned for two more weeks but her intuition told her differently. The boys had dropped into position and she felt their intense pressure all the time. One more month and Elli would be full term, but she was sure she was going to deliver early, possibly within the next week. She was sure of that. When she told her new doctor, he all but waved her off, saying she would deliver close to full term.

  She was convinced he was an idiot.

  Walking past her desk, she glanced over at her new assistant. Tabitha was on her phone, like always, tweeting and doing whatever else she always did on that thing. Unfortunately, the best assistant she ever had turned out to be a crook. Janet had been smuggling money from Elli’s close friends, Lucas and Fallon Brooks, and that was just totally wrong on so many levels. After Janet’s dismissal, Elli didn’t have a lot of time to find a replacement, so when the employment agency sent Tabitha over, she really didn’t have much of a choice.

  “Tabitha, do I have any messages?”

  Her assistant’s eyes were still glued to her phone, not sparing Elli a glance, as she muttered, “Nope.”

  Elli glared, “Any emails?”

  “Nope.”

  She wanted to wring the girl’s neck, but instead she calmly said, “Tabitha.”

  “Mmm hmm?”

  Elli waited until finally Tabitha looked up. She was a pretty girl, young, big brown eyes, blonde hair and nicely tanned skin, but Elli was convinced she was dumber than a rock.

  “Pack up your stuff and please leave my office, you are fired.”

  With that, Elli ignored her stunned expression and went back into her office, slamming the door. She went immediately to her phone and called security to escort Tabitha out of the building then fell into her chair, letting out a long breath. Her heart was racing. She hated firing people, but for the last three months, that girl had driven her half past mad. Reaching for her phone again, she called the only person that could make it all better.

  “Hey baby.”

  Shea’s voice was like butter and it still curled her toes.

  “Hey, I fired Tabitha.”

  “Thank God, I was wondering how long she would last, she’s an idiot.”

  “Right? Blah, I’m so tired.”

  “Come home,” he suggested, “I’ll make you feel better.”

  Elli giggled as she closed her eyes. “As much as I would love that, I have to work. Trades are happening, and I have two players that if they don’t get their crap together I’m gonna castrate them.”

  He took in a sharp breath. “Don’t castrate my teammates, sweetheart, it will affect how they play.”

  “Well I don’t care, ‘cause if Phillip and Erik don’t stop parading all over town making me look bad, making the team look bad, they won’t be playing for me anyway.”

  “Okay, so you’re a little angry right now, I think you need to take a deep breath.”

  “Fuck a deep breath, I need a new assistant and I need to call and yell at agents, and look for a couple new forwards and maybe a new defenseman so my husband can stay home and help me raise our four children.”

  Shea let out a groan. “Elli baby, I’m not having this argument with you again. I’m not ready to retire.”

  “Whatever,” she pouted as she leaned against the desk while her boys played hockey in her belly. She didn’t really want him to retire; he loved hockey and she wanted him to do what he loved.

  “Don’t be mad, you’re too beautiful to have your face all scrunched up.”

  God, he knew her so well.

  “Why did I even call you?” she said angrily.

  “’Cause you love me.” She made a face as he continued, “Come on, say it, you know you do.”

  A little grin pulled at her lips before she finally gave in. “Yeah I do.”

  “Told you. Now calm down, take a breath and do what you need to do at the office and then come home. I’ll massage every inch of you before I slowly make love to you. Once I’m done with you, all your frustrations will be gone.”

  Her body heated as he described what he was going to do to her as she leaned back into her chair. “You make it so tempting.”

  “I know, now hurry up. I’ll get everything ready here and I’ll even wait to put the girls down for their naps so we’ll have the afternoon all to ourselves.”

  She let out another deep breath and smiled. “Okay. I’ll be home in a couple hours.”

  “Text me before you come, and Elli,” he said in the low voice that made her squirm.

  “Yes?”

  “I love you.”

  Her heart exploded in her chest as she smiled. “I love you more.”

  “Good, see you soon.”

  She hung up her phone feeling a heck of a lot better, which really was the reason she called. He always calmed her. He always made things better. He was her everything. Shea knew how to handle her, and lately she had been a lot to handle. That’s what happens when you have forty more pounds of babies weighing you down. But Shea seemed to understand that. He was such a good man.

  When she looked down, her phone stared back at her and she groaned. She didn’t want to work. She wanted to go home and be with her husband, but that wasn’t an option at that moment. With another disgruntled noise, she reached for her phone and called Phillip Anderson and Erik Titov’s agent.

  “How is my favorite owner?”

  Elli glared at the phone. She despised Koey Lefeber; he was the slickest agent she dealt with and he always set her on edge. “I have a big problem with your clients and if you don’t get them in line, Mr. Lefeber, we will have even bigger problems.”

  Squiggling around in her chair Elli tried to get the boys comfortable as she listened to Koey’s excuses. He was going to fix everything. She had nothing to worry about. Blah, blah, blah. It was the same thing he had been saying for months. She wished that instead of calling him, she had just gone home as Shea suggested.

  ***

  A few hours later Elli was ready to leave the office and sent a quick text to Shea letting him know she was on her way. Shea texted back asking if she would go to Fallon Brooks’ Cellar and pick up a basket she had waiting for him. Exhausted and anxious to get home, Elli sent a quick text back advising him payment for that little errand was that he’d better rock her world. For a tired pregnant woman the trek down to Fallon’s wine shop was not a quick one. Elli was feeling huge and did not feel like making this detour. She was feeling hippo-huge and, on top of it all, being in these heels was killing her. She stopped in the hall to lean against the wall and sl