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“Yes.” He smiles again.
“Okay, so what now?” I ask, wiping my nose on the back of my sleeve. “What if he wants it back? I’ve already embarrassed him in front of our closest friends and family.”
“Oh, please. We all know you were just making out for most of that ‘fight’ you had back there,” he declares, using his fingers to make air quotes. “You both came out half-dressed and ruffled.”
I blush. “So what if we were?”
“He’s too far gone to care whether you embarrassed him or not. There’s no way he’s taking that ring back. If he could resist you, he wouldn’t have thrown you up against the wall earlier.”
My eyes widen. “How long were you listening at the door?”
He purses his lips and looks away. “Long enough to overhear what kind of consolation prize you were offering.”
“JD,” I growl.
“You should also know that I’m the one who’s been encouraging him to keep your love life rated PG. I thought it was good advice at the time, but I had no idea you were so thirsty. My bad,” he adds, stifling a smirk.
“You—”
But just then, my stomach tightens in a way that feels different than before. This time, it hurts, and I flinch and hiss through my teeth.
“Are you okay?” JD asks, concerned.
“I don’t know. Something’s not right.” Then I move to shift my position on the couch, and there’s an uncomfortable gush.
“Don’t move,” he says carefully. “I’m going to get Tenley, okay?”
I inhale sharply when another contraction begins. “Okay,” I breathe.
JD glances down, and the look on his face makes me realize the weight of the situation. “I’ll be right back. I promise.”
“Wait, I’m scared. Don’t leave me. I need …” But I can’t finish before another sharp pain shoots through me, this one worse than the last.
“Want me to call your mom? Your sister?” I cringe and shake my head. “Landry?”
“No, I just needhim. Bring him to me, please.”
JD nods, then I close my eyes, feeling sleepy and heavy, despite the pain. I think he must be squeezing my hand, but I might be dreaming. “You’re gonna be okay, Lo. Just hang on, all right?”
“Mm-hmm.” I struggle just to get it out, and JD makes me cringe when he calls out for someone.
Then I hear what sounds like Ethan’s voice in the distance as he yells for help. There’s a commotion, and I vaguely sense Blake coming to my side and whispering to me before I’m lifted up, and everything fades away.
CHAPTER 40
Loren
“Thanks,”I mumble to Blake when he takes the breast pump from me. He brings it into the kitchen, and I watch as he goes through the process of bagging and labeling the milk while I stuff my sad excuse for mammary glands back into my nursing bra. Then I shuffle back to the bathroom to finish getting ready, which basically means I brush my teeth and wash my face before twisting my unwashed hair up and securing it with a clip. I avoid looking at my reflection for too long. It’s easier to pretend the dark circles under my eyes don’t exist than to bother trying to cover them up.
“Ready?” Blake asks from the doorway, and I nod before I stop to grab the two mugs of coffee he fixed from the counter.
He carries the ice chest of milk and sets it carefully in the back seat of my new minivan. I move slowly, buckling my seat belt and gingerly pushing the strap away from my incision, and he reaches out to clasp my hand in between taking sips of coffee as he drives us to the hospital.
We both clip our special NICU-parent IDs onto our shirts before walking hand in hand through the maternity wing. The NICU’s automatic doors swing open after Blake scans his ID badge, and we’re immediately greeted by smiling, familiar faces and a cacophony of steady machine beeps on our way to the hand-wash station.
We scrub our hands meticulously, and one of the nurses takes the cooler of milk before we rush over to a pair of plastic bassinets, each of them displaying a pink “Baby Bourgeois” tag. Both babies are snuggled together in the same bed, clad only in diapers and wires. I reach down to stroke their tiny, fuzzy heads, and they begin squirming and grunting beneath the heat lamp. Blake leans in to pick up the smaller of the two while I sit in a nearby rocker and wait for him to place her on my chest.
“There you are, Princess Pen,” he murmurs as he helps me unbutton my shirt and settle her against my skin. Then I watch carefully while he undoes the top half of his own button-down and tucks the second baby beneath the fabric. “And how are you today, Queen Charlotte?”
